Dearest creature in creation,
Study English pronunciation.
I will teach you in my verse
Sounds like corpse, corps, horse, and worse.
I will keep you, Suzy, busy,
Make your head with heat grow dizzy.
Tear in eye, your dress will tear.
So shall I! Oh hear my prayer.
Pray, console your loving poet,
Make my coat look new, dear, sew it!
Just compare heart, beard, and heard,
Dies and diet, lord and word,
Sword and sward, retain and Britain.
(Mind the latter, how it’s written.)
Made has not the sound of bade,
Say said, pay-paid, laid, but plaid
Now I surely will not plague you
With such words as plaque and ague.
But be careful how you speak:
Say break and steak, but bleak and streak;
Previous, precious, fuchsia, via,
Pipe, snipe, recipe and choir,
Cloven, oven, how and low,
Script, receipt, show, poem, and toe.
Hear me say, devoid of trickery,
Daughter, laughter, and Terpsichore,
Typhoid, measles, topsails, aisles,
Exiles, similes, and reviles;
Scholar, vicar, and cigar,
Solar, mica, war and far;
From "desire": desirable--admirable from "admire. "
Lumber, plumber, bier, but brier.
Chatham, brougham, renown, but known.
Knowledge, done, but gone and tone,
One, anemone, Balmoral,
ˈ dɪərɪst ˈ kriːtʃə ɪn kriːˈ eɪʃ(ə)n
ˈstʌdi ˈɪŋglɪʃ prənʌnsɪˈeɪʃ(ə)n
ʌɪ wɪl tiːtʃ juː ɪn mʌɪ vəːs
saʊnd lʌɪk kɔːps kɔː hɔːs ənd wəːs
ʌɪ wɪl kiːp juː n/a ˈbɪzi
meɪk jɔː hɛd wɪd hiːt grəʊ ˈdɪzi
tɛː ɪn ʌɪ jɔː drɛs wɪl tɛː
səʊ ʃal ʌɪ! əʊ hɪə mʌɪ prɛː
…………………………………
dʒʌst kəmˈpɛː hɑːt bɪəd ənd həːd
dʌɪ ənd ˈdʌɪət lɔːd ənd wəːd
sɔːd ənd swɔːd rɪˈteɪn ənd ˈbrɪt(ə)n
mʌɪnd də ˈlatə haʊ ɪts ˈrɪtn
naʊ ʌɪ ˈʃʊəli wɪl nɒt pleɪg juː
wɪd sʌtʃ az plak ənd ˈeɪgjuː
bʌt biː ˈkɛːfʊl haʊ juː spiːk
seɪ breɪk ənd steɪk bʌt bliːk ənd
striːk
ˈkləʊv(ə)n ˈʌv(ə)n haʊ ənd ləʊ
skrɪpt rɪˈsiːt ʃəʊ ˈpəʊɪm ənd təʊ
hɪə miː seɪ dɪˈvɔɪd ɒv ˈtrɪk(ə)ri
ˈdɔːtə ˈlɑːftə ənd təːpˈsɪkəri
ˈtʌɪfɔɪd ˈmiːz(ə)lz ˈtɒpseɪl ʌɪls
ˈɛksʌɪls ˈsɪmɪli ənd rɪˈvʌɪls
ˈskɒlə ˈvɪkə ənd sɪˈgɑː
ˈsəʊlə ˈmʌɪkə wɔː ənd fɑː
wʌn əˈnɛməni balˈmɒr(ə)l
Kitchen, lichen, laundry, laurel;
Gertrude, German, wind and mind,
Scene, Melpomene, mankind.
Tortoise, turquoise, chamois- leather,
Reading, reading, heathen, heather.
This phonetic labyrinth
Gives moss, gross, brook, brooch, ninth, plinth.
Billet does not rhyme with ballet,
Bouquet, wallet, mallet, chalet.
Blood and flood are not like food,
Nor is mould like should and would.
Banquet is not nearly parquet,
Which is said to rime with "darky."
Viscous, viscount, load and broad,
Toward, to forward, to reward.
And your pronunciation’s OK
When you correctly say croquet,
Rounded, wounded, grieve and sieve,
Friend and fiend, alive and live.
Liberty, library, heave, and heaven,
Rachel, ache, moustache, eleven,
We say hallowed, but allowed,
People, leopard, towed, but vowed.
Mark the difference, moreover,
Between mover, plover, Dover,
Leeches, breeches, wise, precise,
Chalice, but police, and lice.
Camel, constable, unstable,
Principle, disciple, label,
Petal, penal, and canal,
Wait, surmise, plait, promise, pal.
Suit, suite, ruin, circuit, conduit,
Rime with "shirk it" and "beyond it."
