We encounter discrepancies in the spelling and pronunciation of English words already in the first lessons, when we independently begin to read small texts and translate them. Therefore, along with the alphabet and simple vocabulary, beginning students need to become familiar with such a concept as English transcription. It is this multi-symbol system that helps convey in writing the pronunciation of the sounds that make up a word. In today's lesson we will analyze the work of these symbols in practice, i.e. We will learn how the English transcription, translation and pronunciation of the most useful words should sound correctly. In this case, examples of the correct sound will be presented in both English and Russian. But first, let's look at a few useful rules.

The principle of working with transcription

Record. Make it a rule that transcriptions of English words are always written using square brackets: book — [ b ʊk ] - book.

Emphasis. To indicate emphasis, use an apostrophe or, more simply, a stroke icon ′ , which precedes stressed syllable: dictionary – [ˈdɪkʃənrɪ] - dictionary.

Special signs. The transcription may contain periods, colons, parentheses, and resized letters.

• Dot - English uses this transcription mark as a syllable separator: undisputed – [ˈʌndɪsˈpjuːtɪd] – undeniable.
• Colon – indicator of a drawn-out long sound: water – [‘ w ɔ:t ə] – water.
• Parentheses are an indicator that the sound contained in them is not pronounced or is pronounced very weakly: happen – [‘ h æp (ə)n ] - happen, happen.
• The changed size of the letter is a designation of a sound that is not always pronounced. You can often find the r sound written in superscript format. This is an indication that the pronunciation of a word depends on dialect or other circumstances, such as the following word: car – [ k ɑːr ] - car. By the way, the British pronunciation of words is abbreviated UK, and the American pronunciation is US.

Repeated characters. Depending on the dialect being studied, the recording of transcription signs may also differ. However, only their spelling is different; these sounds are pronounced the same. Here are pairs of such identical symbols: [ɒ] = [ɔ] , [e] = [ɛ] , [ʊ] = [u] , [əʊ] = [ɔu] , [z:] = [ə:] , = [ɛə] .

Armed with these rules, let's begin our acquaintance with the transcription and pronunciation of the English language.

English transcription translation and pronunciation of popular words

It is not new to Russians that words are pronounced differently from how they are written. But the sometimes very large-scale inconsistency that is found in the English language will amaze even the most unimpressive native speakers of the Russian language.

In the following tables we will study all the transcription signs of the English language, working out their correct sound using popular words. Since we still have an initial level of knowledge, we will work with pronunciation in easy mode, i.e. additionally deciphering English words in Russian letters. In addition, each word will be presented With translation ohm into Russian. So by the end of studying the tables, we will significantly expand our vocabulary and, working with entry-level texts, we will be able to do without dictionaries and online translators.

Let's start with practicing vowel sounds, since they are the most “capricious” in pronunciation. Extend the short sound a little - and that’s it, you have already said not a ship, but a sheep. Therefore, be careful and monitor the quality of pronunciation of each sound.

Vowel sounds
Sound	Word and transcription	Russian pronunciation	Translation
[ɑː] Long-drawn a, approximately like the stressed a in Russian. fell A that	start	staat	start off
	park	paak	park
	large	laaj	large, large
	arm	aam	hand
	after [‘a:ftə]	aafte	after
[æ] uh, pronounced with articulation a	family	family	family
	bad	bad	bad
	apple ['æpl]	Apple	apple
	dance	dance	dance, dance
	can	ken	be able to
[ʌ] short a, as in Russian. St. A T	Sunday [ˈsʌndeɪ]	Sunday	Sunday
	study [ˈstʌdi]	stage	study
	suddenly [ˈsʌdənli]	sadenly	suddenly
	cup	cap	cup, bowl
	young	young	young
sound similar to Russian. cr ah	mind	mind	mind, thought
	try	try	try
	smile	smiley	smile, smile
	life	life	life
	sky	sky	sky
sound combination aw	house	house	house
	now	naw	now, now
	down	down	down
	hour [ˈaʊə(r)]	auer	hour
	flower [ˈflaʊə(r)]	flower	flower
drawn-out and, as in Russian. l And ra	evening [ˈiːvnɪŋ]	evening	evening
	machine	cars	apparatus, machine
	we	vi	We
	because	bicosis	because
	even [‘i:v(ə)n]	Ivn	even
[ɪ] short and as in Russian. whale	difficult [ˈdɪfɪkəlt]	dificelt	difficult
	story [ˈstɔːri]	story	story
	different [ˈdɪfrənt]	diffrent	different
	English [ˈɪŋ.ɡlɪʃ]	English	English
	decision	design	solution
[iə] sound combination ee	near	nee	close, nearby
	hear	heer	hear
	theater [ˈθɪə.tər]	tieter	theater
	dear	die	dear, beloved
	here	hie	Here
[ə] neutral sound, vaguely reminiscent of a or e. Often not pronounced.	second [ˈsecənd]	second	second, second
	fire [ˈfaɪə(r)]	fire	fire
	under [ˈʌndə(r)]	andr	under
	across [əˈkrɒs]	ecros	through, through
	banana	benan	banana
[e] hard e, almost Russian e	never [ˈnevə(r)]	nevr	never
	help	help	help, help
	heavy [ˈhevi]	heavy	heavy
	next	next	next
	hotel	wanted	hotel
resembles the Russian sound hey in the word sh to her	fail	fail	failure
	change	change	change, change
	explain [ɪkˈspleɪn]	xplain	explain
	page	paige	page
	rain	Rhine	rain
sound combination uh	hair	heer	hair
	square	square	square
	chair	chaer	chair
	care	keer	care
	fair	fair	fair
[ɜː] Russian e, as in the word cl e n	first	fest	first
	girl [ɡɜːl]	girl	young woman
	Thursday [ˈθɜːzdeɪ]	my dear	Thursday
	bird	bad	bird
	person [ˈpɜːsn]	songs	Human
[ɔː] drawn-out o, as in Russian. sl O in	water [‘wɔ:tə]	wate	water
	almost [‘ɔ:lməust]	Almouth	almost
	before	bifor	before
	horse	hos	horse
	hall	hall	hall, hall
[ɒ] brief about (note that final consonants are not devoiced!)	not	notes	Not
	nod	node	nod
	fog	fog	fog
	stop	stop	stop
	lot	lot	many
[ɔɪ] combination Ouch	boy	fight	boy
	foil	foil	foil
	joy	Joy	joy
	voice	voice	voice
	toy	that	toy
[əʊ] combination oh	road	road	road
	no	know	No
	most	bridge	greatest
	know	know	know
	foal	foul	foal
long y, as in Russian. duck	fool	full	jester
	room	room	room
	move	movie	move
	school	cheekbone	school
[ʊ] short	good [ɡʊd]	buzz	good
	put	put	put
	woman [ˈwʊmən]	woman	woman
	skid	use
	human [ˈhjuːmən]	human	human
	music [ˈmjuːzɪk]	music	music
	student [ˈstjuːdnt]	studnt	student

