Phonetics

[BlackCitadel]

Hello,

How can I easily learn these lessons?

I will be going to study them and I don't understand them, I read my lectures but I couldn't understand anything, well look at the questions..

I. Describe the following consonant sounds, determining voicing as well as place and manner of articulation:

1./ j /
2./ η /
3./ ð /
4./ f /

II. Transcribe the following words:

Thieves / safe / measure / chewed
Large / right / tune / jumped

III, What English words are represented by the following transcriptions?

/swet / / wul / / k əut / / keId3 /
/Λ ðə/ / laud / / l ækIη/ /θ 3: d/

[Beeesneees]

You need to learn the international phonetic alphabet to understand these questions, which are about the way a letter or group of letters (phoneme) sound when you say them aloud.
These pages:
http://www.omniglot.com/writing/english.htm
http://ipa.group.shef.ac.uk/symbols.php
http://www.antimoon.com/how/pronunc-soundsipa.htm
seems to offer a reasonable starting point, with links to further resources.
_________________
Cheers m' dears!

[BlackCitadel]

Thanks for the links..
But would you mind explaining me in your way, please?
Explain them to me as your beginner.

[Beeesneees]

Let's take the first question:
1./ j /
This denotes the phonic sound that you will find in the tables on the links I provided. Here's a screenshot from one link:

From this comparative list it should be easy to see that the phonic sound [j] actually relates to the letter y as it is sounded in the word 'yacht'.

To transcribe the word thieves, you have to break it apart into its phoneme letters:
th / ie/ v/ es then find the relative phoneme sounds in the list
th as the sound in three = phonic sound: [θ]
ie as the sound in see = phonic sound: [iː]
v as the sound in voice = phonic sound: [v]
es as the sound in zoo = phonic sound: [z]
so thieves is phonically transcribed as [θiːvz]

You work in reverse for the last set, starting with the phonic sound and matching them to the standard alphabet letters.
[swet] = s/w/ea (as it sounds in met)/t = sweat
The last set is more difficult as it requires some feel for the language because there is more than one letter or combination of letters that can be made with one sound.
_________________
Cheers m' dears!

[Esserspeefs]

Hi,everybody,I am new.thanks for visiting assist me to towards the themes.I'll thank you for you greatly.

[BlackCitadel]

You can discuss about English Grammar in this forums.
But in the topic I am discussing about Phonetics.
For example if you want to discuss about something you don't know, for example let's say you want to discuss about Nouns, so you better make a new thread/topic for this......

You can make a new topic by simply clicking on newtopic at the right-corner, see the image below:-

[Beeesneees]

[BlackCitadel]

Hello,
I don't understand this one,
what are the differences between these words.
Father, Cat, Black

In the link you gave me, it is stated that:
The IPA for Father is ɑ:
While the IPA for Cat, Black is æ

[Beeesneees]

You have to remember that the focus is on the sounds, not the letters.
cat and black both have short vowel sounds.
Father has a longer vowel sound - listen carefully and you'll find that the 'a' doesn't sound the same as it does in the other two words.

Sorry, but I'm having problems recording on the forum, so I can't demonstrate vocally. I can't find the problem but the audio files 'skip' and won't play without stuttering.
_________________
Cheers m' dears!

[BlackCitadel]

Hello,
I have tried to solve this one...
l ækIη
l = l
æ = a
k = ck
I = i
η = n
So I guessed the word: Lacking or Lack in
Is it correct?

[Code2004]

η = ng/nk, as in sink or sing.

Close enough though. Additionally, you can say "lackin'" instead of 'lacking'; however, that's extremely informal.

;)

[BlackCitadel]

Please,
Is there any simple and easy way to study this?
The transcribtions are so difficult and I can't guess the words for them, please is there a way to study this in a simple way?

Thanks for your help..

[Dozy]

There are not a vast number of different IPA symbols required for English. Presumably in your materials you have a list of the ones you are supposed to know, plus some example words. You may find it useful to look up words in one of the online English dictionaries that gives you a recording of someone speaking the word. Then you can listen to the recordings over and over again until you are familiar with the sounds associated with the symbols. Be aware that dictionaries will usually use either a British English accent or an American English accent, so it may be best to decide from the outset which one you want to follow.

[Beeesneees]

Sorry, not to my knowledge. This is quite advanced.
Don't try to run before you can walk though! I suggest you do the exercises the right way round though, starting with the ones that help familiarise you with the phonic symbols.
The second set - where the word is given and you have to find the phonic equivalent are easier than the third set, which is very complex. However, that's not to say the second set is easy. You really have to listen to the sounds so that you can break them apart correctly. (With the second set there is a very easy way to find the answers, but when you figure out what it is, please don't use it, other than to check whether the answer you have worked out is correct or not. I don't think such a method exists for the third set, so you will need the skills you acquire when doing the first set.)

This is time consuming and requires careful speech and listening - you have to know how to pronounce these words and identify the phonemes before you can even begin to look for the relevant phonetics, so don't get discouraged just because you can't do it on day 1.
_________________
Cheers m' dears!

[BlackCitadel]

I can't get you, sorry.
Would you please explain a little more?
What a dictionary would benefit me on Phonetics??

What I meant is that I want a simple and easy way to learn the basics...