English Phonetics and Language Tips

English Phonetics

Consonants

[t∫] = Change.
| [θ] = Thanks. | [ð] = Mother, Then.
| [∫] = She, Shine. | [dʒ] = George, gym, John. | [ʒ] = Television, pleasure. | [j] = Yes, York, Unit, University.

Past Tense Endings

/id/ if the verb ends in the sound /t/ or /d/: painted, contributed, depended, admitted.

/t/: stopped, crashed, stuffed, looked

/d/: if the verb ends in a vowel: called, bored, begged, alarmed, played, stunned, arrived.

Plural Endings

/iz/ (represented by “-es” in writing): buses /’bʌsiz/, buzzes /bʌziz/, crashes /’kræ∫iz/, languages /’læηgwidʒiz/, catches /’kæt∫iz/.

/s/: stops, books, pits.

/z/: cabs, cards, gags, knives /naivz/, jams, things, plays, ladies /leidiz/.

Other Sounds

/n/ = not, nephew, nun. /ŋ/ = bank, bang, thing. /a:/ = car, card, party, garden, far. /ʌ/ is represented in writing by “o” or “u”: summer, uncle, cup, son, mother, month, London. /æ/ = cat, black, bad, thank, apple, marry, cattle. /ә/ = about [ə’baut], taken [‘teikən]. /3:/ = fur, first, church, world, work, bird, nurse, fern.

Writing Tips

Advantages and Disadvantages Essays

• Introduction (without opinion): Some people love…, whereas others prefer… This depends on their age, jobs, and how they grew up.
• List of advantages: The most important advantage of… is…
• List of disadvantages: The main disadvantage of… is… (You can use "On one hand, On the other hand.")
• Conclusion: In conclusion… If, however, I had the choice, I would choose…

Opinion Essays

• Introduction (with opinion): In my opinion…, From my point of view…
• Body Paragraphs: On one hand… On the other hand… I think…
• Conclusion: Therefore, in conclusion…

Formal Letters

• Top Right: Your address (e.g., 185 Vía Moro, Venice, Italy) + the date
• Bottom Left: Recipient's address
• Salutation: Dear …,
• Body: Reason for writing (e.g., I am writing…), Subject, Conclusion
• Closing: I look forward to hearing from you. Yours faithfully (if you don't know the name), Yours sincerely (if you know the name).