The English transcription of consonant sounds is much easier for Russian speakers to perceive, so the translation and pronunciation of words here will be intensively practiced only for special cases.

Ш By periodically working with these two tables, you will improve your pronunciation time after time, and eventually become the owner of an excellent British accent. At the same time, your active vocabulary will increase, so that soon you will be able to easily translate simple sentences both into Russian and back into English. We wish you successful and speedy mastery of all the nuances of English pronunciation! See you in new classes!

	Consonants
Sound	Word and transcription	Voice acting	Russian pronunciation	Translation
[b]	building [ˈbɪldɪŋ]		building	building, construction
[d]	drink		drink	drink, drink
[f]	forever		fairware	forever
[ʒ]	pleasure [ˈpleʒə(r)]		pleaser	pleasure
	pruv	prove
[r]	rainbow [ˈreɪn.bəʊ]		rainbow	rainbow
[s]	summer [ˈsʌmə(r)]		Samer	summer
[t]	travel [ˈtrævl]		travel	journey
[θ] The tongue is inserted between the upper and lower teeth. In this position it is necessary to pronounce f or s.	thank [θæŋk]		tsank	thank
	three [θriː]

Elena Britova

Academic manager of the TransLink-Education company, certified trainer in speed reading and memory development.

The English alphabet has 26 letters and 44 sounds. If in some languages ​​each letter represents only one sound, then in English one letter can convey up to four sounds, and in some cases even up to seven. Hence the favorite English saying: “We write “Liverpool”, but we read “Manchester”.

In addition, articulation (movement of the tongue, lips, mouth) is significantly different from Russian. There are sounds similar to Russian ones, but when pronouncing them, the organs of articulation work differently.

If you want to get rid of your accent or at least get closer to speaking English, all the differences need to be taken into account. Here are some tips on how to improve your English pronunciation.

1. Learn the alphabet

Many adults consider this a childish exercise. But one day you will definitely be asked: “Please, spell your name.” This is where knowing the letters of the English alphabet comes in handy. In addition, abbreviations, street names, house and flight numbers may contain letters, and, for example, at the airport they will definitely be pronounced as in the alphabet.

2. Practice articulation when pronouncing consonants

Once you have mastered the letters of the alphabet, feel free to move on to studying the sounds they convey. Train yourself to use correct articulation right away. First learn to pronounce sounds individually, bring them to automaticity, and then move on to words, phrases and sentences.

In the English language there are consonant sounds that, at first glance (or rather, hearing) are pronounced as in Russian.

1. Check where the tip of the tongue is when pronouncing the sounds [d] - [t], [n], [r], [s], [z]. Does it hit your teeth? Congratulations, you can pronounce the Russian alphabet. Among the native English, the tip of the tongue at this time is on the alveoli (the largest tubercle on the upper palate). Give it a try. Now you have purely English sounds. Practice: bed - ten, not, rat, sun, zoo.

2. Draw a hare when pronouncing the sounds [f] - [v]. The upper teeth must be placed on the lower lip. Practice: fat - vet.

3. Remember that the [l] sound is always hard: London [ˈlʌndən].

4. When practicing the [w] sound, take a candle: this is the best way to learn how to pronounce it correctly. Curl your lips and stretch them forward (like little children stretch out for a kiss), and then smile sharply. Then this sound will come out. When training, hold the candle at a distance of 20–25 cm from your lips. If the flame goes out when you make a sound, then you are doing everything right. Practice: say the word well.

5. Warm your hands when practicing the [h] sound. It has nothing in common with Russian [x]. Imagine that you are very cold and are trying to warm your hands with your breath. You bring them to your lips and exhale. During exhalation, a light, barely audible English sound [h] is formed. As in the word home.

