IPA Help

Here are some IPA transcriptions and their pronunciations. You might try to read the sentence aloud to yourself and then listen to the sound file to verify your reading.

• 1. A sentence Using the five English vowels in the front of the vowel trapazoid from top to bottom:
  [ ʃi spInz ejt wεt kæts ]
  Listen
• 2. A sentence Using the four English vowels in the back of the vowel trapazoid from top to bottom:
  [ hu tʊk dʒowz tʃɔk ]
  Listen
• 3. A sentence distinguishing [ə] / [ʌ], [ʊ] and [u]. Note that [ʌ] appears in stressed syllables and [ə] in unstressed syllables.
  [ su kʊkt ə dʌk fɔr lʌki luk hu lʊkt glʌm ]
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• 4. A sentence distinguishing [n] and [ŋ]:
  [ rIŋ ðə rɔŋ pIŋk fown ɔn ðə tæn stænd ]
  Listen
• 5. A sentence using the three major English diphthongs:
  [ haw du fajv fajn kawbojz ʃajn ðer haj tapt buts ]
  Listen
• 6. A sentence distinguishing [sh] from [ʃ]:
  [ græshapr̩z ʃʊd sIŋ ʃrIli wiθawt mIshæp ]
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• 7. A sentence distinguishing [ʒ], [z] and [dʒ]:
  [ dʒʌst mεʒr̩ ðə bʌzIŋ əv ðə bεʒ biz wIθ dʒan ]
  Listen
• 8. A sentence distinguishing [t] and [θ]:
  [ tamIs θɔt abawt hIz tu tiθ æz hi tɔt kiθ tu tæŋgow ]
  Listen
• 9. A sentence distinguishing [θ] and [ð]:
  [ ðej θIŋk ðowz θri θawzn̩d əv ðə θivz briðd ðə iθr̩ ]
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• 10. A sentence distinguishing [i] and [I]:
  [ wi sIt In tinəz bin bIn ænd kIs gis ]
  Listen
• 11. A sentence distinguishing [e] and [ε]:
  [ kejt mejd tεn rεd kejks ɔn hr̩ dεk baj də lejk }
  ɫisten
• 12. A sentence distinguishing [a] and [o]:
  [ dʒan ænd dʒown bowθ now bab də robat ]
  Listen

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  Updated Sept. 11, 2011