Rules for reading transcriptions. Rules for reading vowels in English

Transcription is a recording of the sound of a letter or word in the form of a sequence of special phonetic symbols.

Transcription may not be of interest to everyone, but it is, without a doubt, useful. Knowing the transcription, you will correctly read an unfamiliar word without outside help. During classes, you can read the transcription of a word yourself (for example, from the blackboard) without asking others, thereby making it easier for yourself to assimilate lexical material, etc.

At first there will be errors in correct reading, because... There are always some subtleties in pronunciation. But this is just a matter of practice. A little later, if necessary, you will be able to transcribe the words yourself.

Transcription is directly related to reading rules. In English, not everything that is seen (letter combinations) is read (as in Russian and Spanish, for example).

When textbooks (mostly domestic ones) talk about reading rules, much attention is paid to the type of syllable. Usually about five are described similar types. But such a detailed theoretical presentation of the rules of reading does not greatly ease the fate of a beginner, and can even mislead him. It must be remembered that a good knowledge of the rules of reading is a great merit of practice, not theory.

Your attention will be presented to the basic rules for reading individual letters and letter combinations. “Behind the scenes” there will be some phonetic aspects that are difficult to convey in writing.

A little patience! Both transcription and reading rules are easily learned in a short time. Then you will be surprised: “How easy it has become to read and write!”

However, do not forget that, despite its wide distribution, the English language does not cease to be a LANGUAGE, full of exceptions, stylistic and other delights. And at any stage of language learning, and especially at the beginning, look into the dictionary more often.

Transcription icons and their pronunciation

Symbols Consonants	Pronunciation of sound (similar to Russian)	Symbols Vowel sounds	Pronunciation of sound (similar to Russian)
[ b ]	[ b ]	Single sounds
[ d ]	[ d ]	[ Λ ]	[ A] - a short
[ f ]	[ f ]	[ a:]	[ A] - deep
[ 3 ]	[ and ]	[ i ]	[ And] - a short
[ d3 ]	[ j ]	[ i: ]	[ And] - long
[ g ]	[ G ]	[ o ]	[ O] - a short
[ h ]	[ X ]	[ o: ]	[ O] - deep
[ k ]	[ To ]	[ u ]	[ at] - a short
[ l ]	[ l ]	[ u: ]	[ at] - long
[ m ]	[ m ]	[ e ]	as in the word "pl" e d"
[ n ]	[ n ]	[ ε: ]	as in the word "m" e d"
[ p ]	[ P ]	Diphthongs
[ s ]	[ With ]	[ u ]	[ OU ]
[ t ]	[ T ]	[ au ]	[ aw ]
[ v ]	[ V ]	[ ei ]	[ Hey ]
[ z ]	[ h ]	[ oi ]	[ Ouch ]
[ t∫]	[ h ]	[ ai ]	[ ah ]
[∫ ]	[ w ]
[ r ]	Soft [ R] as in the word R Russian
[ O	A sign of softness as in a Russian letter Yo (e lk)
Sounds without analogies in Russian
[ θ ]		[ æ ]
[ ð ]
[ ŋ ]	Nasal, in the French style, sound [ n ]	[ ə ]	[neutral sound]
[ w ]

Notes:

o]. But, in modern English dictionaries This sound is usually designated as shown in the table.

Diphthong is a complex sound that consists of two sounds. In most cases, a diphthong can be "broken" into two sounds, but not in writing. Since in many cases one of the component sounds of a diphthong, if used separately, will have a different designation. For example diphthong [ au]: separately such transcription icon as [ a] - Does not exist. Therefore, most diphthongs are not indicated by a combination of different transcription symbols, but by their own sign.

In many school textbooks and in some domestic dictionaries this sound is designated as [ ou], which is more clear. But, in modern English dictionaries this sound is usually designated as shown in the table.

This sign often denotes unstressed vowel sounds in transcription, regardless of the letters (combinations) that produce this sound.

Reading rules

English words have several types of syllables. However, to understand the entire system, it is necessary to remember and distinguish between the following two types: open And closed.

