IELTS Pronunciation Guide

How do you learn pronunciation?

Pronunciation is learned through the understanding and application of syllables and phonemes.

Syllables:

A syllable is a unit of pronunciation that has one vowel sound, with or without surrounding consonants. For example:

• Car has one syllable: car.
• Table has two syllables: ta-ble.
• Beautiful has three syllables: beau-ti-ful.
• Examination has five syllables: ex-am-in-a-tion.

Phonemes:

Phonemes are the smallest units of sound in spoken language that distinguish words. For example:

• Cat has three phonemes: /k/a/t/.
• Smile has four phonemes: /s/m/i/le/.

Graphemes:

Graphemes are the written symbols representing phonemes. For instance, the word through has seven graphemes but only three phonemes: /th/r/oo/. Graphemes bridge the written and spoken forms of language.

Word and Sentence Stress

Word Stress:

Stress on different syllables changes a word’s meaning. For example:

• CONtract (noun) vs. conTRACT (verb).
• REcord (noun) vs. reCORD (verb).

Sentence Stress:

Sentence stress emphasizes content words (nouns, verbs, adjectives) over function words (articles, prepositions). For example:

• She loves painting. (Focus on “loves”).
• She loves painting. (Focus on “painting”).

Stress changes the meaning and tone of the sentence.

Shifting Stress for Emphasis

Changing the stress in a sentence alters its meaning. For example:

• I only bought the apple. (Emphasizing “only”).
• I only bought the apple. (Emphasizing “apple”).

The ability to shift stress effectively can make your speech more engaging and precise.

Understanding Intonation

Intonation is the rise and fall of pitch in speech, which conveys emotion and meaning. The five common patterns of intonation include:

• Flat: No variation in tone, often monotonous.
• Fall: Indicates certainty or finality, e.g., “I’m leaving now.”
• Rise: Common in yes/no questions, e.g., “Are you coming?”
• Fall-rise: Suggests doubt or hesitation, e.g., “Well, maybe…”
• Rise-fall: Expresses strong emotions like surprise or excitement, e.g., “Wow, that’s amazing!”

For instance, saying “It’s raining” with different intonations can express happiness, annoyance, or surprise.