3. HTTPS://WWW.SPEECHACTIVE.COM/ENGLIS
H-VOWELS-IPA-INTERNATIONAL-
PHONETIC-ALPHABET/
• The English Vowel Sound IPA symbols (International Phonetic Alphabet)?
English has 20 vowel sounds.
• Short vowels in the IPA are /ɪ/-pit, /e/-pet, /æ/-pat, /ʌ/-cut, /ʊ/-put, /ɒ/-dog, /ə/-
about.
• Long vowels in the IPA are /i:/-week, /ɑ:/-hard,/ɔ:/-fork,/ɜ:/-heard, /u:/-boot.
• Diphthong vowels in the IPA are /eɪ/-place, /oʊ/-home, /aʊ/-mouse, /ɪə/-clear, /eə/-
care, /ɔɪ/-boy, /aɪ/-find, /ʊə/-tour.
4. What’s the difference between a short vowel, a long
vowel, and a diphthong vowel in the IPA in the
dictionary?
When you look at the English Vowel Sounds IPA symbols in the dictionary one
symbol by itself is a short single vowel, two dots like this /:/ after a vowel symbol
mean that it is a long single vowel, and two vowel symbols, one after the other
means a double or diphthong vowel.
5. ENGLISH VOWELS EXAMPLES – IPA SHORT SINGLE
VOWELS
• Vowel Phonetic Symbol & IPA Examples in Words
• /ɪ/ – fit /fit/, pick /pik/, difficult /ˈdɪfɪ.kəlt/
/e/ – pet /pet/, sent /sent/, attention /əˈten.ʃən/
/æ/ – pat /pæt/, flat /flæt/, family /ˈfæ.mə.li/
/ʌ/ – cut /kʌt/ jump /dʒʌmp/, cover /ˈkʌ.vər/
/ʊ/ – put /pʊt/, book /bʊk/, cushion /ˈkʊ.ʃən/
/ɒ/ – pot /pɒt/, dog /dɒg/, hospital /ˈhɒs.pɪ.təl/
/ə/ – about /əˈbaʊt/, system /ˈsɪs.təm/, complete /kəmˈpliːt/.
6. VOWELS
Vowel sounds (A, E, I, O, U) and diphthongs are all voiced.
• The vowel chart is a diagram to understand vowel sounds. It tries to
represent where the tongue lies in relation to the openness of the mouth
when you produce a vowel. So the front closed vowel /i:/ means that your
tongue is in a forward position in the mouth, which is in a relatively closed
position. Try saying it to yourself and then contrast it with the open-back
sound in the diagram.
10. CONSONANTS
What are the 24 consonants?
English has 24 consonant sounds. Some consonants have voice from the voice box and some don’t.
1- Voiced Consonants
If you feel a vibration the consonant is a voiced one. These are the voiced consonants:
B, D, G, J, L, M, N, Ng, R, Sz, Th (as in the word "then"), V, W, Y, and Z.
2- Voiceless Consonant
These are Voiceless Sounds: ch, h, f, k, p, s, sh, t, th.
11. VOICED / VOICELESS
• All sounds are either voiced or voiceless.
• Voiced sounds
VS are those that make our vocal chords vibrate when they are produced.
Voiceless sounds are produced from air passing through the mouth at different points.
12. VOICELESS CONSONANTS
• Voiceless consonants do not use the vocal cords to produce their hard, percussive sounds.
Instead, they're slack, allowing air to flow freely from the lungs to the mouth, where the tongue,
teeth, and lips engage to regulate the sound.
• These are the voiceless consonants: Ch, F, K, P, S, Sh, T, and Th (as in "thing"). Common words
using them include:
• washed
• coats
• watched
• books
• seats
13. VOICED CONSONANTS
Your vocal cords, which are actually mucous membranes, stretch across the larynx at the back of the throat. By tightening and relaxing as you speak, the vocal cords regulate the flow of breath expelled from the
lungs.
Activity:
An easy way to determine whether a consonant is voiced or not is to place a finger on your throat. As you pronounce a letter, feel the vibration of your vocal cords. If you feel a
vibration the consonant is a voiced one.
• These are the voiced consonants: B, D, G, J, L, M, N, Ng, R, Sz, Th (as in the word "then"), V, W, Y, and Z.