Open syllable ends with a vowel: game, like, stone- a vowel letter in a word is read the same way as in the alphabet.

Closed syllable ends with a consonant: pen, cat, bus- a vowel in a syllable gives a different sound.

Stress in transcription and words is indicated by a vertical line before the stressed syllable.

Single vowel sounds

Sound	Rules
[ e ]	usually gives a letter e in a closed syllable: g e t[g e t ], v e t[v e t ] as well as a letter combination ea:d ea d[d e d ], pl ea sure [´pl e 3 ə ] Note: the same letter combination often produces the sound [ i:] (see below)
[ i ]	usually gives a letter i in a closed syllable: h i t[h i t ], k i ll[k i l ] and also the letter y in a closed syllable: g y m[d3 i m ], c y Linder [´s i lində ] Note: the same letters in an open syllable give the sound [ ai] (see below)
[ i: ]	appears in the following letter combinations: e+e(always): m ee t[m i: t ], d ee p ; letter e in an open syllable: tr ee[ tr i:], St e ve[st i: v ]; in letter combination e+a: m ea t[m i: t ], b ea m [ b i: m ] Note: this is the same letter combination ( ea) often produces the sound [ e] (see above)
[ o ]	usually gives a letter o in a closed syllable: p o t[p o t ], l o ttery [´l o təri ], and also the letter a in a closed syllable after w: wa sp[w o sp ], s wa n[sw o n]
[ o: ]	o + r:c or n[k o: n ], f or tress [´f o: trə s ]; m or e[m o: ] almost always in a+u:f au na[´f o: nə ], t au nt[t o: nt ]; the only exceptions are a few words, for example, au nt Consonant (except w) +a+w:d aw n[d o: n ], h aw k[h o: k]. always in letter combination a+ll:t all[ t o: l ], sm all[sm o: l ] Letter combination a+ld (lk) also produces this sound: b ald[ b o: ld ], t alk[ t o: k ] Not often, but you can find the letter combination ou + r giving this sound :p our[ p o:], m our n.
[ æ ]	usually gives a letter a in a closed syllable: fl a g[fl æ g ], m a rried [´m æ rid ]
[ Λ ]	usually gives a letter u in a closed syllable: d u st[d Λ st ], S u nday ​​[´s Λ ndei]. And: double:d double[d Λ bl ], tr double[ tr Λ bl] ove:gl ove[gl Λ v ], d ove[d Λ v] Note: but there are also exceptions: m ove[ m u: v ] - (see below); fl oo d[fl Λ d ], bl oo d[bl Λ d ] - (see above)
[ a: ]	appears in the following letter combinations: a+r:d ar k[d a: k ], f ar m[f a: m ] (see note) regular letter a in a closed syllable: l a st [ l a: st ], f a ther[f a:ðə ] - therefore it is necessary to check the dictionary, because a in a closed syllable it traditionally produces the sound [ æ ] as in c a t[k æ t ]; consonant + alm also produces this sound consistently: p alm[ p a: m ], c alm[k a: m ] + note Note: 1. very rarely a+r gives sound [ o:]w ar m[w o: m ]; 3. Rarely: s al mon[s æ mən ]
[ u ] [ u: ]	The length of this sound varies in most cases for historical reasons rather than for orthographic reasons. That is, for each word it is determined individually. This difference in longitude does not carry a huge meaning-distinguishing load, as in other sounds. And in oral speech it does not need to be specifically emphasized. This sound occurs in following cases: Always o+o:f oo t[f u t ], b oo t [ b u: t ], t oo k[t u k ], m oo n[m u: n] after pu in a closed syllable sometimes gives a short version: pu t[p u t ], pu sh [ p u∫ ] (the previous letter is always p) - (see note) ou+ consonant: c ou ld[k u: d ], w ou nd[w u: nd ] (but such cases are not frequent). r+u+ consonant + vowel: p ru ne [ pr u: n ], ru mour[r u: mə] Note: 2. But in similar cases with other consonants u almost always produces a sound [ Λ ] : c u t[k Λ t ], pl u s[pl Λ s ], p u nch[p Λ nt∫ ]
[ ε: ]	occurs in closed syllables with the following letter combinations: Always i /e /u + r(in a closed syllable): sk ir t[sk ε: t ], p er son[p ε: sən]t ur n[t ε: n ], b ur st [ b ε: st ] - (see note) ea + r:p ear l[p ε: l ], l ear n[l ε: n] Note: in some cases a combination o + r after w makes this sound: w or d[w ε: d ], w or k[w ε: k ]
[ ə ]	Most unstressed vowels produce a neutral sound: vowel combinations: fam ou s[ feim ə s ], c o mput er[k ə mpju:t ə ]

