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How to read the English IPA transcription?

The International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) transcription for English is a foundational tool when it comes to learning pronunciation.
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The International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) is a system for transcribing sounds in spoken language, and it's widely used for teaching pronunciation in English. Here's a list of common IPA symbols used in English, examples of each sound, and a brief explanation of the symbols used for stress and length.

Vowels

  1. /iː/ (Fleece) - Long ee sound as in "see," "team."
  2. /ɪ/ (Kit) - Short i sound as in "bit," "sit."
  3. /ɛ/ (Dress) - Short e sound as in "bed," "pet."
  4. /æ/ (Trap) - A sound as in "cat," "bat."
  5. /ɑr/ (Start) - Long a sound as in "father," "car."
  6. /ɑ/ (Lot) - Short o sound as in "pot," "top."
  7. /ɔː/ (Thought) - Long o sound as in "bought," "tall."
  8. /ʊ/ (Foot) - Short u sound as in "good," "foot."
  9. /uː/ (Goose) - Long oo sound as in "food," "mood."
  10. /ʌ/ (Strut) - Short u sound as in "but," "hut."
  11. /ə/ (Schwa) - The most common vowel sound in English, found in many unstressed syllables, as in "sofa," "taken."
  12. /ɝ/ (Nurse) - Long er sound as in "her," "first."
  13. /eɪ/ (Face) - A mixture of /e/ and /ɪ/ as in "make," "play."
  14. /ɛr/ (Square) - A mixture of /ɛ/ and /ə/ as in "bear," "there."
  15. /ɪr/ (Near) - A mixture of /ɪ/ and /ə/ as in "deer," "beer."
  16. /ɔɪ/ (Choice) - A mixture of /ɔː/ and /ɪ/ as in "boy," "coin."
  17. /aɪ/ (Price) - A mixture of /a/ and /ɪ/ as in "my," "bicycle."
  18. /aʊ/ (Mouth) - A mixture of /a/ and /ʊ/ as in "now," "out."
  19. /oʊ/ (Goat) - A mixture of /o/ and /ʊ/ as in "no," "go."

Consonants

  1. /p/ (Pin) - Voiceless p sound as in "pin," "top."
  2. /b/ (Bin) - Voiced b sound as in "bin," "rub."
  3. /t/ (Ten) - Voiceless t sound as in "ten," "bat."
  4. /d/ (Den) - Voiced d sound as in "den," "bed."
  5. /k/ (Cat) - Voiceless k sound as in "cat," "back."
  6. /g/ (Get) - Voiced g sound as in "get," "dog."
  7. /f/ (Fan) - Voiceless f sound as in "fan," "off."
  8. /v/ (Van) - Voiced v sound as in "van," "have."
  9. /θ/ (Think) - Voiceless th sound as in "think," "bath."
  10. /ð/ (This) - Voiced th sound as in "this," "brother."
  11. /s/ (Sit) - Voiceless s sound as in "sit," "pass."
  12. /z/ (Zoo) - Voiced z sound as in "zoo," "is."
  13. /ʃ/ (She) - Voiceless sh sound as in "she," "wish."
  14. /ʒ/ (Pleasure) - Voiced zh sound as in "pleasure," "vision."
  15. /tʃ/ (Chair) - Voiceless ch sound as in "chair," "match."
  16. /dʒ/ (Judge) - Voiced j sound as in "judge," "edge."
  17. /h/ (He) - Voiceless h sound as in "he," "behind."
  18. /m/ (Man) - Voiced m sound as in "man," "come."
  19. /n/ (No) - Voiced n sound as in "no," "ten."
  20. /ŋ/ (Sing) - Voiced ng sound as in "sing," "long."
  21. /l/ (Leg) - Voiced l sound as in "leg," "feel."
  22. /ɫ/ (Milk) - Voiced dark L sound as in "ball," "milk." 
  23. /r/ (Red) - Voiced r sound as in "red," "car."
  24. /w/ (Wet) - Voiced w sound as in "wet," "away."
  25. /j/ (Yes) - Voiced y sound as in "yes," "yellow."

Symbols for Stress and Length

  • Primary Stress [ˈ]: This symbol (ˈ) is placed before the syllable that has the primary stress in a word. For example, in the word "information" [ˌɪnfərˈmeɪʃən], the primary stress is on the third syllable.
  • Secondary Stress [ˌ]: This symbol (ˌ) is placed before the syllable that has the secondary stress in a word. For example, in "understand" [ˌʌndərˈstænd], the primary stress is on the second syllable, and there is a lighter stress on the first syllable.
  • Length [ː]: This symbol is used after a vowel to indicate that it is long. For example, in "sheep [ʃiːp]," the ee is pronounced longer than in "ship [ʃɪp]."

