How to read transcription in English correctly. What is transcription, its signs and correct pronunciation in English

Transcription- this is the transfer in writing of the elements of oral speech using a certain set of written characters. Phonetic transcription- this is the most accurate transmission of oral speech by graphic means (special transcription signs).

Each individual sound and its variants have their own designations. For recording, special characters are used, called transcription marks, which are enclosed in square brackets. Some of these signs repeat the letters of the English alphabet, the designations of others may differ significantly. However, letter and sound are completely different things. Letter- these are the designations of sound in writing, while the sound can be regarded as an independent unit. We write and read letters, we hear and pronounce sounds. The transcription mark indicates the sound and features of its pronunciation. In a letter, one letter can convey several sounds at once, and each transcription mark can convey only one sound.

What is transcription used for?

The spelling of a word and its actual pronunciation can vary significantly. Therefore, for correct pronunciation, only knowing the rules of reading is not enough, because there are always exceptions to the rules. The same letters/letter combinations under the same conditions can be read differently. Thanks to transcription, if necessary, you can correctly read an unfamiliar word. At the initial stage of learning the language, it is possible to use Russian transcription, but in English there are sounds that are absent in Russian, so Russian transcription conveys only the approximate sound of the word, which is why you can pronounce the word written in Russian transcription incorrectly. In addition, the quality of pronunciation of the same sounds may differ.

Perfect knowledge of transcription marks is not mandatory, because you are unlikely to need to convey the sound of a word using these marks. But you may need to look up the correct pronunciation of a word in a dictionary. And for this it is important to be able to correctly read the transcription in the dictionary. In addition, most transcription marks are found in other European languages.

Factors affecting pronunciation

word stress

The correct pronunciation of vowels in stressed syllables, where the vowels are pronounced clearly, and the meaning of the word will depend on the correctness of their sound, can cause difficulties. In an unstressed syllable, vowels are not clearly articulated, they can fall out (not pronounced), so they do not present any particular difficulties in pronunciation. Unlike Russian, where the stress is placed over the stressed syllable, in English the stress is indicated by a vertical stroke. before percussion syllable. Monosyllabic words have one stress, long ones can have two. In this case, the main emphasis is placed at the top, the secondary - at the bottom.

English sounds

Consonant sounds and their approximate Russian counterparts:

• [b] - [b]
• [d] - [d]
• [f] - [f]
• [g] - [g]
• [k] - [k]
• [l] - [l]
• [m] - [m]
• [n] - [n]
• [p] - [p]
• [s] - [s]
• [t] - [t]
• [v] - [in]
• [z] - [z]
• [ʃ] - [w]
• [ʒ] - soft [zh]
• - [h]
• - absent in Russian (represents a very quickly pronounced sound [j]);
• [r] - the tip of the tongue is not tense, does not vibrate, is motionless, raised to the arch of the oral cavity, but does not touch the alveoli (reminiscent of the Russian sound [r], but not so clear);
• [j] - [th];
• [ŋ] - nasal [n];
• [θ] - absent in Russian, interdental (to pronounce it, say [s], sticking the tip of your tongue between your teeth);
• [ð] - absent in Russian, interdental (to pronounce it, say [з], sticking out the tip of the tongue between the teeth).

The articulation of a number of English sounds practically does not differ from the articulation of Russian sounds, however, there are some features:

• From Russian analogues [t], [p], [k] English [t], [p], [k] are distinguished by their pronunciation with aspiration (aspiration);
• When pronouncing sounds [d], [l], [n], [t], the tip of the tongue is on the alveoli (tubercles just above the upper teeth);
• [ʃ] [ʒ] - softer than Russian counterparts, for this you need to slightly raise the back of the tongue;
• [h] - a sound slightly louder than exhalation;
• [w] - lips are rounded and tense, the lower lip should not touch the teeth (quickly say [wee]).