Vowel diphthongs

Sound	Rules
[ ei ]	a in an open syllable: g a me [g ei m], p a le[p ei l ] ai in a closed syllable: p ai n[p ei n ], r ai l[r ei l ] ay(usually at the end): pr ay[ pr ei], h ay[ h ei ] ey(rarely, but aptly) usually at the end: gr ey[ gr ei], surv ey[´sε:v ei ] Note: 4. the same letter combination sometimes produces the sound [ i:]: key [ k i: ]
[ ai ]	usually occurs in the following cases: letter i in an open syllable: f i ne[f ai n ], pr i ce [ pr ai s] ie at the end of a word: p ie[ p ai], d ie[d ai ] letter y in an open syllable: rh y me[r ai m ], s y ce[s ai s ] and at the end of the word: m y[ m ai],cr y[kr ai ] ye at the end of a word: d ye[d ai], r ye[r ai ]
[ oi ]	usually occurs in the following cases: oi(usually in the middle of a word) - p oi son [´p oi zən ], n oi se[n oi z ] oh(usually at the end) - b oh[ b oi], all oh[´æl oi ]
[ au ]	appears in the following letter combinations: o+w: h ow[ h au], d ow n[d au n ] - (see note) o + u:r ou nd[r au nd ], p ou t[p au t ] Note: 1. the same letter combination often produces the sound [ u] (see below)
[ u ]	usually gives a letter o in an open syllable: st o ne[st u n ], l o nely [´l u nli] letter combinations o+w(usually at the end of a word): bl ow[bl u],cr ow[kr u] - (see note) ou before l:s ou l[s əul], f ou l[f u l ] oa+ vowel: c oa ch[k ut∫], t oa d[t u d] old(as in open syllable): c old[k u ld ], g old[g u ld]. Note: 1. exception word: b o th[ b uθ ]; 2. the same letter combination often produces the sound [ au] (see above)
[ iə ]	ea + r: h ear[ h iə], n ear[ n iə] - (see note) e + r + e: h here[ h iə] , s here[s iə ] ee + r:d eer[d iə], p eer[ p iə ] Note: 1. if this letter combination is followed by a consonant, then the sound [ ε: ] - d ear th[d ε: θ]. Exception - b ear d[b iə d]
[ eə ]	give the following letter combinations: a+r+e:d are[d eə], fl are[ fl eə ] ai + r: h air[ h eə], f air[ f eə ]
[ aiə ]	give the following letter combinations: i+r+e:f ire[ f aiə], h ire[ h aiə ] y + r + e:t yre[ t aiə], p yre[ p aiə ]

