Long-OO
There is no letter “OO” in the English alphabet, but Long-OO and Short-oo are part of the vowel system. Short-oo Short-oo is a unique vowel sound that is not represented by any other vowel letter. […]
Cider Inside Her
Here is a fun limerick. First, listen to how it sounds: There once was a lady from Hyde Who ate some green apples and died The apples fermented Inside the lamented And made cider inside […]
Two Limericks Part 2
IF YOU HAVE NOT SEEN TWO LIMERICKS YET, GO THERE FIRST! Here are the strong words of the Two Limericks. There ONCE was a FLY on the WALL. I WONdered “why DIDn’t it FALL?” WERE […]
Two Limericks
Here are two very old limericks. They are from a book published in 1846 by Edward Lear, titled “A Book of Nonsense”. Remember, limericks emphasize English sentence stress. In both of these limericks, here is […]
Sentence Stress and Limericks
A limerick is a special kind of rhyme that uses a specific rhythm pattern — and limericks usually tell a funny or silly story. Here is an example: I knew a man whose name was […]
Long-U: 1 or 2?
The vowel “U” is a bit unique because it has two Long-vowel sounds. The two sounds are very similar, but they are used in different situations. So, how do you know which one to choose? […]
The Sounds of U
The vowel system is the most complicated part of the pronunciation-spelling system of English, because each vowel letter represents three or four different vowel sounds. The letter “U” has three different sounds, but one thing […]
Sentence Stress Part 6
Reductions and Formality The rhythm of English sentences causes weak words to be reduced, but the amount of reduction varies according to formality. As a general rule, in more formal situations, there are less reductions, while […]
Sentence Stress Part 5 Confusable Reductions
The rhythm of English sentences, or sentence stress, causes weak words to be reduced. Reduced words have some of their sounds missing, so that they can be spoken more easily and quickly. However, this can […]
Sentence Stress Part 4 – Common Reductions
Sentence stress is the combination of strong words and weak words in a sentence, which creates a sort of rhythm. Strong words, such as nouns and verbs, are spoken stronger and more clearly than weak […]
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