How to read English quickly and without errors? English-Russian online translator (online dictionary) with transcription

Greetings, my dear readers.

Today we continue to talk about how to learn to read correctly, so the topic of today’s article is transcription English letters.

We have already introduced you to the concept and dealt with the pronunciation of sounds in English. Today we will figure out exactly how they are pronounced in various combinations.

I have a clear table for you. It contains the letters of the English alphabet with transcription, Russian analogue letters and my notes so that you can immediately get the correct pronunciation. I also added examples of words with the sounds being studied and their translation.

What else can you find on the blog:

with letters and transcription (you can study them online, download, print and work with them);
for children I have a complete one.

Well, shall we begin?

Features of English transcription:

it is always formatted with square brackets. I can’t say exactly where it came from, but I think it’s just worth taking it for granted;
to understand where the stress is, the transcription uses the sign [‘] before the stressed syllable;
It is important to remember that transcription is about the sound, not the spelling of words. Sometimes the spelling can be 90% different from what we pronounce;
to show that a sound is long we use a colon.

In general, I wrote about English transcription - please!

Letters of the English alphabet and their transcription in Russian and English:

English letter	Transcription	Russian equivalent
Aa		Hey
Bb		Bi
Cc		Si
Dd		Di
Ee		AND
Ff	[ɛf]	Eph
Gg		Gee
Hh		H.
II		Ay
Jj		Jay
Kk		Kay
Ll	[ɛl]	Al
mm	[ɛm]	Em
Nn	[ɛn]	En
Oo	[əʊ]	Oh
Pp		Pi
Qq		Q
Rr	[ɑː] or [ɑɹ]	A or Ar
Ss	[ɛs]	Es
Tt		Tee
Uu		Yu
Vv		V
Ww	[ˈdʌb(ə)l juː]	Double
Xx	[ɛks]	Ex
Yy		Wye
Zz	,	Zed, zee

But do you know what is the most interesting thing about English?

If different letters are combined, they are pronounced differently!

That's why I prepared for you

Examples of English letter combinations in Russian and English:

Combination	Transcription	How to pronounce	Example
ee	/i:/	AND	bee - bee
ea	/ ı:/	AND	tea - tea
oo	/u/	U	cook - to cook
th	/ ð / / Ѳ /	Z, S (interdental)	thumb - finger
sh	/ ʃ /	Sh	shout - shout
ch	/tʃ/	H	chair - chair
ph	/f/	F	phone - phone
ck	/k/	TO	snack - snack
ng	/ Ƞ /	Ng	song - song
wh	/w/	Ua	why - why
wr	/r/	R	write - write
qu	/kw/	Kua	queen - queen
igh	/aı/	Ay	high - high
all	/Ɔ:l/	Ol	tall - tall
ai	/eı/	Hey	Spain - Spain
ay	/eı/	Hey	May - May
oi	/oı/	Oh	point - point
oh	/oı/	Oh	toy - toy
ow	/oƱ/	Oh	grow - grow
ou	/aƱ/	Ay	out - outside
ew	/ju:/	Yu	knew - knew
aw	/ Ɔ: /	Ooo	draw - draw
ee+r	/ ıə /	Eeyore	engineer - engineer
ou+r	/aƱə/	Aue	our - ours
oo+r	/ Ɔ: /	Ooo	door - door
wo+r	/ ɜ: /	Y/O	work - work
ai+r	/eə/	Ea	chair - chair
oa+r	/ Ɔ: /	Ooh	roar - scream
might	/Ʊd/	Oud	could - could
ound	/aƱnd/	Aund	round - round
eigh	/eı/	Hey	eight - eight
-y	/ ı /	AND	tiny - tiny
au	/ Ɔ: /	Oo	Paul - Paul
gh	/f/	F	laugh - laugh
aught	/Ɔ:t/	From	taught - taught

I know this table seems huge right now. Surely you think that remembering all this is unrealistic. I'll tell you this: at a certain point, when you have enough, you won't even pay attention to these combinations. Your brain will learn to quickly remember how exactly these letters sound. Moreover, even when you come across a word that is completely unfamiliar to you, you will be able to read it correctly. The only question is the amount of practice on your part.

How to remember combinations of letters?