Vowel pronunciation

In English, vowel length is very important because it affects the meaning of a word. This means that words with the same vowel of different lengths will differ in meaning, for example: sheep [ʃi: p] - sheep, ship [ʃɪp] - ship, live live - leave - leave, leave.

The longitude of a vowel in a letter is indicated two dots after it. With the help of 6 vowels, you can form a wide variety of sounds:

• - long sound [a];
• [æ] - the middle between [a] and [e], the mouth is wide open, the jaw is lowered down;
• - long [and];
• [i] - short [and];
• [e] - the average between [e] and [e], the corners of the lips are stretched to the sides;
• [ɔ] - short [o];
• [ɔ:] - long [o];
• [ə] - an obscure, unstressed sound, reminiscent of [e];
• [ʌ] - short [a];
• [h] - resembles the sound [e];
• [u] - short [y];
• - lingering [y].

diphthongs

diphthongs- these are two vowel sounds pronounced together, where the first is stressed, articulated more clearly and distinctly, and the second is weaker:

• - [ai];
• - [hey];
• [ɔi] - [oh];
• - [ay];
• [əu] - [oh];
• - [ie];
• - [ue];
• [ɛə] - remotely similar to [ea].

triphthongs

Triphthong- this is a combination of three vowel sounds that are pronounced together and are part of one syllable.

- pronounced like [aye]. The longest of the three sounds is "a". The sounds "y" and "e" are pronounced almost together.
It is expressed in writing using the letter combinations “ire”, “yre”, “iar”, less often “ier” and “ie + t”:

ire - fire [‘faɪə] (fire)
yre - tire [‘taɪə] (tire)
iar - liar [‘laɪə] (liar)
ier - tier [‘taɪə] (connective)
iet - quiet [‘kwaɪət] (quiet)

- pronounced like [aue]. At the same time, the sound "y" is exactly the sound that is transmitted by the letter "w".
The letter is transmitted using the letter combinations "our", "ower":

our - sour [‘sauə] (sour)
ower - power [‘pauə] (strength)

- pronounced like [yue]. The longest of the three sounds in this triphthong is "y".
The letter is transmitted using the letter combinations "eur", "ure":

eur - European [ˌjuərə'piːən] (European)
ure - pure (pure).

Words in speech flow

In addition to the main stress, with which the emphasis is placed on the syllable, there is the concept of phrasal stress. Phrase stress- this is the selection in the flow of speech of words on the importance of which the speaker wants to emphasize. The location of the phrasal stress does not significantly change the essence of the sentence. Let's compare on the example of a simple short sentence (stressed words are in bold:) She has gone to the shop just now. She just went to the store (it was her, not someone else). She has gone to the shop just now. She has just gone to the store (went, not used another vehicle). She has gone to the shop just now. She just went to the store (namely, the store, and not anywhere else). She has gone to the shop just now. She just went to the store (just now).

Accordingly, the stressed word will be pronounced as clearly as possible. As a rule, function words are prepositions, conjunctions, particles, pronouns, etc. are in an awkward position. It should also be noted that colloquial speech tends to be minimized: it is characterized by the use of abbreviated forms, less clear articulation, in some places intentional mispronunciation of words, dropping vowels, etc.

How much time to devote to practice?

The answer is obvious. The more practice in the language, the better. The more time you take to practice pronunciation, the more authentic (more natural, as similar as possible to English speech) your speech will sound. Listening to English speech, its imitation, reading aloud will help you with this. Record your speech on a voice recorder, which will help to identify your own mistakes, because your perception of your own speech differs from its perception by others. And remember that when learning a foreign language, the regularity of classes is extremely important. With shorter, but regular sessions, you will achieve greater results than with long sessions of “jerks”. We wish you success!

English alphabet with transcription
Rules for reading in English

Instruction

Transcription is a recording of the sound of a letter or word as a sequence of special phonetic characters. With it, you can correctly read an unfamiliar word without outside help. At the beginning of studying transcription of the English language, errors in correct reading may occur. However, with practice comes skill. When used, both in reading and writing, the rules of reading are very important. As in Russian, not everything is read the way it is seen and vice versa.

