Sounds in English

Consonants and Vowels

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Pronunciation

Recall the pronunciations of the following words. Then go to the Cambridge Pronouncing Dictionary , look up these words, try to pronounce them, and note down their phonemic transcriptions: 1. Tortoise 2. Epitome 3. Pizza 4. Elite 5. Economy 6. Entrepreneur 7. England 8. Restaurant 9. Yacht 10. Tuition 11. Reservoir 12. Cuisine 13. Tomb 14. Bomb 15. Wednesday 16. Onion 17. Debut 18. Debt 19. Pronunciation 20. Develop 21. Honour 22. Singer 23. Indigestion 24. Iron 25. Women 26. Adjacent 27. Lettuce 28. Almond 29. Stomach 30. Gesture 31. Colleague 32. Poem 33. Determine 34. Bicycle 35. Vegetable 36. Jewellery 37. Vehicle 38. February 39. Mosquito 40. Police Words ending with - et Crick et Lock et Bask et   Words ending with - ment Entertain ment Orna ment Enjoy ment   Words (other than verbs) ending with - tain Cer tain Foun tain Cur tain   Words (having at least two syllables) ending with - age Langu age Vill age Cott age (Exceptions: Words borrowed from French: collage, sa...
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A Few Stress Rules in English

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The following are some stress rules. Go to Cambridge Pronouncing Dictionary , look up these words, and observe which syllables are stressed. Rule 1: Verbs of two syllables ending in  -ate  and  -ct  usually take the stress on the ultimate (last) syllable. /nəˈreɪt/ ‘narrate’ /ləʊˈkeɪt/ ‘locate’ /maɪˈɡreɪt/ ‘migrate’ /vaɪˈbreɪt/ ‘vibrate’ /dɪˈbeɪt/ ‘debate’ /kənˈtækt/ ‘contact’ /əˈtrækt/ ‘attract’ /kəˈnekt/ ‘connect’ /dɪˈpɪkt/ ‘depict’ /ɪnˈfekt/ ‘infect’ Rule 2: Words ending in  -ion  have the primary stress on the penultimate syllable. /ˈkwes.tʃən/ ‘question’ /ɪˌmædʒ.ɪˈneɪ.ʃən/ ‘imagination’ /ˌɪn.dɪˈdʒes.tʃən/ ‘indigestion’ /ˌɪn.trəˈdʌk.ʃən/ ‘introduction’ /səˈdʒes.tʃən/ ‘suggestion’ Rule 3: Words ending in  -ic and -ian  are stressed on the penultimate syllable. /ɪˈlek.trɪk/ ‘electric’ /ˌsaɪ.ənˈtɪf.ɪk/ ‘scientific’ /ɑːˈtɪs.tɪk/ ‘artistic’ /ˌpeɪ.trɪˈɒt.ɪk/ ‘patriotic’ /ˌnæʃ.ən.əˈlɪs.tɪk/ ‘nationalistic’ /ɪˌlekˈtrɪʃ.ən...
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Intonation and Rhythm

Read out this paragraph and try to anticipate the tones. Have you ever been to the mountains? They’re so beautiful, aren’t they? Last summer, we visited a small village in the hills. The air was fresh, and the view was amazing. Every morning, we’d wake up to the sound of birds singing. By midday, the sunlight would shine through the trees, making shadows on the ground. It was peaceful, but at night, the wind would howl, and it felt a little scary. Wouldn’t you like to spend a few days there? Practise these sentences in the tones indicated. // ˈhæv ju ˈev.ə ˈbiːn tə ðə ↗maʊn.tɪnz // // ðeə ˈsəʊ ↘ˈbjuː.tə.fəl / ↘ɑːnt ðeɪ // // ˈ lɑːst ↗sʌm.ə / wi ˈvɪz.ɪ.tɪd ə ˈsmɔːl ˈvɪl.ɪdʒ ɪn ðə ↘hɪlz // // ði ˈeə wəz ↗ˈfreʃ / ən ðə ˈvjuː wəz ə↘meɪ.zɪŋ // // ˈ ev.ri ↗mɔː.nɪŋ / wiːd ˈweɪk ˈʌp tə ðə ˈsaʊnd əv ˈbɜːdz ↘sɪŋ.ɪŋ// / baɪ ↘mɪd↗deɪ / ðə ˈsʌn.laɪt wʊd ˈʃaɪn θruː ðə ↗ˈtriːz / ˈmeɪ.kɪŋ ˈʃæd.əʊz ɒn ðə ↘ɡraʊnd // // ɪt wəz ↘piːs↗fəl / bət ət ↗naɪt / ðə ˈwɪnd wʊd ↗haʊl / ən ɪt ˈfelt ə ˈlɪt.l ↘skeə.ri ...
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