Sounds in English and their pronunciation. English sounds

It seemed like an impenetrable jungle with 26 dangerous predators hiding in the wilds. However, now you will probably easily name and place all the letters in the correct order, and you will also show off several facts that not every philologist knows.

After reading this article, the topic of English transcription and pronunciation will be moved from the room of fear to the room of laughter. Today on the program:

Getting rid of the fear of reading and learning graphic symbols
. acquaintance, memorization and learning of diphthongs, vowels and consonants (classification of sounds), arranged in unique tables
. pause to download and print English transcriptions in pictures
. a clear and concise explanation of the use of English sounds by comparing them with their Russian relatives
. reinforcement of the material covered with a 10-minute video about English transcription

Are you still afraid? Then we are coming to you!

Graphic transcription symbols in English

Before you plunge headlong into the maelstrom of English reading, we strongly recommend that you listen to the advice of experienced divers. Naturally, a child learns to sit first and then walk, and not vice versa - the same thing awaits us: first learn to read the transcription, and then pronounce it (in the head or out loud). You should not get carried away only by reading, otherwise you risk burying yourself in the wilds of theory and breaking away from practice.

First you need to learn and clarify all the questions regarding each transcription symbol. Then listen online to exactly as many examples as you need to clearly understand how a given symbol sounds in real speech. Learn strictly from examples not of sounds taken out of context (like Rian’s “uh-uh” in the hit “Umbrella”), but from specific letter combinations found in words. Next, listen to each new word first and only then compare what you hear with your ears with the alphabetic dictionary transcription enclosed in square brackets. By the way, about them and other integral companions of transcription:

Square brackets. They signal that what is inside is transcription.
For example, English is a word, and ["ɪŋglɪʃ] is its transcription;

‘ - main emphasis. Placed BEFORE the stressed vowel: around [əˈraʊnd];

, - secondary stress. Placed BEFORE a vowel: ["hæmˌbɜːgə];

: - vowel length.

The proposed option may not seem the fastest at first glance, but the wise man will not go up the mountain - the wise man will go around the mountain. As a result, the time spent is converted into comfortable speech perception: you no longer need to painfully strain your hearing, trying to recognize unfamiliar sounds. And soon the unfamiliar “squiggles” will acquire a meaningful sound. Isn't it magical? This is the secret of not only correct pronunciation, but also ease of listening comprehension.

English Transcription Foundation

Since “it’s great that we’re all here today” about studying transcription, let’s take a closer look at it. Transcription is of two types: phonetic and phonemic. You are mistaken if you think that you have taught/will learn phonetic transcription, which is more familiar to the ear. As a rule, it interests serious linguists; our choice is the study of phonemes (sound language units). Simply put, if two sounds are very similar, but the difference between them can change the meaning of the word, then they form two different phonemes. In Russian this is not so noticeable, because even if you call a cat “kot” or “coooooot”, he will still come, but the meaning of the word will not change. One phoneme for two different sounds. The number will not work in English: “cot”, “caught” and “coat” contain different phonemes. Why so many “smart letters”? Besides the fact that dictionaries contain phonemic transcriptions, remember this and do not allow yourself to be confused:

Pope(dad, papal):
1) is a phonetic transcription, here it is emphasized that the first [p], unlike the second, is pronounced with aspiration (aspiration after the consonant sounds p,t,k before vowels);
2) is a dictionary (phonemic) transcription.

What else do you need to know about transcription? That there are different syllables in it:

- open(there is no consonant after a vowel) - New
- closed(after a vowel there is a consonant) - York

- vowel: single - [e], diphthong - [ɔʊ], triphthong - [ɑiə]
- consonant:[d]

Vowel sounds of English (with online pronunciation)

There are fewer vowel sounds in English than consonants, but more than diphthongs. This picture clearly shows the difference, for example, between the sounds [I] and . Anyone who has even heard of the existence of imagination will recognize the words “fish” and “tree”, which, like puzzles, contain the mentioned sounds. You can re-read the rules as much as you like, or you can once study in detail the transcription in pictures, which visualizes examples of the use of sounds. To train your memory, you can download and even print the picture; this option is provided. For auditory learners, it is possible to hear every sound online in a word after clicking on the speaker icon.

Consonant sounds of English

Consonant sounds in English are not at all twin brothers to Russian. The articulation of their creation is seriously different. However, we are not here to intimidate with clever words, but rather to make life easier for beginning English lovers, so we colored the voiced consonants purple, and the voiceless consonants blue. When forming the same plural of a noun, it is very important to feel and know the difference. 24 new words serve as a bonus to the learned sounds. We train visual memory and save English transcription in pictures for repeated reference at the first need! Audience learners still click on the speaker icon under each letter to pronounce sounds in online transcription.