The easiest way to write is to use the services of a -service. In addition to all kinds of dictionaries on the Internet, the ability to transcribe words has also appeared. One example of such sites is http://lingorado.com/transcription/. In a small window, just write or copy. A separate piece, a phrase, and a couple of words will do. After the text is entered, click on the "show transcription" button. The transcribed version will appear below.

The service also offers several additional options. For example, the ability to choose the classic English ("British") or "American" version. In addition, you can choose the transcription display option: only the transcription itself, along with the entered text at the same level (in one line), first the text, and below the transcription. And you can also add the options "take into account the weak position" and "transcription in Russian letters." For the greatest convenience, the text transcription application is available in the AppStore and Google Play. There are links on the right side of the site.

The ability to transcribe and transcription will help in learning the language. And not always in such situations, a laptop with Internet access or a smartphone with an application will be at hand. Here is how the English alphabet is transcribed: Aa [ei] - Bb [bi:] - Cc [si:] - Dd [di:] - Ee [i:] - Ff [ef] - Gg [dʒi:] - Hh [eitʃ] - Ii [ai] - Jj [dʒei] - Kk [kei] - Ll [el] - Mm [em] - Nn [en] - Oo [ou] - Pp [pi:] - Qq [kju:] - Rr [ a:] - Ss [es] - Tt [ti:] - Uu [ju:] - Vv [vi:] - Ww [`dʌbl` ju:] - Xx [eks] - Yy [wai] - Zz [zed/ ziː].

Vowels and consonants have their own characteristics. When a vowel is long, a colon is added to its designation. For example, the word "sheep" would be transcribed as follows: [ʃiːp]. A sound that looks like a cross between a and e is denoted by [æ] (apple - [ˈæpl]). An open sound a is indicated by a check mark [ʌ] (funny - ["fʌni]). The sound ё also has its own transcription: [з] (girl -). Sounds that end in "y" are written together with "i": ai - , oh - [ɔi], hey - The sound "oh" is denoted by [əu], ie -, ue -, ea - [ɛə].

With everything a little easier. The Russian sound "sh" is denoted by this symbol: [ʃ]. A few more examples of non-standard sounds: "j" -, "h" -, "g" - [ʒ], "yu" -, "e" -, "e" -, "i" -, "n" - [ŋ ] (usually at the end of a word, when "n" comes before "g" - "king"), the sound between s and f is [θ] (thin - [θin]), the sound between z and v is [ð] (brother - ).

A feature of the English language is that it has a lot of exceptions. Many people are used to learning languages ​​according to rules, strict patterns, and even learning all the exceptions by heart. However, when meeting and talking with a native speaker of English, one may be surprised, because even pedantic British people do not always follow all the rules, both grammatical and pronunciation. For them, there is an established practice and patterns of speech. And about a hundred years ago, the Dutchman Gerald Nolst Trenité (1870-1946) watched the English language for a long time and was horrified by the confusion in English readings. And I decided to collect such disgrace. As a result, they turned out 800 pieces, and even in the poem, which he called "Chaos". Even English teachers can't always read it properly. A poem with her is presented here: http://lingorado.com/english-reading-rules-chaos/.

To speak English, it is not enough to know how words are spelled, it is important to learn their pronunciation as well. To do this, as you know, it is enough to learn the sounds that you later need to be able to read in transcription. And if at first glance the pronunciation of English words seems to be something unbearable, in fact everything is quite simple, and today you will see for yourself.

First, let's look at what sounds and transcriptions are in English. Sound, in simple terms, is what we make when we pronounce a particular letter. Each such sound has its own symbol, which is used in transcription. A transcription, on the other hand, is one or more sound symbols, delimited by square brackets, which can convey a letter or a whole word. If theoretical explanations have given you absolutely nothing, let's analyze both concepts using an example for clarity:

Letter	Transcription	sound
a

Let's say we took the letter "a". Unlike Russian, this letter in English is pronounced as "hey". To express the sound in writing, we selected suitable characters that can convey this sound, that is, “ei”. And since the sounds in writing are used only in transcription, we added square brackets around this sound. That's all, we hope that the difference between these two concepts has become obvious.

