I have been learning English for a few years. But I am so sorry that I don't know how to pronounce some simple words like "months," "sixth" and "Smiths." Would you please tell me how to pronounce them as clearly as possible?
Answer
Firstly, note that all the words you have cited contain the /th/ sound.
This is a sound which — I am sure you are aware — doesn't exist in Chinese, and doesn't exist in many other languages either.
My previous experience with Chinese learners in teaching this sound is that the difficulty in pronouncing /th/ does not come from difficulties in placing the tongue between the teeth, or just behind the top teeth. Most Chinese students are aware of putting their tongues in the right place.
The difficulty seems to come from an inability to spread the mouth wide enough to make this sound.
Try to relax your jaw and spread your lips when saying /th/ (it is much easier to show you than to write to you about it!), otherwise you will not pronounce it well.
Secondly, the words you have cited contain what we call "consonant clusters." What this means is that consonant sounds are put close together (eg: k — s — th in "sixth").
Your worry about these clusters is probably that you are trying too hard to pronounce every consonant sound out clearly.
Most native speakers of English will miss consonants at their convenience. This — you will be pleased to know — is because they also find it difficult to say "sixth!"
The secret is to note the way native speakers deal with these clusters and copy them.
For example, "months" is often pronounced "munts;" "clothes" is pronounced "cloze;" "Smiths" can be pronounced "Smiss."
This is what I do, but you can continue being extra careful with your consonants if you wish ...
It's up to you!
Jim Kell is Bell Cambridge's Academic Manager. You can send questions to him directly on jim.kell@bell-schools.ac.uk
It's a pity that English is not phonetic! In some languages, you can look at a word and know immediately how to pronounce it. But in English you need to be a little more careful.
Take the letters "ough", for example. They occur in many words, but they do not always sound the same.
1. though (like o in go)
2. through (like oo in too)
3. cough (like off in offer)
4. rough (like uff in suffer)
5. plough (like ow in flower)
6. ought (like aw in saw)
7. borough (like a in above)
So how do you know the pronunciation of a word? Well, fortunately "ough" is an extreme example. English words are not always that difficult. But in general, when you learn a new word, you should also make sure you know its pronunciation. If you do not have a teacher or someone to say the word for you, you can look in a dictionary. All good dictionaries give the pronunciation for each word, often with special symbols. So it's a good idea to look at your dictionary carefully and learn the pronunciation symbols. After that, you'll always be able to find the pronunciation of any word, easily. Try it with the 7 "ough" words above.
很多人都以为只要听懂了每个单词，就算听明白了。但实际的情况是"只想着听懂单词，就可以完事大吉，是远远不够的"，因为人们在说话的时候，往往伴随着一些语调上的变化，这些不同的语调淋漓尽致地表现了人们怀疑、肯定、激动、感叹等等众多情感的变化。 比如说"你没听清楚别人的讲话，希望对方再重复一下"，就要说"升调"的I beg your pardon。但是如果"你不小心踩到了别人的脚上"，就要用到"降凋"的I beg your pardon. 看来同样的一句话，由于"语调"的不同，意思也就有所差别。所以如果你还不太清楚"英语语调"的知识，就和我一起研究研究它们的妙用吧。
（1）含有对比的陈述句Statements where contrast is implied. You can come on Tuesday but not Monday. He doesn't want it but his brother may.
（2）含保留意见的陈述句Statements which imply reservation I know his face. I like the colour of your dress.
（3）否认或矛盾Statements which show disagreement or contradiction ──I can't do it. ──-You can. ──She arrived on Monday. ──-On Tuesday.
（4）警告Warning Be careful. Don't be late.
上面这些关于语调的基本知识虽然总结起来 "条条框框"的，但在实际生活中，你常常会自觉地运用好各种语调来表达你的情感，比如说你想让淘气的孩子跟着你出去，就会用"降凋"的肯定的语气说到"Come with me!"；如果你还没有确定是否对方和你出去吃饭，就可以用"升调"问到"Come with me?"，表示 "和我出去怎么样啊"这种"试探性"的语气；细细体会起来，"什么场合用什么语调"还真是很自然的事情。今后在看"美国原版影片"的时候，多多注意一下影片中人物的语音语调，模仿几次之后，你就可以灵活运用了！
I have been learning English for a few years. But I am so sorry that I don't know how to pronounce some simple words like "months," "sixth" and "Smiths." Would you please tell me how to pronounce them as clearly as possible?
