Larynx is also known as voice box. It is at the upper end of the windpipe. Two vocal cords are stretched across the voice box or larynx in such a way that it leaves a narrow slit between them for passage of air Fig. When lung force air through the slit, the vocal cords vibrate, producing sound. Muscles attached to the vocal cords can make the cords tight or loose.

When the vocal cords are tight and thin, the type or quality of voice is different from that when they are loose and thick.