Let’s continue with the consonants.
Review
Review the American English phonetic chart:
The next set of consonants we will cover are the nasal consonants. You make these sounds by letting the air go through your nose.
The /m/ sound
Words
- me
- jump
- arm
- hum
- smile
- make
- rim
- manatee
Comparison
/m/ and /b/ both use the same lip position, but for /m/ the air goes through the nose.
- me, be
- men, been
- met, bet
- come, cub
- lamb, lab
Phrases
- Mighty Mouse
- maybe, maybe not
- I might have met him last March.
- mail me a mouse
- ham and jam
- I must go.
- marry me
Song
The /n/ sound
Words
- new
- nice
- nasty
- panda
- intention
- internet
- sun
- thin
- button
Phrases
- That’s a no-no.
- fun in the sun
- Nice to know you.
- no one noticed
- Good night.
Comparison
/n/ and /d/ both use the same mouth position, but for /n/ the air goes through the nose.
- need, deed
- nice, dice
- know, dough
- an, add
- wine, wide
Tongue Twister
“Nighty-night, knight,” said one knight to the other knight the other night. “Nighty-night, knight,” answered the other knight the other night.
The /ŋ/ sound
See this illustration for the tongue position.
Words
- sing
- sang
- song
- sung
- ringing
- singing
- thinking
- tongue
Comparison
- sing, sin
- walking and talking, walkin’ and talkin’
- thing, thin
- Bing, bin
Also, don’t add a /g/ after /ŋ/.
- sing it, sing “get”
- thing on, thing gone
Phrases
- sing a song
- a long song
- think of something
- Hong Kong
The /l/ and /ɫ/ sounds
Words
/l/
- loud
- love
- lips
- lice
- pilot
/ɫ/
- cool
- skill
- feel
- mile
- owl
- pillow
- little
- full
- fool
- old
Phrases
- look before you leap
- feel full
- a little old lady
Song
I Love My Lips
The /r/ sound
Compare to /ɝ/ and /ɚ/.
See the tongue position here.
Words
- read, rid, red, rad, rod, rude, raid, ride, rode
- real
- arrive
- radio
- arrest
- referee
Comparison
- rice, lice
- reek, leak
- ray, lay
- row, low
Notice the sounds in middle of words
- error, better, seller
- errand, atom, Allan
Phrases
- really ready
- rest a little
- a roller coaster ride
Tongue twisters
Jerry’s jelly berries taste really rare.
Rory’s lawn rake rarely rakes really right.
The /w/ sound
Words
- wary
- wilted
- wicked
- one
- twelve
- between
- what
- waddle
- wood
Comparison
- wary, very
- wiser, visor
- wicker, vicar
A minority of Americans pronounce wh words as /hw/.
- wear, where
- witch, which
- weather, whether
- where, when, why, which
Phrases
- Wee Willy Winky
- I wonder where
- will work for food
The /j/ sound
Words
- year
- yellow
- yet
- yes
- cube
- cute
- yodel
Comparison
- ear
- year
Phrases
- yippie yi yay
- yellow yaks
- you’re yelling
Song
You want to learn to yodel?
Homework
Take a test with 50 double sounds. Try to to get at least 90%.