o Put your fingers right in the back of your jaw on your throat; when you produce the sound, your fingers should be moving a bit o Another practicable way to practice this vowel sound
Trang 1Pronunciation
Success American English
Collected & Edited by Long Pham –
IZONE TEAM
Trang 2Module 0 – The 10 key towards improvement
Number 1 – Practice and listen
- When you listen to any recording/video, try to repeat them or speak along Also, there will
be a lot of rules for you to remember, and therefore, practice and revise these rules on a frequent basis, preferably after each half module
Number 2 – Do not leave off word endings
- English words can change their meanings dramatically when you assemble a different ending E.g : light, like, life….; file, fight, fire… Leaving off word endings often leads to confusion and ambiguity
Number 3 – Make a list of frequently used words
- Come up with a list of frequently misspelled words and words that have slightly different pronunciations (assess, asset, asset, ASET…)
- Some frequently misspelled words: business, adjust, general, graduate, specific, severe,
general, popular…
Number 4 – Open your mouth when you speak English
- Proper English speaking involves a lot of mouth movements If you watch the mouth of native speakers when they speak, you’ll see that each sound produced will accompany a particular mouth movement
- Practice speaking very slowly, out loud, in a strong voice and exaggerate the mouth
movements for best results
Number 5 – Don’t be afraid to speak
- This may sound like a cliché But if you don’t enjoy speaking English, you can never speak well It’s that simple
Number 6 Read aloud in English for 10 to 15 minutes everyday
- The materials you use for reading out loud should be the sentences in this handbook After
you’ve completely mastered the techniques put forward here, move on to practice other paragraphs as you like
Number 7 – Record your own voice and listen for pronunciation errors
- Of course you can hear yourself when you speak, but the sound coming to your ears will be
distorted So, the best way to check whether you speak correctly is to record yourself and
listen again
Number 8 – watch the mouth movement of native speakers and imitate them
Trang 3- Similar to point number 4, mimicking native speakers’ mouth movements is the best
practice to familiarize yourself with the way English sounds are produced
Number 9 – listen and repeat
- IELTS tests, especially the Cambridge set, always feature Listening test with available scripts After listening for the test, try LISTEN AND REPEAT Compare them with the original scripts
to spot any major differences
Number 10 – Be patient
- Most importantly, be patient Fixing your pronunciations involves a lot of time
commitment It’s a challenge that cannot be completed overnight So, stay patient and keep practicing
Trang 4Module 1 (Rule 1 -10) – Video 1 - The 15 Vowel sounds of American English
- 1 /i:/ please, seat, meet, believe
- 2 /i/ this, difficult, if, dinner,
- 3 /ei/ late, gate, baseball, stay, okay,
- 4 /e/ bed, men, dress, friend
- 5 /ea/ apple, man, stand, angry
- Group 1: from number 1 to number 5 – they’re called front vowel (your tongue is in front)
Your jaw opens wider on each vowel (heat, hit, hate, het, hat)
- 6 /u:/ moon, shoes, room, blue
- 7 /u/ book, foot, full, push, took
- 8 /ou/ go, drove, slow, moment,
- 9 /o:/ always, tall, bought, thought
- 10 /a:/ hot, topic, office, modern
Group 2: from number 6 to 10 – they’re called back vowel (your tongue is in the back Your jaw forms a round shape and move back a bit with each vowel (boot, book, boat, bought, bot)
- 11 /ow/ & /^/ but, done, jump, love
- 12 /3:/ first, Thursday, girl, work
- 13 /ai/ time, while, nine, dining,
- 14 /au/ now, house, brown, announce
- 15 /oi/ enjoy, noise, boy, annoying
o Tense: our tongue is tense and sometimes our lips are also tense
o Neutral/relaxed: our lips and tongues are relaxed in the back
o It is critical to know the difference between tense and neutral vowels Otherwise, you
might be confused by words like fool or full, hot or hut, steel and still
o The four relaxed vowels are
2 /i/,
4 /e/,
7/ow/ or /^/,
10 /u/
Trang 5- Rule 2 - /i:/ & /i/ (8 P.G.)