Use cards. Visual perception is better developed in most people.
Read. Pay attention to combinations of letters when or just texts.
Don't get hung up. It is not necessary to immediately memorize these combinations and only then move directly to English. Learn as you go!
Buy paper or download a good one e-book in order to quickly learn to recognize combinations and pronounce them correctly. Even if you, an adult, need it, don’t hesitate to take books for children - everything there is explained in detail and is not without interest.
Take the course « English from scratch» . This will make your path easier.

That's all, my dears. I hope you found it useful and understandable. I provide even more similar materials in the blog newsletter - subscribe and receive a dose of useful information regularly.

Seemed like an impenetrable jungle with 26 dangerous predators hiding in the wilds. However, now you can probably easily name and place them in in the right order all the letters, and you’ll also show off a few facts that not every philologist knows.

After reading this article, the topic of English transcription and pronunciation will be moved from the room of fear to the room of laughter. Today on the program:

Overcoming the Fear of Reading and Studying graphic symbols
. acquaintance, memorization and learning of diphthongs, vowels and consonants (classification of sounds), arranged in unique tables
. pause to download and print English transcriptions in pictures
. clear and concise explanation of usage English sounds by comparing them with their Russian relatives
. reinforcement of the material covered with a 10-minute video about English transcription

Are you still afraid? Then we are coming to you!

Graphic transcription symbols in English

Before you plunge into the pool English reading with your head, we strongly recommend that you listen to the advice of experienced divers. Naturally, a child learns to sit first and then walk, and not vice versa - the same thing awaits us: first learn to read the transcription, and then pronounce it (in the head or out loud). You should not get carried away only by reading, otherwise you risk burying yourself in the wilds of theory and breaking away from practice.

First you need to learn and clarify all the questions regarding each transcription symbol. Then listen online to exactly as many examples as you need to clearly understand how a given symbol sounds in real speech. Learn strictly from examples not of sounds taken out of context (like Rian’s “uh-uh” in the hit “Umbrella”), but from specific letter combinations found in words. Next, listen to each new word first and only then compare what you hear with your ears with the alphabetic dictionary transcription enclosed in square brackets. By the way, about them and other integral companions of transcription:

Square brackets. They signal that what is inside is transcription.
For example, English is a word, and ["ɪŋglɪʃ] is its transcription;

‘ - main emphasis. Placed BEFORE the stressed vowel: around [əˈraʊnd];

, - secondary stress. Placed BEFORE a vowel: ["hæmˌbɜːgə];

: - vowel length.

The proposed option will not seem the fastest at first glance, but the wise man will not go up the mountain - the wise man will go around the mountain. As a result, the time spent is converted into comfortable speech perception: you no longer need to painfully strain your hearing, trying to recognize unfamiliar sounds. And soon the unfamiliar “squiggles” will acquire a meaningful sound. Isn't it magical? This is the secret of not only correct pronunciation, but also ease of listening comprehension.

English Transcription Foundation

Since “it’s great that we’re all here today” about studying transcription, let’s take a closer look at it. Transcription is of two types: phonetic and phonemic. You are mistaken if you think that you have taught/will learn phonetic transcription, which is more familiar to the ear. As a rule, it interests serious linguists; our choice is the study of phonemes (sound language units). Simply put, if two sounds are very similar, but the difference between them can change the meaning of the word, then they form two different phonemes. In Russian this is not so noticeable, because even if you call a cat “kot” or “coooooot”, he will still come, but the meaning of the word will not change. One phoneme for two different sounds. The number will not work in English: “cot”, “caught” and “coat” contain different phonemes. Why so many “smart letters”? Besides the fact that dictionaries contain phonemic transcriptions, remember this and do not allow yourself to be confused:

Pope(dad, papal):
1) is phonetic transcription, it is emphasized here that the first [p], unlike the second, is pronounced with aspiration (aspiration after consonants sounds p,t,k before vowels);
2) is a dictionary (phonemic) transcription.

What else do you need to know about transcription? That there are different syllables in it:

- open(there is no consonant after the vowel) - New
- closed(after the vowel there is a consonant) - York

- vowel: single - [e], diphthong - [ɔʊ], triphthong - [ɑiə]
- consonant:[d]

Vowel sounds of English (with online pronunciation)

There are fewer vowel sounds in English than consonants, but more than diphthongs. This picture clearly shows the difference, for example, between the sounds [I] and . Anyone who has even heard of the existence of imagination will recognize the words “fish” and “tree,” which, like puzzles, contain the mentioned sounds. You can re-read the rules as much as you like, or you can once study in detail the transcription in pictures, which visualizes examples of the use of sounds. To train your memory, you can download and even print the picture; this option is provided. For auditory learners, it is possible to hear every sound online in a word after clicking on the speaker icon.

