D (dē), the fourth letter, is a vocal consonant. It is classed as a dental or hard palate sonant, because made by the point of the tongue against that palate or the front teeth, as in day, fixedness, old. When preceded by a surd in the same syllable, d sounds as t, as in arched, hissed, looked. It is silent in handkerchief, handsome, windrow and the first syllable of Wednesday. The Romans used D as a numeral (500) as well as a letter.