- E.g.: beach & bitch, sheet & shit
- It’s very important to discriminate these vowel sounds – this difference doesn’t exist in some other languages like Vietnamese
- The difference lies in fact that one vowel is tense /i:/ and the other vowel is relaxed /i/
- /i:/ please, steal & steel, me, see
o Usually spelt with ee, ea, ie, ei
o Your lips must be tense and your tongue must be tense in the back of your mouth
o Put your fingers right in the back of your jaw on your throat; when you produce the sound, your fingers should be moving a bit
o Another practicable way to practice this vowel sound is to smile (like when you say
“cheese”): sheep, sheet, lead, feet, feel
- /i/: if, different, this, think
o Usually spelt with I, y (in the middle of the word like system, gym)
o Your tongue and your fingers will not be moving Also, your lips should be relaxed
o Rather similar to the /i/ in Vietnamese
o When the sound is produced fast, it can sound like /ư/
- Vowel pairs - Differentiation
o Can you feel it?
o Can you fill it?
o Did you heat it?
o Did you hit it?
o He doesn’t want to leave
o He doesn’t want to live
- Sentence practice 2
o The beans have been cooking since six o’clock
o Sit in that seat by the window
o We ate our meal, by the mill
Trang 6o The seal will live in the ocean.
o Tim’s team grinned after seeing the green field
o Pip and Pete shipped the sheep cheaply
o Those bins are for Bill’s beans
o Does Jim still steal Jill’s jeans?
o The girls put concrete on Jill’s sneakers
o Pick cherries at their peak or you will eat the pits
- Mix – Practice saying these sentences (a little slow for the first time and speed it up for the 2 nd time) – Concentrate on your mouth movements
o She was feeling sleepy after eating the big meal
o These three people speak Chinese
o We love the green fields and the beach breezes
o Steve believes he will see Peter this week
o I will leave the East Coast in three weeks
o There are six filthy dishes in the kitchen sink
o Mr and Mrs Smith lived in India for six years
o Bill took some interesting pictures on his trip to Italy last spring
o The winter wind will bring a big chill
o Do you think that this swimmer has the ability to win?
- Remember that the main difference between these 2 vowels is not that one vowel is long and
the other is short, but rather one vowel is tense and the other is neutral/relaxed
- Even a relaxed vowel can sometimes be prolonged if the word is stressed E.g.: wow, your house
is big
-
- Rule 3 - /a:/ & /ow/
- /a:/ can be a problem to a lot of people because sometimes /a:/ can be spelt with the letter /o/
E.g.: hot, stop – these two are pronounced exactly the same as the /a:/ in father, army or watch
- The o and the a have similar sounds frequently, which is the /a:/
o To create the /a:/ sound, open your mouth wide Keep your tongue at the bottom of your mouth and keep your tongue at the bottom of your mouth touching the bottom teeth
o This vowel is usually longer than most non-native speakers tend to make it E.g.: stop,
that’s impossible Particularly, if it’s a verb or a noun, we prolong the “a:” in the stressed syllable E.g.: that’s impossible, that’s my new job
- “O” words that are pronounced with /a:/ (these can be confusing, so take your time to get used to them)
o Hot
o Top
Trang 7- /ow/ & /^/ - neutral sound: lip & tongue neutral at the back There is hardly any movement
o Almost like you punch yourself in the stomach to make a tiny little noise
o Commonly spelt with letter u (but, fun, number) ou ( cousin, country)
o Some other: love, son, other, done
- Vowel pairs – differentiation
- Sentence practice /a:/ sound
o The modern novel is very popular
o Tom will watch hockey with his father
o John will probably study biology in college
o I will not bother to respond to Tom’s offer
o If you gossip about your boss, you might lose your job
o Bob opened the box and followed the instructions
o Tom put some cotton, rocks and doorknob in his locker
o His mom made a concrete model of a hockey rink
- Sentence practice /^/ sound
o We must discuss this with the other judges
o My buddy Doug is a wonderful drummer
o On Mondays he plays the drums in that club
o On Sunday I had duck for lunch with my cousin
o He doesn’t study much and he loves to have fun
- The spellings can be confusing at times, so, it’s best to look up for word meanings and
pronunciations in Oxford dictionary
Trang 8- Rule 4 – “pool” or “pull” (lesson 10 P.G.)
- /u:/ - tense
o Commonly spelt as oo (food, moon), ue (blue, true)
o For /u:/, your lips move forwards like you’re kissing someone
o Look at the good book
o Distinguish “food” & “foot”
o The following are words that have “oo” spellings but are produced with “u” sound
Trang 9o He knew the values of those 2 suits
o The crew uses a lot of new tools
o In the future, there will be new school rules
o Susan wore her new shoes to school
- /u/
o The woman in the wool pullover is good-looking
o You should walk in the woods
o It would be good if you could help me
o You should walk in the woods
o He took a good look under the hood
o He spent his childhood playing football
- Mixed
o He took a good look under the hood and found a flute
o Julie enjoys good book after school
o He put his foot in the new boot
o She took her students to the brook to wash their shoes
o We pulled him out of the swimming pool
o The fool ate until he was full
- Rule 5 – /ae/ - as in “apple” & /au/ (10 P.G.)