6. Practice the sound [ŋ] when you have a bad runny nose or imagine that you have one. There is no such sound in the Russian language; it is conveyed by the combination ng in English. Press your tongue like a spatula against your upper palate and release the sound through your nose. It’s a little reminiscent of [n], if you pronounce it when you have a bad runny nose. Don't forget that your tongue is still touching the alveoli, not the teeth. Practice: interesting [ˈɪnt(ə)rɪstɪŋ].

7. Be the snake and the bee to practice [ð] - [θ]. These sounds are absent in Russian and are formed by combining the letters th in English.

[ð] - voiced sound. Lightly bite the tip of your tongue with your teeth and pronounce the sound [z]. If your lower lip and tongue are ticklish during training, then you are doing everything right. If not, you may have bitten the tip of your tongue too hard, loosen your teeth a little. Say the word this [ðɪs], does it work?

[θ] - dull sound. The articulation is the same, we just pronounce the sound [s]. To practice the dull sound [θ], say the word thank [θæŋk].

3. Learn four types of syllables for correct vowel pronunciation

The reading of vowels depends on the type of syllable in which they are found:

• open (syllable ends with a vowel);
• closed (syllable ends with a consonant);
• vowel + r;
• vowel + re.

In the first type of syllable - open - the vowels are read as in the alphabet (this is where knowledge of the alphabet came in handy for us!). For example: plane, nose, tube, Pete.

In the second type, you need to memorize the pronunciation of each vowel:

• [æ] is an open sound, not long. The letter conveys it A in a closed syllable. Test yourself: sit at the table, straighten up, place one elbow on the surface, bend your hand under your chin. You will have some space between your chin and your wrist, if, of course, you straighten your back. Now we lower the lower jaw down so that it reaches the hand, and pronounce [e]. Practice with the word bag.
• [e] is often confused with the previous sound. When pronouncing [e], you just need to slightly raise the corners of your lips up, as if smiling slightly. These are two different sounds, and they are not similar to each other, and especially not to Russian [e]. Practice: pet .
• Short sounds [i], [ɔ], [ʌ], [u] are pronounced intensively, not into a chant: big, box, bus, book [bʊk].

In the third and fourth types of syllables the letter R is not readable, it only forms a syllable and lengthens the vowel sound: car, sort, turn.

, [ɔ:] - special sounds. Imagine that you are at an appointment with a doctor who is examining your throat. The root of your tongue is pressed with a stick and asked to say “Ah-ah.” This is exactly the position the tongue should be in when pronouncing the sounds [a] and [o]. If this makes you want to yawn, then you are on the right track! Try it now: car , sort .

4. Remember the correct accents

Most often in English the stressed syllable is the first. If you need to pronounce a word, but there is no one to ask or there is no dictionary at hand, put the emphasis on the first syllable. Of course, it’s better to immediately memorize words with the correct stress or check yourself in the dictionary.

5. Don't forget four important rules

• The English language completely lacks soft consonants.
• Voiced consonants are not devoiced at the end of a word.
• Vowels can be long (in transcription they are designated [:]) and short.
• No unnecessary - especially sharp - movements of the lips.

Learn a few phrases to practice correct pronunciation:

• Very well [‘veri ‘wel].
• World Wide Web or WWW [‘w əuld ‘waid ‘web www].
• Eleven benevolent elephants [ɪˈlevn bəˈnevələnt ˈelɪfənts].
• Stupid superstition [ˈstjuːpɪd ˌsuːpəˈstɪʃ(ə)n].
• Pirates Private Property [ˈpaɪrəts praɪvət ˈprɒpəti].

And remember: different sounds have a meaning-distinguishing function. For example, man (“person”, “man”) and men (“men”); ship [ʃip] (“ship”) and sheep [ʃi:p] (“sheep”) and so on. Many people read the word three (“three”) as (and this means “tree”) or (“freedom”), not taking into account that th [θ] is read differently, it simply is not in the Russian language (remember the exercise "bee"). Knowing the correct pronunciation of words, you will definitely not get into trouble!

A person who begins to learn a foreign language first of all faces the problem of reading and pronunciating English words. Even many native speakers have problems with how to read correctly, so for those learning this language this will be an obstacle. But, nevertheless, it is very important to be able to correctly read and pronounce the text in the language being studied, as well as to know and correctly apply the rules of pronunciation.

How to learn to read English from scratch?

In order to learn to read English from scratch, it is first of all important to learn the English alphabet. It consists of 26 letters (6 vowels, 20 consonants). You can remember it with the help of a simple song, with the help of which little Englishmen learn the English alphabet.

Those who are starting from scratch should learn the correct pronunciation of all sounds, since English sounds differ from Russian ones (but there are also similar ones). For correct pronunciation, you need to train your mouth and practice pronunciation.

Once the pronunciation of sounds has been established, it is necessary to learn the basic rules for reading both vowels and consonants. When practicing reading, use transcription; it can be in either English or Russian. To understand reading, use dictionaries, not online translators.

Why is it difficult to read in English?

For example:

• Some letter combinations are pronounced as a single sound.
• In Russian, a soft sign is used to soften the sound; in English there is no such sign. Instead, it is the place of a letter in a word or designation in a transcription.

In fact, the English language is much easier than Russian, since there are no cases or declensions and speaking it (if you practice) is actually not difficult. The difficulty arises due to the fact that the pronunciation of the familiar native language is different from the one being studied.

