English Pronunciation

English:

English is a West Germanic language related to Dutch, Frisian, and German with a significant amount of vocabulary from French, Latin, Greek and many other languages.

English evolved from the Germanic languages brought to Britain by the Angles, Saxons, Jutes and other Germanic tribes, which are known collectively as Anglo-Saxon or Old English. Old English began to appear in writing during the early 8th century AD.

Approximately 341 million people speak English as a native language and a further 267 million speak it as a second language in over 104 countries including the UK, Ireland, USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, American Samoa, Andorra, Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda, Botswana, British Indian Ocean Territory, British Virgin Islands, Brunei, Cameroon, Canada, Cayman Islands, Cook Islands and Denmark.

English alphabet:

Pronunciation:

There are five vowels and twenty-one vowel sounds in English. The short and long vowel sounds together make 12 monophthongs and sliding vowels (diphthongs) are nine in number.

The monophthongs are twelve in number and are -

1. / ɪ /  (short vowel sound of ɪ)             e.g. pit, bit, hit

2. / ɪ: / (long vowel sound of ɪ)              e.g. me, see, key 

3. / e / (short vowel sound of e )            e.g. egg, leg, beg

4. / æ / (long vowel sound of æ)            e.g. pat, cat, hat

5. / ɑ: / (long vowel sound of ɑ:)             e.g. car, jar, par

6. / ɒ /   (short vowel sound of ɒ)             e.g. hot, pot, got

7. / ɔ: /  (long vowel sound of ɔ:)             e.g. all, doll, ball

8. / ʊ /  (short vowel sound of  ʊ)            e.g. hood, wood, should

9. / u: /  (long vowel sound of u:)             e.g. pool, cool, you 

10. / ʌ /  (short vowel sound of ʌ)            e.g. girl, pearl, ulcer

11. / ɜ: /  (long vowel sound of ɜ:)            e.g. fur, word, heard

12. / ə /  (short vowel sound of ə)            e.g. aloud, alone, gutter

Nine Diphthongs are : 

1. / eɪ /          e.g. name, date, bait

2. / əʊ /         e.g.  home, gone, moan 

3. / aɪ /          e.g. bye, my, sky

4. / ɑʊ /         e.g. now, how, brow

5. / ɔɪ /          e.g. boy, toy, joy

6. / ɪə /          e.g. here, dear, beer

7. / ɛə /          e.g. fair, dare, share

8. / ɔə /          e.g. board, hoard, pour

9. / ʊə /          e.g. your, pure, sure