The third chapter:
Long vowels, diphthongs and triphthongs[/U]
[englishtext]1- Long vowels:
We use the length mark ':' with long vowels only to remind you that these vowels tend to be long and just to notice that these five long vowels are different from the six short vowels in length and quality{the difference is resulting from differences in tongue shape and position , and lip position}.
For long vowels and short vowels, there are several question about them. But the most important and common one is :
Describe the vowel in this word.
Now, the long vowels and their description:
1- /i:/ it is front, close, and the lips are spread.
Eg: 'feet' , 'speak' , 'chief' , 'people'.
2- /3:/ it is central, open-mid, and the lips are neutral.
Eg: 'ear' , 'impersonal' , 'fern'.
Back, open, and the lips are neutral. It is / : 3- /
4-/ : / it is back, close-mid, and the lips are rounded.
Eg: 'sword' , 'cord' , 'call' , 'walk'.
5- / u: / it is back, close, and the lips are rounded.
Eg: 'rude' , 'true' , 'fruit' , 'two'.
Diphthongs:
They are the sounds which consist of a movement or glide from one vowel to another.
They are combination of two vowels.
The first part is much longer and stronger than the second part.
The diphthongs are:
1- Centring diphthongs which end in schwa:
/ I schwa/
Eg: 'beard' , 'Ian' , 'fierce.
/e schwa/
Eg: 'aired' , 'cairn' , 'scarce'.
/U schwa/
Eg: 'moored' , 'tour'.
2- closing diphthongs which end in I
/eI/
Eg: 'paid' , 'pain' , 'face'.
/aI/
Eg: 'tide' , 'time' , 'nice'.
/ I /
Eg: 'void' , 'lion' , 'voice'.
3- Closing diphthongs which end in U
/schwa U/
Eg: 'load' , 'home' , 'most'.
/aU/
Eg: 'loud' , 'gown' , 'house'.
Triphthongs:
A triphthong is a glide from one vowel to another and then to a third.
They are composed of the five closing diphthongs with schwa in the end.
They are:
eI+schwa = eI schwa
Eg: 'layer' , 'player'.
aI +schwa = aI schwa
Eg: 'liar' , 'fire'.
I +schwa= I schwa
Eg: 'loyal' , 'royal'.
Schwa U+ schwa= schwa U schwa
Eg: 'lower' , 'mower'.
aU +schwa= aU schwa
Eg: 'power' , 'hour'.
That is all the information of this chapter….
In this chapter, you have just to study what I wrote.
Homework:
1- Tell if these words have long vowels, diphthong, or triphthong, but do not look them up from the dictionary, try by yourself.
Boon, born, first, eager, lime, narrow, society.
2- Guess which words have long vowel and which words have short vowel in the following words , but without looking them up from the dictionary, try by yourself.
Contest, demon, demand, farce, hilt, pan, plug.
[/englishtext]
_________________ ***Keep your aim always in sight***
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