Reading English vowels. How to read consonant letter combinations in English

Vowels in English are divided into monophthong, diphthong or triphthong. These are sounds that consist of 1, 2, 3 parts. Vowels are also divided into short and long sounding. They are designated like this: [i:], [ɔ:].

They are also divided into articulatory. So vowels are front-lingual, middle-lingual, back-lingual, closed, open, semi-open. Accordingly, their names speak directly about the position of the lips and tongue during pronunciation.

For example, anterior- sounds are formed through the front of the tongue, etc.

Transcription icons and their pronunciation

Pronunciation of all vowels

It can be understood from the following examples:

[i:] - the sound is similar to our "and" in the word "hurry", etc. Pronounced confidently and for a long time.

[ i ] - the sound is similar to our "and" in the word "at". It's short, not drawn out.

[ei] - the sound is similar to our "e" in the word "tin". Pronounced for a long time.

[æ] - a sound similar to the previous one. It is also pronounced for a long time, but with a mouth that is wide open.

[a:] - the sound is similar to our "a" in the word "beam" in the first case.

[ ɔ ] - the sound is similar to our "o" in the word "difficult". Pronounced briefly.

[ɔ:] - the sound is similar to our "o" in the word "school". Pronounced with a wide open mouth.

[ u ] - the sound is similar to our "u" in the word "ear". Pronounced briefly.

[u:] - a sound similar to the previous one. In the word "rooster" you can see exactly how it is pronounced.

[Λ] - the sound is similar to our "o" and "a" in the words "your", "gardens". Always stands in words with an accent.

[ ə ] - the sound is similar to our "ё" and "o" together in the word "iodine".

[iə] - the sound is similar to our "and" and "e", sounding together.

[ ai ] - the sound is similar to our "ai".

[ aiə ] - the sound is similar to our "ai", pronounced for a long time.

Consonants in English

Subdivided:

• on bowed and slit;
• on the lips, teeth;
• anterior lingual, middle lingual, posterior lingual.

Also, consonants are voiced and deaf.

The last deaf consonants are characterized by powerful articulation, a significant decrease in articulation is characteristic of a sonorous consonant.

The consonant sounds of the English language are pronounced more actively than the corresponding sounds of the Russian language. Most of them are pronounced with aspiration (aspiration process).

Basic types of vowel reading

1. All vowels are read as they are usually read in the alphabet. Examples: stake, state, cake.
2. All vowels are short. You can read about short sounds above.. Examples: tree, me, be.
3. All vowels are long. You can read about long sounds above. Examples: my, style, why.
4. All vowels can be doubled in pronunciation. Examples: tune, Tuesday, music.

Basic rules for reading in English

Reading vowels

Most sounds can be found in six vowels. These are the main rules English reading. So, depending on the location, combination with other letters and stress, the reading of vowels in a particular word depends.

Consider the rules for reading vowels in combination with other letters, stress and location.

The vowel "A" is divided into sounds:

• [ei] - the words pan, flat. The sound is read here through our letter "e";
• [æ] - the word take. Our sound "e" is read here in short form.
• [a:] - the word far. Our sound “a” is read here in short form.

The vowel "E" is divided into sounds:

• [i] - words meat. The sound "and" is read briefly.
• [e] - the word met. It reads like a short "e".
• [ə] - the word very. It reads like a long "e".
• [iə] - words here, near. A long "and" and "a" are read together

The vowel I is subdivided into sounds:

• [ai], [i], [ə] in the corresponding words mine, in, stir, fire

The vowel O is subdivided into sounds:

• , [O], , [ə], in the corresponding words refuse, but, fur, lure.

The vowel Y is subdivided into sounds:

• , [i], [ ə: ], in the corresponding words type, gym, myrtle, tire.

Are you tired of learning English for years?

Those who attend even 1 lesson will learn more than in a few years! Surprised?