/ae/
o Your lips are open, your tongue is down and tense
o Visualize you’re saying /a:/ with a smile (open your mouth wide)
o In British English, this sound very frequently resembles /a:/
o The common spelling pattern for this word is the letter a
Apple, angry, man, fat, dance
Los Angeles, class, random, answer,
o If it’s a noun or a verb, make sure that’s it is prolonged
“I can’t stand that class”
Last January, Adam travelled to Los Angeles, California
- Extra word practice
Trang 10- Sentence practice
o Jack lacks cash because of a bad gambling habit
o I brought my black jacket on my trip to France
o My family understands that I can’t handle that matter
o The fat cat wore a jacket
o Pack your sack and bring your magnet
o He sang about an actor named Jack
- /au/
o This is an important sound! If mispronounced, it can often make you misunderstood
o Begin with the /ea/ sound as in “hat” Then, slide your mouth forward to form a “w” sound E.g downtown
o The brown couch is downstairs
o Her house is on the South side of the mountain
o I was proud of the sound that came out of my mouth
- Rule 6 – “/o:/
o Your mouth forms an oval shape
o Don’t push your lips forward too much, don’t say “oo” (British speakers do this and it is strictly not American English)
o In British English, this sound is very different from American English
o For instance: tall, fall
o The common spelling pattern for this sound is
“al” – tall, small, always
“au” – automobile, August, audience, applaud
“aw” – law, saw, awful
o Sentence practice
He paused in the hall to talk with Paul
The author talked to the small audience
Trang 11 We all thought you bought it at the mall
It’s awful that he always breaks the law
He’s exhausted because he has been walking all day long
- Rule 7 – “/ou/ as in most and /ei/ as in eight (9 P.G.)
o /ou/ combination of 2 sounds /o/ and /u:/, therefore you must move your mouth
forward
o E.g.: No, I don’t
o /a:/ hot, god, job
o /ou/ go, hole, ghost,
- Word practice:
o O: post, moment, go
o Ow: flow, slow, show
o Oa: road, boat, soap
o The lonely soldier wrote home
o The wind mostly blows over the ocean
o Do you know who own most of those homes?
o Let’s watch the show in slow motion
o He sold both of this boats
o I don’t know where the hole is on the coat
o Does Joe know how to drive on the road?
o I need to blow my nose when I have a cold
- /ei/ imagine you start with an A and glide up to an E (AE)
Trang 12- Sentence practice
o The ape gave the trainer a cane
o David began shaving when he was eighteen
o The rainbow appeared when daylight changed
o The baby snake lived in a painted cage
o My neighbor’s basement was changed from blue to beige
o Hey, take away the strain! Weigh the gains of a great break with Lazy Day Vacations
- Rule 8 – “/owr/ & /3:/ as in “her”
o Produced with the /ow/ sound plus /r/
o The common spelling for this sound can be any vowel plus the “r”: er, ar, ear, ir, or
Er: her
Ar: grammar
Ear: learn, heard
Ir: bird, first, girl
Or: work, worry
Ur: nurse, hurt,
o It’s your turn to work early on Thursday
o I’m certain that Mr Turner has courage
o I heard that the first earthquake was the worst
o Don’t worry about learning those German words
o The early bird always get the worm
- If there is a vowel before the r, chances are the word is pronounced as “owr”
- Rule 9 – understanding stressed vowels (13 P.G)
- Vowel length: American vowels can sometimes sound very long and louder if the syllable is
stressed or if the word is stressed
- Stressed words are often longer, louder and with a ’
- Aim to prolong the vowels in the following words
o E.g.: banana, Canada, biology, photography
- The same things happen when the word is stressed Generally, we stress verbs and nouns – often the key words
Trang 13- E.g.: I love my new class
o The word is class a noun, so we it must be prolonged and spoken a bit more loudly
o I love it
o I have to call him
o You’re really tall.
o It’s hot.