But it is not hard to tell,
Why it's pall, mall, but Pall Mall,
Muscle, muscular, gaol, iron,
Timber, climber, bullion, lion,
Worm and storm, chaise, chaos, and chair,
ˈkɪtʃɪn ˈlʌɪk(ə)n ˈlɔːndri ˈlɒr(ə)l
n/a ˈdʒəːmən wɪnd ənd mʌɪnd
siːn mɛlˈpɒmɪni manˈkʌɪnd
ˈbɪlɪt dʌz nɒt rʌɪm wɪd ˈbaleɪ
bʊˈkeɪ ˈwɒlɪt ˈmalɪt ˈʃaleɪ
blʌd ənd !ʌd ɑː nɒt lʌɪk fuːd
nɔː, nə ɪz məʊld lʌɪk ʃʊd ənd wʊd
ˈvɪskəs ˈvʌɪkaʊnt ləʊd ənd brɔːd
təˈwɔːd tʊ ˈfɔːwəd tʊ rɪˈwɔːd
ənd jɔː prənʌnsɪˈeɪʃ(ə)ns əʊˈkeɪ
wɛn juː kəˈrɛk(t)li seɪ ˈkrəʊkeɪ
ˈraʊndɪd wuːndɪd griːv ənd sɪv
frɛnd ənd fiːnd əˈlʌɪv ənd lɪv
n/a eɪk məˈstɑːʃ ɪˈlɛv(ə)n
wiː seɪ ˈhaləʊd bʌt əˈlaʊd
ˈpiːp(ə)l ˈlɛpəd təʊd bʌt vaʊd
mɑːk də ˈdɪf(ə)r(ə)nsəs mɔːrˈəʊvə
bɪˈtwiːn ˈmuːvə ˈkʌvə ˈkləʊvə
liːtʃɪz ˈbrɪtʃɪz briːtʃɪz wʌɪz prɪˈsʌɪs
ˈtʃalɪs bʌt pəˈliːs ənd lʌɪs
ˈkam(ə)l ˈkʌnstəb(ə)l ʌnˈsteɪb(ə)l
ˈprɪnsɪp(ə)l dɪˈsʌɪp(ə)l ˈleɪb(ə)l
ˈpɛt(ə)l ˈpan(ə)l ənd kəˈnal
weɪt səˈprʌɪz plat ˈprɒmɪs pal
Senator, spectator, mayor,
Ivy, privy, famous; clamour
And enamour rhyme with hammer.
Pussy, hussy, and possess,
Desert, but dessert, address.
Golf, wolf, countenance, lieutenants.
Hoist, in lieu of flags, left pennants.
River, rival, tomb, bomb, comb,
Doll and roll and some and home.
Stranger does not rhyme with anger,
Neither does devour with clangour.
Soul but foul, haunt but aunt,
Font, front, wont, want, grand, and grant,
Shoes, goes, does. Now first say finger,
And then singer, ginger, linger,
Real, zeal, mauve, gauze, gouge and gauge,
Marriage, foliage, mirage, and age.
Query does not rhyme with very,
Nor does fury sound like bury.
Dost, lost, post and doth, cloth, loth;
Job, job, bosom, transom, oath.
Though the differences seem little,
We say actual but victual.
Seat, sweat; chaste, caste.; Leigh, eight, height;
Put, nut; granite, and unite.
Refer does not rhyme with deafer.
Foeffer does, and zephyr, heifer.
Mint, pint, senate and sedate;
Dull, bull, and George ate late.
Hint, pint, Senate, but sedate.
Scenic, Arabic, Pacific,
Science, conscience, scientific.
Gas, alas, and Arkansas.Sea, idea, Korea, area,Psalm, Maria, but malaria.
ˈʌɪvi ˈprɪvi ˈfeɪməs ˈklamə
ənd ɪˈnamə rʌɪm wɪd ˈhamə
ˈrɪvə ˈrʌɪv(ə)l tuːm bɒm kəʊm
dɒl ənd rəʊl ənd sʌm ənd həʊm
ˈstreɪn(d)ʒə dʌz nɒt rʌɪm wɪd ˈaŋgə
ˈnʌɪdə dʌz dɪˈvaʊə wɪd ˈklaŋgə
səʊls bʌt faʊl hɔːnt bʌt ɑːnt
fɒnt frʌnt wəʊnt wɒnt grand ənd grɑːnt
ʃuːs ɡəʊz dʌz naʊ fəːst seɪ ˈfɪŋgə
ənd dɛn ˈsɪŋə(r) ˈdʒɪndʒə ˈlɪŋgə
riːl ziːl məʊv gɔːz gaʊdʒ ənd geɪdʒ
ˈmarɪdʒ ˈfəʊlɪɪdʒ ˈmɪrɑːʒ ənd eɪdʒ
ˈkwɪəri dʌz nɒt rʌɪm wɪd ˈvɛri
nɔː dʌz ˈfjʊəri saʊnd lʌɪk ˈbɛri
dʌst lɒst pəʊst ənd dʌθ klɒθ ləʊθ
dʒəʊb nɒb ˈbʊz(ə)m ˈtrans(ə)m əʊθ
dəʊ də ˈdɪf(ə)r(ə)nss siːm ˈlɪt(ə)l
wiː seɪ ˈaktʃʊəl bʌt ˈvɪt(ə)l
rɪˈfəː dʌz nɒt rʌɪm wɪd dɛfə
n/a dʌz ənd ˈzɛfə ˈhɛfə
mɪnt pʌɪnt ˈsɛnɪt ənd sɪˈdeɪt
dʌl bʊl ənd dʒɔːdʒ ɛt leɪt
ˈsiːnɪk ˈarəbɪk pəˈsɪfɪk
ˈsʌɪəns ˈkɒnʃ(ə)ns sʌɪənˈtɪfɪk
gas əˈlas ənd ˈɑːkənsɔː
siː ʌɪˈdɪə kəˈrɪə ˈɛːrɪə
sɑːm ˈmarɪə bʌt məˈlɛːrɪə
Youth, south, southern, cleanse and clean.Doctrine, turpentine, marine.