Consonants

Sound	Rules
[∫ ]	There are several letter combinations that always produce this sound (among others): tion [∫ə n]: celebra tion[´seli´brei∫n], tui tion[tju:´i∫n] cious [∫ə s]: deli cious[dil´∫əs], vi cious[´vi∫əs] cian [∫ə n]: musi cian[mju:´zi∫ən], politi cian[poli´ti∫ən] and, of course, the letter combination sh: sh eep [∫i:p], sh oot [ ∫u:t ]
[ t∫]	always occurs in: ch: ch air [t∫eə], ch ild [t∫aild] t+ure:crea ture[´kri:t∫ə], fu ture[ ´fju:t∫ə ]
[ ð ] [ θ ]	These two sounds are given by the same letter combination th. Usually, if this letter combination is in the middle of a word (between two vowels), then the sound [ ð ]: wi th out [wi´ ð aut ] And, if it is at the beginning or end of a word, then the sound [ θ ]: th anks [ θ ænks ], fai th[ fei θ ]
[ ŋ ]	the nasal sound occurs in the letter combination vowel + ng: s ing[ si ŋ ], h ung ry [´hΛ ŋ gri ], wr ong[wro ŋ ], h ang[hæ ŋ ]
[ j ]	softness in sound may occur in some cases, and not manifest itself in other similar cases, for example s u per [´s u: p ə ] (see dictionary): u in an open syllable: m u te[m j u:t ], h u ge[h j u:d3 ] ew:f ew[ f j u: ], l ew d[l j u:d ] if the word starts with y + vowel: ya rd[ j a:d ], yo ung [ jΛŋ ]

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Reading rules in English: table

Reading rules in English are, rather, not even rules, but generalized recommendations that are not particularly accurate. Not only does, say, the letter “o” in different combinations and syllable types can be read in nine different ways, there are also exceptions. For example, in the words food, too it is read as , and in the words good, look - as [u]. There is no pattern here, you just need to remember this.

If you look in different books, it turns out that the rules of reading, and indeed phonetics in general, can be told differently by different authors with varying degrees of immersion in detail. I think that there is no point in delving into the jungle of phonetic science (you can dive into it ad infinitum), and the easiest way is to take as a basis the most simplified version of the reading rules, that isreading rules in English for children.

For this article I took as a basis the rules given in the textbook"English language. Grades 1 - 4 in diagrams and tables" N. Vakulenko . Believe me, this is more than enough for both children and adults!

What is an open and closed syllable?

In English, there are open and closed syllables; it also matters whether it ends with the letter “r” and whether it is stressed.

A syllable is called open if:

• the syllable ends with a vowel and is the last in the word,
• a vowel is followed by another vowel,
• a vowel is followed by a consonant, and followed by one or more vowels.

A syllable is closed if:

• it is the last in the word, and ends with a consonant,
• A vowel is followed by two or more consonants.

Reading rules
Reading the letter "A"
A - in an open syllable	name, face, cake
A [æ] - in a closed syllable	hat, cat, man
A - in a closed syllable on r	far, car, park
A [εə] - at the end of the word vowel + re	dare, care, stare
A [ɔ:] - combinations all, au	all, wall, fall, autumn
Reading the letter "O"
O [əu] - in an open syllable	no, go, home
O [ɒ] - in a closed stressed syllable	not, box, hot
O [ɜ:] - in some words with “wor”	world, word
O [ɔ:] - in a closed syllable with r	form, fork, horse, door, floor
O - in combination “oo”	too, food
O [u] - in combination “oo”	book, look, good
O - in combination “ow”	town, down
O [ɔɪ] - in combination “oy”	toy, boy, enjoy
O [ʊə] - in combination “oo”	poor
Reading the letter "U"
U, - in an open syllable	pupil, blue, student
U [ʌ] - in a closed syllable	nut, bus, cup
U [u] - in a closed syllable	put, full
U [ɜ:] - in combination “ur”	turn, hurt, burn
Reading the letter "E"
E - in an open syllable, combination “ee”, “ea”	he, she, see, street, meat, sea
E [e] - in a closed syllable, combination “ea”	hen, ten, bed, head, bread
E [ɜ:] - in combinations “er”, “ear”	her, heard
E [ɪə] - in combinations of “ear”	hear, near
Reading the letter "I"
i - in an open syllable	five, line, night, light
i [ɪ] - in a closed syllable	his, it, pig
i [ɜ:] - in combination “ir”	first, girl, bird
i - in combination “ire”	fire, tired
Reading the letter "Y"
Y - at the end of a word	try, my, cry
Y [ɪ] - at the end of a word	family, happy, lucky
Y [j] - at the beginning or middle of a word	yes, year, yellow
Reading the letter "C"
C [s] - before i, e, y	pencil, bicycle
C [k] - except for combinations ch, tch and not before i, e, y	cat, come
C - in combinations ch, tch	chair, change, match, catch
Reading the letter "S"
S [s] - except: at the end of words after ch. and voiced acc.	say, books, six
S [z] - at the end of words after ch. and voiced acc.	days, beds
S [ʃ] - in combination sh	shop, ship
Reading the letter "T"
T [t] - except combinations th	ten, teacher, today
T [ð] - in combination th	then, mother, there
T [θ] - in combination th	thin, sixth, thick
Reading the letter "P"
P [p] - except for the combination ph	pen, penalty, powder
P [f] - in combination ph	photo
Reading the letter "G"
G [g] - except for combinations ng, not before e, i, y	go, big, dog
G - before e, i, y	age, engineer
G [ŋ] - in combination ng at the end of a word	sing, bring, king
G [ŋg] - in combination ng in the middle of a word	strongest