Difference between British and American English IPA 

The pronunciation of certain sounds can vary between British and American English, and this is reflected in their respective IPA transcriptions. Here are some of the key differences in vowel and consonant sounds in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) between these two dialects:

Vowel Sounds

  1. /ɑː/ vs /æ/
    • British English (Received Pronunciation): /ɑː/ as in "bath," "dance."
    • American English (General American): /æ/ as in "bath," "dance."
  2. /ɒ/ vs /ɑː/
    • British English: /ɒ/ as in "lot," "top."
    • American English: /ɑː/ as in "lot," "top."
  3. /əʊ/ vs /oʊ/
    • British English: /əʊ/ as in "go," "no."
    • American English: /oʊ/ as in "go," "no."
  4. /ɪər/ vs /ɪr/
    • British English: /ɪər/ as in "here," "near."
    • American English: /ɪr/ as in "here," "near."
  5. /eɪ/ vs /eɪ/
    • Both dialects typically use /eɪ/ as in "face," "same," though there can be subtle differences in the quality of the vowel.
  6. /juː/ vs /ju/
    • British English: Often retains a clear /j/ sound in "new," "tune."
    • American English: Commonly merges to /u/ after coronal consonants, e.g., "new" [nu], "tune" [tun] without the /j/ sound.

Consonant Sounds

  1. /r/
    • British English: The /r/ sound is typically only pronounced when it precedes a vowel; it is often silent when it comes at the end of a word or before a consonant (non-rhotic).
    • American English: The /r/ is always pronounced, whether before a vowel or at the end of a word (rhotic).
  2. /t/
    • British English: /t/ is typically a clear "t" sound in all positions.
    • American English: /t/ can become a flap "t" sound [t̬] (sounding like a quick "d") when it occurs between vowels, as in "water" or "butter" or a glottal "t" sound [ʔ] as in "button."

Usage of the Schwa (/ə/)

  • The schwa (/ə/) is used extensively in both dialects for unstressed syllables, but its deployment can differ slightly due to the differences in stress patterns and rhythm.

The variations between British and American IPA are largely influenced by the differences in pronunciation standards within each dialect. These differences are not just academic but can be significant in practical language use, especially in contexts such as acting, teaching English as a foreign language, or any professional setting involving spoken communication across these dialects.

The International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) is a system for transcribing sounds in spoken language, and it's widely used for teaching pronunciation in English. Here's a list of common IPA symbols used in English, examples of each sound, and a brief explanation of the symbols used for stress and length.

Vowels

  1. /iː/ (Fleece) - Long ee sound as in "see," "team."
  2. /ɪ/ (Kit) - Short i sound as in "bit," "sit."
  3. /ɛ/ (Dress) - Short e sound as in "bed," "pet."
  4. /æ/ (Trap) - A sound as in "cat," "bat."
  5. /ɑr/ (Start) - Long a sound as in "father," "car."
  6. /ɑ/ (Lot) - Short o sound as in "pot," "top."
  7. /ɔː/ (Thought) - Long o sound as in "bought," "tall."
  8. /ʊ/ (Foot) - Short u sound as in "good," "foot."
  9. /uː/ (Goose) - Long oo sound as in "food," "mood."
  10. /ʌ/ (Strut) - Short u sound as in "but," "hut."
  11. /ə/ (Schwa) - The most common vowel sound in English, found in many unstressed syllables, as in "sofa," "taken."
  12. /ɝ/ (Nurse) - Long er sound as in "her," "first."
  13. /eɪ/ (Face) - A mixture of /e/ and /ɪ/ as in "make," "play."
  14. /ɛr/ (Square) - A mixture of /ɛ/ and /ə/ as in "bear," "there."
  15. /ɪr/ (Near) - A mixture of /ɪ/ and /ə/ as in "deer," "beer."
  16. /ɔɪ/ (Choice) - A mixture of /ɔː/ and /ɪ/ as in "boy," "coin."
  17. /aɪ/ (Price) - A mixture of /a/ and /ɪ/ as in "my," "bicycle."
  18. /aʊ/ (Mouth) - A mixture of /a/ and /ʊ/ as in "now," "out."
  19. /oʊ/ (Goat) - A mixture of /o/ and /ʊ/ as in "no," "go."

