Sounds for english alphabets

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With this alphabet chart, understand how to say the names of the letters and read about all the sounds of each letter from the alphabet. These are the basic phonetic sounds for American English. To learn important sounds using free videos online, go to Pronunciation in English: 500 Words.

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The sounds of English and the International Phonetic Alphabet

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© Tomasz P. Szynalski, Antimoon.com This chart contains all the sounds (phonemes) used in the English language. For each sound, it gives: The symbol from the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA), as used in phonetic transcriptions in modern dictionaries for English learners — that is, in A. C. Gimson’s phonemic system with a few additional symbols. The chart represents British and American phonemes with one symbol. One symbol can mean two different phonemes in American and British English. See the footnotes for British-only and American-only symbols. Two English words which use the sound. The underline shows where the sound is heard. The links labeled AM and BR play sound recordings where the words are pronounced in American and British English. The British version is given only where it is very different from the American version. To print the chart, use the printable PDF version. 1. Almost all dictionaries use the e symbol for the vowel in bed. The problem with this convention is that e in the IPA does not stand for the vowel in bed; it stands for a different vowel that is heard, for example, in the German word Seele. The “proper” symbol for the bed-vowel is ɛ (do not confuse with ɜ:). The same goes for eə vs. ɛə. 2. In əʳ and ɜ:ʳ, the ʳ is not pronounced in BrE, unless the sound comes before a vowel (as in answering, answer it). In AmE, the ʳ is always pronounced, and the sounds are sometimes written as ɚ and ɝ. 3. In AmE, ɑ: and ɒ are one vowel, so calm and cot have the same vowel. In American transcriptions, hot is written as hɑ:t. 4. About 40% of Americans pronounce ɔ: the same way as ɑ:, so that caught and cot have the same vowel. See cot-caught merger. 5. In American transcriptions, ɔ: is often written as ɒ: (e.g. law = lɒ:), unless it is followed by r, in which case it remains an ɔ:. 6. In British transcriptions, oʊ is usually represented as əʊ. For some BrE speakers, oʊ is more appropriate (they use a rounded vowel) — for others, the proper symbol is əʊ. For American speakers, oʊ is usually more accurate. 7. In eəʳ ɪəʳ ʊəʳ, the r is not pronounced in BrE, unless the sound comes before a vowel (as in dearest, dear Ann). In AmE, the r is always pronounced, and the sounds are often written as er ɪr ʊr. 8. All dictionaries use the r symbol for the first sound in red. The problem with this convention is that r in the IPA does not stand for the British or American r; it stands for the “hard” r that is heard, for example, in the Spanish word rey or Italian vero. The “proper” symbol for the red-consonant is ɹ. The reason r is used instead is that it’s easier to type and read. 9. In American English, t is often pronounced as a flap t, which sounds like d or (more accurately) like the quick, hard r heard e.g. in the Spanish word pero. For example: letter. Some dictionaries use the t ̬ symbol for the flap t. special symbols IPA what it means ˈ The vertical line (ˈ) is used to show word stress. It is placed before the stressed syllable in a word. For example, /ˈkɒntrækt/ is pronounced like this, and /kənˈtrækt/ like that. Word stress is explained in our article about phonetic transcription. ʳ ʳ means that r is always pronounced in American English, but not in British English. For example, if we write that far is pronounced /fɑ:ʳ/, we mean that it is pronounced /fɑ:r/ in American English, and /fɑ:/ in British English. However, in BrE, r will be heard if ʳ is followed by a vowel. For example, far gone is pronounced /ˈfɑ: ˈgɒn/ in BrE, but far out is pronounced /ˈfɑ: ˈraʊt/. i i is usually pronounced like a shorter version of i:, but sometimes (especially in an old-fashioned British accent) it can sound like ɪ. Examples: very /ˈveri/, create /kriˈeɪt/, previous /ˈpri:viəs/, ability /əˈbɪlɪti/. əl əl represents either a syllabic l or, less commonly, əl. Syllabic l is an l which acts as a vowel and forms a syllable, as in little /ˈlɪtəl/, uncle /ˈʌŋkəl/. Instead of əl, some dictionaries use a regular l, as in /ˈlɪtl/. ən ən represents either a syllabic n or, less commonly, ən. Syllabic n is an n which acts as a vowel and forms a syllable, as in written /ˈrɪtən/, listen /ˈlɪsən/. Instead of ən, some dictionaries use a regular n, as in /ˈrɪtn/. Does this chart list all the sounds that you can hear in British and American English? No. This page contains symbols used in phonetic transcriptions in modern dictionaries for English learners. It does not list all the possible sounds in American or British English. For example, this page does not list the regular t (heard in this pronunciation of letter) and the flap t (heard in this one) with separate symbols. It groups them under a single symbol: t. (In other words, it groups a number of similar sounds under a single phoneme, for simplicity. To understand how sounds are grouped into phonemes, read the article on phonemic transcription.) So this page actually lists phonemes (groups of sounds), not individual sounds. Each symbol in the chart can correspond to many different (but similar) sounds, depending on the word and the speaker’s accent. Take the phoneme p in the above chart. It occurs in the phonemic transcriptions of pin /pɪn/ and spin /spɪn/. In pin, this phoneme is pronounced with aspiration (breathing). This “aspirated p” sound has its own special symbol in the IPA: pʰ. In spin, the phoneme is pronounced “normally”; this “normal p” sound is represented by p in the IPA. So the p phoneme represents two sounds: p and pʰ. (This can be confusing, because p can mean both the p phoneme and the p sound.) Typing the phonetic symbols You won’t find phonetic symbols on your computer’s keyboard. How do you type them in a Word document, e-mail message, or SRS collection? You can use my free IPA phonetic keyboard at ipa.typeit.org. It enables you to type your transcriptions online, and copy & paste them to your document. This works well if you type phonetic transcriptions occasionally. However, if you do it frequently, it is not very efficient because every time you want to type something, you have to switch to your browser, then copy & paste your text. You can use my app – TypeIt for Windows (costs $12.50). It lets you type IPA phonetic transcriptions directly in any application or website. If you type phonetic transcriptions regularly, especially if you use them in your SRS, I would definitely recommend that you get the app, as it is inexpensive and it is the easiest, fastest way to type IPA symbols on your PC. You can also use the ASCII Phonetic Alphabet, which represents IPA symbols with “normal” characters that you can type on your keyboard. The ASCII Phonetic Alphabet is not a standard system, but you can type it fast without special software. Subscribe by e-mail or RSS to get notified when we publish a new update.