• Here are some examples of words that include voiced consonants:
• traveled
• gloves
• shells
• started
• changed
15. HTTPS://WWW.SPEECHACTIVE.COM/ENGLISH-
CONSONANTS-IPA-INTERNATIONAL-PHONETIC-
ALPHABET/
• Diphthongs
• A sound formed by the combination of two vowels in a single syllable, in which the
sound begins as one vowel and moves towards another (as in coin, loud, and side ).
• Diphthongs contrast with
• Monophthongs, where the tongue or other speech organs do not move and the
syllable contains only a single vowel sound. For instance, in English, the word ah is
spoken as a monophthong (/ɑː/,
• While the word ow is spoken as a diphthong in most varieties (/aʊ/).
16. GILDING VOWELS
• A single vowel, such as the “O” or “I” in “oil” is called a monophthong (mono for
one, di for two). An example of a monophthong is the “O” in “hop.” But, when we
move from one vowel sound to another, such as the “oi” in “oil,” it’s called gliding.
17. VOICING
• Voice or voicing is a term used in phonetics and phonology to characterize speech sounds (usually consonants).
Speech sounds can be described as either voiceless (otherwise known as unvoiced) or voiced.
Voiced Phonemes:
• As you pronounce a letter, feel the vibration of your vocal cords. If you feel a vibration the consonant
is a voiced one. These are the voiced consonants: B, D, G, J, L, M, N, Ng, R, Sz, Th (as in the word
"then"), V, W, Y, and Z.
• A voiced sound is one in which the vocal cords vibrate, and a voiceless sound is one in which they do
not. Voicing is the difference between pairs of sounds such as [s] and [z] in English. If one places the
fingers on the voice box (ie the location of the Adam's apple in the upper throat), one can feel
a vibration when one pronounces zzzz, but not when one pronounces ssss.
18. CHANGING VOICE
• When consonants are put in groups, they can change the vocal quality of the consonant that follows. A great example is the past simple form of regular
verbs. You can recognize these verbs because they end in "ed." However, the consonant sound of this ending can change from voiced to voiceless,
depending on the consonant or vowel that precedes it. In almost all cases, the E is silent. Here are the rules:
• If the "ed" is preceded by a voiceless consonant such as K, it should be pronounced as a voiceless T. Examples: parked, barked,
marked
• If the "ed" is preceded by a voiced consonant sound such as B or V, it should be pronounced as a voiced D. Examples: robbed,
thrived, shoved
• If the "ed" is preceded by a vowel sound, it should be pronounced as a voiced D because vowels are always voiced. Examples: freed,
fried, lied
• Exception: If the "ed" is preceded by T, it should be pronounced a voiced "id" sound. In this case, the "e" is pronounced. Examples:
dotted, rotted, plotted
• This pattern can also be found with plural forms. If the consonant preceding the S is voiced, the S will be pronounced phonetically
as a Z. Examples: chairs, machines, bags
• If the consonant preceding the S is voiceless, then the S also will be pronounced as a voiceless consonant. Examples: bats, parks,
pipes.
19. TRIPHTHONGS
• There are glides not only from one pure vowel to another but also from the second vowel to
the third, so three pure vowels are involved.
• a phonological unit consisting of three successive vocalic sounds in one syllable.
23. ASPIRATION
• Aspiration is a phonological process that we use in English to alter the
sound of /p/ and other voiceless stops. Alterations are often made in order to
make the words easier for the speaker to articulate, or for the listener to hear, and
as a result, are considered more efficient.
1.to articulate (a speech sound, especially a stop) so as to produce an audible puff of breath, as
with the first t of total, the second t being unaspirated.
2.to articulate (the beginning of a word or syllable) with an h-sound, as in which, pronounced
(hwich), or hitch as opposed to witch or itch.
24. MINIMAL PAIR
• In phonology and phonetics, the term minimal pair refers to two words that differ in only one sound, such as hit
and hid. The words in a minimal pair have completely different, often unrelated definitions. Minimal pairs are useful to
linguists because they provide insight into how sound and meaning coexist in language.
What are minimal pairs examples?
A minimal pair or close pair consists of two words with sounds that are very similar but
have different meanings. For example, rot and lot may sound similar, especially to some
non-native English speakers
A minimal pair is two words that vary by only a single sound, usually meaning
sounds that may confuse English learners, like the /f/ and /v/ in fan and van, or the
/e/ and /ɪ/ in desk and disk.