The Phonetic Alphabet of Mainstream American and British
Speech
Introduction
If you want to be clearly understood when
you speak English, you must make the right sounds.
English, as spoken in middle class circles in the USA and the UK, consists of the 46 sounds listed in this document. Using the standard sounds when speaking is like using standard spelling when writing. Children starting to learn English need to learn the right sounds from the start, and how to place stress. Those who have already learnt English need to check their speech, and correct it if need be.
In this document, the sounds are represented with Simplified Standard Sound Symbols (S4) rather than the academic International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) that can represent the sounds of nearly every language. This makes them easier to learn. Some of the words listed here are pronounced differently in mainstream American speech (marked US) and mainstream British speech (marked UK), and some are pronounced the same way in both.
Conventional spelling gives no clear indication as to how words should be said, as regards either phonemes or stress. Phonetic text, on the other hand, indicates exactly how. Phonetic text can be used as a reliable standard for learning and teaching: it makes the whole thing more understandable.
Learning the sounds of English without phonetic text as a prop is like learning arithmetic without a pencil and paper or playing the piano without sheet music. It can be done, but it is not easy.
In teaching English as a foreign language, there is a need for clarity about what the sounds of English actually are. Linguists identified the sounds used in English long ago. This document lists them all, indicating the corresponding sound-symbol and giving four examples of each.
Teachers of English know the sounds of English perfectly well, but often find them hard to explain. However, with the information in this publication, it is a simple matter to bring them into the conscious mind.
More about S4 can be found here www.s4phonetics.comTeach Spoken English
Teach Spoken English
English, as spoken in middle class circles in the USA and the UK, consists of the 46 sounds listed in this document. Using the standard sounds when speaking is like using standard spelling when writing. Children starting to learn English need to learn the right sounds from the start, and how to place stress. Those who have already learnt English need to check their speech, and correct it if need be.
In this document, the sounds are represented with Simplified Standard Sound Symbols (S4) rather than the academic International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) that can represent the sounds of nearly every language. This makes them easier to learn. Some of the words listed here are pronounced differently in mainstream American speech (marked US) and mainstream British speech (marked UK), and some are pronounced the same way in both.
Conventional spelling gives no clear indication as to how words should be said, as regards either phonemes or stress. Phonetic text, on the other hand, indicates exactly how. Phonetic text can be used as a reliable standard for learning and teaching: it makes the whole thing more understandable.
Learning the sounds of English without phonetic text as a prop is like learning arithmetic without a pencil and paper or playing the piano without sheet music. It can be done, but it is not easy.
In teaching English as a foreign language, there is a need for clarity about what the sounds of English actually are. Linguists identified the sounds used in English long ago. This document lists them all, indicating the corresponding sound-symbol and giving four examples of each.
Teachers of English know the sounds of English perfectly well, but often find them hard to explain. However, with the information in this publication, it is a simple matter to bring them into the conscious mind.
More about S4 can be found here www.s4phonetics.com