English alphabet with pronunciation, transcription and translation (letters and sounds)

Pronunciation of the English alphabet with the names of letters in English and Russian:

Below is a table where we have outlined the English alphabet with translation - transcription and pronunciation in Russian.

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How many letters are in the English alphabet

The modern English alphabet contains 26 letters. English sounds were first recorded in the Anglo-Saxon runic alphabet as early as the 5th century. Christian missionaries brought to the island not only their religion, but also the Latin alphabet, which began to replace the runic alphabet around the 7th century. For a long time, these two alphabets existed in parallel.

The modern English alphabet (The English alphabet [ˈalfəbɛt]) is based on the Latin alphabet or "Latin". So what is the number in the English alphabet? Unlike the Russian language, which has 33 letters, the English alphabet consists of 26 letters:

• 6 letters can represent vowels: "A", "E", "I", "O", "U", "Y »;
• 21 letters can represent consonants: "B", "C", "D", "F", "G", "H", "J", "K", "L", "M", "N" ”, “P”, “Q”, “R”, “S”, “T”, “V”, “W”, “X”, “Y”, “Z”.

Below we have added a table where you can see the entire English alphabet with the numbering of letters in order.

By the way, the letter Y can stand for both a vowel and a consonant, and therefore refers to both vowels and consonants.

Almost all letters of the English alphabet are pronounced the same by Americans and Brits, except for the last one. The American alphabet differs in that the letter Z is pronounced as "zi" [ziː], and in the British - "zed" [zed].

Sounds of the English alphabet

We start learning English letters even before we come across foreign language lessons. We know them even before we start learning English: we meet them at work, when we play computer games or surf the Internet. English words are found everywhere: on advertising posters, in the names of goods, in store signs.

Although the letters may be visually familiar to us, they are not always pronounced the way they are written. The alphabet of the English language for beginners with pronunciation, numbering and translation will help here, because even those who are fluent in foreign languages ​​find it difficult to speak correctly. A typical situation is to spell an English word, for example, to give an email address, your name or street in English. This is where the difficulties begin, and we try to explain ourselves with images and associations: i - “like a stick with a dot”, H - “like a Russian n”, s - “like a dollar”, v - “like a tick.