Diphthongs (double vowel sounds) of English

And it would be scary to have 8 diphthongs in English if it weren’t for the wonderful pictures, thanks to which learning turns into an entertaining solving of charades. Just look at the picture, hold your gaze, sound the diphthong by pressing the speaker icon under the letter and practice correct pronunciation. Everyone who appreciates the creative approach to business is allowed to download the picture for a long memory!

From theory to practice
Some time will pass, the dictionary will be covered with a thick layer of dust or will be removed from bookmarks (in the electronic version), because the translation of the necessary words is known, the sound is familiar - what other America can you discover there? Believe it or not, it is the clarification of the transcription of words that seem well known to you that is the very unplowed field that is worth crossing over to improve the sound of speech.

Let's give an everyday example: the frequently used word “real” has a phonemic transcription a) , b) or c)?
The first option is fictitious and erroneous, the second and third are British and American pronunciation styles. What is the moral of this fable?

So that you do not feel painfully ashamed of your reading, we recommend that you at least briefly familiarize yourself with these tables as follows:
- read the line from left to right;
- listen to the perfect pronunciation of the sound;
- take a mirror in your hand and practice hard (you will probably enjoy practicing [æ] or [ð]).

Table of English sounds similar to Russian
These sounds in English transcription do not have to be explained on your fingers.

Now let's look at some tricky examples in practice:

subtle - barely perceptible
“Sattle” and only that, no “subtle” with a drum “b” in the middle.

palm - palm
Naturally, everyone wants to be under a palm tree, but there is no smell of it here. Not “palm”, not “po:lm”, but “pa:m”, as in “car” and “path”. In company with a palm they find themselves calm- “calm” and balm- "balm".

halt - stop
Banish the analogy with the German “halt” - the correct pronunciation is “ho:lt”.

won - won, won in the past from “win”
Wonderful if you pronounce "won" like "one" - .

of - preposition of belonging
Only a botanist would think of checking the sound of a two-letter word? Oh well. "Of" and no nails? Remember: "Of" is pronounced with a "v" at the end. The full form is [ɔv], the reduced form is [əv]. Always.

Table of English sounds that have something in common with Russian
These sounds cause the greatest temptation and at the same time danger: the relative similarity with the usual pronunciation in Russian threatens to sound completely incorrect. Pay enough attention and understand the differences well.

were - were
“Were” is not at all the same thing as “where” - . Instead of a diphthong, we use the neutral vowel - , the shortened form - .

debt - debt and doubt - doubt
Fans of the group “No Doubt” have had more than a dozen years to figure out how correct the name of their favorite group sounds. "Debt" and "daubt" are not so easy to pronounce. In English there is no such Russian-language phenomenon as deafening or voicing of a consonant, but throw away the letter of their words for a dear soul: it is pronounced and .

good - good, book - book and look - watch
The double "o" does not turn into a long "u" in these words. Therefore, you should not copy the howl of wolves at the moon - say it correctly with a short vowel - , , .

Table of English sounds that have nothing in common with Russian
Practice pronouncing these sounds well online; at a minimum, your speech apparatus should get used to playing them correctly.

folk - people, folk
The letter “l” has become a victim and is not pronounced at all - .

comb - comb
No “comb” - only “com”. The English “m” and “b” are quite insidious guys who will mess things up more than once. Be on the lookout!

won’t - won’t - short for “will not”
Have you been tormented by the question of how the cunning English distinguish between “want” and “won’t” in spoken language? You just have to pronounce the negation in the future tense correctly - . That's all the magic.

salmon - salmon
Not “salmon” and certainly not “solomon”. Salmon is on your mind - as in “cat” and “apple”.

Bonus for the most patient

The human brain is the eighth wonder of the world, the deep capabilities of which we can only guess at now. Something important for us is now known for sure: the brain has a speech center. There is no special center responsible for reading, but there is one for speech. That's why we strongly recommend repeating the words out loud for the hundredth time. Exactly out loud, and not silently, because in this case muscle memory is also involved. Naturally, words can “live and resound” in your head. The main thing is not to get stuck and stop at the stage of decoding transcription symbols, selecting the necessary rule for each sound. In this case, only a snail's speed is guaranteed.