o Let’s go to the park
- Stressing 2 words:
o I got a job at the hospital
- English is a very musical language As we speak, our words go up and go all the way down, much like music does Having proper stresses keep your speech interesting and easy to listen to,
- Listen to the following sentences:
o Many speakers of English use a flat intonation pattern or monotone, this can create uninteresting and misunderstood speech Everything is very flat
Monotone speech can be very boring to listen to
- Listen to the following advertisement:
o Have you ever tried one of Diane’s Donuts? They are so delicious I have eaten many different kinds of donuts, from all over the country? I have eaten many different kinds
of donuts, from all over the country However, I have never tasted anything, quite like Donuts made by Diane I have been told that she uses the finest and freshest
ingredients that money can buy The best flower, the best eggs and the best milk I am sure that once you taste these incredible donuts, you will run and tell all of your friends
- Compare these sentences
o Joe drinks cheap wine
o Sue only drink expensive wine
o Don’t forget his birthday
o We would never forget his birthday
o She’s planning to leave tomorrow
o He made plans to leave a month ago
o The teacher’s meeting is at 9 a.m tomorrow
o The students announced that they will never have a meeting
- Rule 10 – understanding reduced vowels
- Contrary to the stressed vowels, many vowels are reduced in speaking
- Reduced vowels are not pronounced fully
- Many vowels can sound like /ow/ when it’s part of the reduced/unstressed syllable
o E.g.: symbol, local, record, record
Trang 14- The same things happen when words are reduced within sentences We stress the key words
like nouns and verbs, we reduced the little less important words like: prepositions, articles, modal verbs
o Preposition: in, on, at, for with, buy
o Modal: can, could, should, should have, has
- E.g
o Look at me
o I’d like to talk to you
o I’m looking for you
o Let’s meet at two o’ clock
o I’d like to talk to the pilot
o Let’s meet for breakfast
o I’d love to go for a walk
- Remember: reduced syllables regularly have the /ow/ sound (sometimes the /i/ sound)
Trang 15- Module 2 (Rule 11 -25) – Video 2 – Consonant sounds
o Some of the consonants may not exist in Vietnamese
o Even though some of the consonants may exist in Vietnamese, they are pronounced slight differently with an American accent
o The tongue is in a slightly different position or the lips move more firmly or softly; or the vocal cords are vibrating slightly differently
o All of these factors affect the American consonant sounds
o Another reason could be the sound exist in Vietnamese, but it never appears at the end
of the word or the middle of the word So when you say these letters, you don’t say them the way you should with an American accent
- Rule 11 – fully pronouncing each sound
- You must fully pronounce each consonant sound Don’t take any shortcut
- Most of us are not aware with what we are doing with our mouth when we’re speaking our native language
- When you learn English, it becomes very important to note mimic the mouth movement of native speakers
o E.g.: I need five dollars
- If you tend to speak quickly in your native language, be especially careful when you speak in English (don’t mumble or your mouth still when speaking)
- It’s essential to develop an awareness of what reapply happens in the mouth when we speak English
- E.g.: p, b – you have to open and close your mouth when pronounce these consonants –
probably (lips open and close 3 times) don’t take any shortcut
- E.g.2 l (la, la), n (nasal sound) – In general – your tongue must touch your upper teeth 3 times
-
- Practice saying the following numbers (move your lips fully and try every consonant)
o Seven
o Twelve
- Rule 12 – voiced & voiceless
- Depends on the vibration of your vocal cords.
- Affect your pronunciation of your –ed ending, the –s ending and the vowel length.
- The best way to test whether a consonant is voiced is to put your fingers on your throat – you
can feel your vocal cords vibrating if it’s a voiced consonant
Trang 16- Many words contain both voiced & voiceless consonants, therefore you must switch promptly
E.g.: five – Give me five dollars
- Note the vowels before the voiced sound is longer: ice, eyes (the vowel sounds in ice are
shorter than in eyes) –
- When we produce the “th”, the tongue position is the most important thing you need to know
- What is the tongue doing exactly? The tip of your tongue is lightly touching your upper teeth & there is an airflow coming out when your tongue touches the upper teeth
- Be careful that your tongue doesn’t touch too hard your upper teeth (which will block the air friction)
- Common mistake - distinguish these:
o th (think), s & t
o Th (this) & z
- Note: for practice purpose, you can stick your tongue out fully to familiarize yourself with the
sound Later on, you can just contacting your tongue with your upper teeth Sticking your tongue all the time is not realistic and will slow you down
o E.g.: thank you for the birthday present
- The “Unvoiced Th” sound: flat tongue protruding through your teeth Maintain a steady air
stream Stretch out the “Th” word
o For practice purpose, think of the word thumb as having two beats
- Unvoiced “Th” practice words
Trang 17Thanks Thick Thunder Thursday Think
Anything Bathmat Toothpick Athletic Mouthwash
Bath North Beneath Fourth South
- Voiced “th”
Beginning
- The (the book)
- That (that house)
- They (they came
over)
- There (there it is)
- This (This is my nose)
- Those (Those boys
- That’s the one
- Her skin is smooth
- Thirty days’ notice
o Therma arrived in town last Thursday
o I’m having troubles threading this needle
o I need 33 thick thermometers
o The thing they like best about Athens is the weather
o This thrilling novel was written by a famous author
o He will be through with his work at three thirty
o Now and then, she likes to buy new clothing
o They thought they were going to Northern Spain
o He’s revising the plan to travel to Southern Europe
o I’m thirsty Is there anything to drink in this place?
