Transcription (from Latin trans- + scribo, or "re-" + "write") in linguistics is the written transmission of elements of sound speech by means of a system of signs. At the end of the 19th century an international phonetic alphabet was created for this purpose: this is how foreign language teachers from Great Britain and France solved the problem of explaining nuances of the pronunciation of sounds, allophones and phonemes.
One has only two options when learning a foreign language:
Certainly, there is another solution - learning a language with native speakers, when learning of phonetic rules happens naturally, just as it does with the native language. This advantage is given to young Russians entering the British school CIS International School accredited by the famous Cambridge educational institution with English teachers and tutors with communication and teaching in English (call the school administration and clarify the conditions of admission, the campuses operate in Moscow, St. Petersburg and Tashkent).
So, why do we need transcription? For example, you and I know that the word "корова" (cow) is spelled with an "o" but read with an "a", and any child can call a cow correctly, but a foreigner learning Russian will need additional clarification to read it correctly.
Pronunciation in English differs from the spelling of words quite significantly because there are only 26 letters in the alphabet of the language and as many as 44 sounds, so the number of letters and sounds in a word is not always the same. Moreover, some sounds are difficult to reproduce due to specific characteristics of foreigner's speech organs or peculiarities of his/her native language.
That is why apart from learning words it is recommended to develop the skill of reading a phonetic transcription - a special record which puts each sound in accordance with a graphical symbol. Such a record also reflects the open/closed syllables (this affects the rules of reading in English), indicates how long to pronounce the vowel, which consonant letters are not voiced at all.
Below are just a few examples that illustrate why there is a need for transcription in English:
English is also famous for diphthongs and triphthongs, combinations of two or three vowels producing a new sound. One of the most difficult for Russian speakers is considered a diphthong th (designated as [ð] in the transcription).
But when one knows the phonetic alphabet, all the difficulties of the language are gone: having only a dictionary at hand without
We interviewed CIS graduates about their plans to graduate from Cambridge International School.
The colors of the rainbow are part of the basic lexicon. Try spending an entire day without naming colors, and you'll see for yourself how hard it is to do without them.
What food is worth trying while in England? Popular soups and meat dishes, pies, puddings, desserts. An overview of the 10 most unusual, famous, and delicious dishes of the national cuisine.
This article describes the types of accents in modern English. The most popular dialects of the English language.
In this article you can learn about the most famous museums that are located in Britain. What these buildings look like and where they are located.
Is knowing a language without grammar possible? For sure, but only to a certain level. This is, for example, how toddlers speak their native language. They can indicate their wishes and problems or ask questions, often twisting words and sentences so sweetly. But it is impossible to have a full command of a language tool without knowing its grammar rules.
In fact, there are some similarities between the two along with important and curious differences. To see the difference between college and university, let us discover the opportunities that their students get during the study years and after the graduation.
To see closer into the practices that will help you improve your English pronunciation let us discover the specific phonetic characteristic of English and the nuances of its sounds vocalization.