Answer
Firstly, note that all the words you have cited contain the /th/ sound.
This is a sound which — I am sure you are aware — doesn't exist in Chinese, and doesn't exist in many other languages either.
My previous experience with Chinese learners in teaching this sound is that the difficulty in pronouncing /th/ does not come from difficulties in placing the tongue between the teeth, or just behind the top teeth. Most Chinese students are aware of putting their tongues in the right place.
The difficulty seems to come from an inability to spread the mouth wide enough to make this sound.
Try to relax your jaw and spread your lips when saying /th/ (it is much easier to show you than to write to you about it!), otherwise you will not pronounce it well.
Secondly, the words you have cited contain what we call "consonant clusters." What this means is that consonant sounds are put close together (eg: k — s — th in "sixth").
Your worry about these clusters is probably that you are trying too hard to pronounce every consonant sound out clearly.
Most native speakers of English will miss consonants at their convenience. This — you will be pleased to know — is because they also find it difficult to say "sixth!"
The secret is to note the way native speakers deal with these clusters and copy them.
For example, "months" is often pronounced "munts;" "clothes" is pronounced "cloze;" "Smiths" can be pronounced "Smiss."
This is what I do, but you can continue being extra careful with your consonants if you wish ...
It's up to you!
Jim Kell is Bell Cambridge's Academic Manager. You can send questions to him directly on jim.kell@bell-schools.ac.uk
It's a pity that English is not phonetic! In some languages, you can look at a word and know immediately how to pronounce it. But in English you need to be a little more careful.
Take the letters "ough", for example. They occur in many words, but they do not always sound the same.
1. though (like o in go)
2. through (like oo in too)
3. cough (like off in offer)
4. rough (like uff in suffer)
5. plough (like ow in flower)
6. ought (like aw in saw)
7. borough (like a in above)
So how do you know the pronunciation of a word? Well, fortunately "ough" is an extreme example. English words are not always that difficult. But in general, when you learn a new word, you should also make sure you know its pronunciation. If you do not have a teacher or someone to say the word for you, you can look in a dictionary. All good dictionaries give the pronunciation for each word, often with special symbols. So it's a good idea to look at your dictionary carefully and learn the pronunciation symbols. After that, you'll always be able to find the pronunciation of any word, easily. Try it with the 7 "ough" words above.
作者: lspjy 时间: 2008-9-24 07:15 标题: 回复：知识加油站－语音点滴
语调的用处
很多人都以为只要听懂了每个单词，就算听明白了。但实际的情况是"只想着听懂单词，就可以完事大吉，是远远不够的"，因为人们在说话的时候，往往伴随着一些语调上的变化，这些不同的语调淋漓尽致地表现了人们怀疑、肯定、激动、感叹等等众多情感的变化。 比如说"你没听清楚别人的讲话，希望对方再重复一下"，就要说"升调"的I beg your pardon。但是如果"你不小心踩到了别人的脚上"，就要用到"降凋"的I beg your pardon. 看来同样的一句话，由于"语调"的不同，意思也就有所差别。所以如果你还不太清楚"英语语调"的知识，就和我一起研究研究它们的妙用吧。
（1）含有对比的陈述句Statements where contrast is implied. You can come on Tuesday but not Monday. He doesn't want it but his brother may.
（2）含保留意见的陈述句Statements which imply reservation I know his face. I like the colour of your dress.
（3）否认或矛盾Statements which show disagreement or contradiction ──I can't do it. ──-You can. ──She arrived on Monday. ──-On Tuesday.
（4）警告Warning Be careful. Don't be late.
上面这些关于语调的基本知识虽然总结起来 "条条框框"的，但在实际生活中，你常常会自觉地运用好各种语调来表达你的情感，比如说你想让淘气的孩子跟着你出去，就会用"降凋"的肯定的语气说到"Come with me!"；如果你还没有确定是否对方和你出去吃饭，就可以用"升调"问到"Come with me?"，表示 "和我出去怎么样啊"这种"试探性"的语气；细细体会起来，"什么场合用什么语调"还真是很自然的事情。今后在看"美国原版影片"的时候，多多注意一下影片中人物的语音语调，模仿几次之后，你就可以灵活运用了！