Consonant sounds of English

Consonant sounds in English are not at all twin brothers to Russian. The articulation of their creation is seriously different. However, we are not here to intimidate with clever words, but on the contrary, to make life easier for beginning English lovers, that’s why we colored the voiced consonants in purple, and the voiceless consonants in blue. During the formation of the same plural nouns it is very important to feel and know the difference. 24 new words serve as a bonus to the learned sounds. We train visual memory and save the English transcription in pictures for re-use as soon as necessary! Audience learners still click on the speaker icon under each letter to pronounce sounds in online transcription.

Diphthongs (double vowel sounds) of English

And it would be scary to have 8 diphthongs in English if it weren’t for the wonderful pictures, thanks to which learning turns into an entertaining solving of charades. Just look at the picture, hold your gaze, sound the diphthong by pressing the speaker icon under the letter and practice correct pronunciation. Everyone who appreciates the creative approach to business is allowed to download the picture for a long memory!

From theory to practice
Some time will pass, the dictionary will become covered with a thick layer of dust or will be removed from bookmarks (in electronic version), because the translation of the necessary words is known, the sound is familiar - what other America can you discover there? Believe it or not, it is the clarification of the transcription of words that seem to be well known to you that is the very unplowed field that is worth going over in order to improve the sound of speech.

Let's give an everyday example: the frequently used word “real” has a phonemic transcription a) , b) or c)?
The first option is fictitious and erroneous, the second and third are British and American pronunciation styles. What is the moral of this fable?

So that you do not feel painfully ashamed of your reading, we recommend that you at least briefly familiarize yourself with these tables as follows:
- read the line from left to right;
- listen to the perfect pronunciation of the sound;
- take a mirror in your hand and practice hard (you will probably enjoy practicing [æ] or [ð]).

Table of English sounds similar to Russian
These sounds in English transcription do not have to be explained on your fingers.

Sound	Example	Explanations
[ɑː]	car, far, garage	Sounds like a long “ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh” sound. Remember the cartoon about Mowgli, where the wise Kaa was?
[ʌ]	up, but, love	Short sonorous "a". There is something similar in the Russian “ay”.
[ɔː]	more, board, floor	Sounds like a long "oo". Act surprised.
[b]	book, board, tab	Russian energetic "b". When you're walking down a corridor in the dark and suddenly bump into
[g]	green, grace, agree	Russian "g", but not so energetic.
[f]	forest, atmosphere, enough	Very energetic Russian "f".
[k]	kill, cord, school	Russian "k". Before a stressed vowel, it is pronounced aspirated (if you put your hand in front of your lips and say “kil”, your palm should feel your fresh breath)
[m]	mother, lamb	Russian "m".
[n]	nine, note, intrusion	Russian "n".
[p]	pub, gallop, open	Russian energetic "p". Before a stressed vowel - aspirated.
[v]	vest, vocal, give	Russian "v".

Now let's look at some tricky examples in practice:

subtle - barely perceptible
“Sattle” and only that, no “subtle” with a drum “b” in the middle.

palm - palm
Naturally, everyone wants to be under a palm tree, but there is no smell of it here. Not “palm”, not “po:lm”, but “pa:m”, as in “car” and “path”. In company with a palm they find themselves calm- “calm” and balm- "balm".

halt - stop
Banish the analogy with the German “halt” - the correct pronunciation is “ho:lt”.

won - won, won in the past from “win”
Wonderful if you pronounce "won" like "one" - .

of - preposition of belonging
Only a botanist would think of checking the sound of a two-letter word? Well, well. "Of" and no nails? Remember: "Of" is pronounced with a "v" at the end. Full form- [ɔv], reduced - [əv]. Always.

Table of English sounds that have something in common with Russian
These sounds cause the greatest temptation and at the same time danger: the relative similarity with the usual pronunciation in Russian threatens to sound completely incorrect. Please pay attention sufficient attention and understand the differences well.

