If you are just starting to learn English, start learning with the basic topics, which, of course, include English alphabet [ˈɪŋɡlɪʃ ˈalfəbɛt] or english alphabet. During express training, this topic is often omitted, they say, it will come on its own with time. However, if you do not know the entire list of letters, their pronunciation and writing, nothing will come of your learning process. Therefore, let's look at what the letters of the English alphabet are and how they are used.
But first, let's look at how the English alphabet was formed. It is quite difficult to say exactly when it appeared, but the very first fragments of the English alphabet found date back to the 5th century. Then, to write it, Latin letters were used in combination with runes, and therefore the letters were absolutely not like those used in modern English. Subsequently, however, this alphabet changed, all runes were replaced with Latin letters, the number of which by the 11th century amounted to 23 signs, which were ordered for numerological purposes. After this, the alphabet did not change significantly, but 3 more letters were added to it, which were also used in the creation of the modern alphabet.
English alphabet: composition
It was probably not difficult to calculate how many letters are used in modern English. There are 26 letters in English. B different situations they may sound different as their pronunciation changes depending on the combinations. In total, there are 44 sounds in the English language. However, each letter has its own standard pronunciation, which is used when learning the alphabet. Are being written english letters not as they are pronounced, and therefore when studying them it is necessary to use transcription in order to avoid further errors. It is also worth noting that each letter of the English alphabet has a serial number. Numerology in English, as in Russian, was created solely for convenience and is not of such importance.
| List English letters with numbering, transcription and pronunciation | ||||
| № | Letter | Name | Transcription | Pronunciation |
| 1. | A a | a | Hey | |
| 2 | B b | bee | bi | |
| 3 | C c | cee | si | |
| 4 | D d | dee | di | |
| 5 | E e | e | And | |
| 6 | F f | ef | ef | |
| 7 | G g | gee | ji | |
| 8 | H h | aitch | HH | |
| 9 | I i | i | ah | |
| 10 | Jj | Jay | Jay | |
| 11 | K k | kay | kay | |
| 12 | L l | el | el | |
| 13 | Mm | em | Em | |
| 14 | Nn | en | [ɛn] | en |
| 15 | O o | o | [əʊ] | OU |
| 16 | P p | pee | pi | |
| 17 | Q q | cue | Cue | |
| 18 | R r | ar | [ɑː] | A |
| 19 | Ss | ess | es | |
| 20 | T t | tee | you | |
| 21 | U u | u | Yu | |
| 22 | V v | vee | in and | |
| 23 | W w | double-u | [‘dʌbljuː] | double |
| 24 | X x | ex | the ex | |
| 25 | Y y | wy | wy | |
| 26 | Z z | zed | zed | |
The letter Z in American English is pronounced zee.
Please note that the pronunciation written in Russian letters is approximate. It is impossible to convey the exact English sound using Russian letters. It is indicated here to facilitate learning at the initial stage. However, the transcription option is preferable. If you are not yet very familiar with the sounds, try to listen and imitate native speakers.
English alphabet: frequency of use
All letters in the English alphabet have their own frequency of use. Thus, figures for 2000 show that the most popular letter in the English language is the vowel E. The second most frequently used consonant is the consonant T. It is not so difficult to explain such results. Both of these letters appear in the definite article "the", which is the most commonly used word in the English language. The most unpopular is the letter Z, which is known only for zebra, zip and zigzag.
The other letters are arranged as follows:
| Letters of English in order of frequency of their use | ||
| № | Letter | Frequency (~%) |
| 1. | E | 12,7 |
| 2. | T | 9,1 |
| 3. | A | 8,2 |
| 4. | O | 7,5 |
| 5. | I | 7,0 |
| 6. | N | 6,8 |
| 7. | S | 6,3 |
| 8. | H | 6,1 |
| 9. | R | 6,0 |
| 10. | D | 4,3 |
| 11. | L | 4,0 |
| 12. | C | 2,8 |
| 13. | U | 2,8 |
| 14. | M | 2,4 |
| 15. | W | 2,4 |
| 16. | F | 2,2 |
| 17. | G | 2,0 |
| 18. | Y | 2,0 |
| 19. | P | 1,9 |
| 20. | B | 1,5 |
| 21. | V | 1,0 |
| 22. | K | 0,8 |
| 23. | J | 0,2 |
| 24. | X | 0,2 |
| 25. | Q | 0,1 |
| 26. | Z | 0,1 |
This numbered list gives an approximate frequency of occurrence of letters, which means that in any given passage, the frequency of letters may vary depending on the words used in it.