o I thought it was on Thursday at three thirty
o This is my fourth month studying Math
o Both my father and mother are healthy
o I think Mathew lives in the North
- After all, remember it is the position of your tongue touching your teeth lightly
- THR blends
o Thread “thread the needle”
Trang 18o Throw “Throw the ball”
o Throat “my throat is sore”
o Thrill “a thrilling ride”
o Three “give me three more days”
o Threw “he threw the balls”
o Throne “the King sits on a throne”
- Paragraph practice
- Nurse Thatcher was thankful it was Thursday She knew that on Thursday she had to deliver thirty three boxes of thermometers to the North American athletic club They thought that thermometers were necessary for testing the hydrotherapy baths This was thought to benefit the athletes with arthritis The athletic trainers required authorization to provide hydrotherapy
to the youthful athletes with three bulletin boards with thumbstacks throughout the athletic clubs
- Rather than risk the health of the athletes, they thoroughly checked the thousands of
thermometers to insure their worthiness; otherwise they needed to be thrown away
- Th exceptions – although the following words are spelled with “th”, they are pronounced as “t”
- Rule 14 – the American l sound
- Say “la, la, la, la, la”- your tongue should be going up and down your upper teeth
- When the l is at the end of the word, it’s a little bit more difficult than that Your tongue is
relaxed and it touches right behind the upper teeth and it stays there E.g.: I will call Bill
- Note that when placed at the end of words, “l” comes from the tongue movement, not
Trang 19o I”ll call Bill to tell him about the film
o I feel terrible about the political scandal
o I think I’ll be able handle it by myself
o You’ll do well at school
o The lollipop fell into the cool water
o Her driver’s license was pulled out of the blue golf bag
o Blake’s bowling ball fell under his tools
o Carl could not locate the lemons or the limes
o The school was a mile away from the hill
o The golf club was made of steel
o Al’s goal was to play baseball with Carol
o A certified letter was delivered for the enrollment list
o It was revealing to look at the smiling lawyer
- “Fl” Blend poem
o A flea (chấy) and a fly, flew up in a flue
o Said the flea, “Let us fly”
o Said the fly “let us flea”
o So they flew through a flaw in the flue
- Using will
o Will you empty the garbage?
o Will you ask her to clean the kitchen?
o Will you prepare a meal for the children?
o When will you begin your studies at college?
o When will she purchase her dress for her weddings?
o Why will he ask them to stay late at work?
- Remember, prolong the l and keep it behind right behind the upper teeth
- Rule 15 – the American R sound (1 P.G.) and R blend (link to Rule 24)
- Say the “R” in 2 different ways and define which one is the American R
o Four
o Here
o Teacher
o Robert
Trang 20- The first thing you need to know is that the American R is never silent, even if it’s at the end of a word
- In British English, people don’t generally pronounce the final r at the end of words
o Teacher, four more
- How do you product the American r
o The tip of the tongue should never touch the top behind your upper teeth
o The rolling “r” is Russian, don’t do this – that sounds like American accent to foreign speakers
o Curl the tip of the tongue and pull it back
o Your mouth and lips move forward like you’re going to kiss
o Also, the “r” is not silent even before another consonant E.g learn, German
Trang 21- When the blend is at the beginning of a word, your mouth prepares for the “R”, by coming forward even before you say the word
- R blend at the beginning of words
o The story he read on the radio was incorrect
o Her career in the law firm was permanent
o Richard and Brooke took a ride in their brand new Ranger Rover truck
o Everyone will respect the royal family when they arrive at the airport
o There computer isn’t working
o I gave her four other pictures
o Her fourth birthday is on Thursday
o There are many more over there
o We were the first to arrive the park
- Remember – good strong R sound and curl your tongue back
-
- Rule 16 – the “w” and “kw” sound (1 P.G.)
- The w sound is actually not the like the “g” in Vietnamese It sounds more like “gườ”
- You need to round your lips and you need to have a lot of air coming through, so make sure
that your vocal cords are vibrating and there is air coming out of your lungs
- You can practice with:
o First, say “OOOOOO”
o Then, go into “OOOOOWAWAWAA”
- Word practice:
Trang 22- W at the beginning of words:
o You’re always welcome
o The wind from the West was very wet
o We woke up and washed the white washcloth
o We waited for the waitress to give us water
o We had a wonderful time In Washington and Wiscosin
Trang 23o What do you want to do this weekend?
o I’m always required to work on Wednesdays
o She will wear a white wedding dress on her wedding day
o I have a quick question about the quality of the watch
o There are always 12 women with the children
o We wish we were with our wives
- Remember, round your lips and let the air flow through
- Review rule 16 & 17 – Quick review
construct and was painted red and white Everyone wanted to ride the brand new roller coaster
- Rule 17 – the “f”, “v” and “w” sound (4 P.G.)