If the language is still alive after previous exercises, then we bring to your attention a video that is better to see once than to hear about it 100 times. The entire phonetic transcription of the English language in 10 minutes. Clear, competent and very visual.

We continue our lessons on teaching reading in English. On the sign on the left, green arrows indicate sounds that we have already passed. Since we have studied almost all consonants, in this lesson we will repeat 8 studied vowel sounds to consolidate their pronunciation. There are only 4 consonant sounds left. Sounds [ r] And [ w] We go through this lesson, and the sounds [j] and [ŋ] in the next one. So, let's begin!

In Lesson #14 you will learn:

• how to read english consonants Rr And Ww;
• how to read letter combinations wr, wh, rh, er/or,

Let's start with pronouncing sounds, and then move on to reading letter combinations.

So the letter Ww represents a sound in writing [w]. Letter Rr represents a sound in writing [r]. Both sounds are quite complex, because there are no similar sounds in the Russian language.

Mouth exercise which will help you learn to pronounce English sounds [w]: stretch your lips into a tube, as if you want to blow out a candle, and then sharply move the corners of your mouth to the sides, as if in a smile. And so many times: tube - smile, tube - smile, tube - smile...

Pronunciation of the English sound [w]. Now that your mouth is prepared, let's start pronouncing the sound. Pull your lips out for a moment, as if you want to pronounce the sound “u”, and when you begin to pronounce “u”, immediately smile sharply. You will get a sound a little like “v”.

Actually the sound [w] The letters “u” and “v” are very often rendered in Russian. Even in official sources the name William is spelled either William or William. Because there is NO such sound in the Russian language.

If you don't quite understand how to pronounce the English sound yet [w] correctly, then pronounce it as a short “u”, but in no case as a “v”.

Please note again that when you pronounce “u” your lips are rounded and NOT touching your teeth, the same position of your lips should be maintained when pronouncing the sound [w].

When pronouncing the sound “v”, the upper teeth touch the lower lip. This shouldn't happen!

How to pronounce the English sound [r] correctly?

I will say right away that this is a very complex sound. At least it was like that for me.

What you need to do to pronounce an English sound [r] correct and How does English [r] differ from Russian “r”?

• When pronouncing a sound [r] can come from sound [ʒ], which you already know how to pronounce. Only the tip of the tongue needs to be bent even further back ring.
• The tip of the tongue when pronouncing a sound [r] located in the back of the upper palate, the tongue does not shake. It looks like a burry “r” sound.
• When pronouncing the Russian sound “r”, the tongue shakes at the upper teeth: “pppp-pp-p...”

Listen to how sounds [w] and [r] are pronounced correctly —

Reading letter combinations with the sound R: wr, rh, er/or

2. Letter combinations er, or at the end the words are read as [ə] : sister, doctor, etc.

3. wr, rh reads like [r]: wr ist - wrist, rh ythm [‘rɪð(ə)m], as well as in such common words that we do not yet know how to read: wr ite (to write), wr ong (wrong)

Reading letter combinations with the sound W: wh

1. wh read as [w]: wh at - What, as well as in such common words that we do not yet know how to read: wh y (why), wh ite (white), wh ile (while).

Exception. Wh before o reads like [h]: wh o (who), wh ose (whose)

2. At the end of a word w unreadable: slo w

Phonetic exercises for practicing sounds [w] and [r] with audio recording (closed content)

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Description: Access to a course of lessons on teaching reading in English and pronunciation at the same time. Author T.V. Nabeeva

Word combinations with sounds [w] and [r] for practicing during the week:

1. What? - What?
2. When? - When?
3. Very well. - Very good.
4. The weather is terrible. — The weather is terrible.
5. We will see. - We will think about it.
6. What did she see? - What did she see?
7. He's sorry. - He's sorry.
8. We are ready. - We are ready.
9. Get well! - Get better!
10. Keep in touch. - We'll be in touch.

Consonants In languages, phoneticians (people who study the sounds of the human voice) divide them into two types: voiced and voiceless. Voiced consonants require the use of the vocal cords; voiceless consonants do not. Both types of sounds use the breath, lips, teeth, and upper palate to modify speech. This article will help you understand the differences between voiced and voiceless consonants in English and give you some tips on how to use them.

Voiced consonants

Our vocal cords, which are actually mucous membranes, extend through the larynx at the back of the throat. By tensing and relaxing as we speak, the vocal cords modulate the flow of breath from the lungs.

