When you say the letters of the alphabet, I has the long vowel sound /ai/. You hear this sound in the word wine. But the letter I is also pronounced as the short vowel sound /ι/, as in the wordwin. Listen to the sound /ai/. Look at the mouth diagram to see how to make this long vowel sound.
Listen to the target sound /ai/ in the words below and compare it with the words on each side.
mate might meet bay buy boy tip type tape quit quite quiet
Listen and repeat these examples of the target sound. why wide wife buy buys bike fly flies flight
Important for listening! When the long I is before R or L many speakers put the vowel /∂/ between them. So, for example, hire sounds like higher. Here are some more examples: fire tyre child while smile style file wilt
These spellings are not always pronounced /ai/ (fridge, city, friend).
/ι/
I (win)
Y (gym)
The sound /ι/ is also a weak vowel (see Unit 7), and can have various spellings in an unstressed syllable (needed, cities, village). If there is an R after the letter I (and the R does not have a vowel after it), I has a different pronunciation. (See Unit 19. )
Read the dialogue. Underline the sound /aι/ and underline /ι/. Count them and write the number at the end of the line.
A: Why,did Jim hit Bill? B: Well, Jim's a guy who likes a fight. A: But Bill's twice his size. B: Yeah, that's why Jim got a black eye and a thick lip. A: And Bill's got a big smile. B: That's right!
/aι/ = 1 /aι/ = /aι/ = /aι/ = /aι/ = /aι/ =
/ι/ = 4 /ι/ = /ι/ = /ι/ = /ι/ = /ι/ =
Follow up: On the recording you will hear A's lines. You say B's lines.
The word knife contains the three sounds /n/, /ai/ and /f/. If you reverse the sounds, you get the word fine /fain/. Reverse the sounds in these words. Example: sign nice
1 Live or leave? I don't want to live / leave here. 2 Fill or feel? Can you fill / feel it? 3 Litter or letter? Who dropped the litter / letter? 4 Lift or left? You should take the lift / left.
Follow up: Recordyourself saying the sentences in 4. choosing one of the two words. Makea note of which words you say. Then listen to your recording in abouttwo weeks. Is it clear which words you said?