Consonants

  1. /p/ (Pin) - Voiceless p sound as in "pin," "top."
  2. /b/ (Bin) - Voiced b sound as in "bin," "rub."
  3. /t/ (Ten) - Voiceless t sound as in "ten," "bat."
  4. /d/ (Den) - Voiced d sound as in "den," "bed."
  5. /k/ (Cat) - Voiceless k sound as in "cat," "back."
  6. /g/ (Get) - Voiced g sound as in "get," "dog."
  7. /f/ (Fan) - Voiceless f sound as in "fan," "off."
  8. /v/ (Van) - Voiced v sound as in "van," "have."
  9. /θ/ (Think) - Voiceless th sound as in "think," "bath."
  10. /ð/ (This) - Voiced th sound as in "this," "brother."
  11. /s/ (Sit) - Voiceless s sound as in "sit," "pass."
  12. /z/ (Zoo) - Voiced z sound as in "zoo," "is."
  13. /ʃ/ (She) - Voiceless sh sound as in "she," "wish."
  14. /ʒ/ (Pleasure) - Voiced zh sound as in "pleasure," "vision."
  15. /tʃ/ (Chair) - Voiceless ch sound as in "chair," "match."
  16. /dʒ/ (Judge) - Voiced j sound as in "judge," "edge."
  17. /h/ (He) - Voiceless h sound as in "he," "behind."
  18. /m/ (Man) - Voiced m sound as in "man," "come."
  19. /n/ (No) - Voiced n sound as in "no," "ten."
  20. /ŋ/ (Sing) - Voiced ng sound as in "sing," "long."
  21. /l/ (Leg) - Voiced l sound as in "leg," "feel."
  22. /ɫ/ (Milk) - Voiced dark L sound as in "ball," "milk." 
  23. /r/ (Red) - Voiced r sound as in "red," "car."
  24. /w/ (Wet) - Voiced w sound as in "wet," "away."
  25. /j/ (Yes) - Voiced y sound as in "yes," "yellow."

Symbols for Stress and Length

  • Primary Stress [ˈ]: This symbol (ˈ) is placed before the syllable that has the primary stress in a word. For example, in the word "information" [ˌɪnfərˈmeɪʃən], the primary stress is on the third syllable.
  • Secondary Stress [ˌ]: This symbol (ˌ) is placed before the syllable that has the secondary stress in a word. For example, in "understand" [ˌʌndərˈstænd], the primary stress is on the second syllable, and there is a lighter stress on the first syllable.
  • Length [ː]: This symbol is used after a vowel to indicate that it is long. For example, in "sheep [ʃiːp]," the ee is pronounced longer than in "ship [ʃɪp]."

Difference between British and American English IPA 

The pronunciation of certain sounds can vary between British and American English, and this is reflected in their respective IPA transcriptions. Here are some of the key differences in vowel and consonant sounds in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) between these two dialects:

Vowel Sounds

  1. /ɑː/ vs /æ/
    • British English (Received Pronunciation): /ɑː/ as in "bath," "dance."
    • American English (General American): /æ/ as in "bath," "dance."
  2. /ɒ/ vs /ɑː/
    • British English: /ɒ/ as in "lot," "top."
    • American English: /ɑː/ as in "lot," "top."
  3. /əʊ/ vs /oʊ/
    • British English: /əʊ/ as in "go," "no."
    • American English: /oʊ/ as in "go," "no."
  4. /ɪər/ vs /ɪr/
    • British English: /ɪər/ as in "here," "near."
    • American English: /ɪr/ as in "here," "near."
  5. /eɪ/ vs /eɪ/
    • Both dialects typically use /eɪ/ as in "face," "same," though there can be subtle differences in the quality of the vowel.
  6. /juː/ vs /ju/
    • British English: Often retains a clear /j/ sound in "new," "tune."
    • American English: Commonly merges to /u/ after coronal consonants, e.g., "new" [nu], "tune" [tun] without the /j/ sound.

Consonant Sounds

  1. /r/
    • British English: The /r/ sound is typically only pronounced when it precedes a vowel; it is often silent when it comes at the end of a word or before a consonant (non-rhotic).
    • American English: The /r/ is always pronounced, whether before a vowel or at the end of a word (rhotic).
  2. /t/
    • British English: /t/ is typically a clear "t" sound in all positions.
    • American English: /t/ can become a flap "t" sound [t̬] (sounding like a quick "d") when it occurs between vowels, as in "water" or "butter" or a glottal "t" sound [ʔ] as in "button."

Usage of the Schwa (/ə/)

  • The schwa (/ə/) is used extensively in both dialects for unstressed syllables, but its deployment can differ slightly due to the differences in stress patterns and rhythm.

The variations between British and American IPA are largely influenced by the differences in pronunciation standards within each dialect. These differences are not just academic but can be significant in practical language use, especially in contexts such as acting, teaching English as a foreign language, or any professional setting involving spoken communication across these dialects.

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Olga Ayvazyan

Non-Native English Speaker & Tech Professional, First-Generation Immigrant
in
Pronunciation
on
March 11, 2024
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