-
(单词翻译:双击或拖选)
Chapter 3. Cat? Caught? Cut? CD 3 Track 5
After laying our foundation with intonation1 and liaisons2, here we finally begin to refine your pronunciation! We are now going to work on the differencesbetween [?], [?], and [?], as well as [ō], [ā], and [ē]. Let's start out with the [?] sound.
The [?] Sound
Although not a common sound, [?] is very distinctive3 to the ear and is typically American. In the practice paragraph in Exercise3-2 this sound occurs fivetimes. As its phonetic4 symbol indicates, [?] is a combination of [?] + [ε]. To pronounce it, drop your jaw5 down as if you were going to say [?]; then from thatposition, try to say [ε]. The final sound is nottwo separate vowels7, but rather the end result of the combination. It is very close tothe sound that a goat makes: ma-a-aa!
Y Try it a few times now: [?] f [?]
If you find yourself getting too nasal with [?], pinch your nose as you say it. If [k?t] turns into [kε?t], you need to pull the sound out ofyour nose and down into your throat.
![](/upimg/130902/273378_092830_1_lit.jpg)
图片1
Note As you look for the [?] sound you might think that words like downor soundhave an [?] in them. For this diphthong, try [?] + oh, or [?o]. This way, downwould be written [d?on]. Because it is a combined sound, however, it's not included in the Cat? category. (See Pronunciation Point 4 on page ix).
The Schwa [?] Sound
Last is the schwa [?], the most common sound in American English. When you work on Exercise 3-2, depending on how fast you speak, how smoothly8 you make liaisons, how strong your intonation is, and how much you relax your sounds, you will find from 50 to 75 schwas. Spelling doesn't help identify it, because itcan appear as any one of the vowels, or a combination of them. It is a neutral vowel6 sound, uh. It is usually in an unstressed syllable9, though it can be stressed as well. Whenever you find a vowel that can be crossed out and its absence wouldn't change the pronunciation of the word, you have probably found a schwa: photography [ph'togr'phy] (the two apostrophes show the location of the neutral vowel sounds). Because it is so common, however, the wrong pronunciation of this one little sound can leave your speech strongly accented, even if you Americanized everything else.
Note Some dictionaries use two different written characters, [?] and but for simplicity10, we are only going to use the first one.
Silent or Neutral?
A schwa is neutral, but it is not silent. By comparison, the silent E at the end of a word is a signal for pronunciation, but it isnot pronounced itself: code is [kod]. The E tells you to say an [o]. If you leave the E off, you have cod11, [k?d]. The schwa, on the other hand is neutral, but it is an actual sound—uh. For example, you could also write photography as phuh?tah?gruh?fee. Because it's a neutral sound, the schwa doesn't have any distinctive characteristics, yet it is the most common sound in the English language.
To make the [?] sound, put your hand on your diaphragm and push until a grunt12 escapes. Don't move your jaw, tongue, or lips; just allow the sound to flow past your vocal13 cords. It should sound like uh.
Once you master this sound, you will have an even easier timewith pronouncing can and can't. In a sentence, can't sounds like [k?n(t)], but can becomes [k?n], unless it is stressed, when it is [k?n], (as we saw in Exercise 1-43 on p. 41). Repeat.
In the vowel chart that follows, the four corners represent the four most extreme positions of the mouth. The center box represents the least extreme position—the neutral schwa. For these four positions, only move your lips and jaw. Your tongue should stay in the same place—with the tip resting behind the bottom teeth.
Vowel Chart
I can do it. [Ik?n do it]
I can't do it. [Ik?n't do it]
![](/upimg/130902/273378_093116_1_lit.jpg)
图片1
1. To pronounce beat, your lips should be drawn14 back, but your teeth should be close together.
Your mouth should form the shape of a banana.
2. To pronounce boot, your lips should be fully15 rounded, and your teeth should be close
together. Your mouth should form the shape of a Cheerio.
3. To pronounce bought, drop your jaw straight down from the boot position. Your mouth
should form the shape of an egg.
4. To pronounce bat, keep your jaw down, pull your lips back, and try to simultaneously16 say [?]
and [ε]. Your mouth should form the shape of a box.
Note Word-by-word pronunciation will be different than individual sounds within a sentence. That, than, as, at, and, have, had, can, and so on, are [?] sounds when they stand alone, but they are weak words that reduce quickly in speech.
![收听单词发音](/images/play.gif)
1
intonation
![]() |
|
n.语调,声调;发声 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
2
liaisons
![]() |
|
n.联络( liaison的名词复数 );联络人;(尤指一方或双方已婚的)私通;组织单位间的交流与合作 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
3
distinctive
![]() |
|
adj.特别的,有特色的,与众不同的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
4
phonetic
![]() |
|
adj.语言的,语言上的,表示语音的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
5
jaw
![]() |
|
n.颚,颌,说教,流言蜚语;v.喋喋不休,教训 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
6
vowel
![]() |
|
n.元音;元音字母 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
7
vowels
![]() |
|
n.元音,元音字母( vowel的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句: |
|
|
8
smoothly
![]() |
|
adv.平滑地,顺利地,流利地,流畅地 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
9
syllable
![]() |
|
n.音节;vt.分音节 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
10
simplicity
![]() |
|
n.简单,简易;朴素;直率,单纯 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
11
cod
![]() |
|
n.鳕鱼;v.愚弄;哄骗 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
12
grunt
![]() |
|
v.嘟哝;作呼噜声;n.呼噜声,嘟哝 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
13
vocal
![]() |
|
adj.直言不讳的;嗓音的;n.[pl.]声乐节目 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
14
drawn
![]() |
|
v.拖,拉,拔出;adj.憔悴的,紧张的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
15
fully
![]() |
|
adv.完全地,全部地,彻底地;充分地 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
16
simultaneously
![]() |
|
adv.同时发生地,同时进行地 | |
参考例句: |
|
|