聽歌學英文
Life\'s a dream. Never too old to learn stupid things. :-)
/ou/, /au/, /ɔɪ/ - as in owe, out, boy
/ou/
To Produce: Begin with your tongue low in back, and your lips rounded slightly. Then raise your tongue in back to /u/, as you round your lips more.
Listen:
-- --- ----
goat goal go
wrote rode row
Repeat these words:
dope - dome - doe/dough
hope - home - hoe
note - known - know/no
soap - sewn/sown - sew/so
Repeat these phrases:
Go home.
No coat.
So slow.
Low tone.
Practice words with /ou/ and the schwa //. Repeat:
focus notice ago oppose
modem open arose suppose
Synonyms - Practice /ou/ in synonyms. After you hear A and B, repeat B.
A B
jacket coat
drench soak
near close
out of money broke
false phony
understand know
Contrast /ou/ - /a/
Can you differentiate between these sounds? Listen to words pairs. You will hear one word again. Which is it?
hole --- hall ---
note --- not ----
rote/wrote-- rot ---
Answers: hall not wrote
Repeat these words and sentences. Listen again after each sentence.
John - Joan He is John, and she is Joan.
rod - road There was a rod on the road.
won't - want I won't go unless I want to.
node - not The note is not there.
coat - cot The coat is on the cot.
/au/
To Produce: Begin with your jaw lowered, your tongue low in the middle, and your lips relaxed. Then move into vowel /u/ or //, raising your jaw and tongue and rounding your lips.
Listen:
-- ----
bound bow
noun now
sound sow
Repeat these words:
bout -- bowed
route -- round
out -- owl
drought -- drown
doubt -- down
house -- how
Repeat these phrases:
Count down now.
Found out how.
Count out loud.
Sounds how loud?
Practice words that contain both the schwa // and /au/. Repeat:
about
account
allowed
amount
announce
around
Synonyms - Practice the diphthong /au/ in synonyms. After you hear A and B, repeat B.
A B
distrust doubt
tone sound
let allow
encircle surround
This time after you hear A, you say B. Then listen to the model.
A B
circular round
city town
noisy loud
yell shout
Contrast: /au/ - /ou/
Can you differentiate between these sounds? Listen to word pairs. You will hear one word again. Which is it?
found __ phoned __
now __ know/no ___
town __ tone __
Repeat these words and sentences. Listen again to the sentence each time.
found - phoned I found out who phoned.
hose - house The hose is by the house.
how -- hoe How do I hoe the garden?
now - know Now I know.
/ɔɪ/
To Produce: Begin with your tongue lowin back and your lips rounded. Then raise your tongue high in front and retract your lips, as for /i/ aor /I/.
Listen:
-- ----
boil boy
join joy
coil coy
soil soy
toil toy
Practice words with the schwa // and /ɔɪ/. Repeat:
annoy
appoint
avoid
destroy
enjoy
employ
Synonyms - Practice /ɔɪ/ in synonyms. After you hear A and B, repeat B.
A B
attach join
damp moist
male child boy
option choice
This time, after you hear A, you say B. Then listen to the model.
A B
gladness joy
celebrate rejoice
tip point
bother annoy
Conversational Exercise:
Practice pronouncing the vowels and diphthoungs in connected speech. Shadow the speaker in the following conversational exercise.
Travelling is undoubtedly one of the most enjoyable things you can do, provided you avoid common mistakes. First, if you are travelling by car, be sure you fill your car with gas before you leave and, of course, make sure the oil is at the right level. Next, check your tires. If the air pressure is low, fill your tires to the higher level recommended by the manufacturer. You may need to bring a map to read in case you lose your way. Also, be sure to obey all the traffic laws along your route. One rule to remember is that red means "stop", and green means "go". Try not to drive when you're tired. If you feel drowsy, pull over to the side of the road and rest, or let someone else drive. It's the smartest advice on how get to where you are going, safe and sound.
Source: The American Accent Guide (2nd Edition)
http://www.amazon.com/American-Complete-Comprehensive-Pronunciation-Individuals/dp/0963413902/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1304307187&sr=1-1
