🗣️ IPA pronunciation

Master the long /iː/ and short /ɪ/ vowels with confidence.

Master the rounded vowels /uː/ and /ʊ/ — long versus short.

The A vowel pair: long, open /ɑː/ and short, clipped /ʌ/.

The O vowel pair: long /ɔː/ and short /ɒ/.

Central vowels: long /ɜː/ and the all-important schwa /ə/.

Tell apart short /e/ and wide-open /æ/.

Three glide vowels that move from one position to another.

Two gliding vowels that start differently but end in rounded /ʊ/.

Diphthongs that glide to schwa /ə/ (British English).

Bilabial stops: aspirated voiceless /p/ and voiced /b/.

Alveolar stops: tongue tip on the ridge behind upper teeth.

Velar stops made with the back of the tongue against the soft palate.

Nasal consonants /m/, /n/, /ŋ/ with air flowing through the nose.

Labiodental fricatives: upper teeth on lower lip, with air friction.

The dental fricatives /θ/ and /ð/ — tongue between teeth.

Hiss and buzz: voiceless /s/ and voiced /z/ at the alveolar ridge.

Post-alveolar fricatives with rounded lips and air friction.

Voiceless glottal fricative produced by a light breathy exhale from the throat.

Affricates blend a stop and a fricative into one quick sound.

Master the /l/ and /r/ contrast, a key challenge for clarity.

Semi-vowels /w/ and /j/: consonant glides that move quickly into a vowel.