Pronunciation guide

Introduction to Pronunciation

English words are often pronounced differently than they are spelled. For example, look at the letters ch in the following words:

 

  • chess /tʃ/
  • anchor /k/
  • chef /ʃ/

The pronunciation of each ch is different. The phonetic symbol beside each word shows the difference.

 

The International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) provides a symbol for each consonant and vowel sound of English. The IPA is useful because of differences in spelling and pronunciation. Most dictionaries have a pronunciation guide. Englishsolo.com uses the IPA because it is an international standard.

  1. /p/ pay
  2. /b/ book
  3. /t/ ten
  4. /d/ day
  5. /k/ cake
  6. /g/ game
  7. /f/ feel
  8. /v/ very
  9. /θ/ think
  10. /ð/ the
  11. /s/ say
  12. /z/ zoo
  13. /ʃ/ shoe
  14. /ᴣ/ vision
  15. /h/ home
  16. /tʃ/ chair
  17. /ʤ/ jaw
  18. /m/ me
  19. /n/ no
  20. /ŋ/ sing
  21. /l/ let
  22. /r/ red
  23. /w/ we
  24. /y/ yes
  1. /i/ me
  2. /ɪ/ hit
  3. /eɪ/ ate
  4. /ɛ/ get
  5. /æ/ bat
  6. /ʌ/ but
  7. /ə/ upon
  8. /ɑ/ box
  9. /u/ too
  10. /ʊ/ good
  11. /oʊ/ no
  12. /ɔ/ boss
  13. /aɪ/ my
  14. /aʊ/ out
  15. /ɔɪ/ boy
You do not need to memorize all the symbols right away. For now, bookmark this page in order to quickly reference the pronunciation symbols as needed.
Lesson 2: Using a Dictionary