As a rule, learning sounds begins with the English alphabet. Perhaps you once went through this topic, singing a melody with the pronunciation of all letters with your teacher, unless, of course, you ran away from the lessons. In any case, repeating this material again definitely does not hurt. So, each letter, and there are 26 of them in the English alphabet, has its own standard sound:

Letter order	Letter	Transcription	Pronunciation	sound
1.	A a		hey
2.	Bb		bi
3.	c c		si
4.	D d		di
5.	e e		and
6.	F f		ef
7.	G g		ji
8.	H h		h
9.	I i		ah
10.	J j		jay
11.	K k		kay
12.	l l		email
13.	M m		Em
14.	N n	[ɛn]	en
15.	O o	[əʊ]	OU
16.	Pp		pi
17.	Q q		cue
18.	R r	[ɑː]	a
19.	S s		es
20.	T t		ti
21.	U u		Yu
22.	Vv		in and
23.	W w	[‘dʌbljuː]	double u
24.	X x		the ex
25.	Y y		wye
26.	Zz		zed

However, this list is by no means complete. The fact is that in certain combinations, letters or their combinations can sound different. Therefore, often the alphabetic pronunciation of a letter does not coincide with its pronunciation in a word. In total, there are 48 basic sounds, let's consider them in more detail.

Pronunciation of English words: consonants

List

There are only 24 consonant sounds. You are already familiar with most of them, but you may meet some for the first time. Let's study the entire list of consonants with examples of words in which they are used:

Sound	In writing, it is usually expressed by letter(s)	Examples	The sound of words and sounds
[b]	b	ball (ball)
[d]	d	day (day)
[dʒ]	j/g	jazz (jazz) / gym (gym)
[f]	f	film (film)
[g]	g	gold (gold)
[h]	h	house (house)
[j]	y	yolk (yolk)
[k]	k/c/ch	karma (karma) / car (car) /
[l]	l/ll	lion (lion) / sell (sell)
[m]	m	man (person)
[n]	n	nose (nose)
[p]	p	picnic (picnic)
[r]	r	romance (romance)
[s]	s	smell (smell)
[t]	t	toaster (toaster)
[v]	v	vine (wine)
[w]	w/ wh	wax (wax) /
[z]	z / zz / se	zoo (zoo) / buzz (buzz) /
[ ŋ ]	ng	wrong (wrong)
[tʃ]	ch	chew (chew)
[ ʃ ]	sh	shop (shop)
[ ʒ ]	sure / sia	leisure (free time) / Asia (Asia)
[ ð ]	th	their (them)
[ θ ]	th	thought (thought)

Classification

All these consonants can be divided into groups. So, for example, consonants are divided:

• By voiced / deafness:
• Voiced consonants include:

• By way of pronunciation:
• Explosive (stop) consonants or consonants, the pronunciation of which creates some semblance of an "explosion". As a rule, for the pronunciation of such letters, the organs of speech first close, preventing the air from passing through, and then abruptly open, creating such an unusual sound. Since such letters are also present in Russian, let's draw an analogy to make it clearer:

• Nasal sounds are sounds that are made because air passes through the nose. If you pinch your nose and try to pronounce them, it will be extremely difficult to do this:

Also sounds:

Based on which organs of speech are closed, sounds can be divided into:

• Lip-labial sounds - sounds for the pronunciation of which both lips touch:

• Interdental consonants are sounds that require the tongue to be placed between the upper and lower teeth. Since, unlike other sounds that have at least some similar Russian counterparts, interdental sounds do not occur in Russian, they often cause difficulties for students. However, if you take the correct posture mentioned above, you will succeed. These sounds include:

• Alveolar consonants - consonant sounds that are pronounced by raising the tip of the tongue to the alveoli:

[d]

[l]

[s]

[t]

[z]

Pronunciation of English words: vowels

[au] ou mouse (mouse) [auə] ou / owe hour / [ ɔ ] o accord (agreement) [ ɔ: ] o/a/au sore (sick) /

talk (talk) /

[ɔi] oy toy (toy) [ ə ] e letter (letter) [e] e hen (chicken) [ ə: ] i/ea girl (girl) /

pearl (pearl)

[ ɛə ] ai / ayo airline (airline) / [ei] a/ay cupcake (cupcake) [i] i kit (kit) [i:] ea/ee beat (beat) / [iə] ea fear (fear) [ju:] u/ui perfume (perfume) / [juə] u/eu purity (purity) / [ou] ou soul (soul) [u] u/oo put (put) / [u:] oo moon (moon) [uə] oo/ou/u poor (poor) /

cure (healing)

[ ʌ ] u cut (cut)

Classification

According to their pronunciation, vowels can be divided into:

• Front and back vowels:

Anterior row sounds are pronounced by raising the back of the tongue to the hard palate and placing its tip near the base of the lower row of teeth:

• Based on the location of the lips, they also distinguish between rounded and not rounded, where:

Rounded - these are sounds for the pronunciation of which the lips move forward:

• In addition, vowel sounds can be divided according to tension, that is, how strongly the organs of speech are strained to pronounce the sound. Here everything is known in comparison. For example, to pronounce some sounds:

Therefore, it turns out that the first are unstressed, and the second are stressed.

• The examples above also show that vowels can be short or long. To make a sound long, a colon is usually added next to it.
• Depending on the articulation, vowels are also divided into:
• Monophthongs, during the pronunciation of which the articulation does not change:

• Diphthongs are two sounds that are used together:

Reading rules: open and closed syllables

Despite the fact that there are only 6 vowels in English, the variety of sounds is simply huge. Understanding when a letter is pronounced this way and not otherwise is often possible with the help of syllables. For example:

If the syllable is open, then the letter "a" is pronounced like, if the syllable is closed, then the sound turns into [æ]. Compare:

Consider the pronunciation of English vowels using the table:

Pronunciation of English words: stress

Particular attention should be paid to stress. In English transcription, it is usually expressed with an apostrophe, helping:

• Define a compound word from a combination of words:

• Distinguish one part of speech from another:

Note that the stressed apostrophe comes before the stressed syllable, and not above the stressed letter, as is customary in Russian. The stress can fall on any vowel anywhere:

art [ˈɑːt] - art
potato - potato
reconstruct - reconstruct

Perhaps it is not placed only on a vowel in an open syllable at the end of a word.

The main feature of the stress of English words is that there can be two of them at once. This option is found in words that consist of four or more syllables. The two accents in this case look different. The main and already familiar to us is distinguished as before by an apostrophe. But the secondary - with an apostrophe from below. Let's look at examples:

Sometimes there can be three accents at all. In these cases, two secondary stresses are distinguished equally:

microcinematography [ˌmaɪkrəʊˌsɪnəməˈtɒɡrəfi] - microcinema

Stress is usually not emphasized in writing, so all these nuances will be useful to you only for the correct reading of words.