From here it is better to memorize not only the letters, but also their pronunciation. The latter is written by transcription and enclosed in square brackets. At first, it will be easier for you to memorize transcription with Russian pronunciation, but gradually you need to give it up and focus only on English transcription.

How to Learn the English Alphabet

Learning the alphabet is not just memorizing the order of the alphabet in English, Russian or Spanish, or knowing how many non-letters there are. To know the alphabet is to be able to pronounce sounds, as well as to write lowercase and uppercase letters correctly. In order to learn the entire alphabet of the English language easily, quickly and forever, follow these rules:

1. Memorize both uppercase and lowercase letters of the English alphabet at the same time, pay attention to how English letters are written.
2. Learn both the name of English letters and the correct pronunciation, use the alphabet with transcription. It is easier to remember this at the same time than to relearn it later.
3. Use all available resources: use audio recordings, videos of examples of correct pronunciation, printed texts, Internet resources.
4. Learn the English alphabet in order, like in the ABC. Then change tactics: start studying the letters backwards, randomly, grouping.
5. Practice regularly, preferably every day for at least a few minutes. If you are tired of learning the same letters, take any children's book in English. Maybe you will not understand the meaning of what is written, but you will definitely be able to recognize and name this or that letter.

Another good way to learn the alphabet is to memorize a special rhyme. It is very short, but it will help to know every letter by heart:

Do you know your ABC?

You can learn along with me!

A, B, C, D, E, F, G,

H, I, J, K,

L, M, N, O, P U, V,

W, X, Y and Z

Now, I know my ABC's.

Next time won't you sing with me?

And the last piece of advice. Divide all letters into three large groups and learn them in three stages: the first group is 6 vowels: Aa, Her, Ii, Oo, Uu, Yy. Do not forget about transcription and remember that in English vowels can change their sound depending on the type of syllables, stress and other conditions; the second group of letters includes those that are written and pronounced similarly to Russian letters. They are easy to remember: Bb, Cc, Dd, Kk, Ll, Mm, Nn, Pp, Ss, Tt, Xx; the third group consists of those letters that sound and are written unfamiliar to native Russian speakers: Ff, Gg, Hh, Jj, Qq, Rr, Vv, Ww, Zz.

Methods and techniques for memorizing the English alphabet

There are many ways to learn the English alphabet from scratch that are suitable for both adults and children.

The most popular way to learn the English alphabet is through tables. You can print the English alphabet tables from this article or search for others: English alphabet by numbers; English alphabet with numbering of letters, etc. Hang them over your desk and browse and read aloud whenever you have a free moment. The main thing is to memorize the alphabet with the pronunciation of sounds.

One of the most effective ways is to make colored cards with the letters and words that begin with them and place them in a visible place. These cards can be made by yourself or bought in the store. It is better to use well-known words, for example, the names of animals.

You can train with special exercises, for example, this one: get a special notebook and write down the letters in it several lines - both uppercase and lowercase letters of the English alphabet. And when writing, dictate to yourself aloud the name of the letter. This exercise includes all three main types of memory: auditory, visual and motor.

Don't forget about games that will help you learn the English alphabet. For example, Spell the word or “Spell the word” - whoever spells it wrong first loses. And you can also read the alphabet at speed, write letters correctly by ear, pronounce the letters written on the card, and so on. The audio alphabet of the English language with pronunciation has proven itself well. A student can independently master the letters and sounds just by listening to the recording. The main thing is to be systematic.

Interesting facts about the English alphabet

Learning the sounds and letters of the English language will be more fun if you know a few interesting facts about the alphabet:

1. The English alphabet can be called by its first letters "ABC";
2. The English word alphabet comes from Latin, where alpha and beta were the first letters of the alphabet. But even before the Latin alphabet, they were the first letters of the Phoenician alphabet (alef and bet), which arose in 1050 BC. e.
3. The article the is the most common word in the English language.
4. The most common letter in the English alphabet is E, and the most common consonant is T. The letters S and T are most common at the beginning of English words. The rarest letters in the alphabet are Q and Z.
5. In English there are only 5 vowels and as many as 20 vowels! For example, the letters Y and W can be pronounced as vowels (try, my, cow, few). The same letter can be read in several ways, for example, in the words cat [kæt], place [pleis], dark [daːk], air [ɛə].
6. All 26 letters of the English alphabet can be put into a sentence or pangram that shows how each letter of the font will look like: "The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog" (loosely translated: "The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog." English analogue - "Eat some more of these soft French rolls and drink tea").