English pronunciation and English sounds

English pronunciation and sounds of the English language directly depend on their transcription (recording the sound of a particular letter or words). Transcription, in turn, depends on reading rules.

In English:

• 44 sounds;
• 20 vowel sounds;
• 24 consonant sounds.

English pronunciation by native speakers is also divided into several parts. It depends on the origin of the carrier. For example, American pronunciation is different from British. And this is expressed not only in the accent, but also in the pronunciation of the same words or sounds. At the moment, American pronunciation is still more relevant, since most students speak it.

Tongue position

One of the features of pronunciation of English words is the position of the tongue. This is why problems can arise when reading, since when pronouncing Russian letters, the position of the tongue should be one, and when pronouncing similar English letters, it should be different.

Native English speakers use their teeth, lips, and tongue to produce the necessary pronunciation.

They also have several characteristic features:

• English speakers stretch their mouths wide when speaking.
• Native speakers have lips that are tense when speaking.
• The tongue is pressed against the lower jaw while speaking.
• The English pronounce words using the tip of their tongue.

Articulation strength

Articulation is also important when reading English. With correct articulation, at first your mouth and, in principle, the entire speech apparatus will be in a tense state, and for some time the conversation will get tired. All this is due to unpreparedness and lack of habit, since during Russian speech the speech apparatus is in a relaxed position.

For native speakers, such articulation does not cause inconvenience, since their mouth is in its usual position. But they will have a problem when pronouncing Russian letters and words. Again, it’s all out of habit.

Rules for reading words

It is very important to learn the rules of reading in English. There is a significant difference between the writing and pronunciation of English letters, words and phrases.

There are several basic reading rules that you need to remember:

• Open and closed syllable rule. There is no such rule in Russian. An open syllable is a syllable that ends with a vowel sound. It can appear in several cases: - the word ends with a vowel (lake); - in a word two vowels are in a row (cruel - cruel); — between two vowels in a word there is a consonant (education).
• Rules for the pronunciation of consonants and vowels. To do this, you should familiarize yourself with the transcription table.
• Rule of diphthongs and triphthongs. This is a rule for combining 2 or 3 letters that have a certain sound.

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How to read consonants?

A large number of English consonant sounds are practically no different from the pronunciation of Russian consonant sounds, but there is a difference.

There are several special characteristics that are worth paying attention to. It should be remembered that all English consonant sounds are pronounced only firmly, and voiced consonants at the end of a word are not pronounced dully.

Also, features are present in the pronunciation of individual sounds:

• The pronunciation of the sound W is different from V. The sound (W) must be spoken with both lips, and (V) only with the lower lip.
• The sounds P, T, K are pronounced followed by aspiration.
• About half of the sounds need to be pronounced by touching the tongue to the upper palate.

How to Read Vowels: 4 Syllable Types

There are also several specific rules when reading vowels. In English there are 4 main types of reading vowels (E, A, Y, U, O, I). The pronunciation of a sound in a word or phrase depends on each type.

Open

An open syllable is a syllable that ends with a vowel, even if it is not pronounced.

Reading vowels in such a syllable can be called alphabetical, since often the pronunciation is practically no different from what it is in the alphabet:

• A – (ei)– lake, take, care, safe, late;
• O–(ou)– pose, rose, note, no, joke;
• E–(i)– me, she, creepy, delete;
• I (Y under stress) – (ai)– deny, dislike, nice, sunshine;
• U – (u:)– purple, pupil, autotune, youtube.

But there are also exceptions, of which the English language is full. You want to pronounce some words according to the basic rules, but in reality they have a different pronunciation. The words dove, love, none, done, some - in these words the letter (o) must be read as a short letter (a).

Closed

A closed syllable is significantly different from an open one. A closed syllable is a syllable ending with one or more consonants. In words with a closed syllable, the letters are read differently than in the alphabet. It all depends on how the consonants follow the vowels.

If the letter Y is unstressed at the end of a word, then it should be read as the sound (i): truly, ugly, spicy.

Vowel + r

Let's look at examples:

• A – (a:)– farmer, park;
• E – (e:)– service, perfect;
• I – (e:)– first, bird;
• O–(c:)– fork, morning;
• U–(e:)– church, turn;
• Y – (e:)– myrtle.

Vowel + r + vowel

The fourth type of reading is a combination of two vowels in a word, between which there is a consonant r, for example:

• A– (ea:)– parents, careful;
• E – (ie:)– cereal, here;
• I – (aie:)– dire, tire;
• O–(c:)– snore, bore;
• U – (jue:)– during, pure;
• Y – (aie:)– ture, byre.

How to read letter combinations and diphthongs?

Many vowel sounds in English depend on consonants that come together, let’s take a closer look:

a+s+consonant - ;

ear - under stress, if there is no consonant after it -;

ear - before a consonant - [ə:];

eer - under stress -;

ew - if not after l, r, j - ;

ew after l, r, j - ;

oo+consonant - ;

u - after r, l, j, and also before a vowel - ;

ui after r, l ,j - ;

Children perfectly remember and apply the information received, presented in the form of a game or a similar format. Textbooks and manuals should be chosen bright, colorful, with all kinds of game or picture elements. Do not try to teach your child English and how to read it using standard school textbooks, as he will be bored and the learning will not yield results.

