j u n i o r

_________________________________________

pronunciation

Most languages have different sounds, and these can be difficult

to pronounce. For example, try getting your English native speaker
partner to say the Polish word for beetle (“chrząszcz”).
How did they do?

Silent letters

Silent letters are simply letters that are not pronounced. They are
found in words for a few reasons. One of them, for instance, is the English
language changing over time. As a result, there are many words that are spelt
the same way they were in the past, yet the modern pronunciation is different.
Here are some examples of silent letters in English.

Silent ‘b’. The letter 'b' can act as a silent letter when it comes before 't'
or if it comes after 'm'. Words such as thumb or debt are good
examples of the 'b' acting as a silent letter. Other examples:
comb, subtle, womb, doubt.

Silent ‘gh’. The ‘gh’ letter pair is completely silent when appearing in the middle
and at the end of a word. In fact, if the ‘gh’ pair is preceded by an ‘i’, ‘i’ makes
a long Regular
vowel sound, as in light or fight. Other examples:
verb (-ed ending) = 3 different pronunciations
right, bought, weight, sight, caught, straight.
With regular simple past tense verbs, the pronunciation of -ed endings changes depending on
the Silent ‘k’. of
final sound Thethe silent 'k' inthe
verb (before the-ed).
words knife
If it ends in dand knight
or t then was
the ed at one point
is pronounced /ɪd/, as
in hunted, winded
pronounced. or wanted.
Over time, Otherspeakers
English examples:painted
stopped landed fainted If it ends
pronouncing thein'k'
a voiced
in favour
sound then the -ed is pronounced /d/, as in hugged, fried or robbed. Other examples: dragged
of the 'n' sound, however, the spelling of these words didn't change.
played mobbedIf it ends in a voiceless sound then the -ed is pronounced /t/, as in talked,
Other
tapped examples:
or missed. knob, knot, knuckle.
Other examples:walked looped fished

Silent ‘l’. The letter ‘l’ is silent in some words in English pronunciation when the
previous letter is a vowel, as in calm, talk or should. Other examples:
chalk, palm, yolk.

Silent ‘r’. In British English, if we have an ‘r’ followed by a consonant, then we

usually silence the ‘r’ and just lengthen the vowel before it, as in heard, pardon
or lord. Other examples: car, horse, first.

Be aware that this rule can be different in other countries (e.g. American
English).
 j u n i o r
_________________________________________

pronunciation

The -ing suffix

The standard pronunciation of the ending -ing in modern English is /ɪŋ/,

e.g. writing, reading. If the phonetic alphabet difficult for you, you can
make it easier for yourself by “dropping” g. Listen to your English speaking
partner and repeat the following words after them:

reading learning writing running moving

Now please take a look at the following words. Do you know

how to pronounce them?

thing wing sing

In contrast, the pronunciation of words ending with -ink

is /ɪŋk/. Here are some examples:

think wink sink blink ink

Regular verb (-ed ending) = 3 different pronunciations

With regular simple past tense verbs, the pronunciation of -ed endings changes depending on
the final sound of the verb (before the -ed). If it ends in d or t then the ed is pronounced /ɪd/, as
in hunted, winded or wanted. Other examples:painted landed fainted If it ends in a voiced
sound then the -ed is pronounced /d/, as inPractice
hugged, fried or robbed. Other examples: dragged
played mobbedIf it ends in a voiceless sound then the -ed is pronounced /t/, as in talked,
Read the following wordsOther
tapped or missed. to your English native
examples:walked loopedspeaker
fished partner
and get them to write down in their notebook the words they hear.
Now compare your list. How many did they get right?

bird swing half shrink knackered

plumber knit calf wrestling fink
thing numb reading salmon fork