Sound	Example	Explanations
[i]	fit, bit, symbol	The mean between “s” and “i”. It is pronounced very briefly, as at the end of “apchhi”.
	cheese, tree, sea	What photographers ask us to say on camera. As in the Russian word “syyyr”, but with a touching smile.
[ɒ]	hot, body, rock	The mean between "o" and "a". That is, in no case is the Vologda “o”.
[u]	cook, foot, woman	It's similar to the Russian short "u", but it's easier to pronounce and the lips are slightly stretched. It turns out like a “y” with a half smile. No elongated lips.
	true, fool, shoes	Like the previous sound, but long lasting.
[e]	get, bed, head	Intelligent "e". As in the Russian word "tin".
[ə]	about, until, alias	The mean between the unstressed “e” and “a”.
[l]	let, laughter, illegal	Softened Russian "l". Something between the sound of the word “la” and “la”.
[s]	stress, sunday, citizen	Muffled Russian "s". He never whistles. Remember the song "Girl" by the Beatles? Now, if their famous inhalation “sssss” is pronounced with an exhalation and briefly, you get a beautiful English [s].
[z]	zero, cosmonaut, xenon	Everything is the same as about the sound [s], only louder.
[t]	tree, trunk, receipt	Similar to Russian "t". But the tip of the tongue should be placed not to the teeth, but to the tubercle behind the upper teeth.
[d]	drink, ad, diligent	Similarly: like the Russian “d”, only the tip of the tongue rests on the tubercle immediately behind the upper teeth.
[ʃ]	ship, action, special	Between Russian “sh” and “sch”. Doesn't whistle, because... the tongue does not press against the teeth with force, but gently touches them.
[ʒ]	pleasure, visual, garage	Softened Russian "zh". Doesn't ring or whistle.
	jump, jungle, logic	Connecting English [d] with [ ʒ ] and get a soft “j”.
	inch, chance, catch	We connect English [t] with [ ʃ ] and we get something similar to the Russian “ch”. As in the word "kitsch".
[j]	yes, yet, you	The mean between "th" and "i".
[ɪə]	hear, fear, beer	It looks like the Russian “ie” with an emphasis on “i”.
	air, hair, care	Russian "ea" with emphasis on "e".
	make, tray, ace	Russian "ei" with emphasis on "e". "I" is pronounced very short.
	hi, sky, bye	Russian "ai" with emphasis on "a". "I" is pronounced very short.
[ɔɪ]	boy, joy, coin	Russian "oi" with emphasis on "a". "I" is pronounced very short.
	how, cow, hour, our	Russian "au" with emphasis on "a". "U" is pronounced very short.
	fire, wire	Russian "aie" with a strong emphasis on the first "a". Pronounced quickly and smoothly.
	our, flower	Russian "awa" with a strong emphasis on the first "a". Pronounced quickly and smoothly.

were - were
“Were” is not at all the same thing as “where” - . Instead of a diphthong, we use the neutral vowel - , the shortened form - .

debt - debt and doubt - doubt
Fans of the group “No Doubt” have had more than a dozen years to figure out how correct the name of their favorite group sounds. "Debt" and "daubt" are not so easy to pronounce. In English there is no such Russian-language phenomenon as deafening or voicing of a consonant, but throw away the letter of their words for a dear soul: it is pronounced and .

good - good, book - book and look - watch
The double "o" does not turn into a long "u" in these words. Therefore, you should not copy the howl of wolves at the moon - say it correctly with a short vowel - , , .

Table of English sounds that have nothing in common with Russian
Practice pronouncing these sounds well online; at a minimum, your speech apparatus should get used to playing them correctly.

Sound	Example	Explanations
[ɜː]	earn, her, first	If the Russian “o” wanted to become “e”, it would sound exactly like this. Somewhat similar to the sound when children tease by sticking out their tongues. But you need to achieve this sound without sticking anything out. To do this, silently prepare your mouth to pronounce “е”, and say “oo” out loud.
[əu]	go, joke, own	Between Russian “ou” and “yo” (without “y”) with emphasis on the first sound. "U" is pronounced very short.
[æ]	cat, apple, compact	It is very important not to confuse this sound with [e], otherwise instead of “bad” (bad) you will get “bed” (bed). You need to stretch your lips wide, lower your lower jaw and say “eh” from the heart.
[h]	hot, head, uphill	Every Russian man knows how to pronounce this sound. When you are asked to “come on, breathe,” then all men begin to speak English, because they pronounce [h] exactly as it should: a light exhalation, vaguely reminiscent of “x.”
[r]	red, random, orange	Russian bears speak English [r] well. Try growling with your tongue up.
[w]	well, what, windows	Fold your lips into a tube and stretch them sharply. And now the same thing, but with sound.
[ŋ]	strong, sing, sink	Children are scolded for talking with their mouths full. But if you listen to the sounds made, many consonants sound exactly like [ŋ] . Open your mouth and, without closing it, say “n.”
[θ]	thanks, ethical	Place your tongue between your teeth and say “s.”
[ð]	they, there, other	Place your tongue between your teeth and say “z.” Best workout- this is to say the expression “Is this” 100 times. You will never confuse “z” with [ð].

