Pronunciation Practice: Minimal Pairs – I

 

                                  

        Dear readers, in the previous post we learnt about the consonant sounds in English. In this post let us discuss “Minimal Pairs”, which means “… a set of words which differ from each other in just one sound” (Balasubramanian, 2005). For example, boy – toy, bin – pin, kite - bite. These two words differ in one different sound. Practising these minimal pairs certainly helps in refining pronunciation. Practise the following exercise to improve pronunciation in English.  

   Book               -           Cook

·                           Bat                  -           Mat

·                           But                  -           Cut

·                           Balm              -           Calm

·                           Best                -           Rest

·                           Beak              -           Peak

·                           Bun                -           Pun

·                           Bill                 -           Till

·                           Bread           -           Broad 

·                           Sad                -           Mad

·                           Cake             -           Take

·                           Cap               -            Map

·                           Cat                -            Bat

·                           Cup               -           Cap

·                           Cell               -           Shell

·                           Catch           -         Match

·                           Get                -           Got

·                           Sit                 -           Sat

Keep practising this exercise several times until you acquire the pronunciation fluently.

In the next post, let us learn more minimal pairs. 

  

Courtesy:

https://www.englishbix.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/List-of-Minimal-Pairs-for-Speech-Therapy.jpg 

https://i.pinimg.com/564x/3e/9b/14/3e9b149c9c8b991e1eace82a5081c568.jpg

Author: 

K. Nandhakumar

Assistant Professor of English

Sri Ramakrishna Mission Vidyalaya College of Arts and Science (Autonomous)

Coimbatore-641 020

SENTENCE STRUCTURE - PART I

 

SENTENCE STRUCTURE

(Part I)

What is a sentence?

A sentence is a group of words that are put together to make one complete thought.

To understand sentence structures in the English language, one should have a general understanding of the type of words that are used to make sentences.

Noun:

A place, person, or a thing.

Singular examples:

Sister, House, Tree, Book

Plural examples:

Sisters, Houses, Trees, Books

Verb:

An action

Examples:

Jump, Walk, Run

Adjective:

Describes a noun

Examples:

Colourful shirt, Funny story, Pretty boy

Adverb:

Describes other words (not nouns)

Examples:

Jumped yesterday, Very pretty, Sings loud, Walks fast

Subject:

The noun or nouns that perform the action.

Examples:

1. The monkey jumped.
2. Ramu and Raju are friends.

Object:

The noun or nouns that receive the action

Examples:

1. The child drinks milk
2. I love bread and butter

AUTHOR

Dr L Suresh

Assistant Professor o English

Sri Ramakrishna Mission Vidyalaya College of Arts and Science

Coimbatore - 641020

Contact: 9944138137

e-mail ID: sureshenglit@rmv.ac.in

English Phrasal Verbs

                                                     English Phrasal Verbs

Stop Over

        Meaning:

-         To stay at a place for a short period when travelling to another destination

-         Stay somewhere when on a journey

For Example:

1.   He stopped over in Chennai.

2.   We stopped over in Goa on our way to Bombay.

3.   I stopped over in Banglore for a couple of days on my way back from Goa.

4.   Chennai is a favourite stopover for tourists.

Go through

        Meaning:

            -         To undergo a difficult period or experience

-         To look at or examine something carefully, especially to find something

For Example:

1.   Sheela is going through a difficult time right now. She just broke up with her boyfriend.

2.   He started to go through the bundle of letters.

3.   I always start the day by going through my e-mail.

4.   Selvam went through the company’s accounts, looking for evidence of fraud.

Try out for

        Meaning:

            -         In relation to exercise

-         To compete for a position on a sports team

For Example:

1.   I tried out for the team.

2.   Fifty students tried out for the school football team. Only eleven students will make the team.

3.   Muthu is trying out for the college cricket team.

Come up with something

          Meaning:

              -         To suggest or think of an idea or plan  

For Example:

1.   Students come up with amazing ideas to develop their intelligence.

2.   Raja came up with the idea of dividing the rooms in half.

3.   He has come up with a wonderful idea to double his income.

4.   She came up with a new idea for increasing sales.

 

Author: 

Dr.M. Selvam

Assistant Professor of English

Sri Ramakrishna Mission Vidyalaya College of Arts and Science

Coimbatore 

English Language: Consonants

 

                                                    

English Language: Consonants

    Dear readers, in the previous post we discussed vowels and their phonetic transcription. We learnt that there are 20 vowel sounds with 12 monophthongs and 8 diphthongs. In this post, let us learn about consonant sounds. 

What is a consonant sound? 