The most important reading rules

The table above looks very busy, even intimidating. From this we can highlight several of the most important rules, which have almost no exceptions.

Basic rules for reading consonants

• The combination ph is read as [f]: photo, Morpheus.
• The combination th is read as [ð] or [θ]: think there. These sounds do not exist in the Russian language; their pronunciation requires some practice. Do not confuse them with the sounds [s], [z].
• The combination ng at the end of a word is read as [ŋ] - this is a nasal (that is, pronounced as if in the nose) version of the sound [n]. A common mistake is to read it as . There is no “g” in this sound. Examples: strong, King Kong, wrong.
• The combination sh is read as [ʃ]: ship, show, shop.
• The letter “c” before i, e, y is read as [s]: celebrity, cent, pencil.
• The letter “g” before i, e, y is read as: age, magic, gym.
• The combination ch is read as: match, catch.

Basic rules for reading vowels

• In an open stressed syllable, vowels are usually read as inalphabet : no, go, name, face, pupil, he, five. These can be monophthongs and diphthongs.
• In a closed syllable, vowels are read as short monophthongs: nut, got, ten.

Reading rules do not need to be remembered by heart, you need to be able to use them.

In English classes, students groan: “Why are the rules of reading in English so confusing?”

One reason is that English . Sometimes they kept their spelling, sometimes they changed it to suit themselves. In good old England, words were often spelled the way they were read, so one word could be spelled in many different ways. Take Shakespeare's manuscripts, for example - all this chaos is there in full view.

Eventually, the spelling of words was standardized and recorded in dictionaries, but... As you learn English, you will notice that a word is often read completely differently from how it is spelled. And usually there are historical reasons for this.

There is some good news. Although many English words are written, it would seem, “as God wishes,” there are a number of rules. But be careful, because for every rule there is an exception.

English has more than 1,100 ways of writing 44 individual sounds, more than any other language. But let studying be a game for you, not a duty.

Learn with our tips!

1. Write down words that you have problems with in a notebook. Underline the part of the word that is most difficult for you.
2. Use a dictionary, not a spell checker! Unfortunately, you can't always trust her.
3. Learn words with all kinds of prefixes and suffixes, for example: biography - auto biography, child hood and so on.
4. Learn the rules, but don't rely on them. We have already said: every rule has its exception. We'll talk about this below.

“i” is written before “e” (exception is after “c”)

One of the first reading rules taught in English classes. The rule works for words that have a long “ee”, as in shield(shield).

Examples: piece (part), niece (niece), priest (priest), thief (thief).

But after “c”: conceive (comprehend, plan), receive (receive), receipt (receipt; not to be confused with recipe).

For words in which the sound “a” or “i” is pronounced, the opposite is true:

“a”: eight (eight), neighbor (neighbor), reign (reign), weight (weight)

“i”: either, height, feisty, sleight

Exceptions: seize (grab), weird (strange), conscience (conscience, consciousness), efficient (effective), etc.

silent letters

The English language is full of unpronounceable letters. The question arises: why do the English insert letters into words and then simply not pronounce them?..