Pronunciation of English words: pronunciation difference

As you know, English is spoken by a huge number of people from different parts of the world. However, dividing English depending on the location of the speakers, British and American English are most often distinguished. So, for example, we analyzed British English above. No, this does not mean that you will have to memorize a whole range of new sounds if you decide to devote time to American English. It's just that the pronunciation of some English words among Americans is strikingly different, and therefore their version of English sounds more harsh. Let's look at the main differences in the pronunciation of these two accents:

• The first thing you can immediately pay attention to is the sound [r]. If it is at the beginning or in the middle of a word, it is pronounced the same way:

That is, this sound is clearly and clearly audible. However, if it is at the end, then the English pronunciation of words changes slightly. In British English, [r] at the end is usually not readable. This sound is heard only if it is followed by a word that begins with a vowel for ease of pronunciation. In American English, the letter [r] is always pronounced:

Word	British English		American English
sailor - sailor	[ˈseɪlə(r)]		[ˈseɪlər]
elevator	[ˈelɪveɪtə(r)]		[ˈelɪveɪtər]	can be replaced with [æ]: These are just one of the few features. In fact, there are a lot of such nuances. This does not mean that if you choose, for example, British English, you will not be understood in America. No, the language is the same, it just sounds slightly different in different areas. Which accent is better is a purely personal choice. The correct pronunciation is present in both accents, they are just different. It all depends on your future goals. Accordingly, if you are going to the UK or planning to take IELTS, British English will suit you. If you are focused on America, American. Arguing which accent is better is a waste of time. It all depends solely on your own preferences, so choose the option to which the soul lies. Of course, you can learn two pronunciations at once, but in order to acquire an accent, you need constant practice, and with such transitions from one accent to another, this will be quite difficult. Sometimes setting an accent can be harder than you thought at first glance. Therefore, there are even specialists who do not teach you the English language itself in the courses, but put exactly the correct pronunciation of English words. Of course, it will be a little more difficult to learn it yourself, but such an alternative is quite possible. Indeed, in addition to teachers, there are a huge number of textbooks that deal with the pronunciation of the English word. And, of course, films. This is a great option for both beginners and advanced. Watch, imitate, repeat and you will succeed. Most importantly, don't be afraid to speak up. You can make at least 50 mistakes in pronunciation, but you will be understood and corrected, which means that next time you will not make these mistakes. Pronunciation of English words: how to learn English transcription English transcriptions can seem confusing and incomprehensible. However, they contain the rules of reading. And reading rules help you remember how to pronounce English words, so you need to be able to read them. But this does not mean at all that you need to sit with a piece of English text trying to make a transcription of each word. It is much easier and more efficient to listen to how words are pronounced and match them with the transcription. Now on the Internet you can find a lot of dictionaries that show not only how a phrase is written, but also how English words are read with transcription and pronunciation. Moreover, the transcription of English words is given in two versions: in British and in American. By listening to voice recordings of words spoken by native speakers, it will be easier for you to understand how to pronounce the word correctly. You can also find out the pronunciation in the translator, but do not forget that he can make mistakes, since, unlike dictionaries, the word in this case is read not by a native speaker, but by a robot. Accordingly, no one checks the correct pronunciation. In any case, try to constantly practice this skill, and in the future it will not be difficult for you to read any, even the most difficult words. Pronunciation of English words: examples of words Of course, we will not study a number of sentences, but you can make out some English words that are quite common in speech and whose reading rules you need to know. We have already considered a couple of words, for example, their or see pronunciation above, but repetition never hurts: Word Reading Translation ask [ɑːsk] to ask be to be become become begin start off call call can be able to come come could could do do education [ˌedʒuˈkeɪʃn] education find find get [ɡet] get give [ɡɪv] to give go [ɡəʊ] go have have home house help to help keep Keep know know leave leave let let like Like live live look watch make do May be able mean keep in mind might could move run over need need play play put put run run say to tell see see seem seem should [ʃʊd] must show [ʃoʊ] show start to begin take accept talk talk tell tell their [ðeə(r)] them think [θɪŋk] think though [ðəʊ] although use use want to want will will/want work work would would We hope that now you can easily "translate" the transcription and read it. Even if at first it will be difficult for you, the main thing is to practice. We learn everything consistently and efficiently, and most importantly, constantly. Such a thorough approach to learning a language is sure to lead you to success.