An easy way to determine whether a consonant is voiced or not is to place your finger in your throat. When you pronounce a sound, feel the vibration of your vocal cords. If you feel vibration, then the sound is ringing.

Voiced consonants: B, D, G, J, L, M, N, Ng, R, Sz, Th(as in the word then ),V, W, Y and Z. But if the consonants are only individual letters, what is Ng , Sz And Th ? These are sounds that are produced by mixing two consonants phonetically. As we already wrote in the article, Shakespeare's language has more sounds than letters in the alphabet.

Here are some examples of words that include voiced consonants:

traveled, gloves, shells, started, changed, wheels, lived, dreams, exchanged, globes, phones, listened, organized

Voiceless consonants

Voiceless consonants: Ch, F, K, P, S, Sh, T and Th(as in the word think ).
Examples of voiceless consonants:

washed, coats, watched, books, seats, dropped, cars

Vowels

Vowel sounds ( A, E, I, O, U) and diphthongs (a combination of two vowel sounds) are all voiced. The same goes for letters Y when it's pronounced long e. Examples:

city, city, gritty.

Changing the sonority of consonants

When consonants are placed in groups - words, phrases, sentences - then these groups can change the sonority of subsequent consonants. An excellent example of this is , that is, those verbs that end in ed . The consonant sound of this ending can vary from voiced to voiceless, depending on the consonant or vowel that precedes it. In all cases e not pronounced. Here are the rules:

• If — ed preceded by a voiceless consonant such as k, it should be pronounced as voiceless t. Examples:

  parked, barked, marked

• If — ed preceded by a voiced consonant such as b or v, it should be pronounced as voiced d. Examples:

  robbed, thrived, shoved

• If -ed preceded by a vowel sound, it should also be pronounced as voiced d, because vowels are always voiced. Examples:

  freed, fried, lied

• Exception: if -ed preceded t, it should be loud -id sound. In this case it is pronounced e. Examples:

  dotted, rotted, plotted

The situation is the same with plural nouns in English. If the consonant preceding s, will be voiced, then s should be pronounced as z. Examples:

chairs, machines, bags

If the consonant preceding s, deaf, then s will also be a voiceless consonant. Examples:

bats, parks, pipes

Related speech

In connected speech, the last consonants in a word can change depending on the words that follow them.

Here is an example of a voiced change b in a word "club" to the point of deafness p because of the voiced to, following it:
We went to the club to meet some friends .

And here is an example of a voiced transition d in the middle of nowhere t in the past tense of the verb due to the following voiceless t in a word tennis :
We played tennis yesterday afternoon .

There are 26 letters in the English language. In different combinations and positions they represent 44 sounds.
In the English language, there are 24 consonant sounds, and they are represented in writing by 20 letters: Bb; Cc; Dd; Ff; Gg ; Hh; Jj; Kk; LI; mm; Nn; Pp; Qq; Rr; Ss; Tt; Vv; Ww; Xx; Zz.
In the English language, there are 12 vowel sounds and 8 diphthongs, and they are represented in writing by 6 letters: Aa; Ee; li; Oo; Uu; Yy.

Video:

[English language. Beginner course. Maria Rarenko. First educational channel.]

Transcription and stress

Phonetic transcription is an international system of symbols used to show exactly how words should be pronounced. Each sound is shown with a separate icon. These icons are always written in square brackets.
The transcription indicates verbal stress (which syllable in the word the stress falls on). Accent mark [‘] placed before the stressed syllable.

English consonants

Features of English consonants
1. English consonants expressed by letters b, f, g, m, s, v, z, are close in pronunciation to the corresponding Russian consonants, but should sound more energetic and intense.
2. English consonants are not softened.
3. Voiced consonants are never deafened - neither before voiceless consonants, nor at the end of a word.
4. Double consonants, that is, two identical consonants next to each other, are always pronounced as one sound.
5. Some English consonants are pronounced aspirated: the tip of the tongue must be pressed firmly against the alveoli (the tubercles where the teeth are attached to the gums). Then the air between the tongue and teeth will pass with force, and the result will be a noise (explosion), that is, aspiration.

Rules for reading consonant letters in English: ,

English vowel sounds

The reading of each vowel depends on:
1. from other letters standing next to it, in front of it or behind it;
2. from being in a shock or non-stress position.

Rules for reading vowels in English: ,

When studying English, we try to speak more and faster, form thoughts, and expand our vocabulary, but we often forget about such an important aspect of the language as pronunciation. And the point is not at all in the accent, but in understanding the differences between the sound system of the Russian and English languages.

