The Sound and Style of American English

Course #2

LESSON 5: NEW CONSONANTS; NEW PROBLEMS

Dr.David Alan Stern

AUDIO

SECTION I : THE "S" {Counter #.............}

L5/S1-A : INITIAL "S" Phonetic Symbol [ s ]

[LANGUAGE NOTE : Speakers from the following languages have the strongest tendencies to put an extra vowel sound before the initial "S" -- SPANISH, KOREAN, & CHINESE and SOUTHEAST languages.]

SPELLINGS:

"s" as in SNAKE CLOCKS
"c" as in CENTER CONCERN

SAVE, SOME, SEVERAL, SCIENCE, SOMEWHERE, CELEBRATE, SOGGY, STATE, STATION, STUDENT, START, STOMACH, STOP, STUBBORN


-- SOMETHING SPECIAL HAPPENED THIS SUMMER.
-- MY SISTER IS STILL SITTING BY MY SIDE.
-- THE STUDENTS STAYED AWAY FROM THE STOVE.
-- THE SPEAKER STARTED TO SCREAM ABOUT THE STATION.

seal, sip, set, sat, socks, sane, sociology, seem, seep, sill, separate, several, century, sang, star stand, stove, steel, stenography, stereo, safest, sincerely, cinema

L5/S1-B : "S" PRONOUNCED AS "Z"

AS, WAS, DOES, THOSE, HIS, HAS, IS, EASY, HOUSES, WHOSE, REASON, RISE, USE, POSITION, RESOLVE, PAUSE, PHRASE, DEPOSIT, TRANSFER, SURPRISE


- IT WAS AS EASY AS THAT.
- THERE IS A SURPRISE FOR YOU IN THE HOUSE.
- WHO CAUSED YOU TO TRANSFER THOSE MUSICIANS?

And here are some more cases where the letter "S" is pronounced as the voiced "Z".

dissolve, cause, praise, phrase, positive, applause, dissolve, preserve, because, musician

- Whose idea was it to build those houses?
- It isn't as good as it was because of the materials they used.

SECTION II : CONSONANTS BEHIND THE "S" {Counter #......}

L5/S2-A : THE "SH" Phonetic Symbol: [ J ]

SPELLING:

"sh" as in SHARP, CASH "s" as in SUGAR, SURE
"c" as in OCEAN "ss" as in PASSION
"t" as in DICTION ACTION

SHARE, SHIELD, SHELL, SHOCK, SHINE


- SHOW ME WHERE THE SHOWER IS.
- I'M SURE YOU SHOULDN'T SHOOT THE SHOTGUN.
- THE SUN SHINES ON THE SHORE AFTER A RAIN SHOWER.
- HE SHOWED WHAT HE'D ACCOMPLISHED WITH GOOD DICTION. DICTION, ELECTION, ACTION, PASSION, ADMISSION

Now for some more drills not recorded on the tape : shield, shimmer, shell, sham, shoot, shook, shock, shudder, shame, shine, shower, shore, shark, sheer, ocean, motion, diction, transition, creation, sensation, quiche, accomplish, finish, diminish, cash

L5/S2-B : THE "CH" Phonetic Symbol : [ t ] [LANGUAGE NOTE : Pay particular attention to this sound if your first language is FRENCH. Don't substitute the "SH" sound for this one.]

SPELLINGS:

"ch" as in CHIP
"tch" as in PITCH

CHAIR, CHIME, CATCH, CHANGE, CHARMING


- THE CHILD ON THE CHAIR HURT HIS CHIN.
- I NEED CHANGE TO BUY SOME CHOCOLATE.
- THE CHARMING CHILDREN ARE PLAYING CHECKERS.

And try these additional words with the "CH" consonant.

cheep, chip, chamber, chastise, chew, choke, chocolate, Richmond, exchequer, searching, mischief, lurch, match, attach, much

L5/S2-C: CONTRASTING "CH" and "SH"

SHERRY/CHERRY SHARE/CHAIR SHOW/CHOKE


-- THERE'S A CHANCE OF RAIN SHOWERS.
-- THE CHILDREN ARE AT THE SHORE.
-- I SHALL CHANGE SHOES WHEN I GET A CHANCE.
-- THE SHALLOW CHANNEL WAS FULL OF SHARKS.