At an older age, learning and reading a language is more difficult. You should choose a single program to follow throughout your entire study. Practice reading and pronunciation with the help of English books, films and videos.

How to learn to read in elementary school?

In primary school, learning English mainly consists of games and fairy tales. It will be easier for those children who had foreign language courses in kindergarten or those with whom their parents studied.

Important! Parents need to take note that it is better to start reading in English with their child before school starts. Of course, in many Sunday schools English is provided as a separate lesson, but it is still better to monitor the study.

Often, young schoolchildren are assigned to repeat transcriptions as homework. While doing homework, the parent needs to study and read with the child!

Some more useful tips are given below.

Learn English tongue twisters

Tongue twisters- This is a great way to memorize and pronounce new English words. Tongue twisters are useful because most of them are easy to remember and allow you to learn slang or colloquial phrases or words. They are useful to teach both adults and children.

Each tongue twister is aimed at improving the pronunciation of a certain sound or pronunciation of words. Each tongue twister has a feature associated with the pronunciation of one particular sound. You should speak the tongue twister for several days and then the problem of pronunciation will disappear and the sound will sound clear.

Here are some useful tongue twisters with translation:

Learn to hear English speech

Many language learners have trouble understanding speech. The problem stems from the fact that the study is not taking place in an English-speaking space or country. It is important to learn to hear and understand foreign speech.

To do this you need to constantly train:

• listen to audiobooks;
• watch films and TV series in the language you are learning;
• find video blogs on the Internet;
• watch British news online;
• use apps.

Try to surround yourself with English as much as possible. If possible, study with a tutor who will conduct dialogues with you, or study with an English group. In it you can meet the same people who are learning a foreign language.

Find someone with whom you can learn the language and conduct dialogues together, so you both will train your speech.

Work on your pronunciation

You need to work on your pronunciation, because many English words sound similar, and if the articulation is incorrect, you can simply pronounce them incorrectly. To do this, you need to train your speech apparatus and get rid of your accent.

Learn the perfect alphabet and pronunciation of each letter. Practice pronouncing the transcription of letters, words and phrases. Pay attention to how the English speak, to the peculiarities of their speech.

Learn to pronounce phrases in English correctly

The English language differs from Russian in that many sentences do not have intonationally separated sentences; most of them sound like a single phrase. This also applies to individual independent phrases. To learn how to correctly pronounce phrases in English, you need to learn the transcription and pronounce it correctly.

If you pronounce it incorrectly during a conversation, you may misuse the right word, losing the meaning of what was said.

Conclusion

In order to correctly learn to read in English, you must follow the tips for learning it. You need to constantly practice writing words, learn grammatical, punctuation and phonetic rules. It is important not to forget about transcription.

These rules need to be taught to both children and adults learning a foreign language. Parents should practice learning the language with their children before primary school so that they do not have problems in lessons and doing homework.

If you follow all the rules and tips, learning to read correctly will not be difficult!

Transcription is a recording of the sound of a letter or word in the form of a sequence of special phonetic symbols.

Transcription may not be of interest to everyone, but it is, without a doubt, useful. Knowing the transcription, you will correctly read an unfamiliar word without outside help. During classes, you can read the transcription of a word yourself (for example, from the blackboard) without asking others, thereby making it easier for yourself to assimilate lexical material, etc.

At first there will be errors in correct reading, because... There are always some subtleties in pronunciation. But this is just a matter of practice. A little later, if necessary, you will be able to transcribe the words yourself.

Transcription is directly related to reading rules. In English, not everything that is seen (letter combinations) is read (as in Russian and Spanish, for example).

When textbooks (mostly domestic ones) talk about reading rules, much attention is paid to the type of syllable. About five such types are usually described. But such a detailed theoretical presentation of the rules of reading does not greatly ease the fate of a beginner, and can even mislead him. It must be remembered that a good knowledge of the rules of reading is a great merit of practice, not theory.

Your attention will be presented to the basic rules for reading individual letters and letter combinations. “Behind the scenes” there will be some phonetic aspects that are difficult to convey in writing.

A little patience! Both transcription and reading rules are easily learned in a short time. Then you will be surprised: “How easy it has become to read and write!”

However, do not forget that, despite its wide distribution, the English language does not cease to be a LANGUAGE, full of exceptions, stylistic and other delights. And at any stage of language learning, and especially at the beginning, look into the dictionary more often.

Transcription icons and their pronunciation

Symbols Consonants	Pronunciation of sound (similar to Russian)	Symbols Vowel sounds	Pronunciation of sound (similar to Russian)
[ b ]	[ b ]	Single sounds
[ d ]	[ d ]	[ Λ ]	[ A] - short
[ f ]	[ f ]	[ a:]	[ A] - deep
[ 3 ]	[ and ]	[ i ]	[ And] - short
[ d3 ]	[ j ]	[ i: ]	[ And] - long
[ g ]	[ G ]	[ o ]	[ O] - short
[ h ]	[ X ]	[ o: ]	[ O] - deep
[ k ]	[ To ]	[ u ]	[ at] - short
[ l ]	[ l ]	[ u: ]	[ at] - long
[ m ]	[ m ]	[ e ]	as in the word "pl" e d"
[ n ]	[ n ]	[ ε: ]	as in the word "m" e d"
[ p ]	[ n ]	Diphthongs
[ s ]	[ With ]	[ u ]	[ oh ]
[ t ]	[ T ]	[ au ]	[ aw ]
[ v ]	[ V ]	[ ei ]	[ Hey ]
[ z ]	[ h ]	[ oi ]	[ Ouch ]
[ t∫]	[ h ]	[ ai ]	[ ah ]
[∫ ]	[ w ]
[ r ]	Soft [ r] as in the word r Russian
[ O	A sign of softness as in a Russian letter Yo (e lk)
Sounds without analogies in Russian
[ θ ]		[ æ ]
[ ð ]
[ ŋ ]	Nasal, in the French style, sound [ n ]	[ ə ]	[neutral sound]
[ w ]

Notes:

o]. But, in modern English dictionaries this sound is usually designated as shown in the table.

