Professional Documents
Culture Documents
ANGLO-PEDIA
Anglo-File 117: The English Sound System
The following exercises are designed to help you with the recognition and production of English
sounds. As a language that has been derived from many other languages, English has one of the
richest collection of sounds. This means that you are likely to come across several sounds that do
not exist in your mother tongue. Regular practice will help you to become familiar with these sounds,
and will improve both your listening comprehension and your pronunciation.
Work through the recordings in the following way:
1. Listen to each section several times until your ears have become familiar with the sound(s).
2. Repeat each section several times.
3. Do the dictation exercises at the end of selected sections. An answer key at the back of the
booklet will enable you to check your dictation exercises.
CONTENTS:
Section 1: Vowels and diphthongs:
short vowels
long vowels
diphthongs
Section 2: Vowels & diphthongs: Minimal pairs (distinguishing two sounds from each other)
Section 3: Consonants: Minimal pairs (distinguishing two sounds from each other)
Section 4: Consonant clusters: 2 consonants following each other
SP, ST, SK, SM, SN, SL, KS, KT, FT
Regular verbs ending in sound /t/
Regular verbs ending in sound /d/
Plural nouns / third person singular verbs ending in sound /s/
Plural nouns / third person singular verbs ending in sound /z/
Section 5: Special sounds
5a. Contractions
5b. Weak forms
Section 6: Phonetic links
6a. Consonant to vowel
6b. Consonant to consonant
6c. Vowel to vowel
INDEX
SECTION 1: VOWELS & DIPHTHONGS
Tracks 1 - 6: Short vowels: /a/ /e/ /i/ /o/ /u/ //
Tracks 7 - 11: Long vowels: /a:/ /:/ /i:/ /o:/ /u:/
Tracks 1 2 - 18: Diphthongs: /au/ /ai/ /ei/ /oi/ /u/ /e/ /i/
SECTION 2: VOWELS & DIPHTHONGS: MINIMAL PAIRS
Track 19: Sounds /a/ & /a:/
Track 20: Dictation 1
Track 21: Sounds /e/ & /:/
Track 22: Dictation 2
Track 23: Sounds /i/ & /i:/
Track 24: Dictation 3
Track 25: Sounds /o/ & /o:/
Track 26: Dictation 4
Track 27: Sounds /u/ & /u:/
Track 28: Dictation 5
Track 29: Sounds /a/ & //
Track 30: Dictation 6
Track 31: Sounds /a/ & /e/
Track 32: Dictation 7
Track 33: Sounds /a:/ & /:/
Track 34: Dictation 8
Track 35: Sounds /e/ & /ei/
Track 36: Dictation 9
Track 37: Sounds /o:/ & /u/
Track 38: Dictation 10
Track 39: Sounds /u:/ & /u/
Track 40: Dictation 11
SECTION 3: CONSONANTS: MINIMAL PAIRS
Track 41: Sounds /s/ & /sh/
Track 43: Sounds /sh/ & /ch/
Track 45: Sounds /s/ & /th/
Track 47: Sounds /t/ & /th/
Track 49: Sounds /m/ & /n/
Track 51: Sounds /y/ & /j/
Track 53: Sounds /b/ & /v/
Track 55: Sounds /w/ & /v/
Track 57: Sounds /l/ & /r/
Track 59: Sounds /d/ & /th/
Track 61: Sounds /h/ & /vowel/
Track 63: Sounds /s/ & /z/
Track 65: Sounds /p/ & /b/
Track 67: Sounds /t/ & /d/
Track 69: Sounds /k/ & /g/
Track 71: Sounds /f/ & /v/
Long vowels
Sound 1: /a:/
Sound 2: /:/
Sound 3: /i:/
Sound 4: /o:/
Sound 5: /u:/
Diphthongs
Sound 1: /au/
Sound 2: /ai/
Sound 3: ei/
Sound 4: /oi/
Sound 5: /u/
Sound 6: /e/
Sound 7: /i/
&
/a:/
heart
cart
lard
park
lark
mars
half
carp
shark
harsh
&
/:/
bird
turn
learn
heard
word
world
germ
burn
burst
3. /i/
grin
fit
dip
ship
sit
bit
fill
live
sin
gin
&
/i:/
green
feet
deep
sheep
seat
beat
feel
leave
seen
Jean
&
/o:/
port
court
forks
cord
walk
&
/u:/
fool
pool
food
suit
goose
&
//
bug
mud
fun
sung
butter
hut
truck
much
cup
uncle
&
/e/
head
beg
lend
Ken
pen
met
merry
pat
than
pet
then
&
/:/
firm
burn
stir
heard
dirt
hurt
birth
purse
/ei/
pain
tail
main
fail
age
shade
paper
late
wait
gate
taste
date
&
/u/
low
Joe
boat
cold
bowl
toe
tone
snow
hole
so
show
Dictation 10: Listen and write down the words you hear.