And some more :
chill/shill harp/char chip/ship shop/chop
China/shiny wish/witch ash/itch cash/catch

L5/S2-D : THE "ZH" Phonetic Symbol : [ 3 ]

SPELLINGS:

"s" as in VISION
"g" as in PRESTIGE

DIVISION, EXPLOSION, VISION, CONFUSION, DECISION, LOGE, CORSAGE, PRESTIGE, GARAGE, BEIGE

And how about a few more which aren't on the tape?

envisioned, occasion, confusion, derision

SECTION III : CONFUSING THE LETTERS "J" & "G" {Counter #......}

L5/S3-A : THE "DG" Phonetic Symbol : [ d3 ] [LANGUAGE NOTE: FRENCH speakers often pronounce this sound as ZH, while SPANISH speakers often use an H. But, as with so many other sounds, this consonant really should be practiced by everybody.] SPELLINGS:

"g" as in GEM GENDER
"j" as in JAMES JACK
"dg" as in JUDGE

JOE, JAMES, JOHN, JOKE, JURY, JEEP, GYMNASIUM, JEOPARDY


- JOE WAS THE GENERAL RIDING IN THE JEEP.
- JIM WAITED FOR THE JUDGE TO JUMP IN THE AIR.

Now let's try a few more not on the tape.

gyp, jack, Jewish, jaw, logical, hinges, advantage, engineer, legion, lodge, image, advantage, budge

L5/S3-B : THE "H" Phonetic Symbol : [ h ]

[LANGUAGE NOTE: Many languages use a very harsh or throaty H-Sound. This is especially true in some dialects of SPANISH, as well as RUSSIAN, GERMAN, and GREEK.]

SPELLINGS :

"h" as in HIT

HELP, HOUSE, HOSPITAL, HOLY, HENRY

And now a few more which aren't on the tape: heel, him, help, hale, hoop, hook, hall, hop, hug, hope, hail

L5/S3-C: CONTRASTING "DG" and "H"


- JIM HARRIS WAS A GENERAL.
- I HEAR THAT GEOMETRY IS JUST THE SAME AS LOGIC.
- THE JUDGE HANDED THE JURY HIS DECISION.

And now some additional contrasts for this pair. Jim/him Joe/hope Jill/hill Jeep/heap jail/hail Hester/jester hope/joke holly/jolly house/joust

L5/S3-D : THE "Y" Phonetic Symbol : [ j ]

[LANGUAGE NOTE: SPANISH speakers are most likely to substitute a DG sound for the Y-Glide. Also remember that in many European languages, this sound is spelled with the letter "j."]

SPELLING :

"y" as in YOUNG, YES, YELLOW, YOKE, YESTERDAY, YARD
"u" as in UNION, UNIVERSITY, USUAL, URANIUM
"j" as in JOHANNSON, JESPERSON (European Pronunciation) YOUNG, YES, YELLOW, YOKE, YESTERDAY, YARD, UNION, UNIVERSITY, USUAL, URANIUM

And now, a few more drills not on the tape.

yield, yippee, yams, you, yawn, yacht, Yale, yeoman, yikes, years, yor're yours


-- As yet, the yellow bird hasn't yelled its song.
-- Years ago, young people attended Yale University.
-- He yawned while eating yams last year.
-- Don't you usually get seasick on yacht rides?
-- Uranium used to yield energy.

L5/S3-E: CONTRASTING "Y" and "DG"

YELLOW/JELLO YALE/JAIL YOUNG/JUNGLE YES/JESS


-- YOUNG GEORGE JOINED THE NEW YORK YANKEES.
-- YES, JESS IS THE NAME OF MY YOUNG SON.
-- JOE YELLED AT GEORGE WHO WAS IN THE JEWELRY STORE.

Now try a few more pair for practice.

jewel/yule jell/yell your/yodel/Joel year/jeer
yoke/joke yard/jar yawn/jaw union/June