Phonetic alphabet
It is necessary to use a special alphabet (IPA - International Phonetic Alphabet) to show the pronunciation of English words, because the ordinary English alphabet does not have enough letters to represent all the sounds of the language. The following list contains all the letters of the phonetic alphabet used in Practical English Usage, with examples of the words in which the sounds they refer to are found.
Vowels and diphthongs (double vowels)
| IPA | Example words |
|---|---|
| iː | seat /siːt/, feel /fiːl/ |
| ɪ | sit /sɪt/, in /ɪn/ |
| e | set /set/, any /ˈeni/ |
| æ | sat /sæt/, match /mætʃ/ |
| ɑː | march /mɑːtʃ/, after /ˈɑftə(r)/ |
| ɒ | pot /pɒt/, gone /ɡɒn/ |
| ɔː | port /pɔːt/, law /lɔː/ |
| ʊ | good /gʊd/, could /kʊd/ |
| uː | food /fuːd/, group /gruːp/ |
| ʌ | much /mʌtʃ/, front /frʌnt/ |
| ɜː | turn /tɜːn/, word /wɜːd/ |
| ə | away /əˈweɪ/, collect /kəˈlekt/, until /ənˈtɪl/ |
| eɪ | take /teɪk/, wait /weɪt/ |
| aɪ | mine /maɪn/, light /laɪt/ |
| ɔɪ | oil /ɔɪl/, boy /bɔɪ/ |
| əʊ | no /nəʊ/, open /ˈəʊpən/ |
| aʊ | house /haʊs/, now /naʊ/ |
| ɪə | hear /hɪə(r)/, deer /dɪə(r)/ |
| eə | air /eə(r)/, where /weə(r)/ |
| ʊə | tour /tʊə(r)/, endure /ɪnˈdjʊə(r)/ |
Consonants
| IPA | Example words |
|---|---|
| p | pull /pʊl/, cup /kʌp/ |
| b | bull /bʊl/, rob /rɒb/ |
| f | ferry /ˈferi/, life /laɪf/ |
| v | very /ˈveri/, live /lɪv/ |
| θ | think /θɪnk/, bath /bɑːθ/ |
| ð | then /ðen/, with /wɪð/ |
| t | take /teɪk/, set /set/ |
| d | day /deɪ/, red /red/ |
| s | sing /sɪŋ/, rice /raɪs/ |
| z | zoo /zuː/, days /deɪz/ |
| ʃ | show /ʃəʊ/, wish /wɪʃ/ |
| ʒ | pleasure /ˈpleʒə(r)/, occasion /əˈkeɪʒn/ |
| tʃ | cheap /tʃiːp/, catch /kætʃ/ |
| dʒ | jail /dʒeɪl/, bridge /brɪdʒ/ |
| k | case /keɪs/, take /teɪk/ |
| ɡ | go /ɡəʊ/, rug /rʌɡ/ |
| m | my /maɪ/, come /kʌm/ |
| n | no /nəʊ/, on /ɒn/ |
| ŋ | sing /sɪŋ/, finger /ˈfɪŋɡə(r)/ |
| l | love /lʌv/, hole /həʊl/ |
| r | round /raʊnd/, carry /ˈkæri/ |
| w | well /wel/ |
| j | young /jʌŋ/ |
| h | house /haʊs/ |
The sign (ˈ) shows stress. See pronunciation: stress and rhythm.
© Michael Swan 2016