Diphthong is a complex sound that consists of two sounds. In most cases, a diphthong can be "broken" into two sounds, but not in writing. Since in many cases one of the component sounds of a diphthong, if used separately, will have a different designation. For example diphthong [ au]: separately such transcription icon as [ a] - does NOT exist. Therefore, most diphthongs are not indicated by a combination of different transcription symbols, but by their own sign.

In many school textbooks and in some domestic dictionaries this sound is designated as [ ou], which is more clear. But, in modern English dictionaries this sound is usually designated as shown in the table.

This sign often denotes unstressed vowel sounds in transcription, regardless of the letters (combinations) that produce this sound.

Reading Rules

English words have several types of syllables. However, to understand the entire system, it is necessary to remember and distinguish between the following two types: open And closed.

Open syllable ends with a vowel: game, like, stone- a vowel letter in a word is read the same way as in the alphabet.

Closed syllable ends with a consonant: pen, cat, bus- a vowel in a syllable gives a different sound.

Stress in transcription and words is indicated by a vertical line before the stressed syllable.

Single vowel sounds

Sound	Rules
[ e ]	usually gives a letter e in a closed syllable: g e t[g e t ], v e t[v e t ] as well as a letter combination ea:d ea d[d e d ], pl ea sure [´pl e 3 ə ] Note: the same letter combination often produces the sound [ i:] (see below)
[ i ]	usually gives a letter i in a closed syllable: h i t[h i t ], k i ll[k i l ] and also the letter y in a closed syllable: g y m[d3 i m ], c y Linder [´s i lində ] Note: the same letters in an open syllable give the sound [ ai] (see below)
[ i: ]	appears in the following letter combinations: e+e(always): m ee t[m i: t ], d ee p ; letter e in an open syllable: tr ee[ tr i:], St e ve[st i: v ]; in letter combination e+a: m ea t[m i: t ], b ea m [ b i: m] Note: this is the same letter combination ( ea) often makes the sound [ e] (see above)
[ o ]	usually gives a letter o in a closed syllable: p o t[p o t ], l o ttery [´l o təri ], and also the letter a in a closed syllable after w: wa sp[w o sp ], s wa n[sw o n ]
[ o: ]	o+r:c or n[k o: n ], f or tress [´f o: trə s ]; m or e[m o: ] almost always in a+u:f au na[´f o: nə ], t au nt[t o: nt ]; the only exceptions are a few words, for example, au nt Consonant (except w) + a + w:d aw n[d o: n ], h aw k[h o: k]. always in letter combination a+ll: t all[ t o: l ], sm all[sm o: l ] Letter combination a+ld (lk) also produces this sound: b ald[ b o: ld ], t alk[ t o: k ] Not often, but you can find the letter combination ou + r giving this sound :p our[ p o:], m our n.
[ æ ]	usually gives a letter a in a closed syllable: fl a g[fl æ g ], m a rried [´m æ rid ]
[ Λ ]	usually gives a letter u in a closed syllable: d u st[d Λ st ], S u nday ​​[´s Λ ndei]. And also: double:d double[d Λ bl ], tr double[ tr Λ bl] ove:gl ove[gl Λ v ], d ove[d Λ v] Note: but there are also exceptions: m ove[ m u: v ] - (see below); fl oo d[fl Λ d ], bl oo d[bl Λ d ] - (see above)
[ a: ]	appears in the following letter combinations: a+r:d ar k[d a: k ], f ar m [ f a: m ] (see note) regular letter a in a closed syllable: l a st [ l a: st ], f a ther[f a:ðə ] - therefore it is necessary to check the dictionary, because a in a closed syllable it traditionally produces the sound [ æ ] as in c a t[k æ t ]; consonant + alm also produces this sound consistently: p alm[ p a: m ], c alm[k a: m ] + note Note: 1. very rarely a+r gives sound [ o:]w ar m[w o: m ]; 3. Rarely: s al mon[s æ mən ]
[ u ] [ u: ]	The length of this sound varies in most cases for historical reasons rather than for orthographic reasons. That is, for each word it is determined individually. This difference in longitude does not carry a huge semantic load, as in other sounds. And in oral speech it does not need to be specifically emphasized. This sound occurs in the following cases: Always o+o:f oo t[f u t ], b oo t [ b u: t ], t oo k[t u k ], m oo n[m u: n ] after pu in a closed syllable sometimes gives a short version: pu t[p u t ], pu sh[p u∫ ] (the previous letter is always p) - (see note) ou+ consonant: c ou ld[k u: d ], w ou nd[w u: nd ] (but such cases are not frequent). r+u+ consonant + vowel: p ru ne [ pr u: n ], ru mour[r u: mə ] Note: 2. But in similar cases with other consonants u almost always produces a sound [ Λ ] : c u t[k Λ t ], pl u s[pl Λ s ], p u nch[p Λ nt∫ ]
[ ε: ]	occurs in closed syllables with the following letter combinations: Always i /e /u + r(in a closed syllable): sk ir t[sk ε: t ], p er son[p ε: sən]t ur n[t ε: n ], b ur st[b ε: st ] - (see note) ea + r:p ear l[p ε: l ], l ear n[ l ε: n ] Note: in some cases a combination o+r after w makes this sound: w or d[w ε: d ], w or k[w ε: k ]
[ ə ]	Most unstressed vowels produce a neutral sound: vowel combinations: fam ou s[ feim ə s ], c o mput er[k ə mpju:t ə ]