No homework. Without teeth. Without textbooks

From the course "ENGLISH BEFORE AUTOMATIC" you:

• Learn how to write good sentences in English without learning grammar
• Learn the secret of a progressive approach, thanks to which you can reduce learning English from 3 years to 15 weeks
• Will check your answers instantly+ get a thorough analysis of each task
• Download the dictionary in PDF and MP3 formats, learning tables and audio recording of all phrases

Reading consonants in English

Features of reading some consonants

There are features in reading the four consonants:

• "c" (=k=ck) [k],
• "qu",
• "j"
• "X" .

All these sounds have several reading options depending on the location and combination with other letters.

• The consonant "s" is read as our "k" sound and as our "s". In normal cases, "s" should be read as "k", but if they stand after the consonant "e", "i", "y", then "s" is read like the Russian "s" in the words "sit".

For example, the words ice, cinema, cycle are read this way.

• The consonant "g" is usually read as our "ji" sound or as a "g" sound. It is usually customary to read the sound "g", but if they stand after the consonant "e", "i", "y", then "g" is read as "ji".

For example, the words age, gigantic, fridge, inginear are read this way. Special cases of pronunciation are remembered when learning the alphabet.

• The consonant with the double form "s" is read as our sound "ks" after "e", "i", "y". But it should be remembered that the doubled form in consonants is not readable, only one letter is read.
• The consonant "s" is read as our sound "s" and as the sound "z" depending on the voice. Vowels give voice.

In addition to these consonant features, others do not.

All other sixteen are read as spelled out.

• Consonant B reads like our "b". Examples: big, better, bet, biten, brother.
• The consonant D is read like our "d". Examples: door, ded, dog, middle, red.
• Consonant F reads like our "f". Examples: foot, friend, false.
• The consonant G is read as our "g". Examples: get, egg, giggle, google, gazer.
• Consonant H reads like our "x". Examples: him, help, hill, hot.
• The consonant K is read like our "k". Examples: kiss, desk, kitten, kitchen.
• Consonant L reads like our "l". Examples: live, leave, loosen, lost, little.
• The consonant M is read like our "m." Examples: milk, moon, simple, from.
• Consonant N reads like our "n". Examples: note, not, near, nonsense, on.
• The consonant P is read like our "p". Examples: put, plump, pop, stop.
• Consonant R reads like our "r". Examples: rest, roof, berry, bread, rock.
• The consonant S is read like our "s". Examples: sit, west, miss, stress, soul.
• Consonant T reads like our "t". Examples: ten, title, test, true, tree.
• The consonant V is read as our "in". Examples: very, seven, give, vivid.
• Consonant W reads like our "in". Examples: well, twelve, swim, winter.
• The consonant Z is read like our "z". Examples: zip, drizzle, fiz, zigzag, zoom.

Silent consonants

Basic Rules.

• In the letters “g”, “k”, you should not read “n” at the beginning and at the end of the word.

Examples: gnat, foreign, knee, knaif, campaign.

• In the letters "b", "n" should not be read after the "m" at the end of the word.

Examples: bomb, autumn, thumb, column.

• The letter “p” should not be read in combinations “pn”, “ps”.

Examples: pneumatic, psychology.

• Do not read the letter "w" before "r".

Examples: wrap, wrong.

To learn English, namely to be able to apply it in life, and in addition to achieve such a speech that will be understandable to foreigners, you need to know how to pronounce a particular word.

To achieve this level of English, you need to use:

1. Books and manuals for learning English. But not those that say “English in three days” or “English in a few months”, because, of course, it is impossible to learn and be able to apply the language in life in such a short time.
2. Audio and video for learning English. By listening to English speech and music more, you can quickly achieve the desired result, even in a short time. In addition, pronunciation will improve and foreigners will treat a person as if they are talking to a person from the same country.
3. Teacher or tutor. It is desirable that the person has studied abroad or has been abroad for several years.
4. foreigners. Experience in correct pronunciation and reading is acquired directly with practice.

Published in ,

Reading is one of the most difficult parts of learning English. In my experience, children more or less begin to read only towards the end of their second year, when it comes to high school. However, it happens that even after graduation, many graduates still cannot read English words.

Unlike the Russian language, which in almost 99% of what we see is what we read (adjusted for reduction, assimilation, etc.), in English language things are quite different. It so happened historically that the same letter in different positions can be read differently.