- To correctly product the v sound, your lower lip should touch your upper teeth
- Don’t bite your lower lip too hard Try to create the vibration of air and say “vvvv” – “have”
- “f” and “v” are identical in the sense that they are both produced by contacting your upper teeth to your lower lip and produce an air stream
- Word practice with “f”
Trang 24- Sentence practice:
o Do you feel like a physical wreck? Are you fed up with feelings of fatigue? Have you had enough of feeling rough? Why don’t you fight fever with Pharaoh’s Friend A medicine that is tough on flu
o Pharaoh /‘feow rou/
- When people speak too quickly, the letter “v” tends to disappear E.g involved, five months
- The v (an important vowel) tends to be easily overlooked
o The foreign service
o Husband and wife
o Very well done
o He’s very involved in their
Trang 25o Summer vacation
o Vocabulary test
o Over the rainbow
o Our fist victory
o However you wish
o I’ll have wine with the veal (meat from a young calf)
- Remember lower lips touch the upper teeth and feel the vibration
- Additional rule 1 – the “SH” sound (4 P.G.)
- To make the unvoiced SH (S) sound, bring your mouth and lips forward a little, teeth should be slightly apart Produce the airstream Words beginning with SH begins with this sound
Trang 26Dish Establish Splash Irish Fresh
Finish
- Sentence practice
o The fishing trip was planned and we left to go to the ocean
o Was the chef ashamed to use the precious sugar?
o Sharon gave a special performance
o He will be stationed in Washington, D.C, the nation’s capital
o She went into a fashion show after taking a shower
o She sells seashells by the seashore
o The social club was praised for the cooperation
o Joe’s weather machine shows a sharp drop in air pressure, especially offshore Ships in motion on the ocean should be sure to use caution
- The voiced “ZSH” /d3/ sound: is produced exactly like the “SH” except voicing is added This is
an important sound in American English
- It’s not unusual for people to study division in Asia
- I usually use a measuring cup to measure erosion
- The beige walls were the unusual colour in the treasury building
- List things that are appropriate for each column Then say them out loud in full sentences for
practice
Trang 27o It’s usually hot in the summer
o It’s unusual for me to be late for an appointment
- Rule 18 – the “s” and “z” sound (2 P.G.)
- Very often in English a word is spelled with the z sound but is produced with the z sound
- Case 2 Voiceless accompanies voiceless [p, t, k, f, th (thing)]
o One cup, two cups
o One cat, two cats
o I break, he breaks
o I stop, he stops
- Try to determine if the plural forms of the following word are pronounced as “s” or “z”
Trang 28o He plays the drums on the weekends
o She has friends in many countries
o Does he always use those things?
o It rains and snows in these areas?
- When it’s a voiced consonant followed by an s, the “s” makes the sound /z/
- Paragraph practice
o Last week, Jim’s brothers were picked to represent their country in the Olympic Games Two of the brothers were swimmers, while the other two were long distance runners All of the brothers wore glasses These athletes worked hard at qualifying for the games and were hoping to come home with big prizes Since the brothers go to the same university, they often take the same courses This makes studying easier and gives them more time to do other things
o On Thursday, I had a very lazy day I woke up early and first squeezed oranges into juice
I then got dressed and watched the sunrise come up over the mountains It was so beautiful that I took many pictures with my camera and I used three rolls of film After drinking two cups of coffee, I got dressed, left the house, and walked three miles home.
Trang 29- Additional rule 2 – the “CH” (tS) sound, the American d3 sound,
End
Detach Teach Porch March Patch Wrench Coach Approach
- “Ch” sentence practice
o Chop-chop, children, it’s Charlie’s Kitchen adventure!
o Today, Chuck will be teaching future champion cooks how to make a chocolate
End
Age College Postage Stage Pledge Village Average Page Courage Knowledge
- “d3” sentence practice
o A German judge and jury have charged and jailed a strange giant, who sat on the edge
of a bridge throwing jelly onto large barges
Trang 30- Assembling these 2 phrases
- He thought that he should
o Wash the car
o Thank the teacher
o Watch television
o Use the telephone
o Shut the door
o Breath deeply (voiced th)
o Tell the truth
- Henry the hungry hippo, who hogged a huge heap of one hundred hamburgers, has had hiccups for one whole week
-
- To make the unvoiced SH (S) sound, bring your mouth and lips forward a little, teeth should be slightly apart Produce the airstream Words beginning with SH begins with this sound
-
- Rule 19 – stops and continuants
- Another way to categorize consonants aside from being voiced or voiceless is whether they are
“stops” or “continuants”
Trang 31- A “stop” is a consonant we produce when stopping the air flow E.g Job (you cannot continue the sound b – it’s not “b”, “b”, “b”)
- A continuant is a sound we can continue as long as we have air in our lungs For instance, when you say the word “yes”, you can say “yessssssssssssss” (prolonging that s for quite a long time)
So the s is a continuant
- Why is it important to know if it’s a “stop” or a “continuant”?
