Proper American English Sound by Sound

In the explanation for every lesson of SAUNDZ American English pronunciation software we show you the various ways a sound is spelled and some example words.  For example, in lesson 3.1 where we teach you the vowel sound /ʊ/, we list the following:

• |u| as in “put” and “pure”
• |oo| as in “book” and “cook”
• |ou| as in “would” and “should”

The English spelling system is complicated, which makes it hard for English as a second language learners to understand how to correctly pronounce some words.  Particularly true for those whose native language uses phonemic orthography (Spanish, Finnish, Turkish, Serbian, Macedonian, Bosnian, Croatian).

Spelling variations in English constitute a constant source of confusion not only for the speakers of languages that have a phonemic orthography, but for everyone.

There is no practical way to learn all the rules of correct English spelling.  However, the more contact you have with the language, the easier it is for you to identify particular spelling and pronunciation patterns.

Representing the sounds in this way may appear confusing at first, however, this representation can help learners in two ways:

• First, they become more able to recognize the multiple spellings.
• Second, they become familiar with the English spelling variations enabling them to learn the correct pronunciation of words that have similar spelling.

Learn proper American English pronunciation with SAUNDZ!

Curriculum-based pronunciation software that teaches you how to sound more like a native English speaker.