folk - people, folk
The letter “l” has become a victim and is not pronounced at all - .

comb - comb
No “comb” - only “com”. The English “m” and “b” are quite insidious guys who will mess things up more than once. Be on the lookout!

won’t - won’t - short for “will not”
We were tormented by the question of how the cunning English distinguish between “want” and “won’t” in oral speech? You just have to pronounce the negation in the future tense correctly - . That's all the magic.

salmon - salmon
Not “salmon” and certainly not “solomon”. Salmon is on your mind - as in “cat” and “apple”.

Bonus for the most patient

The human brain is the eighth wonder of the world, the deep capabilities of which we can only guess at now. Something important for us is now known for sure: the brain has a speech center. Special center There is no one responsible for reading, but there is one for speech. That's why we strongly recommend repeating the words out loud for the hundredth time. Precisely out loud, and not silently, because in in this case muscle memory also comes into play. Naturally, words can “live and resound” in your head. The main thing is not to get stuck and stop at the stage of decoding transcription symbols, selecting the necessary rule for each sound. In this case, only a snail's speed is guaranteed.

If the language is still alive after previous exercises, then we bring to your attention a video that is better to see once than to hear about it 100 times. The entire phonetic transcription of the English language in 10 minutes. Clear, competent and very visual.

To talk in English, it is not enough to know how words are written, it is important to study their pronunciation. To do this, as you know, it is enough to learn the sounds, which you subsequently need to be able to read in transcription. And if at first glance the pronunciation of English words seems like something overwhelming, 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 words, is what we make when pronouncing this or that letter. Each such sound has its own symbol, which is used in transcription. Transcription is one or more sound symbols, delimited by square brackets, which can convey a letter or a whole word. If theoretical explanations you were given absolutely nothing, let's look at 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 “ey”. To express the sound in writing, we selected suitable symbols that could convey this sound, that is, “ei”. And since 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, teaching sounds begins with the English alphabet. Perhaps you once went through this topic, humming a melody with the pronunciation of all the letters with your teacher, unless, of course, you ran away from lessons. In any case, it definitely wouldn’t hurt to repeat this material again. 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		HH
9.	I i		ah
10.	Jj		Jay
11.	K k		kay
12.	Ll		el
13.	Mm		Em
14.	Nn	[ɛn]	en
15.	O o	[əʊ]	oh
16.	P p		pi
17.	Q q		Cue
18.	R r	[ɑː]	A
19.	Ss		es
20.	T t		you
21.	U u		yu
22.	V v		vi
23.	W w	[‘dʌbljuː]	double u
24.	X x		ex
25.	Y y		wy
26.	Z z		zed

However, this list is completely incomplete. The fact is that in certain combinations, letters or their combinations can sound different. Therefore, often the alphabetical pronunciation of a letter does not coincide with its pronunciation in a word. There are 48 main sounds in total; let’s look at 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 encounter some for the first time. Let's study the entire list of consonant sounds 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
[dʒ]	j/g	jazz (jazz) / gym (gymnastics hall)
[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
[s]	s	smell (smell)
[t]	t	toaster (toaster)
[v]	v	vine (wine)
[w]	w/w	wax (wax) /
[z]	z/zz/se	zoo (zoo) / buzz (buzzing) /
[ ŋ ]	ng	wrong (wrong)
[tʃ]	ch	chew (chew)
[ ʃ ]	sh	shop (shop)
[ ʒ ]	sure/sia	leisure (free time)/Asia (Asia)
[ ð ]	th	their
[ θ ]	th	thought (thought)

Classification

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

By voicedness / deafness:
Voiced consonants include:

By way of pronunciation:
Plosive (stop) consonants or consonants, the pronunciation of which creates some semblance of an “explosion”. As a rule, to pronounce such letters, the speech organs first close, not allowing air to pass through, and then sharply open, creating such an unusual sound. Since such letters are also present in the Russian language, let’s make an analogy to make it clearer:

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

And also sounds:

Based on which speech organs close, sounds can be divided into:

Labiolabial sounds are sounds for which both lips touch to produce:

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

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

[d]

[l]

[s]

[t]

[z]

Pronunciation of English words: vowel sounds

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

talk (talk) /

[ɔi] oh 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 [i] i kit (set) [i:] ea/ee beat (beat) / [iə] ea 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:

Sounds front row pronounced by raising the back of the tongue towards 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 unrounded, where:

Rounded sounds are sounds for which the lips move forward to pronounce:

In addition, vowel sounds can be divided according to tension, that is, how much the speech organs are strained to pronounce the sound. Here everything is learned by comparison. For example, to pronounce some sounds:

Therefore, it turns out that the first ones are relaxed, and the second ones are tense.

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 articulation, vowel sounds are also divided into:
Monophthongs, the pronunciation of which does not change articulation:

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 enormous. You can often understand when a letter is pronounced one way and not another, using syllables. For example:

If the syllable is open, then the letter “a” is pronounced as, but if the syllable is closed, then the sound turns into [æ]. Compare:

Let's look at the pronunciation of English vowels using the table:

Pronunciation of English words: stress

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

Determine a compound word from a combination of words:

Distinguish one part of speech from another:

Note that the apostrophe, indicating stress, 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 the vowel in 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 occurs in words that consist of four or more syllables. The two accents in this case look different. The main thing and what is already familiar to us is highlighted as before with an apostrophe. But the secondary one is an apostrophe from below. Let's look at examples:

Sometimes there may be three accents. In these cases, the two secondary stresses are emphasized equally:

microcinematography [ˌmaɪkrəʊˌsɪnəməˈtɒɡrəfi] - microcinematography

In writing, stress is usually not emphasized, 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 with different corners land. However, dividing the English language depending on the location of the speakers, British and American English are most often distinguished. So, for example, above we analyzed British English. No, this does not mean that you will have to learn a whole new 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 sharper. 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:

That is, this sound is clearly and clearly audible. However, if it is at the end, then English pronunciation The words change a little. In British English, the [r] at the end is usually not pronounced. This sound can only be heard if after it the word comes, which 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 - elevator

[ˈelɪveɪtə(r)]

[ˈelɪveɪtər]

can be replaced by [æ]:

These are just some of the few features. In fact, there are a lot of such nuances. This does not mean at all that if you choose, for example, British English, you will not be understood in America. No, the language is the same, it just sounds a little different in different places. Which accent is best 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 is suitable for you. If you are focused on America, American. Arguing about which accent is better is a waste of time. It all depends solely on your own preferences, so choose the option that suits your heart.

Of course, you can learn two pronunciation options 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 courses, but teach you exactly the correct pronunciation of English words.

Of course, it will be a little more difficult to learn on your own, but this alternative is quite possible. After all, in addition to teachers, there are a huge number of textbooks that discuss the pronunciation of English words. And, of course, films. This is a great option for both beginners and intermediates. 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 they will understand you and correct you, 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 reading rules. And the reading rules help you remember how to pronounce english words, so it is necessary 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 from each word.

It is much easier and more effective to listen to how words are pronounced and compare them with the transcription. Nowadays you can find a lot of dictionaries on the Internet 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 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 it 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 complex words.

Pronunciation of English words: example words

Of course, we will not study a whole series of sentences, but we can make out some English words that are quite often found in speech and the rules for reading which you must know. We have already discussed a couple of words, for example, their or see pronunciation above, but repetition never hurts:

Word	Reading	Translation
ask	[ɑːsk]	ask
be		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]	give
go	[ɡəʊ]	go
have		have
home		house
help		help
keep		hold
know		know
leave		leave
let		let
like		like
live		live
look		look
make		do
may		be able
mean		keep in mind
might		could
move		run over
need		need
play		play
put		put
run		run
say		say
see		see
seem		seem
should	[ʃʊd]	must
show	[ʃoʊ]	show
start		begin
take		accept
talk		speak
tell		tell
their	[ðeə(r)]	their
think	[θɪŋk]	think
though	[ðəʊ]	Although
use		use
want		want
will		will / want
work		work
would		would

We hope that now you can easily “translate” the transcription and read it. Even if it is not easy for you at first, the main thing is to practice. We learn everything consistently and efficiently, and most importantly, constantly. This careful approach to language learning will definitely lead you to success.