At the initial stage of learning English, you inevitably have to deal with differences between your native language and a foreign one. Reading in English for beginners, children and adults, is usually one of the first steps in learning. And the first such differences between Russian and English are revealed as soon as you start learning to read in English. You are faced with transcription and rules for reading English. These two concepts are interconnected, since with the help of transcription we can write down and read the sounds that convey vowels and consonants in various combinations. But the rules of reading just explain how letters are pronounced in different environments.

There are a lot of reading rules in English, and they concern both vowels and consonants. In addition, a huge number of words are not read according to the rules, that is, they are exceptions. Therefore, it begins to seem that it is extremely difficult to learn all this. In fact, the rules of reading need to be learned, but there is no need to memorize them. After doing a few exercises on the rules of reading, you will already know how exactly the same type of words are read. In the learning process, when you read and listen to a variety of educational materials, the spelling, pronunciation and meaning of new words will be remembered as a whole.

Features of English pronunciation

Reading in English for beginners at first presents some difficulties due to the peculiarities of pronunciation - words very often are not pronounced the way they are written. Linguists even have such a saying - "We write - Manchester, we pronounce - Liverpool." This situation is due to the fact that historically in the English language there were, and still are, many dialects in which the same letters and combinations of letters were read differently, which eventually became fixed in official English. An example is the letter combination ough. The words though , through , thought differ in only one letter, and the letter combination ough is read differently in all words.

The role of transcription in teaching English to read

So, as we have already said, in addition to the numerous rules for reading in English, difficulties arise when mastering the transcription of the English language. Transcription is the recording of speech sounds using special characters. You should not avoid it, as it is the best assistant in learning a language, which, firstly, will save you time when learning new words, and secondly, it will help you avoid pronunciation mistakes. After all, when you write out or memorize new words, you definitely need to know how they are read correctly. There are two options for how to do this. The first is to listen to it in some online resource, and the second is to look at the transcription.

Now in some tutorials, as well as on training sites, you can find "English transcription in Russian." It is believed that writing an English word in Russian letters is much easier than learning some strange phonetic signs. Actually, this is a delusion. English phonetics differs from Russian so much that Russian letters can only approximately convey the pronunciation of English words, and mostly the simplest ones, the reading of which is not difficult even without this kind of “transcription”. Some English sounds simply do not exist in Russian, and the correct pronunciation of seemingly similar English and Russian sounds may have certain differences.

Thus, we recommend that you take the time to learn the transcription icons and read the sounds. This is one of the basic knowledge when mastering the rules of reading English for beginners. Transcription knowledge will serve you faithfully at all stages of your learning.

We analyze the rules of reading English

There are different classifications of rules for reading consonants and vowels in English. For vowels, as a rule, 4 types of syllables are distinguished. These are the 4 types of environments that a vowel can be in and that affect its pronunciation. Some textbooks consider only the first two types of syllable - open and closed, but take into account whether the letter r is involved in these types of syllable - since it affects the reading of vowels. Consonants in different combinations can also be read differently. It must be said that the number of exceptions and reading options for the same letter combinations in different words give reason to consider the reading rules as rather generalized recommendations that should be studied before you start reading.

To familiarize yourself with the rules of reading in English, we suggest that you take as a basis the table with the options for reading letters, which are given in your textbook for children “English. Grades 1-4 in diagrams and tables” N. Vakulenko. These English reading rules for children cover almost all possible readings of vowels and consonants in English. But before we go directly to the tables, let's deal with two more concepts that you will definitely meet when you get acquainted with the rules of reading. it open and closed syllable.

The syllable is called open, when

• ends in a vowel and is the last word
• a vowel followed by a consonant and then a vowel again
• the vowel is followed by another vowel

Examples of words with an open type of syllable (you can listen with sound):

age, blue, bye, fly, go

The syllable is called closed, when

• ends in a consonant and is the last word
• several consonants follow a vowel

Examples of words with a closed syllable type:

bed, big, box, hungry, stand

So, let's formulate the rules for reading English for beginners: tables for reading vowels and consonants.

