A bird does^/z/n’t s^/s/ing becaus^/z/e it has^/z/ an ans^/s/wer, it s^/s/ings^/z/ becaus^/z/e it has^/z/ a s^/s/ong
Maya Angelou

The letter s is sometimes pronounced as a /z/ sound and sometimes as a /s/ sound. When s follows a consonant, there are rules for pronunciation, but when it follows a vowel there are no rules—so it’s best to just memorize the exceptions. Studying the four basic rules below will also be helpful to you.

Warning: Common Mistake

The letter z is never pronounced as an /s/ sound. If your native language is Spanish, compare the way Americans pronounce common Spanish last names (such as “Gomez” or “Alvarez”) with the way you pronounce them in Spanish.