Conclusion

English speakers remember their alphabet much more often than Russian speakers, because in English the pronunciation of a word often does not match its spelling. Especially in geographical names and surnames. Then they spell these words (to spell). Therefore, in order to learn the entire English alphabet with the correct pronunciation for an adult, to speak English well and understand native speakers, it is necessary to learn how to spell words. And the phrase "Please spell this word!" ("Please spell") to help you.

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The sounds that represent English letters are 44 English phonemes that are divided into two categories: consonants and vowels. Since sounds cannot be written down, graphemes (letters or combinations of letters) are used to convey sounds in writing.

English alphabet

English has 26 letters. The standard English alphabet starts with a and ends with z.

When classifying alphabetic characters, they distinguish:

• 5 pure vowels: a, e, i, o, u;
• 19 pure consonants: b, c, d, f, g, h, j, k, l, m, n, p, q, r, s, t, v, x, z;
• 2 semivowels: y, w.

Learning the English alphabet requires knowledge of both the symbol that represents each letter and the phonetic sounds associated with that letter. Learning English phonetics is difficult. Only a small number of letters have no exceptions in the main sound.

In most cases each letter has several phonemes. The letter B sometimes sounds like bat (bet) or does not sound, for example, in the words crumb (krum), dumb (dam). The letter C sounds like "k" for cat (ket) or "c" for ceiling (si:ling), or "tch" for church (tche:tch). And the list of exceptions is endless.

Vowels

Vowels represent the main category of phonemes in English speech. There are 20 vowels in spoken English. This discrepancy (in relation to literal characters) underlies the complexity of writing in English.

Additional vowels are used for short and long vowels. For sounds a and e - when the vowel accompanies the sound r. For o, the options are varied.

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Consonants

Alphabetical order

Transcription and stress

Phonetic transcriptions tell about the pronunciation of words. In English dictionaries, this is a necessary condition, since the spelling does not say how the word is pronounced.

Phonetic transcriptions are written in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA), in which each English sound is assigned its own symbol. For example, the IPA-based phonetic transcription of the word home is /hoʊm/, the transcription of come is /kʌm/, despite the fact that the spelling of the words is similar (both end in –ome), but are transcribed with differences.

The rules do not fully cover aspects of stress in English words. The language is characterized by the presence of exceptions, and the English themselves make mistakes, especially in polysyllabic words.

But obviously some basic rules still apply:

1. In 80% of two-syllable nouns and adjectives, the stress falls on the first syllable: PURple, PREsent, CARton, TABle, CLEver, CHIna.
2. In most verbs and two-syllable prepositions, the stress falls on the second syllable: reLAX, beCIN, deCIde, betWEen.
3. The English language has many two-syllable words of the same spelling that will refer to nouns or verbs depending on whether the stress falls on the first or second syllable. For example, PREsent as a noun, but if the second syllable of preSENT is emphasized, it becomes a verb, or OBject and obJECT.
4. The stress falls on the syllable before the suffix if the "ending" begins with the letters i or u: -ion, -ual, -uous, -ial, -ient, -ious, -ior, -ic, -ity, and so on . Examples: sufFICient, explaNAtion, residual, geoGRAPhic. The exceptions are -ist, -ism, -ize, and -ing.
5. Other suffixes do not affect word stress: -al, -ous, -ly, -er, -ed, -ist, -ing, -ism, etc. The stress falls on the first syllable. ORderly, Silently
6. Words ending in consonants or y are stressed on the first syllable: RARity, OPtimal.

Prefixes in two-syllable words are not stressed except in certain nouns or adjectives. Two-syllable nouns beginning with a prefix are studied individually.

English consonants

There are fewer consonants in the English alphabet than there are consonants. Therefore, digraphs like "ch", "sh", "th" and "zh" are used to expand the alphabet, and some letters and digraphs represent more than just one consonant. For example, the sound written "th" in this is transcribed as /ð/, and "th" in thin is /θ/.

English consonants are classified by their combination of functions:

1. Way of articulation (how air leaves the vocal tract).
2. Place of formation (which authorities are involved).
3. Phonation (how vocal chords vibrate).
4. Voicing start time (time of sounds formation), aspiration is part of the function.
5. Air flow mechanism (how air moves through the vocal tract).
6. The length of (how long the obstruction of a consonant lasts) is a feature of the English language, such as wholly /hoʊlli/ and holy /hoʊli/.
7. Articulation power.