- Mistake with continuants
- When we have a continuant, a lot of people make this mistakes to treat it like a stop, they’ve cut the consonants in half and they rush through the words
o E.g.: sometimes – s & m are continuants in this case, so take your time and fully
pronounce the continuants – a lot of people make the mistake to rush through the continuants and make them too short
- Feel the sounds and extend the letters if you can, especially if it’s a continuant E.g.: have
- Mistake with stops
- Pop music – when we have a stop in front of a consonant, don’t release the stop before the
consonant
o If we release the stop, it sounds like we are adding an extra syllable
o Make sure you hold the stop “Job market”, “had this”
o E.g No, it’s not (hold the t at the end of a word – tongue behind top teeth)
o I’m not that hot
o You’re quite right
- Fully pronouncing the t-ending would make you sound like British English or other foreign accents You need to hold the t at the end to have a more American accent That’s why people
have a hard time understanding “can” and “can’t” - very often American would say “I can’t go”
with the teeth being held
o I want that blue hat
o Robert, you might be right
o It’s not that different
o What did you eat last night?
o I can’t wait for that flight
Trang 32- Remember, hold the final stop by either holding your tongue for the “t” or the “d” (e.g but &
end) or closing your lips and say up & job Don’t release the puff of air
- Rule 20 – “t” between two vowels (3 P.G.)
- Practice another American style “t” sound Say one word in 2 different ways (ask yourself which one sounds American)
- If you notice, all the words said have a “t” in it, but the “t” doesn’t really sound like “t” It
sounded more like a “d”
- Rule: when the t is between 2 vowels, it sounds like a fast “d” (e.g better - remember, it is not a strong d sound)
o That’s a better city
- This also happens when the “t” is between 2 vowels even when the words are separate (e.g it is)
o Betty bought a bit of better butter
o This butter’s bitter
o If I put it in my batter
o It’s make my batter bitter
o I got up at 11 o’ clock
o Do you want to get in or get out?
o I bought it at a computer store
o What a nice day it is!
- By the way, this is not considered lazy, sloppy or casual speech This is the standard American accent
Trang 33- Rule 21 – “t” followed by “n”
- The final rule about the t sound in American English Say one word in 3 different ways, you have
to ask yourself which one sounds like American accent
o Written /’ri : town/ /’ri down/ /’ri tn/
o Button /’b^ town/ /’b^ down/ /’b^ tn/
o Forgotten /fow got town/ /fow got dn/ /fow got tn/
- When we have a /t/ followed by an “n” (written), the ‘t’ is held, so we hold our tongue behind
our upper teeth and we don’t release it We directly go the “N” sound without moving our
tongue down, just move your tongue forward to go directly to the “n” (so, basically it’s the “t” and the “n” that are next to each other)
- The air flow associated with the t will come out of your nose
o I’m certain that’s the tallest mountain
o My cotton shirt has buttons
o I have forgotten when the book was written
o Martin was born in Great Britain
- When a “t” is followed by an “n”, keep your tongue up – don’t release it
- Rule 22 – the “ing”, “m” & “n” the nasal sound (6 P.G.)
- So many verbs take the ING form E.g I’m going, I’ve been working, what have you been doing?
- Let’s learn how to correctly pronounce that sound
- 3 different ways of pronunciation
o Going /gou ‘in/ /’gou ink/ /’gou ing/
o Doing
o Thinking
- When you produce the “ng” sound, the g is at the back, your tongue is touching in the back (g, g,
g, g, g), but the “g” is not released very much
- When you produce the “g”, let the “g” stays there
- At the same times, some Americans might not produce the “g” E.g Going /’gou in/, doing /’do
in/, but it’s considered sloppy street language Educated people don’t say this
Trang 34- Remember, raise your tongue up in the back and try to keep it up there, do not release the “g”
If you do, just release a bit because ing is a nasal sound
o I’m thinking about buying the ring
o Who are you bringing to the wedding?
