Oral English
Monophthongs
They have one sound segment and there are two types: Short and long.
Short Vowels
- /ɪ/
Examples: - Sit /sɪt/
- it /ɪt/
- Kit /Kɪt/
- Bit /Bɪt/
- /e/
Examples: - Bread /bred/
- Egg /eɡ/
- Well /wel/
- Second /ˈsekənd/
- /æ/
Examples: - Plait /plæt/
- And /ænd/
- Batch /bætʃ/
- Bat /bæt/
- /ɔ/
Examples: - Law /lɔː/
- Thought /θɔːt/
- Born /bɔːn/
- Caught /kɔːt/
- /ʊ/
Examples: - Hook /hʊk/
- Put /pʊt/
- Foot /fʊt/
- Book /bʊk/
- /ʌ/
Examples: - Cut /kʌt/
- Butt /bʌt/
- Luck /lʌk/
- Buckle /ˈbʌk.l̩/
- /ə/
Examples: - Again /əˈɡen/
- Away /əˈweɪ/
- Support /səˈpɔːt/
- Alone /əˈləʊn/
Long Vowels
- /a:/
Examples: - Car /kɑːr/
- Bar /bɑːr/
- Lard /lɑːrd/
- Father /ˈfɑː.ðər/
- /i:/
Examples: - Seat /siːt/
- People /ˈpiː.pəl/
- She /ʃiː/
- Quay /kiː/
- /ɜː/
Examples: - Bird /bɜːd/
- Hurt /hɜːt/
- Learn /lɜːn/
- Earth /ɜːθ/
- /u:/
Examples: - Fool /fuːl/
- Cool /kuːl/
- Duel /ˈdjuːəl/
- Coup /kuː/
- /ɔ:/
Examples: - Port /pɔːt/
- Born /bɔːn/
- Four /fɔːr/
- Cause /kɔːz/
Diphthongs
Diphthongs are just the combination of two pure vowel sounds to produce a single sound.
- /ei/
It is combination of the /e/ and /i/ sound.
Examples: - gate /ɡeɪt/
- take /teɪk/
- place /pleɪs/
- Taste /teɪst/
- gauge /ɡeɪdʒ/
- /əʊ/
Examples: - Go /gəʊ/
- load /ləʊd/
- sow /səʊ/
- hoe /həʊ/
- /ai/
Examples: - five /faɪv/
- kite /baɪt/
- might /maɪt/
- fly /flaɪ/
- /aʊ/
Examples: - how /haʊ/
- crown /kraʊn/
- blouse /blaʊz/
- house /haʊs/
- /iə/
Examples: - ear /iər/
- beer /bɪər/
- rear /rɪə/
- year /jɪər/
- /eə/
Examples: - air /eər/
- Their /ðeər/
- where /weər/
- fair /feər/
- /ʊə/
Examples: - lure /ljʊə/
- Tour /tʊə/
- security /sɪˈkjʊə.rə.ti/
- Obscure /əbˈskjʊə(ɹ)/
- /Ͻi/
Examples: - boy /bɔɪ/
- coin /kɔɪn/
- oil /ɔɪl/
- Rejoice /rɪˈdʒɔɪs/
Consonants
- /p/
Examples: - Pen /pɛn/
- Park /pɑːk/
- Paper /ˈpeɪ.pər/
- Please /pliːz/
- /b/
Examples: - Book /bʊk/
- Bag /bæɡ/
- Baby /ˈbeɪ.bi/
- Bottle /ˈbɒt.l̩/
- /t/
Examples: - Time /taɪm/
- Table /ˈteɪ.bəl/
- Top /tɒp/
- Town /taʊn/
- /d/
Examples: - Dog /dɒɡ/
- Day /deɪ/
- Door /dɔːr/
- Dance /dɑːns/
- /g/
Examples: - Go /ɡəʊ/
- Green /ɡriːn/
- Glass /ɡlɑːs/
- Give /ɡɪv/
- /k/
Examples: - Kite /kaɪt/
- Cat /kæt/
- Kick /kɪk/
- Cake /keɪk/
- /ŋ/
An easy way to remember how to pronounce it is thinking of sound as fusion of "n" and "g"
Examples: - Sing /sɪŋ/
- Song /sɒŋ/
- Ring /rɪŋ/
- Long /lɒŋ/
- /m/
Examples: - Man /mæn/
- Milk /mɪlk/
- Mother /ˈmʌð.ər/
- Moon /muːn/
- /n/
Examples: - Nose /nəʊz/
- Name /neɪm/
- Nice /naɪs/
- Need /niːd/
- /tʃ/
Examples: - Chair /tʃeər/
- Cheese /tʃiːz/
- Check /tʃɛk/
- Chip /tʃɪp/
- /f/
Examples: - Fan /fæn/
- Fish /fɪʃ/
- Phone /fəʊn/
- Friend /frɛnd/
- /v/
Examples: - Voice /vɔɪs/
- Van /væn/
- View /vjuː/
- Very /ˈvɛr.i/
- /θ/
Examples: - Theta /ˈθeɪ.tə/
- Think /θɪŋk/
- Thumb /θʌm/
- Thousand /ˈθaʊ.zənd/
- /s/
Examples: - Sun /sʌn/
- Six /sɪks/
- City /ˈsɪt.i/
- Salt /sɔːlt/
- /z/
Examples: - Zebra /ˈziː.brə/
- Zip /zɪp/
- Zone /zoʊn/
- Zero /ˈzɪə.rəʊ/
- /j/
Even though it is "j", it is pronounced as "y"
Examples: - Yearn /jɜːn/
- Yam /jæm/
- Yours /jɔːz/
- Yes /jɛs/
- /w/
Examples: - Water /ˈwɔːtə/
- Whale /weɪl/
- Wonderful /ˈwʌndəfʊl/
- Will /wɪl/
- /r/
Examples: - Road /rəʊd/
- Rain /reɪn/
- Red /rɛd/
- Right /raɪt/
- /l/
Examples: - Light /laɪt/
- Love /lʌv/
- Lake /leɪk/
- Long /lɒŋ/
- /h/
Examples: - House /haʊs/
- Hat /hæt/
- Happy /ˈhæpi/
- Horse /hɔːs/
- /ʤ/
Examples: - Judge /ʤʌʤ/
- Jump /ʤʌmp/
- Jeep /ʤiːp/
- Joke /ʤəʊk/
- /ʃ/
Examples: - Shirt /ʃɜːt/
- Shoe /ʃuː/
- Shop /ʃɒp/
- Shine /ʃaɪn/
- /ð/
Examples: - This /ðɪs/
- That /ðæt/
- Them /ðɛm/
- Though /ðəʊ/
- /ʒ/
Examples: - Measure /ˈmɛʒər/
- Vision /ˈvɪʒən/
- Treasure /ˈtrɛʒər/
- Genre /ˈʒɒnrə/