The silent witness, or What is the unpronounceable letter

Unpronounceable letter ( silent letter) is a letter that should appear in a word, even if we don’t read it. More than half of the letters of the alphabet can act as unpronounceable letters. They can be at the beginning of a word, at the end or in the middle - you won’t even realize from the sound of the word that they are there.

Examples of unpronounceable letters:
a— thread(a thread), bread(bread), thread(step)
​b — lamb(lamb), bomb(bomb), womb(womb)
c— scissors(scissors), science(the science), scent(aroma)
d— edge(edge), bridge(bridge), badge(icon)
e - see below
h - honor(honor), honest(honest), school(school)
k — knot(node), knight(knight), knowledge(knowledge)
l — talk(speak), psalm(psalm), balm(balm)
n — hymn(hymn), autumn(autumn), column(column, column)
p— pneumatic(pneumatic), psalm(psalm), psychology(psychology)
s— isle, island(island), aisle(passage, e.g. in an airplane cabin)
t— listen(listen), rustle(rustle) whistle(whistle)
u — biscuit(cookies; not biscuits!), guess(a guess), guitar(guitar)
w— write(write), wrong(wrong), wrist(wrist)

Unpronounceable “e”

The unpronounceable “e” is the most common unpronounceable letter. There are several strict rules for writing words that end in an unpronounceable “e”.

When you add a suffix to such a word and that suffix begins with a consonant, the stem of the word does not need to be changed.

force (strength) + ful = forceful (strong)

manage (manage) + ment = management (management)

sincere (sincere) + ly = sincerely (sincerely)

If the suffix begins with a vowel or with “y”, then the “e” before the suffix must be omitted.

fame + ous = famous

nerve + ous = nervous

believable (plausible) + y = believable (plausible)

criticise (criticize) + ism = criticism (criticism)

Exceptions: mileage (distance in miles), agreeable.

Prefixes and suffixes

When you add a prefix to a word, you usually don't need to change the base of the word.

anti + septic = antiseptic (antiseptic)

auto + biography = autobiography (autobiography)

de + mobilize = demobilize (demobilize)

dis + approve = disapprove (disapprove)

im + possible = impossible (impossible)

inter + national = international (international)

mega + byte = megabyte (megabyte)

mis + fortune = misfortune (failure)

micro + chip = microchip (microchip)

re + used = reused (recycled)

un + available = unavailable

When you add a suffix to a word, it often changes the base of the word. Below are a few rules. As always, there are exceptions, so if you're not sure how to spell a word, consult a dictionary.

Words ending in a consonant

If the suffix starts with a consonant, just add it to the stem, don't change anything.

Example: treat (treat; treat) + ment = treatment (treatment; attitude).

Doubling a consonant

For most words with a short vowel sound that end in a single consonant, that consonant doubles when you add a suffix that starts with a vowel (ing, er, ed, est).

mop (to wash) + ing = mopping (to wash)

big (large) + est = biggest (largest)

hot (hot) + er = hotter (hotter)

For words that end with an “l” after a vowel, this “l” is doubled.

model + ing = modeling

travel (to travel) + er = traveler (traveler)

Exceptions

For some words ending in “r”, “x”, “w”, “y”, the doubling rule does not apply.

fear (to be afraid) + ing = fearing (fear, afraid, fearful)

box (to box, not box!) + er = boxer (boxer)

know (know) + ing = knowing (knowledge, knowing, knowing)

play (play) + ing = playing (game, playing, playing)

And if a word has two consonants at the end or more than one vowel, the consonant is also not doubled.

maintain (maintain) + ing (two vowels a + i) = maintaining (maintenance)

keep (keep) + er (two vowels e + e) ​​= keeper (keeper; owner)

hang (hang) + er (two consonants n + g) = hanger (hook)

Word endings

Words ending in “ce” and “ge”

When you add a suffix starting with “a” or “o,” the “e” remains.

manage (perform) + able = manageable (doable)

notice (notice) + able = noticeable (noticeable)

courage (courage) + ous = courageous (courageous)

Exception: prestige (prestige) + ous = prestigious (prestigious)

Words ending with “ie”