Vowel reading tables

Consonant Reading Tables

Intonation in English

Even if a student learns all the basic grammar rules and 10-12 thousand lexemes, this will not make him close to the native speaker, because. he needs to delve into the phonemic structure of the language, in particular, to learn in which cases to use which type of intonation.

There are two main types - ascending and descending.

The first is used in sentences-requests, when addressing a person, when announcing the list (in this case, the intonation goes up on each of the words except the last one), after adverbs and introductory words at the beginning of a phrase, at the beginning of an alternative question, in a dividing question.

The second type of intonation, lowering the tone, is relevant in statements, when giving orders. It can be found in exclamations, in special questions.

How to train this skill?

• Listen to how native speakers speak, how a particular word, sound, phrase is read in audio books.
• Watch videos on this topic. Moreover, English should be the first and main language of the narrator.
• Use the learning materials and apply the acquired knowledge in practice. Read aloud in English, after listening to the recording, talk at least a few times a week.
• Record your speech and do a comparative analysis with the native language.

stress in english

With an incorrect accent in certain letter combinations, it will be difficult for a native English speaker to understand you. However, it is pointless to memorize stress for each word, since there is a certain systemic nature in this aspect.

Most words are stressed on the first syllable. But there are those who obey a different rule. For example, the suffix formations -tion, -cian and -cial require an accent in front of them (inform A tion, opt i cian). The suffixes -(g)nomy and -logy (ge O ecology, ec O nomy).

With prefixes it is still easier - they are skipped and remain unstressed. This works with prefixes in-, en-, con-, com-, re-, de-, ex-, etc.: exch A nge, enc O mpass.

Negative prefixes (non-, un-, in-, ir-, not-) also fall under this rule: un U irr E levant.

There are a number of words that change the stressed type of a syllable in English to unstressed depending on the meaning:

• to object - object; O object - object;
• to press E nt - give; pr E sent - a gift, a present.

Having learned the basic provisions that regulate stress, and with a little practice, you can easily reach a high language bar.

How to learn the rules of reading. Online exercises

As we have said before, there is no need to memorize the rules of reading by heart. You just need to use them. To begin with, go through several exercises on the rules of reading, reading aloud the same type of words in a row. This will help to consolidate the rules of reading and develop pronunciation skills. For additional control, you can take exercises with audio accompaniment. In fact, the reading rules are worked out automatically by themselves, since by regularly studying English, you listen, read, write - that is, practice to work out the reading rules is quite enough.

Choose words that have similar vowel sounds

Choose the words that have the same consonants

Make an English tongue twister from words

You can apply the rules of reading in practice on our website. By taking unique exercises using the Lim English method, you will be able to master not only reading, but also writing English words, as well as learn basic grammar rules and continue learning further.

Starting to learn English, many neglect the study of transcription, considering it a waste of time. However, correct pronunciation is one of the main goals in learning a foreign language.

Where to start?

Pronunciation of individual sounds. Words in English are read differently than they are written, so studying transcription will be the most effective approach to learning the language. In order to learn English sounds independently, it is recommended to go through the study of each sound of the English language separately.

All sounds of English

Reasons to learn the sounds of English

1. When studying transcription - you learn the rules of reading. Having analyzed only about a hundred words, you can build logical chains, determine the main patterns of pronunciation of sounds. Over time, you will be able to pronounce the words correctly without much effort. Learning the rules does not eliminate the need to listen to English speech. It is important to develop both auditory and visual memory.
2. By reading aloud you improve your pronunciation skills. The lack of correct pronunciation will become an obstacle in overcoming the language barrier, and subsequently will cause the development of the complex during communication. Incorrect pronunciation can change the meaning of a word or sentence.

Intonation. In working on intonation, it is important to listen to foreign speech. Regularly use audio lessons in teaching, repeat after the speaker, try to feel the intonation. Memorize short poems and dialogues. In order to hear yourself from the outside, use a voice recorder, and then work on your mistakes.