11. /u:/
Boot
cooled
Sue
shoe
room
&
/u/
boat
cold
so
show
Rome
moon
rule
mood
rude
soup
moan
role
mode
rode
soap
Dictation 11: Listen and write down the words you hear.
Section 3: CONSONANTS
1. /s/
see
sell
said
save
sock
saw
so
Sue
&
/sh/
she
shell
shed
shave
shock
shore
show
shoe
&
/ch/
chip
cherry
choose
cheap
chair
watch
catch
which
/th/
thick
think
theme
thing
path
mouth
worth
&
/th/
thin
thank
thick
three
theme
fourth
path
5. /m/
seem
them
rum
team
deem
dim
moon
mail
&
/n/
seen
then
run
teen
dean
din
noon
nail
&
/dj/
jet
juice
Jack
Jetty
jam
joke
jeer
Jess
&
/v/
vest
vote
vat
very
van
vet
&
/v/
vet
vest
veil
verse
via
vine
veal
&
/r/
row
right
rip
raw
read
list
alive
collect
long
Lice
wrist
arrive
correct
wrong
rice
/th/
there
then
than
though
breathe
worthy
Dictation 10: Listen and write down the words you hear.
11. starting with /h/
hand
hall
hear
high
hate
harm
hill
his
hold
hat
hair
&
Dictation 11: Listen and write down the words you hear.
12. /s/
Sue
said
sip
rice
loose
race
once
&
/z/
zoo
zed
zip
rise
lose
raise
ones
Dictation 12: Listen and write down the words you hear.
13. /p/
pit
pat
port
pull
pride
rope
tap
cup
&
/b/
bit
bat
bought
bull
bride
robe
tab
cub
Dictation 13: Listen and write down the words you hear.
14. /t/
two
ten
town
train
site
heart
plate
bat
set
&
/d/
do
den
down
drain
side
hard
played
bad
said
Dictation 14: Listen and write down the words you hear.
15. /k/
could
cot
coat
cave
leak
pick
lock
ankle
&
/g/
good
got
goat
gave
league
pig
log
angle
Dictation 15: Listen and write down the words you hear.
16. /f/
fan
ferry
fail
feel
fine
leaf
safe
proof
&
/v/
van
very
veil
veal
vine
leave
save
prove
Dictation 16: Listen and write down the words you hear.
Section 4: CONSONANT CLUSTERS
SP:
ST:
SK:
SM:
SN:
SL:
KS:
KT:
FT:
10
/st/
/ft/
11
Dictation 28: Listen and write down the sentences you hear. They include contractions, weak forms
and phonetic links.
12
ANSWER KEY
Vowels & diphthongs
Dictation 1:
heart, cat, lad, park, lack, mass, half, cap, shark, harsh
Dictation 2:
bird, turn, learn, head, wed, world, gem, burn, best
Dictation 3:
green, feet, dip, sheep, sit, bit, feel, live, seen, Jean
Dictation 4:
pot, court, fox, cod, walk
Dictation 5:
full, pool, foot, suit, goods
Dictation 6:
bug, mud, fan, sang, batter, hut, truck, match, cap, uncle
Dictation 7:
head, bag, land, Ken, pan, mat, merry, pat, then
Dictation 8:
firm, burn, star, hard, dart, hurt, birth, pass
Dictation 9:
pain, tell, men, fail, age, shed, paper, late, wet, gate, taste, debt
Dictation 10: low, jaw, bought, cold, ball, toe, tone, snow, hall, saw, show
Dictation 11: boot, cooled, so, shoe, room, moan, rule, mood, rode, soup
Consonants
Dictation 1:
Dictation 2:
Dictation 3:
Dictation 4:
Dictation 5:
Dictation 6:
Dictation 7:
Dictation 8:
Dictation 9:
Dictation 10:
Dictation 11:
Dictation 12:
Dictation 13:
Dictation 14:
Dictation 25:
Dictation 16:
Dictation 28:
1. You can see all of them.
3. There are some cups over there.
5. We havent had any rest.
7. Shes been to our house twice.
9. It was harder for some of us.
11. These are the very latest.
13. There were only four of them.
15. We didnt see the no-entry sign.
17.Lets go earlier this time.
19.Ill catch up with them.
21. We arent sure if theres a way.
23. Do you always laugh so easily?
25. Itll mean hours of extra work.
13