When you add “ing” to verbs that end in “ie,” the “e” is dropped and the “i” changes to “y.”

die (die) - dying (dying, dying, dying)

lie (lie) – lying (lying, lying, lying)

tie (to tie) - tying (tying, tying, tying)

Words ending in “y” after a consonant

When you add suffixes such as “as”, “ed”, “es”, “er”, “eth”, “ly”, “ness”, “ful” and “ous” to a word ending in “y” ” after the consonant, “y” changes to “i” before the suffix.

eighty (eighty) + eth = eightieth (eightieth)

duty (duty) + es = duties (responsibilities)

lazy (lazy) + ness = laziness (laziness)

mystery (mystery) + ous = mysterious (mysterious)

beauty (beauty) + ful = beautiful (beautiful)

multiply (multiply) + ed = multiplied (multiplied)

cozy (cozy) + ly = cozy (cozy)

Words ending in “y” after a vowel

“y” is preserved before suffixes such as “er,” “ing,” or “ed.”

destroy (destroy) - destroying - destroyed

buy (buy) - buying - buyer

play (play) - playing - player

You may be confused by some of the discrepancies in spelling and reading rules that are caused by . It's not that this option is better and that option is worse, you just need to stop at one, learn it and stick with it. Try not to mix one with the other.

The rules of reading and writing are like a weather forecast: we can rely on them, but we cannot count on them to help us out every time. Therefore, it is very important to read more in English so that the sound of words and their style merge into a single image.

Perfect for this purpose next way: listening to English books while simultaneously viewing the original text.

10 English classic books narrated by native English speakers

Mother Goose by W. W. Denslow - “Mother Goose”, W.W. Denslow

The Tale of Peter Rabbit by Beatrix Potter - “The Tale of Peter Rabbit”, Beatrix Potter

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland Audiobook by Lewis Carrol - “Alice in Wonderland”, Lewis Carroll

The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain - “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer”, Mark Twain

A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens - “A Tale of Two Cities”, Charles Dickens

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen - “Pride and Prejudice”, Jane Austen

Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus by Mary Shelley - “Frankenstein, or Modern Prometheus”, Mary Shelley

The Happy Prince and Other Tales by Oscar Wilde - “The Happy Prince and Other Tales”, Oscar Wilde

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle - “The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes”, Arthur Conan Doyle

It happens that native English speakers ask forgiveness from those who study it... Because the pronunciation of English words and their spelling are so different. So be it, we will accept their apology. After all, anyone who is determined to learn English can handle any difficulties!

And they surprise you English rules reading? Share with us in the comments :)

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The rules of reading in English cannot be called simple. But you have to understand them at the very beginning of training - otherwise you won’t be able to move forward. Therefore, the rules for reading English for beginners (and for children) are usually stated concisely and clearly - and thank you for that. Transcriptions with examples and other auxiliary materials (tables, exercises) and, of course, constant practice (reading aloud and listening) are very helpful.

Transcription- is the transmission of sound in writing using special symbols. In transcription, each sound has its own special sign.

True, there are features of transcription of reading in English that are difficult for Russian-speaking students. These difficulties are due to objective differences in pronunciation in English and Russian. Our language has simply been “different” since childhood, and relearning is always difficult. Especially when you consider that sounds in English are often pronounced differently from how they are written. Historically, this happened due to large quantity dialects in which the same letters and combinations of letters were read differently. But this doesn’t make it any easier for us.

Rules for reading transcriptions in English

Different English teachers solve this difficult problem in different ways. For example, they use the so-called “English transcription in Russian,” that is, writing English words in Russian letters. To be honest, we do not support this technique. Because it does not allow you to truly learn English pronunciation correctly. It is only possible to very approximately convey the pronunciation of English words in Russian letters. Well, there are no English sounds in the Russian language, and the seemingly similar pronunciation of English and Russian sounds is still different.

Therefore, we are in favor of trying and learning the phonetic symbols with which transcriptions are written from the very beginning. This will help you understand and remember the rules of reading English for beginners. And in the future, English lessons will be much easier. As for the transmission of English sounds in Russian letters, this technique is needed for transliteration (like), but not for training pronunciation.