Compare alien with Italian,Dandelion and battalion.Sally with ally, yea, ye,Eye, I, ay, aye, whey, and key.
Say aver, but ever, fever,Neither, leisure, skein, receiver.
Never guess--it is not safe:
We say calves, valves, half, but Ralph.
Heron, granary, canary.
Crevice and device and aerie.
Face, but preface, not efface.
Phlegm, phlegmatic, ass, glass, bass.
Large, but target, gin, give, verging,
Ought, out, joust and scour, scourging.
Ear, but earn and wear and tear
Do not rhyme with here but ere.
Seven is right, but so is even,
Hyphen, roughen, nephew Stephen,
Monkey, donkey, Turk and jerk,
Ask, grasp, wasp, and cork and work.
Pronunciation (think of Psyche!)
Is a paling stout and spikey?
Won’t it make you lose your wits,
Writing groats and saying grits?
It’s a dark abyss or tunnel:
Strewn with stones, stowed, solace, gunwale,
Islington and Isle of Wight,
Housewife, verdict and indict.
Don't you think so, reader, rather,
Saying lather, bather, father?
Finally, which rhymes with enough,
Though, through, plough, or dough, or cough?
Hiccough has the sound of cup.
My advice is to give up!!!
juːθ saʊθ ˈsʌd(ə)n klɛnz ənd kliːn
ˈdɒktrɪn ˈtəːp(ə)ntʌɪn məˈriːn
kəmˈpɛː ˈeɪlɪən wɪd ɪˈtaljən
ˈdandɪlʌɪən ənd bəˈtalɪən
ˈsali wɪd ˈalʌɪ jeɪ jiː
ʌɪ ʌɪ ʌɪ ʌɪ weɪ ənd kiː
seɪ əˈvəː bʌt ˈɛvə ˈ"ːvə
ˈnʌɪdə- ˈlɛʒə skeɪn dɪˈsiːvə
…………………………………..
ˈhɛr(ə)n ˈgran(ə)ri kəˈnɛːri
ˈkrɛvɪs ənd dɪˈvʌɪs ənd ˈɪəri
feɪs bʌt ˈprɛfəs nɒt ɪˈfeɪs
!ɛm !ɛgˈmatɪk as glɑːs beɪs
lɑːdʒ bʌt ˈtɑːgɪt dʒɪn gɪv ˈvəːdʒɪn
ɔːt aʊt dʒaʊst ənd ˈskaʊə ˈskəːdʒɪn
ɪə bʌt əːn ənd wɛː ənd tɛː
duː nɒt rʌɪm wɪd hɪə bʌt ɛː
ˈsɛv(ə)n ɪz rʌɪt bʌt səʊ ɪz ˈiːv(ə)n
ˈhʌɪf(ə)n ˈrʌf(ə)n ˈnɛfjuː ˈstiːv(ə)n
ˈmʌŋki ˈdɒŋki təːk ənd dʒəːk
ɑːsk grɑːsp wɒsp ənd kɔːk ənd wəːk
prənʌnsɪˈeɪʃ(ə)n θɪŋk ɒv ˈsʌɪki
ɪz ə ˈpeɪlɪŋ staʊt ənd spʌɪki
wəʊnt ɪt meɪk juː luːz jɔː wɪts
ˈrʌɪtɪŋ grəʊts ənd ˈseɪɪŋ grɪts
ɪts ə dɑːk əˈbɪs ɔː ˈtʌn(ə)l
struːn wɪd stəʊns ˈsɒlɪs ˈgʌn(ə)l
n/a ənd ʌɪl ɒv wʌɪt
ˈhaʊswʌɪf ˈvəːdɪkt ənd ɪnˈdʌɪt
ˈfʌɪnəli wɪtʃ rʌɪms wɪd ɪˈnʌf
dəʊ θruː plaʊ ɔː dəʊ ɔː kɒf
ˈhɪkʌp haz də saʊnd ɒv kʌp
mʌɪ ədˈvʌɪs ɪz tə gɪv ʌp
EvenWinter