
28-Nov-2007, 19:59
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| Member | | Join Date: Mar 2007 Country: Canada
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Re: Rules for "a" and "the" Quote:
Originally Posted by Unregistered When and why do we say "a" differently and "the" differently? (long a or short u sound for "a" and the with long e sound and the with short u sound) | “THE”: Before a vowel sound, THE is usually pronounced /ðі/ but /ðə/ before a consonant sound. In very fast speech, native speakers sometimes use /ðə/ regardless of a following vowel sound. “A”:A is usually pronounced /æ/ but can be pronounced /ey/ when intentionally stressed. In a sentence, A is often linked to the preceding sound and becomes an unstressed /ə/. “AN”: AN is pronounced /æn/ and links to the following vowel sound. AN can be pronounced /ən/ if also linked to a preceding sound. Sorry, I pasted this from my own notes, so the font & spacing is funky. Hope it helps though Fiona |