In addition, there is a function "silent alveolar stop" , /t/ when the airflow mechanism is lowered.

According to the method of formation, consonants are divided into:

1. Proximants: j, w, r.
2. Nine fricative consonants: f, v, θ, ð, s, z, ʃ,ʒ,h.
3. Lateral approximant: l.
4. Two affricative sounds: tʃ and dʒ.
5. Six plosives: p,b, t, d, k, g.
6. Nasal consonants: m, n, ŋ.

The sound - [x] - voiceless fricative - non-standard for the English language. Although in some original words, such as ugh (ugh!), Is an additional marker of irritation. In writing, the fricative is represented as "gh".

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Features of English consonants

A consonant combination is a set of two or three consonant letters that retain their original sound when pronounced. Such sets occur either at the beginning or at the end of a word. For example, the word brave, in which both "b" and "r" are pronounced, is the initial combination. In the word bank "-nk" is the final combination.

Classification:

1. Initial combinations are classified into sets with "l", "r", and "s". In "l", the combination ends with "l". An example would be the letters "bl" in the word blind. Similarly, the final sound in "r" in combination with "r" when "br" and "cr", for example, in the words bridge, crane. On the contrary, in "s" it starts with s, "st" and "sn" - stap, snail.
2. End combinations are grouped into sets with "s", "l" and "n": -st, -sk, -ld, -nd, -nk. Examples, first, desk, gold, sand, sink.

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Consonant digraphs refer to a set of consonants that form one sound. Some digraphs are both at the beginning and at the end of the word - "sh", "ch" and "th". There are also strict initial and final digraphs - "kn-" and "-ck".

Examples of digraphs:

Ch-	-ch
Kn-	- ck
Ph-	-sh
Sh-	-ss
Th-	-th
Wh-	-tch
Wr-

Features of digraphs:

1. In some cases, consonants become unpronounceable: letter b following m; k before m; b and p before t. Examples of words, dumb, know, debt, receipt. The letter l is often silent, for example, in the words walk, could, palm, psalm, but in words its presence changes the sound of the previous vowel.
2. If a double consonant appears in a word, it is pronounced as one sound - ball or summer
3. In English, /h/ occurs as a one-letter grapheme (either silent or representing a voiceless glottal fricative consonant). There is also a letter in different digraphs, ch, gh, ph, sh, wh. The letter is silent in the words: ah, ohm, dahlia, cheetah, pooh-poohed, hour, honest, vehicle, herb (in American English, but pronounced in British). The initial /h/ is expressed in some function words (had, has, have, he, her, him, his).

English Consonant Pronunciation Chart

b bag [bæg], band [bænd], cab [kæb] bag, band, cab d d dad [dæd], did [dɪd], lady [leɪdɪ], odd [ɒd] dead, did, lady, od f f, ph, sometimes gh fable [feɪbl], fact [fækt], if [ɪf], off [ɒf], photo [foutou], glyph [glɪf] fable, fact, if, oof, foutow, glyph g g give [gɪv], flag [flæg] giv, flag h h hold [hould], ham [hæm] held, ham j usually represented by y but sometimes by other vowels yellow [jeləʊ], yes [jes], young [jʌŋ], neuron [njʊərɒn], cube [kju:b] ielou, ies, yang, n(b) yueron, k(b) yu:b - the sound j is similar to the vowel i:. k k, c, q, que, ck, sometimes ch cat [kæt], kill [kil], queen [kwi:n], skin [skɪn], thick [θɪk], chaos [keiɒs] cat, kil, qui:n, sik, keyos l l lane [lein], clip [klɪp], bell [bel], milk [mɪlk], sould [səʊld] lane, clip, bel, milk, sould - has two sound options: pure /l/ before a vowel, “darkened” /ɫ/ before a consonant or at the end of a word m m man [mæn], them [ðem], moon [mu:n] man, zem, mu:n n n nest [nest], sun [sʌn] nest, san ŋ ng ring [rɪŋ], sing [sɪŋ], finger [fɪŋgə]

[ŋ] is sometimes followed by the sound [g]. [ŋ] if "ng" is at the end of a word or a related word (sing, singer, thing), to "-ing", which translates verbs into participles or gerunds. [ŋg], if "ng" is not at the end of a word or in related words, also in comparative degrees (longer [lɔŋgə], longest).