Vowel diphthongs

Sound	Rules
[ ei ]	a in an open syllable: g a me[g ei m], p a le[p ei l ] ai in a closed syllable: p ai n[p ei n ], r ai l[r ei l ] ay(usually at the end): pr ay[ pr ei], h ay[ h ei ] ey(rarely, but aptly) usually at the end: gr ey[ gr ei], surv ey[´sε:v ei ] Note: 4. the same letter combination sometimes produces the sound [ i:]: key [ k i: ]
[ ai ]	usually occurs in the following cases: letter i in an open syllable: f i ne[f ai n ], pr i ce [ pr ai s ] ie at the end of a word: p ie[ p ai], d ie[d ai ] letter y in an open syllable: rh y me[r ai m ], s y ce[s ai s ] and at the end of the word: m y[ m ai],cr y[kr ai ] ye at the end of a word: d ye[d ai], r ye[r ai ]
[ oi ]	usually occurs in the following cases: oi(usually in the middle of a word) - p oi son [´p oi zən ], n oi se[n oi z ] oh(usually at the end) - b oh[ b oi], all oh[´æl oi ]
[ au ]	appears in the following letter combinations: o+w: h ow[ h au], d ow n[d au n ] - (see note) o + u:r ou nd[r au nd ], p ou t[p au t ] Note: 1. the same letter combination often produces the sound [ u] (see below)
[ u ]	usually gives a letter o in open syllable: st o ne[st u n ], l o nely [´l u nli] letter combinations o+w(usually at the end of a word): bl ow[bl u],cr ow[kr u] - (see note) ou before l:s ou l[s əul], f ou l[f u l ] oa+ vowel: c oa ch[k ut∫], t oa d[t u d ] old(as in open syllable): c old[k u ld ], g old[g u ld]. Note: 1. exception word: b o th[ b uθ ]; 2. the same letter combination often produces the sound [ au] (see above)
[ iə ]	ea + r: h ear[ h iə], n ear[ n iə] - (see note) e + r + e: h here[ h iə] , s here[s iə ] ee + r:d eer[d iə], p eer[ p iə ] Note: 1. if this letter combination is followed by a consonant, then the sound [ ε: ] - d ear th[d ε: θ]. Exception - b ear d[b iə d ]
[ eə ]	give the following letter combinations: a+r+e:d are[d eə], fl are[ fl eə ] ai + r: h air[ h eə], f air[ f eə ]
[ aiə ]	give the following letter combinations: i+r+e:f ire[ f aiə], h ire[ h aiə ] y + r + e: t yre[ t aiə], p yre[ p aiə ]

Consonants

Sound	Rules
[∫ ]	There are several letter combinations that always produce this sound (among others): tion [∫ə n]: celebra tion[´seli´brei∫n], tui tion[tju:´i∫n] cious [∫ə s]: deli cious[dil´∫əs], vi cious[´vi∫əs] cian [∫ə n]: musi cian[mju:´zi∫ən], politi cian[poli´ti∫ən] and, of course, the letter combination sh: sh eep [∫i:p], sh oot [ ∫u:t ]
[ t∫]	always occurs in: ch: ch air [t∫eə], ch ild [t∫aild] t+ure:crea ture[´kri:t∫ə], fu ture[ ´fju:t∫ə ]
[ ð ] [ θ ]	These two sounds are given by the same letter combination th. Usually, if this letter combination is in the middle of a word (between two vowels), then the sound [ ð ]: wi th out [wi´ ð aut] And, if it is at the beginning or end of a word, then the sound [ θ ]: th anks [ θ ænks ], fai th[ fei θ ]
[ ŋ ]	the nasal sound occurs in the letter combination vowel + ng: s ing[ si ŋ ], h ung ry [´hΛ ŋ gri ], wr ong[wro ŋ ], h ang[hæ ŋ ]
[ j ]	softness in sound may occur in some cases, and not manifest itself in other similar cases, for example s u per [´s u: p ə ] (see dictionary): u in an open syllable: m u te[m j u:t ], h u ge[h j u:d3 ] ew:f ew[ f j u: ], l ew d[l j u:d ] if the word starts with y + vowel: ya rd[ j a:d ], yo ung[ jΛŋ ]

Now take the interactive lesson and pin this topic

", transcription is used by everyone, sometimes even unconsciously. First, let's refresh our memory, what does the phrase "English transcription" mean?

English Transcription is a sequence of phonetic symbols that helps us understand how to read a particular sound or word. Often, students encounter transcription at the beginning of learning a language, when it is still quite difficult to read even fairly simple words, and then they simply do not pay attention to it. However, this will not be the case forever.