Let's take the following words for comparison: cat - cake - want - bath - sofa. The letter "a" in these words will correspond to the sounds: [æ], , [ɒ], [ɑ:], [ə]. And it's not just about 4 types of reading vowels. There are also a bunch of rules on letter combinations that govern the reading of the letter "A".

In fact, the English language is made up of rules and exceptions. Therefore, you can memorize reading rules as much as you like, which may not work in a particular case. Why do you think the verb “to spell” is popular only in English, meaning “to spell”?

To have an idea about the rules of reading English, I recommend you the following books. You can download all of them for free using the links below;

• S.V. Shimansky "Rules of reading in English" - gives a general set of rules for reading with a few examples, there are no exercises in the manual. Great as a cheat sheet, because. consists of only 15 pages.
• The Reading Rules poster is an excellent tool for visually remembering the rules of reading English.
• Shuman S.E. "English language. Reading Rules is a guide to reading rules for intermediate students and adults. The material of the publication contains the rules for reading the letters of the English alphabet, vowels and consonants, articulation options in various language situations.
• Appendix Vasilyeva E.A. English Reading Rules for the Lazy is a Windows program that outlines the rules for reading one-syllable, two-syllable and polysyllabic English words. The material is presented in the form of tables and models, which facilitates the assimilation of reading rules. English words.
• Uzky A.F. "Rules for Reading English Words" - this book is convenient for use by teachers, students and their parents. Its goal is to develop readiness for understanding sounding speech and correct reading skills.
• L.P. Bondarenko "Fundamentals of English phonetics" - a complete textbook on phonetics for high school students. Contains many rules, examples and exercises to practice the pronunciation of English sounds.

There are 26 letters in the English alphabet which represent 24 consonants, 12 vowels and 8 diphthongs.
The reading of vowels depends on which syllable these vowels are in. In English, it is customary to distinguish 4 types of syllable:

1. An open syllable ends with a vowel. In English, a syllable is conventionally considered an open syllable followed by a consonant + an unpronounceable final "e".
The vowels in this syllable are pronounced the same as they are called in the alphabet.

2. A closed syllable ends with a consonant. In this type of syllable, vowels convey short sounds.

3. The third type of syllable is the syllable in which the vowel is followed by the letter "r" (at the end of the syllable) or "r" + consonant. In this syllable, all vowels convey long sounds.

4. The fourth type of syllable is a syllable in which the combination "r" + vowel follows the vowel. In this syllable, all vowels convey long and complex sounds.