/ring/, /sing/, /finge/ p p pen [pen], spin [spɪn], tip [tɪp], happy [hæpɪ] pen, spin, type, happy r r rat [ræt], reply [rɪplaɪ], rainbow, [reɪnbəʊ]
rat, ripple, rainbow -

movement of the tongue close to the alveolar ridge, but without touching it

s s, sometimes c see [si:], city[sɪtɪ], pass [pɑ:s], lesson [lesn] si:, pa:s, forest ʃ sh, si, ti, sometimes s she [ʃi:], crash [kræʃ], sheep [ʃi:p], sure [ʃʊə], session [seʃn], emotion [ɪməʊʃn], leash [li:ʃ] shi:, crash, shi:p, shue, session, imashn, li:sh t t taste [teist], sting [stɪŋ] test, sting tʃ ch, sometimes t chair [ʧɛə], nature [neɪʧə] teach [ti:ʧ] beach [bi:ʧ] _t che ^e ne _t che, ti: _t h, bi: _t h θ th thing [θɪŋ], teeth [ti:θ], Athens [æθɪnz[ _t sing, ty: _t s, e _t voiceless fricative - th this [ðɪs], mother [mʌðə] _d sis, ma _d ze – voiced fricative v v, sometimes f voice [vɔɪs], five [faɪv], of [ɔv] voice, file, ov w w, sometimes u wet [wet], window [wɪndəʊ], queen [kwi:n] in ⁱⁿ no, in ⁱⁿ indeu, ku ⁱⁿ i:n - [w] is similar to [u:] z z zoo [zu:], lazy [leɪzɪ] zu: lazy - g, si, z, sometimes s genre [ʒɑːŋr], pleasure [pleʒə], beige [beɪʒ], seizure [si:ʒə], vision [vɪʒən] genre _e , Pleasure, Beige, B:Je, Vision dʒ j, sometimes g, dg, d gin [ʤɪn], joy [ʤɔɪ], edge [eʤ] gin, joy, ej

English vowels

Each English vowel is pronounced in three ways:

1. as a long sound;
2. as a short sound;
3. as a neutral vowel (schwa).

There are 5 vowels in the English alphabet, but sometimes y becomes a vowel and is pronounced like i, and w replaces u, for example, in the digraph ow.

Rules for reading vowels

Short vowels, which are characterized by a “short” sound, appear when a word has one vowel either at the beginning of a word or between two consonants. For example, if, elk, hop, fan. A typical short vowel pattern is consonant+vowel+consonant (CHS).

Words are taught as families that represent groups of words with a common pattern, for example in the pattern "-ag" - bag, wag, tag or "-at" - cat, bat, hat.

Rules for reading vowels:

Sound	Letter	Examples
[æ]	a	rag, sag, ram, jam, gap, sap mat
[ɛ]	e	hen, pen, wet, bet, let
[ɪ]	and	pig, wig, dig, pin, win, tin, tin, bit
[ɒ]	or	hop, pop, top, hot, pot, lot
[ʌ]	and	bug, lug, tug, hut, but, cut

Features of reading vowels:

1. Short vowels are followed by certain combinations of consonants (-ck or –st) in longer words, as well as in the form of verbs and past participles (stick, common, running) , swimming).
2. Long vowels are pronounced the same as their letter name . Usually these types of vowels appear when there is one vowel at the end of a word or syllable, for example, bake, late, home.
3. Another long vowel rule, when there are two vowels in a row, the first one is pronounced. If there are two vowels in a word and a syllable, the first one is usually long, the second one is unpronounceable. For example, sail [seil] or boat [bout]. But it is important to note that there are exceptions to the rule: rule [ru:l], said [sed], shoe [ʃu:].
4. The silent "e" is sometimes called the magic e. Adding an unpronounceable e changes how the word and vowel sound will be read. For example, can (can) becomes cane (reed), kit (set) into kite (kite), and short vowels become long.

Sound	Writing	Examples
A [eı]	ai, ay, a+consonant+e	name, mail, grey, ace
E [i:]	e, ee, ea, y, ie ,ei, i+consonant+e	he, deep, beast, dandy, thief, receive, elite
I[aı]	i, i+gn, igh, y, i+ld, i+nd	mine, sign, high, sky, wild, kind
O [ou]	o+consonant +e, oa, ow, o+ll, ld	tone, road, note, know, roll, bold
U[ju:]	ew, ue, u+consonant+e	few, due, tune

The vowel sound in unstressed syllables is expressed by the abbreviated neutral sound ("schwa"), the phonemic symbol /ə/, especially if syllabic consonants are not used.