o I love swimming, running and playing tennis
o I have a feeling that she’s working too much
o She has been wearing a hearing aid so that she could sing
o He is looking forward to speaking at Thanksgiving celebration
- Don’t release your tongue and don’t produce the end just in front It’s a sound in the “back”
- “m” and “n” sounds – are the two remaining nasal sounds You can’t possibly produce the
sound while closing off your nose
- M sound word practice (mouth closed, sounds like “ummmmmm”)
o Mice, some, swim, ham
o Miss, more, make
o Smoke, jump, harmed
o Comb, autumn, film
- N sound word practice (mouth open, tongue behind top teeth)
o Night, warn, win, ran
o Now, new, know
o Snow, dinner, against
o Gone, open, listen
- Rule 23 – the ‘tr’ and ‘dr’ sounds
- Sometimes, when we have 2 consonant sounds and we put them together, they create a brand new sound, so the combination of two individual sounds create a brand new different sound This is true with the letter “t” and “d” when they’re followed by the consonant “r”
o Try
o Travel
o Tradition
Trang 35o Introduction
o Control
o Dry (sounds like d3rai/
The dr sorts of become the letter j /d3/
Use the tip of your tongue a bit
o Similarly: drama, drop, drastic, address, one hundred, Sandra
- Sentence practice
o Is it true that you took a trip to Detroit?
o That was an interesting trick
o Children, don’t drop your drinks
o I hope my dream comes true
- Remember, dr sounds like d3r
-
- Rule 24 – the ‘tu’ and ‘du’ sounds
- Let’s talk about happen when the “t” and “d” is followed by the “s” sound
- When the “t” is followed by an “u” (e.g actually), t becomes “tS” sound, so the “t” and “u” combined become “tSu”
o Statue
o Nature
o Picture
- This also happens when the “t” is followed by an “u”, the change also happens but in a slightly
different way, but this time it sounds like “dzu”
o Educate & education
o Individual
o Graduate & graduation
o Schedule
- When we have the word “you” that follows a “t” (e.g can’t you), the t also becomes a tS sound,
so we say can’t you
o Can’t you ? Why can’t you do it?
o Aren’t you? Aren’t you hungry?
o Won’t you? Why won’t you help me?
o Would you like to see the schedule?
o Aren’t you graduating in the spring?
Trang 36o Can’t you see the statue?
o Did you get a college education?
- When both “t” and “d” are followed by “you”, “you” becomes /tSiu/
- Rule 25 – “ed” endings “t” & “d” (6 P.G.)
- Let’s talk about the “ed” ending that forms that past tense of regular verb
- Look at the three following words
o Waited /id/
o Stopped /pt/
o Robbed /d/
- There are 3 different ways to pronounce the /ed/
- The rule changes according to the consonant before the “ed”
- Rule #1 If the last letter of a verb is either “t” or “d”, we add the extra syllable “id”
o He voted this morning
o He handed me his report
o I traded in my old car
o She added some information
- Rule #2 If the last consonant of the verb is a voiceless consonant, the “ed” becomes a “t”
o Today I jump, yesterday I jumped
o Today I walk, yesterday I walked
- Rule #3 If the last consonant of the verb is a voiced consonant, the “ed” becomes a “d” (e.g
robbed)
o Love – loved
Trang 37o Realize – realized
o Call – called
o Use – used
- Example sentence
o Today, I rub Yesterday, I rubbed
o I cleaned the kitchen
o I poured the milk
o I scrubbed the floor
o I tagged the clothing
o I spilled some juice
o I trimmed the tree
o I moved to California The clock buzzed all night
- Sentence practice
o I painted the walls and fixed the gates
o I cooked a meal and washed the dishes
o I attended a party and danced all night
o He called his friends and talked for an hour
o He asked me he’d corrected the mistakes
o My dishwasher broke down, so I had to scrubbed the dishes
o My shoulders are sore, could you rub them please?
- Paragraph practice:
o Bob raked the leaves and then started to wash his car He then loaded up the
dishwasher and finished washing his dishes
o Susan spilled her drink on the spotted rug She cleaned it up with a napkin, which wasted a lot of time
o He thanked me and offered me money, if I pick up the used equipment
- Other words that have “t” & “d” ending
- “t” ending
o Kate left her cat on the mat as she flew a kite
o The sailboat came into the port to join the fleet
o What bate will make the fish bite? A cricket or a piece of meat?
- “d” ending
o Fred will decide which sled should be painted red
o David tried to send a refund back to England
o He could not hide his report card behind the chalk board
- Summary
o The last letter /t/ or /d/, we add an extra syllable /id/
o The last letter is voiceless, we add /t/
o The last letter is voiced, we add /d/
Additional rule 3: “p” & “b” endings (6 P.G.)