s or z?

Does one say s or z?

The following words are pronounced with an S sound and not a Z sound.

listen
absolutely
exciting
price
recently
race

It is not

lizen
abzolutely
eggziting
prize
rezently
raze
Content as a noun has the accent placed on the first syllable.

Have you checked the `contents page?
I don’t think much of the `content. It will have to be re-written.

Content as a verb or adjective has the accent placed on the second syllable.

I am con`tent with life.
Are you con`tent with your raise?

Soft Skills tips:

1. When you are listening on the phone, make sure that you are making your speaker understand that you are listening. You can do this by saying, “Yes, that’s right”; “Ok”; “Interesting”; “Yes, I follow you”, etc. etc. Otherwise the speaker has to ask, “Are you there?”

2. When you pick up the phone and someone asks, “May I speak to Mohan, please?” don’t reply with a “Yes.” The Yes can mean, “Yes, you can speak to Mohan,” or it could also meaning, “Yes, this is Mohan.” So instead say, “This is Mohan speaking.”

3. If the call is not for you and is for your colleague who is not present, ask the following: “May I know who is speaking? Could I have your telephone number please? May I take a message?” Do not put down the receiver with a mere, “He is not there!”