A sound that is produced with some friction in the vocal cords is called consonant sound. When the air flow from the lungs passes through the vocal cords, it creates an obstruction, sometimes a little obstruction.  Usually, a consonant sound is produced by the movement of the tongue towards the organs of speech. There are 24 consonant sounds in English. 

The consonants are named as they are pronounced as the following:

1. Plosive

2. Affricate

 3. Fricative

4. Lateral

5. Nasal

6. Semi-vowel

The table indicates the list of consonant sounds and how they are pronounced with examples.

Oral practice is required to improve one's pronunciation in English. In the next post let us learn about Minimal Pairs in English language.

Author: 

K. Nandhakumar

Assistant Professor of English

Sri Ramakrishna Mission Vidyalaya College of Arts and Science (Autonomous)

Coimbatore-641 020

Misplaced Modifiers

 

Misplaced Modifiers

A misplaced modifier is a word, phrase, or clause that is improperly separated from the word it modifies / describes. Because of the separation, sentences with this error often sound awkward, ridiculous, or confusing.

—  Example 1:

Eagerly awaiting her birthday, Mary's presents were all picked up and admired by Mary many times throughout the day.

Here, this sentence makes it seem as though Mary's presents were eagerly awaiting Mary's birthday. Since presents can't exhibit the emotion of feeling eager, it's unlikely that this modifier is written correctly. The most logical explanation is that Mary was eagerly awaiting her own birthday. The sentence should be rewritten so the modifier actually modifies Mary.

Correction: Eagerly awaiting her birthday, Mary picked up and admired her presents many times throughout the day.

—  Example 2:

Tired of all of the nights in hotels, delight overcame by Mitch when his boss finally said he didn't have to travel anymore.

Here, "delight" is being modified by the phrase "tired of all of the nights in hotels." Unfortunately, "delight" can't be tired, because delight isn't a person. Instead, it is more likely that "Mitch" is tired. We can correct this sentence by moving the proper subject next to the modifier.

Correction: Tired of all of the nights in hotels, Mitch was delighted when his boss finally said he didn't have to travel anymore.

—  Example 3:

Children's Paper Plates

She served sandwiches to the children on paper plates.

This sentence makes it seem like the children were on paper plates. The goal is to modify the sandwiches.

Correction: She served the children sandwiches on paper plates.

Author:

Dr L Suresh

Assistant Professor of English

Sri Ramakrishna Mission Vidyalaya College of Arts and Science

Coimbatore - 20

Contact: 9944138137

e-mail ID: sureshenglit@rmv.ac.in

 

English Vocabulary

    

English Vocabulary 

 

Other Words to Walk 

1.   To Crawl

    Meaning:

-         To move on hands and knees

    Example: 

          1. Pranithi has just learned to crawl. 

          2. The child crawled across the floor. 

          3. The injured soldier in the battlefield crawled to safety.          

2.   To Trip

Meaning:

-         To knock one’s foot against something and fall

     Example:

1.   Don’t leave your bag on the floor. Someone might trip over it.

2.   He deliberately tried to trip me.

3.   He tripped up on a cable and broke his ankle. 

3.   To Creep

Meaning:

-         Move quickly to avoid being noticed

    Example:

1.   The spider crept up the wall.

2.   She crept into the room.

3.   He crept silently out of the room.            

4. To Stagger

Meaning:

-         To walk or move unsteadily

 Example:

            1. He was staggering and had to lean on the bar.

            2.   I managed to stagger the last few steps.

    3.   The economy continued to stagger from crisis to crisis.                                               

5. To Wobble

Meaning:

-         To move unsteadily from side to side

Example:

1.   The boy was wobbling along on his bicycle.

2.   The table wobbles a little.

3.   The table has a slight wobble.

6.   To Wander

Meaning:

-         To walk aimlessly

Example:

1.   I was just wandering around the house.

2.   Strangers wandered down the street.

3.   Ramesh wandered around the mall for two hours.

7.   To Stray

Meaning:

-         To wander away from a place

-         Move away aimlessly from a group or place

Example:

1.   Her eyes kept straying over to the clock on the wall.

2.   The plane strayed into Delhi airspace.

3.   Walkers are reminded not to stray from the path.

8.   To Dash

Meaning:

-         To go quickly

-         Run or travel somewhere in a great hurry

Example:

1.   He dashed into the garden.

2.   People were dashing inside to get out of the rain.

3.   The dog ran off, and she dashed after him.

9.   To March

Meaning:

-         To walk with regular steps as a group

    Example:

1.   They made us march for hours.

2.   The band marched through the streets.

3.   The soldiers marched 90 miles in three days.

 

Author: 

Dr.M. Selvam

Assistant Professor of English

Sri Ramakrishna Mission Vidyalaya College of Arts and Science

Coimbatore