For example:

• a in about, around, approve, above [ə bʌv];
• e in accident, mother, taken, camera [kæmərə];
• i в, family, lentil, officer pencil [pɛnsəl];
• o in memory, common, freedom, purpose, London [lʌndən];
• u in supply, industry, suggest, difficult, succeed, minimum [mɪnɪməm];
• and even y in sibyl;
• schwa appears in function words: to, from, are.

Features of vowel sounds in English

Vowels are divided into monophthongs, diphthongs or triphthongs. A monophthong is when there is one vowel in a syllable, a diphthong is when there are two vowels in a syllable.

Let's take a closer look:

1. Monophthongs are pure and stable vowels whose acoustic characteristics (timbre) do not change during the time they are pronounced.
2. A diphthong is a sound formed by a combination of two adjacent vowels in one syllable. Technically, the tongue (or other parts of the speech apparatus) moves when a vowel is pronounced - the first position is stronger than the second. In the transcription of a diphthong, the first character is the starting point of the body of the language, the second character is the direction of movement. For example, you should know that in /aj/ the body of the tongue is in the bottom center position represented by /a/ and immediately starts moving up and forward to the position for /i/.
3. Diphthongs are often formed when separate vowels work together in rapid conversation . Usually (in the speaker's speech) the body of the tongue does not have time to get to the position /i/. Therefore, the diphthong often ends closer to /ɪ/ or even to /e/. In the diphthong /aw/, the body of the tongue moves from the lower center position /a/, then moves up and back to the position /u/. Although single diphthongs are also distinguished, which are heard as separate vowel sounds (phonemes).
4. English also has triphthongs (combinations of three adjacent vowels), including three sound types, for example, fire /fʌɪə/, flower /flaʊər/. But in any case, all diphthongs and triphthongs are formed from monophthongs.

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Pronunciation table simple English vowels

All vowels are formed from only 12 monophthongs. Every word in English, regardless of spelling, is pronounced using some combination of these sounds.

The table shows examples of simple English vowels with Russian pronunciation:

[ɪ]	pit, kiss, busy	pete, kitty, beezy
[e]	egg, let, red	eg, years, edition
[æ]	apple, travel, mad	apple, travel, med
[ɒ]	not, rock, copy	music, rock, copy
[ʌ]	cup, son, money	cap, dignity, mani
[ʊ]	look, foot, could	bow, foot, cool
[ə]	ago, away	egeu, evay
[i:]	be, meet, read	bi:, mi:t, ri:d
[ɑ:]	arm, car, father	a:m, ka:, fa: d ze
[ɔ:]	door, saw, pause	to:, from:, to: from
[ɜ:]	turn, girl, learn	cho:n, gyo:l, le:n
[u:]	blue, food, too	blu:, fu:d, tu:

Diphthong pronunciation table

[eɪ]	day, pain, rein	dei, pein, rein
[oʊ]	cow, know	kou, know
[aɪ]	wise, island	visa, island
[aʊ]	now, trout	nau, trout
[ɔɪ]	noise, coin	noiz, coin
[ɪə]	near, hear	nee, chie
[ɛə]	where, air	,
[ʊə]	pure, tourist	p (b) yue, tu e rist

Learn the transcription of English words

Consider some features of English transcription:

1. As transcription becomes more precise, brackets are used to indicate IPA characters, not slashes. The reason for this is the difference between phonetics and phonemics, this is already a topic of linguistics.
2. Sometimes an apostrophe is placed before a syllable, which emphasizes the stress in the word. For example, because - [bə'kʌz].
3. To mark a long vowel, linguists use a colon (clean - [kli:n]).
4. Syllabic consonants sometimes appear as syllable without the participation of a vowel, they are trying to be denoted by a small label under the IPA symbol. For example, /ɹ̩/–/ra/. /l/, /m/ and /n/ can become syllabic. The word table is a syllabic consonant, so it is transcribed as. [teɪbl], similar to hidden - [hɪdn].
5. In some accents, such as American, /æ/ does not sound completely clear. When the sound is in front of a nasal consonant, it is distorted, becomes with a nasalized tone. If a British pronounces the word man with a pure /æ/, then in an American this sound is similar to [eə].

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