ESL Blogs

Can you guess what the title of my blog is? If it's the first time you've seen this kind of post, you'd probably raise your eyebrows or freak out. Fret not! I'm just using the International Phonetic Alphabet or the IPA symbols.

If you've been learning English for years, you would mostly encounter these symbols many times especially in online dictionaries such as Macmillan.

The IPA is used as a guide to fully understand how a word is being spoken. It's somewhat like a code in unlocking a treasure box. Well in this case, your treasure is your ability to say it correctly. Now that's wisdom! Also, the IPA symbols are very essential in learning proper pronunciation of the English words. If you haven't heard of these symbols yet, you can check out the MyEC Interactive Phonemic Chart. Take the time to practice pronouncing each symbol every time you study English pronunciation.

On the other hand, the BBC Learning English website has produced lots of pronunciation videos for us to watch and emulate with. Check out its video clips here. You'll definitely find it useful.

We all know that the English language has hundreds, or even thousands of confusing words due to the influence of other foreign languages such as German, Greek, French and Latin. In addition, the vowel sounds comprise of 12 monophthongs and 8 diphthongs whereas in other languages they only have five. This makes it even difficult especially to those starting to learn the language.

Moreover, the English alphabet comprises of 26 letters, but it has 44 sounds in spoken English. Wow! Indeed, it's quite challenging to learn them all easily, isn't it? The good thing is that there are online resources to practice it with such as the IPA device as well as video clips straight from the native English teachers themselves via YouTube or Vimeo.

Take note that there are some differences between American and British pronunciation. One particular example is the word 'tomato'. Americans tend to pronounce it with a long 'a = ey' sound as in 'tomeytow' or /təˈmeɪtoʊ/, whereas Brits say it slightly longer 'a = ah' sound, 'tomahtow' or /təˈmɑːtəʊ/. Make sure to be aware of those dissimilarities as you carry on with your learning techniques.

Here's my tough tip! Whenever you watch an English TV program or read a news article, jot down unfamiliar words or phrases and search their meaning using online dictionaries. Pay attention to how those words are pronounced. Practice using them in your own sentences and read them out loud. It's much better if you record them so you can compare them to those native speakers on the dictionary recording. That way you can spot your weaknesses and improve your accent and over-all pronunciation.

I'm strongly believed that learning the IPA and phonemes can be an effective strategy for us to be familiar with the sounds of the English words and phrases. Pronouncing the words correctly can minimize language barriers and be understood more when communicating with other speakers. Who would want to be embarrassed when we say the word incorrectly? :)

IPA Challenge
Could you provide the correct answers to some common mispronounced words below?

Example: /ˈɪŋɡlɪʃ/ - English

1.  /ˈtʃɒklət/

2.  /læm/

3.  /prəˌnʌnsiˈeɪʃ(ə)n/

4.  /ˈrest(ə)rɒnt/

5.  /ˈæsmə/

6.  /ˈlepə(r)d/

7.  /flaʊə(r)/

8.  /bəʊ/

9.  /ˈkʊʃ(ə)n/

10.  /ˈɡræmə(r)/

What other words you find difficult to pronounce? Share your answers on the comments below.

Now, let's wolf on that wedge of chocolate cake above to power up our brains, shall we?

Thank you for reading! /θæŋkjʊ fɔːˈriːdɪŋ/