Rules for reading vowels in English

As we have already noted, letters and sounds in English often do not match. Moreover, there are many more sounds: 44 sounds for only 26 letters. Linguists even joke about this:

“We write Liverpool and we read Manchester”

There is such a big difference between a written word and its pronunciation in English. Well, let's start in order. From syllables that affect the reading of vowels. Syllables in English (as in any other language) are open and closed:

• Open syllable ends with vowel. It can be in the middle of a word or be the last word. For example: age, blue, bye, fly, go, etc.
• Closed syllable ends with I agree. It can also stand in the middle of a word or be the last one in a word. For example: bed, big, box, hungry, stand, etc.

Here is a table that explains how the same letter is read differently in closed and open syllables and in different positions in the word:

Rules for reading consonants in English

Consonants in English are less challenging than vowels. Only some of them (C, S, T, X and G) are read differently depending on their position in the word and neighboring sounds. And for clarity, here is the table again:

How are letter combinations read in English?

So, after vowels and consonants, we get to letter combinations. Now we will talk about the rules for reading syllables, not individual letters. And this is correct - after all, in words, letters are combined, so we rarely have to read individual sounds. And in syllables, sounds influence each other, so the following table contains the basic rules for reading syllables and combinations of consonant letters:

		look, book, cook, good, foot	[lʊk] [bʊk] [kʊk] [ɡʊd] [fʊt]
	pool, school, Zoo, too	[puːl] [skuːl] [zuː] [tuː]
		see, bee, tree, three, meet	[ ˈsiː ] [ biː ] [ triː ] [ θriː ] [ miːt ]
Exceptions:		tea, meat, eat, read, speak	[ tiː ] [ miːt ] [ iːt ] [ riːd ] [ spiːk ]
	bread, head, breakfast, healthy	[bred] [hed] [ˈbrekfəst] [ˈhelθi]
		away, play, say, may	[əˈweɪ] [pleɪ] [ˈseɪ] [meɪ]
		[ɡreɪ] [ˈðeɪ]
		ink, thank, monkey, sink, bank
		telephone, phonetics, phrase
		she, bush, short, dish, fish, sheep, shook
		catch, kitchen, watch, switch, stretch
		at the beginning of function words; between vowels: these, that, there, mother, they, with, them, then
	in combination th at the beginning and at the end of significant words: thick, thin, thanks, three, think, throw, fifth, tooth
		what, why, when, while, white, where
		who, whom, whose, whole, wholly
		write, wrong, wrist, wrap, wrest, wrap

Live and other rules of reading in English

All students have different language and listening abilities. If the rules of reading in English are difficult, use one of the following techniques:

• Living rules for reading English. This is a fairly well-known technique for teaching reading and pronunciation in English. It is designed mainly for children, and the rules of English reading are presented in the most accessible way. Memorization is made easier by funny poems and tongue twisters. It makes sense to try to get your child interested in English from the very beginning of learning.
• Applications for learning English. We recently discussed a whole series. In most of them you can not only read, but also listen to new words. The same function is available in online translators - use it more often.
• Exercises on reading rules. There are many of them, but they all come down to training the skill to distinguish different sounds. For example:

Given a list of words ( what, who, wrestling, when, why, whose, wrong, where, whom, write, white, which, whole, wrangler). You need to distribute these words into groups with the sound that is pronounced in them: [w], [h] or [r].

Or words from another list ( give, good, cage, ginger, girl, gypsy, gold, grey, grace, beige, gift, gymnastics) distribute into two groups: one with the sound [g], the second - with the sound .

The reading rules exercises may seem complicated, but don't try to do them by memorizing every rule. Better try to understand not the rules, but the principles of reading English sounds. Do several exercises on reading rules to know exactly how to read some of the same type of words. The more you read and listen in English, the easier it will be to remember the correct pronunciation.

So our main advice is universal: practice, practice and once again practice of communicating and reading in English will help you learn the language easily and effectively!