Reading vowels in four types of syllable

Table of basic rules for reading vowels and consonants

English letters	transmitted audio	In which cases	Examples	Exceptions
A,a		in open syllable	place, take, make, same, state	have [æ], many [e]
		in combinations ay, ai	pay, way, play, day, main	said [e]
	[æ]	in closed syllable	that, lamp
		before r + consonant s + consonant	park, garden, fast, task	mass [æ]
	[εə]	before r + vowel	various care	are
	[כּ]	after w ,qu in a closed syllable	was
	[כּ:]	after w ,qu in a closed syllable before r	war, quarter
		before l + consonant	call, wall, also, fall, ball
		in combination with u	autumn
		before w	law, saw
E,e		in open syllable	be, Pete
		in combinations ee , ea	steel, streel, see, sea, mean
		in open syllable	belt, set	English [i]
		in combinations ea + d	already, head, bread
	[ə:]	in combinations er, ear + consonant	heard, term, her
		in combinations ee+r , ea+r	hear, appear
		before w	knew, newspaper, few
		before w preceded by r	grew, drew
I, i		in open syllable	five, pine	give, live [i]
		before ld, nd, gh	kind, mild, light
	[i]	in closed syllable	did
		combined with ie followed by a consonant	field	friend[e]
	[ə]	before r or r + consonant	sir, first
	["aiə]	before r + vowel	fire, tired
Oh, oh		in open syllable	note, go	done, come [٨]
		before combination ld	old, cold
		in combinations oa, ow	road, low
	[ə]	in combinations or after w	word, world
	[כּ]	in closed syllable	stop, not
	[כּ:]	before r	port, short
		in combinations oo	food, too	book, look [u]
		in combinations ou, ow	compound, town, down
	[כּi]	in combinations oi, oy	oil, enjoy
	["auə]	in combinations ow before er	power
		in combinations oo+r	poor	door, floor [כּ:]
U, u		in open syllable	tube, produce, music
	[٨]	in closed syllable	cut, cup, bus	put, push, pull, full [u]
		in an open syllable after l, r, j	lunar, rule, June
	[ə:]	before r + consonant	burn, turn
		before r + vowel	pure, cure
Y, y		in open syllable	type, try
	[i]	in a closed syllable and at the end of polysyllabic words	symbol, family
	[j]	at the beginning of a word and before a vowel	yet, year, beyond
C, c	[s]	before i, e, y	capacity, practice, cell, bicycle
	[k]	before all other vowels and consonants	come, exact, direction
		in combinations ch, tch	charge, watch	chemistry [k] technique [k] machine [∫]
	[∫]	before combinations ial, ient	special, efficient
S, s	[s]	at the beginning of words, in the middle of words turned with voiceless consonants and at the end of words after voiceless consonants	send, salt, say, system, facts, books
	[z]	after vowels, between vowels, after voiced consonants	as, position, days, supplies, beds
	[∫]	in combinations sh, ssion, ssure	shop, transmission, pressure
	[h]	before ure	measure, treasure
T, t	[ð]	combined th 1) at the beginning service words 2) between vowels	the, then, mother
	[θ]	combined th at the beginning and end of significant words	thick, thin, seventh
P, p	[f]	in ph combinations	philosophy, photo
G, g		before i, e, y	age, engineer, gymnastics	give[g], get[g]
	[g]	before consonants, before vowels, except i, e, y at the end of words	great, go, big, dog
	[ŋ]	combined ng	bring, wrong, strong

"Silent" (unpronounceable) consonants

"Silent letter"	What letter combinations	Examples
b g n g k l w	bt gn whe, whi igh kn old alk who wr	doubt design, sign when, while height, weight, fight knowledge, knife should, could, would walk whos, whole write, wrong

Notes :
1. The letter y conveys the same sounds as the letter ibut rarely occurs in the middle of a word.
2. The above rules apply only to stressed syllables. In an unstressed position, vowels are reduced to the sounds [ə] and [i].
For example: arrive [ə "raiv], return, illumination, difficult ["difikəlt].

When you study a foreign language, you are not only studying a set of vocabulary and grammar, but in any case, you are faced with the culture and mentality of the people who speak this language. The best remedy knowledge of language and culture is reading in original. And to read in a foreign language, you must learn to read in that language first .

You don't have to burn books to destroy a culture. Just get people to stop reading them.

You don't have to burn books to destroy a culture. You can just get people to stop reading them.

But, if at school or university you studied German or French, or your school base turned out to be smaller than you would like, and now you decide to learn English, then let's start with the most primary and basic and learn a few techniques where to start in order to master the rules of reading.

English alphabet

I think you know that English is different from Russian and German, in which we mostly read and write. In English, the system is a little more complicated. The very first thing we need to do is to learn the alphabet.

There are 26 letters in the English alphabet, of which 21 are consonants and 5 are vowels. Knowing the letters and the ability to pronounce them correctly is the key to successful and competent reading in English.

English alphabet with transcription of the names of the letters.

Very easy way memorize letters visually and by ear - this is with the help of a song. Watch the video and sing the song until you remember the letters of the alphabet.

You can use the same method to teach the alphabet to your children, and sing a song with your little ones.

Reading rules in English

After studying the alphabet, we will begin to study the combination of letters and read short words. In English, there are a number of rules that you need to learn, practice and remember if you want to read English words correctly.

Rules for reading English consonants

Many consonants read similarly to Russian consonants, such as letters m, n, l, b, f, z. You can see it in words like mom, lemon, finger, boy, zebra .

Letters like t And d sound similar but are pronounced with aspirated. For example words table, teacher, dad, dirty.

