How to read these words?

[enydia]

Hello, Teachers.

How to read the following words in blue correctly in British English?

They were alone. (Should it be /’wə:rə’ləun/ or /wərə’ləun/ or /’wə:ə’ləun/ or /wəə’ləun/?)

They are along the river side. (Should it be /’ɑ:rə’lɔŋ/ or /ərə’lɔŋ/ or /’ɑ:ə’lɔŋ/ or /əə’lɔŋ/?)

the Far East (Should it be /’fɑ:’ri:st/ or /’fɑ:r’i:st/ or /’fɑ:’i:st/?)

I’m very confused about the insertion of /r/ between a word ending with r/re (especially some very frequently-used words such as are, were, her and their) and a word begining with a vowel. Could you give me some explanation or some internet resources about this issue?

Thank you in advance.

Enydia

[Tdol]

I'm afraid that there is no single pronunciation- it could vary depending on the meaniong and the emphasis. In your first sentence, there could be stress on any of the words depending on the meaning:
THEY were alone. (not someone else)
They WERE alone. (at that time)
They were ALONE. (no one was with them)
And this would affect the pronunciation. However, in general speech, unless I wished to emphasise one of those point, I'd use /wərə’ləun/.

[Raymott]

Originally Posted by enydia

Hello, Teachers.

How to read the following words in blue correctly in British English?

They were alone. (Should it be /’wə:rə’ləun/ or /wərə’ləun/ or /’wə:ə’ləun/ or /wəə’ləun/?)
The /r/ would generally be pronounced here, so the first two are right.

They are along the river side. (Should it be /’ɑ:rə’lɔŋ/ or /ərə’lɔŋ/ or /’ɑ:ə’lɔŋ/ or /əə’lɔŋ/?)
The /r/ would generally be pronounced here, so the first two are right.

the Far East (Should it be /’fɑ:’ri:st/ or /’fɑ:r’i:st/ or /’fɑ:’i:st/?)
The first. In English, if a syllable is stressed, the whole of the syllable is stressed. So, if the syllables in Far East are /fa:/ /ri:st/ (which they are, as I'd say it), then you can't put the stress symbol after the /r/. This makes your second choice wrong.

I’m very confused about the insertion of /r/ between a word ending with r/re (especially some very frequently-used words such as are, were, her and their) and a word begining with a vowel. Could you give me some explanation or some internet resources about this issue?

Thank you in advance.

Enydia

I agree with Tdol.
This is an insertion of the /r/ between two vowels sounds where one would not normally pronounce an /r/. It's only an insertion in non-rhotic speakers, since rhotic speakers would pronounce the /r/ anyway.

Correction: for syllable, read phoneme.

[enydia]

Originally Posted by Raymott

I agree with Tdol.
This is an insertion of the /r/ between two vowels sounds where one would not normally pronounce an /r/. It's only an insertion in non-rhotic speakers, since rhotic speakers would pronounce the /r/ anyway.

Correction: for syllable, read phoneme.

Thank you for your help!

Is this inserted /r/ pronounced the same as normal /r/? Is it clear or dark? Is there any tip to pronounce it?
In fact, I find it uneasy and somewhat strange to purse my lips when I say 'were alone' or 'are along'.

[Raymott]

Originally Posted by enydia

Thank you for your help!

Is this inserted /r/ pronounced the same as normal /r/? Is it clear or dark? Is there any tip to pronounce it?
In fact, I find it uneasy and somewhat strange to purse my lips when I say 'were alone' or 'are along'.

If it doesn't seem natural, don't insert an /r/. It is not "meant" to be there. It just occurs during the normal physiological production of these words.