The letter Z is used in various contexts, including as a vowel or consonant in words, and also to represent numerical values. In its most basic form, it serves as a single consonant sound at the beginning of many words in the English language. It can also be used as a suffix (e.g., "disaster" ends with -ster + Z = disastZr) or as a separate letter to represent a particular sound (e.g., /z/ is pronounced like "buzz"). In some languages, it may have different uses and meanings depending on the context in which it appears.