Letter c has two readings. Before letters i,e,y it reads like [s]- city, face, cyber. And before the rest of the vowels it reads like [k]- cat, cake, factory.

Rule with vowels i,e,y works with letter g. Before them, it reads as - gym, George, giant. Before other consonants, the letter is read as [g].

Letter q always found in a combination of letters qu and reads like - quick, queen, square.

Letter j always read as - jacket, jam, joy.

Table of the ratio of consonants and sounds in English.

How vowels are read in English

In English, a word can end in an open or closed syllable, which affects pronunciation. For example words cat, pot, sit end in a closed syllable and have vowels a, o, i give sounds .

Words such as name, home, five end in an open syllable, since the word ends with a letter e, which is unreadable. But, thanks to her, the vowels in the middle of the word are read exactly the same as they are pronounced in the alphabet, that is, the word name is read.

Types of reading English vowels in stressed syllables.

Reading vowel combinations in English

There are certain combinations of letters that have established reading rules, although English language - language exceptions, and when reading more complex words, you should consult a dictionary. The table below shows combinations of english vowels with examples how they are read and what sound they make.

Table of combinations of vowels in English.

And of course, there are exceptions to all rules. However, do not worry and think that you will never be able to learn it. Everything can be understood, you just need to try a little and practice.

English diphthongs with transcription

When you learn the basic rules of reading, you will see that in English there are diphthong sounds that are quite difficult to reproduce, especially if you start learning the language not from childhood, but as an adult.

Table of English diphthongs with transcription.

Transcription of sounds in English

Practice shows that when children learn a language, they must necessarily study transcription, while adults do not want to learn it, and for them it can be difficult.

If you still want to learn how to write and read transcription, then great! And if not, then you can use online dictionaries where the word will be pronounced for you. One of the best dictionaries today are Multitran and online dictionary Lingvo.

Important!

Remember that it is necessary to use dictionaries, not translators!

Here is an example of reading short words with transcription:

English vowel table and transcription.

The fact that we live in the age of the Internet has some advantages. Sitting at home, you can learn different knowledge online. For your attention video lesson which explains basic principles reading. However, even after gaining knowledge through an online lesson, they need to be consolidated in order to form a skill.

Learn English tongue twisters

Here tongue twisters can help you, which are often aimed at practicing one sound. Here are some examples you can use.

English tongue twister	Translation into Russian
Whether the weather be fine, or whether the weather be not. Whether the weather be cold, or whether the weather be hot. We'll weather the weather whether we like it or not.	The weather will be good or the weather won't be good. The weather will be cold or the weather will be hot. We'll weather any weather whether we like it or not.
three swiss witch-bitches, which wished to be switched swiss witch-bitches, watch three swiss Swatch watch switches. Which swiss witch-bitch", which wishes to be a switched swiss witch-bitch, wishes to watch which swiss swatch switch?	Three swiss bitch witches wishing to change their gender, looking at the three buttons on the Swatch watch. Which one of the Swiss bitch witches wishing to change their gender, looks at which button on the watch "Swatch"?

Don't worry it's tongue twisters! At this stage, when you are just learning to read and practicing sounds, it is important to pronounce them correctly, albeit slowly. You can always speed up.

Learn to hear English speech

After learning the basic, basic rules of reading, you can use the method of repeating after the announcer. Your auditory memory will also work and you will hear how words are pronounced correctly and what intonation is in sentences.

To do this, you can use small dialogues and audiobooks for beginners. At this level, it will be ideal if the text is in front of your eyes, you listen, read and repeat at the same time!

You can use such a great resource as Oxford Bookworm Library, which features audiobooks for all levels. You can download the library for free

For those who continue to learn English, we recommend learning the language from films, which you can read about in the article

Work on your pronunciation

Reading is only the first step in learning a language. As well as learning grammar and vocabulary, learning how to pronounce and hear correctly is very important if you want to understand what is being said to you and say it so that you are understood. Especially if you're talking to a native speaker.

As we said a little above, one of the best ways is to listen carefully to native speakers and try to copy their pronunciation and intonation .

