Tricky vowel pairs part 1. Sometimes it's hard to tell which vowel sound you hear. Some vowel pairs can be really tricky. Like the vowels in beat and bit. Sit and set. Late and let. Or met and mat. Why do some vowels cause so much trouble? Often these problems happen because a vowels sound in English might not exist in your language. Many languages have far fewer vowel sounds than English. Maybe five such as e, a, o and u. Many languages don't have vowels like a as in bag or u as in bug. Or sounds like sounds like the vowels in beat and bit are heard as the same sound in many languages. When you hear new vowel sounds for the first time, your mind doesn't recognize them. So it's hard to hear or say the sound well. So what happens then? When we meet words with sounds that are new and strange, we often use familiar, comfortable sounds instead. When we try to say bag it might sound like beg, bug or bog. Sometimes these changes make it difficult for listeners to understand what we're saying. And that's a problem. So what can we do about this? First, we need to be aware of the sounds that are causing problems and try to understand the differences between similar sounds. Next, we should try to listen carefully to tricky sounds so we can tell if we're saying them correctly. Finally we should keep practicing those sounds, so that our pronunciation is easier for listeners to understand. Let's practice some tricky vowel sounds. First let's practice /iy/ as in beat, and /I/ as in bit. What is the difference between these two sounds? Many learners have heard that the only difference between /iy/ and /I/, is that /iy/ lasts longer than /I/. This is not true. There are two important differences between /iy/ and /I/. When you say /iy/, your tongue is a little higher in your mouth then when you say /I/. This makes a different sound. Also the muscles in your tongue are a little tenser or tighter when you say /iy/ then when you say /I/. Now say the sounds /iy/, /I/. Now say these words and sentences with /iy/ and /I/. Seat, sit. Least, list. Cheap, chip. Feet, fit. May I sit in this seat? At least give me the list. Those chips are cheap. These shoes fit my feet. Next, let's practice /I/ as in sit, and /e/ as in set. What's the difference between these two sounds? When you say /I/, you're tongue is a little higher in your mouth than when you say /e/. Feel the position of your tongue when you say these two sounds. /I/, /e/. For both sounds, your tongue is fairly relaxed. Now, say these words and sentences with /I/ and /e/. Your tongue should be a little higher when you say /I/. Hid, head. The boy hid his head. Here, hair. Can I get my hair cut here? Lift, left. Please lift up the left side. Bitter, better. This had better not be bitter. Next, let's practice /ey/ as in late and /e/ as in let. How are they different? Here again, the main difference is not that one lasts longer than the other, there are other necessary differences. When you say /ey/, your tongue starts out in the same place as for /e/, but then it moves higher. When you say /ey/ your tongue doesn't move. It just stays in the same place. Say the sounds /ey/, /e/. The muscles in your tongue are also a little tenser or tighter when you say /ey/ then when you say e//. Now say these words and sentences with /ey/ and /e/. Late, let. Lace, less. Taste, test. Tale, tell. I won't let you be late. That lace costs less. The cooks did a taste test. Will you tell us a fairy tale? Next, let's practice /e/ as in met and /ae/ as in mat. How are they different? Feel the position of your tongue when you say /e/ and /ae/. It should be a little higher in your mouth for /e/ than for /ae/. Your tongue is relaxed for both of these sounds. Say the sounds, /e/, /ae/. Now say these words in sentences with, /e/ and /ae/. Head, had. I had a bad headache. Left, laughed. We laughed and then we left. Said, sad. Alfred said he felt sad. Bed, bad. This broken bed is bad. In this lesson, we've practiced some pairs of vowel sounds that are sometimes tricky. To master these and other difficult sounds, be aware of the sounds that are causing problems, listen carefully to these tricky sounds and keep practicing them so your pronunciation is easier for listeners to understand.