Tell me, how well do you know English words on a topic that interests you? Of course, you can go to English courses in Moscow and memorize new words while speaking, but we want to offer you one more convenient way. With the help of a large collection of English words with translation and transcription online, you will not only expand your vocabulary, but you will also protect yourself from funny situations in advance. IN this section you can find thematic collections of words according to the most different topics.

English words on the topic that interests you are presented in the "Glossary" section. English vocabulary on various topics can be useful for a schoolchild, a student, a housewife, a manager, and a traveler. Thematic collections of words on the topic are presented with translation, transcription and voiceover to help expand your vocabulary. Now, in order to learn English words and phrases, you don’t need to spend a long time and tediously writing words down in a notebook - just regularly visit the section you need and repeat words that are difficult to remember. To voice a word, just click on the icon to the left of the word. Don’t be lazy to repeat the spoken words - this way you will achieve results faster and improve your pronunciation of English words online.

All English words are structured into thematic sections. Vocabulary by topic is presented in 17 sections. Human appearance, family and relatives, education, food and drinks, weather and sports, cars and computers - colloquial phraseology for every need.

The proposed English words on the topic contain, in turn, subsections that include popular English colloquial phrases and words. The simplicity of the scheme and ease of use will help you learn your favorite English language. When learning is a joy, the result will not take long to arrive.

Learn popular words for free, develop correct pronunciation and learn transcriptions of English words with us!

If you are just starting to learn English, start learning with the main topics, which, of course, include English alphabet [ˈɪŋɡlɪʃ ˈalfəbɛt] or english alphabet. During express training, this topic is often omitted, they say, it will come on its own with time. However, if you do not know the entire list of letters, their pronunciation and writing, nothing will come of your learning process. Therefore, let's look at what the letters of the English alphabet are and how they are used.

But first, let's look at how the English alphabet was formed. It is quite difficult to say exactly when it appeared, but the very first fragments of the English alphabet found date back to the 5th century. Then, to write it, Latin letters were used in combination with runes, and therefore the letters were absolutely not like those used in modern English. Subsequently, however, this alphabet changed, all runes were replaced in Latin letters, the number of which by the 11th century amounted to 23 signs, which were ordered for numerological purposes. After this, the alphabet did not change significantly, but 3 more letters were added to it, which were also used in the creation of the modern alphabet.

English alphabet: composition

It was probably not difficult to calculate how many letters are used in modern English. There are 26 letters in English. B different situations they may sound different because their pronunciation changes depending on the combinations. In total, there are 44 sounds in the English language. However, each letter has its own standard pronunciation, which is used when learning the alphabet. English letters are written differently from how they are pronounced, and therefore when studying them it is necessary to use transcription to avoid further errors. It is also worth noting that each letter of the English alphabet has a serial number. Numerology in English, as in Russian, was created solely for convenience and is not of such importance.

List English letters with numbering, transcription and pronunciation
№	Letter	Name	Transcription	Pronunciation
1.	A a	a		Hey
2	Bb	bee		bi
3	C c	cee		si
4	D d	dee		di
5	E e	e		And
6	F f	ef		ef
7	G g	gee		ji
8	H h	aitch		HH
9	I i	i		ah
10	Jj	Jay		Jay
11	K k	kay		kay
12	Ll	el		el
13	Mm	em		Em
14	Nn	en	[ɛn]	en
15	O o	o	[əʊ]	oh
16	P p	pee		pi
17	Q q	cue		Cue
18	R r	ar	[ɑː]	A
19	Ss	ess		es
20	T t	tee		you
21	U u	u		yu
22	V v	vee		vi
23	W w	double-u	[‘dʌbljuː]	double
24	X x	ex		ex
25	Y y	wy		wy
26	Z z	zed		zed

The letter Z in American English is pronounced zee.

Please note that the pronunciation written in Russian letters is approximate. Convey accurate English sound It won't work with Russian letters. It is indicated here for ease of study. initial stage. However, the transcription option is preferable. If you are not yet very familiar with the sounds, try to listen and imitate native speakers.