As soon as a student begins to skillfully use complex grammatical structures and develops a good vocabulary for free communication, then the desire immediately appears to speak beautifully, like a native speaker, that is, to improve his pronunciation of English words. This is where we remember the good old transcription.

In order not to have to remember the well-forgotten old things, we suggest returning to the repetition from time to time. Of course, ideally, the transcription should be completed together with the teacher, because writing cannot convey all the subtleties of pronunciation, but if you are reading this article now, the foundation for beautiful pronunciation and correct reading has already been laid, and you will definitely achieve your desired goal.

Transcription of vowel sounds

There are two types of vowel sounds - single sounds and diphthongs.

[ ʌ ] - [a] - short;
[a:]- [a] - deep;
[i]- [and] - short;
[i:]- [and] - long;
[o]- [o] - short;
[o:]- [o] - deep;
[u]- [y] - short;
[u:]- [y] - long;
[e]- as in the word “plaid”;
[ ɜ: ] - as in the word “honey”.

English diphthongs

A diphthong is a sound that consists of two sounds. Most often, a diphthong can be divided into two sounds, however, this cannot be conveyed in writing. Often diphthongs are indicated not by a combination of several characters, but by their own sign.

[əu]- [oh];
[au]- [au];
[ei]- [ Hey ];
[oi]- [ Ouch ];
[ai]- [ouch].

Rules for pronunciation of vowels in English

• Sound " a"has four varieties:
  [ ʌ ] - short sound, as in the words “duck”, “cut”;
  [ æ ] - soft sound. There is no analogue to it in the Russian language. It is read as in the word “cat”;
  [a:]- a long sound that is read as in the word “car”;
  [ ɔ ] - a short sound that sounds similar to both “o” and “a”. In British pronunciation, it is more of an "o", as in "hot" or "not".

• Sound " e" can be read in three ways:
  [e]- for example, as in the word “let”;
  [ ə: ] - this sound is a little reminiscent of the Russian letter “ё”, only it is read a little softer. For example, "bird", "fur";
  [ ə ] - one of the most common sounds in English transcription. In sound, this sound is similar to the Russian sound “e”. It occurs only in unstressed syllables and can be practically inaudible or indistinguishable, for example, ["letə", "letter" - letter.

• Sound " i"can be long or short:
  [I]- a short sound, for example, as in the word “film”;
  [i:]- a long sound, for example, as in “sheep”.

• Sound " O"also has 2 options - long and short:
  [ ɔ ] - short sound, as in the word “bond”;
  [ ɔ: ] - a long sound, as in the word “more”.

• Sound " u" can also be pronounced in two ways. It can be long or short:
  [u]- short sound, as in the word “put”;
  [u:]- long sound, as in the word “blue”.

Transcription of consonants

In the transcription of consonant sounds, everything is quite simple. Basically they sound similar to Russian. It is enough to take a thoughtful look at the above-mentioned letter combinations a couple of times, and they will remain in your memory.

Consonants
[b]- [b];
[d]- [d];
[f]- [f];
[ 3 ] - [ and ];
[dʒ]- [j];
[g]- [ G ];
[h]- [ X ];
[k]- [ To ];
[l]- [l];
[m]- [m];
[n]- [n];
[p]- [n];
[s]- [ With ];
[t]- [ T ];
[v]- [ V ];
[z]- [z];
[t∫]- [h];
[ ∫ ] - [w];
[r]- soft [r], as in the word Russian;
[ O ]- a sign of softness as in the Russian letter “ё” (Christmas tree).

English consonants that are not in Russian and their pronunciation:
[ θ ] - soft letter “c”, the tongue is located between the front teeth of the upper and lower jaws;
[ æ ] - like “e”, only more sharply;
[ ð ] - like “θ”, only with the addition of a voice, like a soft letter “z”;
[ ŋ ] - nasal, in the French manner, sound [n];
[ ə ] - neutral sound;
[w]-like “v” and “u” together, soft pronunciation.

Features of English transcription

In order to make it easier to navigate reading words, it is important to know the main features of transcription:

• Feature 1. Transcription is always formatted in square brackets
• Feature 2. In order not to get confused about where to place the stress in a word, it is worth considering that it is always placed before the stressed syllable. ["neim] - transcription of the word name.
• Feature 3. It is important to understand that transcription is not the English letters and sounds that make up a word. Transcription is the sound of words.
• Feature 4. In English, transcription consists of vowel sounds, diphthongs and consonants.
• Feature 5. In order to show that the sound is long, a colon is used in transcription.

Of course, knowing only character sets, it is quite difficult to read everything correctly, because there are many exceptions. In order to read correctly, you need to understand that there are closed and open syllables. Open syllable ends with a vowel (game, sunshine), closed- on a consonant (ball, dog). Some sounds in English can be pronounced differently depending on the type of syllable.

Conclusion

It is worth remembering that in any business the main thing is practice (by the way, you can start practicing English remotely right now). Transcribing sounds in English will be easy for you if you work hard at it. Reading the rules once is not enough. It is important to return to them, work through them and repeat them regularly until they are practiced to the point of automaticity. Ultimately, the transcription will allow you to correctly pronounce sounds in English.

Dictionaries will help you memorize English with transcription and correct pronunciation of English letters and words. You can use both English online dictionaries and good old printed publications. The main thing is not to give up!

Inspiration to you and success in your studies. May the knowledge be with you!

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