Pure Vowels-Long Vovels-Short Vowels=Diphthongs-Consonant Soundsin RP-Approximants-Word Stress

1. Pure Vowels (Monophthongs) in RP English

Pure vowels are single, steady sounds made without any noticeable change in the tongue or lip position.

There are 12 Pure Vowels in RP, divided into long and short vowels:

A. Long Vowels (held longer) – /ː/ symbol shows this

Vowel	Symbol	Example word	Sound in word
/iː/	see	see
/ɑː/	car	car
/ɔː/	door	door
/uː/	boot	boot
/ɜː/	bird	bird

B. Short Vowels

Vowel	Symbol	Example word	Sound in word
/ɪ/	sit	sit
/e/	bed	bed
/æ/	cat	cat
/ʌ/	cup	cup
/ʊ/	book	book
/ə/	ago	ago (schwa – weak sound)
/ɒ/	hot	hot

2. Diphthongs (Gliding Vowels)

A diphthong is a combination of two vowel sounds in a single syllable. The tongue moves from one position to another.

There are 8 diphthongs in RP:

A. Closing Diphthongs

Symbol	Example	Sound in word
/eɪ/	face	face
/aɪ/	price	price
/ɔɪ/	choice	choice
/əʊ/	goat	goat
/aʊ/	mouth	mouth

B. Centring Diphthongs (end in /ə/)

Symbol	Example	Sound in word
/ɪə/	near	near
/eə/	hair	hair
/ʊə/	cure	cure

3. Consonant Sounds in RP

There are 24 consonant phonemes in RP. They can be classified as voiced (with vibration of vocal cords) and voiceless (no vibration), and by their manner and place of articulation.

A. Plosives (Complete closure & release of air)

Voiceless	Voiced	Example
/p/	/b/	pen /b/en
/t/	/d/	tea /d/ay
/k/	/g/	cat /g/oose

B. Fricatives (Air passes through narrow space)

Voiceless	Voiced	Example
/f/	/v/	fan /v/an
/θ/	/ð/	thin /th/at
/s/	/z/	sip /z/ip
/ʃ/	/ʒ/	shop /vision (ʒ)/

C. Affricates (Plosive + Fricative)

Voiceless	Voiced	Example
/tʃ/	/dʒ/	chair /joy

D. Nasals (Air through nose)

Symbol	Example
/m/	man
/n/	no
/ŋ/	sing

E. Approximants (Close, but no friction)

Symbol	Type	Example
/r/	Liquid	red
/l/	Liquid	love
/w/	Glide	win
/j/	Glide	yes

 

Summary Chart

Type	Number	Examples
Pure Vowels	12	/iː/, /ɒ/, /ə/, etc.
Diphthongs	8	/aɪ/, /əʊ/, /eə/, etc.
Consonants	24	/p/, /f/, /tʃ/, /ŋ/, etc.

 

Write a note on Word Stress with ample examples.

Word Stress with ample examples, suitable for classroom use:

Word Stress – Explained with Examples

 

 What is Word Stress?

Word stress refers to the stronger emphasis placed on one syllable in a word. In English, not all syllables are pronounced equally. One syllable is usually stressed (spoken louder, longer, and higher in pitch), while the others are unstressed.

Why is Word Stress Important?

• It helps in correct pronunciation.
• It makes speech clearer and more natural.
• Misplacing stress can change the meaning or make speech hard to understand.

Basic Rules of Word Stress

1. One word, one stress

Every word has only one main stress.

Examples:

• TAble (not taBLE)
• WINdow (not winDOW)

2. Two-syllable nouns and adjectives – Stress usually on the first syllable

Word	Stress
TAble	1st
DOCtor	1st
CLEver	1st
HAPpy	1st

3. Two-syllable verbs and prepositions – Stress usually on the second syllable

Word	Stress
reLAX	2nd
beGIN	2nd
aRRIVE	2nd
aBOVE	2nd

4. Words with suffixes like -ic, -sion, -tion – Stress the syllable before the suffix

Word	Stress
geoGRAPHic	2nd syllable
reLIgion	2nd syllable
eduCAtion	3rd syllable (from end)

5. Words ending in -ee, -eer, -ese – Stress the last syllable

Word	Stress
employee	Last syllable
volunteer	Last syllable
Japanese	Last syllable

6. Compound words

• Noun + Noun → Stress on the first word
• BLACKboard
• TOOTHbrush
• Adjective + Noun → Stress on the second word
• bad-TEMPER
• old-STYLE
• Verb + Preposition → Stress on the preposition
• look UP
• give IN

Practice Examples

Word	Syllables	Stressed Syllable
banana	3	baNAna
computer	3	comPUter
camera	3	CAmera
information	4	in-for-MA-tion
photograph	3	PHO-to-graph
photographer	4	pho-TOG-ra-pher

Tips to Recognize Stress

Use a dictionary – the stress mark (ˈ) shows the stressed syllable
Example: comˈputer (stress on "PU")
 Listen to native speakers or pronunciation audios
Practice speaking slowly, stressing the right syllables

Final Tip

In English, rhythm and stress are key to speaking well. Wrong stress can confuse the listener, even if the word is correct.