As you know, in the system of sounds of the English language there are sounds similar to the sounds of the Russian language, there are those that are different and those that are completely absent in Russian.

Many people try to make their speech more “English” by highlighting characteristic “English” sounds in their speech, such as /r/ and /w/, pronunciation of the sounds /t/ and /d/ “aspirated”. But it often happens that the desire to sound “English” has a negative impact on our pronunciation.

I decided to touch on the topic of sounds because I increasingly notice that in speech some sounds are replaced by others. This article will focus on sounds /v/ And /w/ .

Having mastered the pronunciation of the sound /w/ (which does not exist in Russian), many begin to use it in words where they should pronounce the sound /v/, which is an analogue of Russian.

Yes, for us these two sounds are really similar, because when learning a foreign language we subconsciously look for analogies and find them. They are written in a similar way, and it seems to us that they are pronounced the same and there is not much difference between them.

This is a big misconception. To a foreigner's ear, the sounds /v/ and /w/ are completely different sounds. It is quite strange for them to hear another sound instead of one, especially since this can affect the meaning of the words. So it turns out that instead of visit we say wisit, very turns into wery, vase into wase.

Do you use /v/ and /w/ sounds correctly? Let's check!

Sound /w/

As already noted, this sound does not exist in the Russian language. But, oddly enough, there are no problems with it. It is usually pronounced correctly.

/w/ is pronounced with a “round” lip that you extend as if you want to make an O sound, but say a sound similar to a V. The result is something between a V and a U. Let's practice:

When, while, weather, worm, which, word, warm, winter, woman, week, awaiting, awake, award

Sound /v/

The letter "v" conveys the sound /v/. When pronouncing this sound, the lips do not round. To pronounce it, you need to touch your upper teeth to your lower lip.

This is a voiced sound and has a corresponding unvoiced sound /f/. To make sure that the sound is pronounced loudly, touch your throat with your hand and you will feel the vibration of the vocal cords.

In general, there is no point in describing the entire technology of sound pronunciation; it would be easier to say that it is pronounced like the Russian sound V. Without any rounding of the lips and “English pronunciation”. Try to pronounce these words, but do not round your lips, pronounce them as in Russian:

Very, vary, various, variety, vibration, voice, village, video, vampire.

If you still do not feel the difference between the sounds, then it is best to practice in front of a mirror.

First, pronounce the familiar Russian sound B, paying attention to how you pronounce it and where your lips and teeth are.

Then round your lips and watch how you pronounce the /w/ sound. Teeth do not take part in his pronunciation at all. Let's practice pronouncing a couple of words:

West-vest
vet-wet
vow - wow
vile - while
veil - wail
veal-wheel
vine-wine
viper - wiper
rowing - rowing
worse-verse
wiser-visor

Now let's try to pronounce sounds in sentences:

Victor's wife Victoria was very wise.

It was very warm weather all weekend.

I will wear my valuable watch next week.

When will Vick weigh and deliver the veal?

We were involved in Vivian's wedding plans.

We never view or watch videos on Wednesdays.

In addition, in order to develop the correct pronunciation, you need to regularly practice the pronunciation of sounds and bring their pronunciation to automaticity. So-called Tongue Twisters are perfect for this - tongue twisters aimed at developing articulation, that is, pronunciation. They often lack deep meaning, so if you decide to translate them, don’t be surprised.

Practice pronouncing these tongue twisters, paying attention to the pronunciation of the /v/ and /w/ sounds. At first it may seem to you that you will break your tongue, so first read very slowly, then faster, and so on several times until you bring the pronunciation to automaticity:

Vivian, Valerie, and Virginia verbally voiced vivid salvos.

Wise women don't walk in the woods while wolves wander.

Woodson's waistcoat is weirdly vented.

Groves of vines veered west along the villain's veranda.

Wendell Vaccario wasted vine after vine.

Woolen vests for wailing wolves are worn in the vast woodlands.

Varied berries are wetted while Val and Walt whisper in vain.

Mervin never drivels when vexing wooing vendors.

Walt's villa is verging on the weird and vile.

And finally, a useful video on the pronunciation of /v/ and /w/ sounds:

If you notice that you are pronouncing sounds incorrectly, then do not rush to get upset. With practice, you will definitely improve your pronunciation. To do this, you need to listen more to the pronunciation of native speakers (radio, films, programs) and of course, talk!

If you have been wanting to start learning English for a long time, now is the time to start. The conversation course is best for developing pronunciation. Sign up now and have fun learning!