Particular attention should be paid to sounds that are not in your mother tongue. Often, English learners have a problem with the 'r' sound, as in Russian it is hard, while in English it is more guttural and growling.

There are also difficulties with the pronunciation of two sounds, which gives combination of letters 'th'. Students stubbornly pronounce it as 'c' and 'h'. Although it is worth paying attention that in such words as this, that, there this sound is said as between 'z' and 'd'. And in words like three, think, thief, it is pronounced as a sound between ‘f’ and ‘s’.

This may seem strange to you, since there are no such sounds in Russian, but if you listen to native speakers, you will understand that this is what they say.

Don't worry if you can't get these words right the first time, it takes a little practice. But, try to learn correctly from the very beginning, because it will be more difficult when you are forced to relearn.

Learn to pronounce phrases in English correctly

In English, words in sentences are not pronounced separately, they often merge, as if into one whole, especially if it is a combination of vowel and consonant letters. Look and practice on these transcription examples.

The same applies to such phrases where one word ends with the letter ‘r’, and next word starts with a vowel. In such cases, the 'r' sound is pronounced. Here are some examples.

Learning English language is my hobby, not my job. My meta is to make the English translation more effective and accessible to you. In the English language, as if in the classroom, you will improve your current bar "єр, systematize knowledge of grammar and expand your vocabulary. As long as you read English language, you will speak it! Find out what my students think about language and efficiency. move with me.

Why does the production of English movies with me give a high result?

Individual pidhid. Even before I take it to the cob, I will appoint you for the additional test, and I will help you to be appointed from the program, learning to your level of knowledge of English and the goals you set. You can speak English with me individually (Montreal, Canada) or via Skype.
I am a professional English movie vikladach. I have been teaching English language for more than 12 years, and in one hour I have helped more than 300 people achieve success in English language. I will gradually improve my professionalism, and in 2011 I took away, which I recognize in the world and confirm my right to publish English language, I myself have matured.
Effective technique. The best technique is the one that gives the same quick result. To the very same, I use a stagnant communicative technique, a project method and a training mindset.
Outwardly zanurennya in the English middle. All my activities are conducted by my English language. Why? So that you have the opportunity to get bored in the English middle. As a result of this approach, you develop more English speech by ear, but in a different way, it is a real need to speak only English for an hour of lessons.
Rozmovna practice. For the fates of work, I realized that the most effective way to learn how to work is to work. In fact, I will be busy with English language so that you will be able to constantly communicate with English language. You speak from the first lesson on the cob row! Step by step, starters of regular practice, You start to speak more, your language has less and less pardons, but you can already talk about deaky speeches like this, you don’t speak natively.

How do you recognize your own riven of English language?

Pass a test for the definition of an English language language, so that you can choose the correct language. For this test you will need a total of 30 minutes, and after the first pass you will be able to evaluate your own and take recommendations on how to program an English movie, which suits you best.

What layout to take from the English movie?

I currently live near Montreal, Canada. My time zone: UTC -5 (from Ukraine, for example, the difference at the hour is 7 years, so for you it is 19:00, for me it is 12:00 in the afternoon). I can spend classes after 09:00 on weekdays (after the month) via Skype (Skype) or, for residents of Montreal, in your own territory (I live in 15 cities in the Côte-des-Neiges plaza).

How many words do you need to learn English language?

Varity of one occupation for one individual - $30 for 90 quills. Activity for two people costs $40 for 90 minutes (for both people). You can find out in detail about the art of borrowing from the English movie with me.

Do you want to speak English language with me?

Pass, to signify your English ribbing.
Sound "stay with me by phone: +14389364667 or via email: This email address has been protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it. 1. own riven of English language; 2. bazhany directly from the English class (business, general English, etc.); 3. usі mozhlivі days that hour navchannya; 4. date of the trial lesson; 5. the country and the place of residence (less is necessary for setting your time zone). I am talking to you as quickly as I can. Catch the respect that individual English classes take place near Montreal, Canada. For residents of other places, it is possible to have less English lessons via Skype.
Repair at an hour convenient for you after the trial lesson and payment.