English alphabet: frequency of use

All letters in the English alphabet have their own frequency of use. Thus, figures for 2000 show that the most popular letter in the English language is the vowel E. The second most frequently used consonant is the consonant T. It is not so difficult to explain such results. Both of these letters appear in definite article"the", which is the most commonly used word in the English language. The most unpopular is the letter Z, which is known only for zebra, zip and zigzag.

The other letters are arranged as follows:

Letters of English in order of frequency of their use
№	Letter	Frequency (~%)
1.	E	12,7
2.	T	9,1
3.	A	8,2
4.	O	7,5
5.	I	7,0
6.	N	6,8
7.	S	6,3
8.	H	6,1
9.	R	6,0
10.	D	4,3
11.	L	4,0
12.	C	2,8
13.	U	2,8
14.	M	2,4
15.	W	2,4
16.	F	2,2
17.	G	2,0
18.	Y	2,0
19.	P	1,9
20.	B	1,5
21.	V	1,0
22.	K	0,8
23.	J	0,2
24.	X	0,2
25.	Q	0,1
26.	Z	0,1

This numbered list gives an approximate frequency of occurrence of letters, which means that in any given passage, the frequency of letters may vary depending on the words used in it.

English alphabet: vowels

As you may have noticed, there are only 5 in the English language. These are the letters: A, E, I, O, U. Periodically, the letter Y is added to the list, which can convey both consonant and vowel sounds. By the way, regarding sounds: English vowels can change their sound depending on two aspects:

Locations, that is, from adjacent letters
Stressed or unstressed

Let's look at similar changes using the letter A as an example:

Some sounds contain a colon. The fact is that English vowel sounds are divided into short and long. Short ones are usually pronounced, but long ones last 2 or even 3 times longer. It is necessary to know the pronunciation of the letter in a word according to this principle, otherwise you can distort your thought. Examples:

Regarding the characteristics of vowels, we can also add that the letter E at the end is usually not pronounced. For example:

prejudice [ˈprɛdʒʊdɪs] (prejudis)	prejudice
demonstrate [ˈdɛmənstreɪt] (demonstrate)	demonstrate
paradise [ˈparədʌɪs] (paradise)	paradise

In addition, vowel letters can have diphthongs or a combination of two vowel sounds, but in order to avoid too much information, we will consider this issue in a separate topic.

It can be added that vowels, like consonants, do not have diacritics. Such signs include all sorts of dashes, squiggles, wavy lines above and below letters, which are characteristic, for example, of French or Spanish. However, in very rare cases such signs can be used with borrowed words. The most popular among them are:

cafe	cafe
resumé	resume

English alphabet: consonants

The number of consonant letters in the alphabet is 21. Despite the fact that these letters are different from Russian ones, some of them have a similar pronunciation. These include the letters: B, F, G, M, P, S, V, Z. Speaking of similarities with the Russian language, it can also be noted that if English words have a double consonant, it is pronounced with one sound:

In addition to simple letters, English contains digraphs or signs formed using two English letters . These include:

It is worth noting that the letter ch in borrowed from Greek language in words it is pronounced as [k].

The letter ch is also read as the sound [k] in the name Michael, which is very common abroad:

Exception not applicable to the options above:

[ʃ]
champagne [ʃamˈpeɪn] (champagne)	champagne

The combination th is pronounced like “s” and “z” in Russian, only to pronounce them you need to position your tongue correctly. Bite down and then lower it, maintaining the position between your teeth. Now try to pronounce both of these letters.

The digraphs kh and zh are used in English with foreign surnames. Foreign surnames can also often contain the digraph sh, which, however, is also used in ordinary English words.

English alphabet: how to learn

We've sorted out how many letters and how they are used, but how to learn them? IN modern world This issue is quite easy to solve, because there are a lot of materials on learning English in both printed and electronic versions. However, the choice in favor of electronic material in the case of studying the alphabet will, perhaps, be more correct.

Firstly, the English alphabet is something that one learns very quickly. Once you have mastered it, you will not have to return to this topic again and again, which means that the purchased alphabet books will lie idle on the very top shelves.

Secondly, on the Internet you can find the greatest variety of programs, videos, songs that will help you learn the alphabet in the fastest possible time. short term. Use only one method or combine several at once: hum songs, write each letter on a piece of paper, memorize the sequence of letters in English and the words in which they are used.

That's it. As you can see, there is nothing wrong with the English language. The only thing you may need when studying it is a little patience, seasoned with motivation. Don't think of language as overwhelming, but instead enjoy it.