English alphabet: vowels
As you may have noticed, there are only 5 in the English language. These are the letters: A, E, I, O, U. Periodically, the letter Y is added to the list, which can convey both consonant and vowel sounds. By the way, regarding sounds: English vowels can change their sound depending on two aspects:
- Locations, that is, from adjacent letters
- Stressed or unstressed
Let's look at similar changes using the letter A as an example:
Some sounds contain a colon. The fact is that English vowel sounds are divided into short and long. Short ones are usually pronounced, but long ones last 2 or even 3 times longer. It is necessary to know the pronunciation of the letter in a word according to this principle, otherwise you can distort your thought. Examples:
Regarding the characteristics of vowels, we can also add that the letter E at the end is usually not pronounced. For example:
| prejudice [ˈprɛdʒʊdɪs] (prejudis) | prejudice |
| demonstrate [ˈdɛmənstreɪt] (demonstrate) | demonstrate |
| paradise [ˈparədʌɪs] (paradise) | paradise |
In addition, vowel letters can have diphthongs or a combination of two vowel sounds, but in order to avoid too much information, we will consider this issue in a separate topic.
It can be added that vowels, like consonants, do not have diacritics. Such signs include all sorts of dashes, squiggles, wavy lines above and below letters, which are characteristic, for example, of French or Spanish. However, in very rare cases such signs can be used with borrowed words. The most popular among them are:
| cafe | cafe |
| resumé | summary |
English alphabet: consonants
The number of consonant letters in the alphabet is 21. Despite the fact that these letters are different from Russian ones, some of them have a similar pronunciation. These include the letters: B, F, G, M, P, S, V, Z. Speaking of similarities with the Russian language, it can also be noted that if English words have a double consonant, it is pronounced with one sound:
In addition to simple letters, English contains digraphs or signs formed using two English letters . These include:
It is worth noting that the letter ch in borrowed from Greek language in words it is pronounced as [k].
The letter ch is also read as the sound [k] in the name Michael, which is very common abroad:
Exception not applicable to the options above:
| [ʃ] | |
| champagne [ʃamˈpeɪn] (champagne) | champagne |
The combination th is pronounced like “s” and “z” in Russian, only to pronounce them you need to position your tongue correctly. Bite down and then lower it, maintaining the position between your teeth. Now try to pronounce both of these letters.
The digraphs kh and zh are used in English with foreign surnames. Foreign surnames can also often contain the digraph sh, which, however, is also used in ordinary English words Oh.
English alphabet: how to learn
We've sorted out how many letters and how they are used, but how to learn them? IN modern world This issue is quite easy to solve, because there are a lot of materials on learning English in both printed and electronic versions. However, the choice in favor of electronic material in the case of studying the alphabet will, perhaps, be more correct.
Firstly, the English alphabet is something that one learns very quickly. Once you have mastered it, you will not have to return to this topic again and again, which means that the purchased alphabet books will lie idle on the very top shelves.
Secondly, on the Internet you can find greatest variety programs, videos, songs that will help you learn the alphabet in the fastest possible time short term. Use only one method or combine several at once: hum songs, write each letter on a piece of paper, memorize the sequence of letters in English and the words in which they are used.
That's all. As you can see, there is nothing wrong with the English language. The only thing you may need when studying it is a little patience, seasoned with motivation. Don't think of language as overwhelming, but instead enjoy it.
The first thing a child needs to know when studying foreign language- this is the English alphabet. alphabet quickly and for a long time?
Why does the child have difficulties?
Children often have problems and misunderstandings when learning the English alphabet. The first mistake is cramming. You need to remember: if you want your child to learn all the letters of the language for the rest of his life the first time, then cramming should be excluded from the rule. The most important thing is to make sure that the child enjoys learning the English alphabet. If a child perceives this as a game, then the opportunity to learn the English alphabet in 5 minutes can become a reality.
A child may encounter difficulties in learning the English alphabet also because he will not know why he needs to do it. If the child is very young, your assurances that he will need this in the future adult life, they may not understand. It is clear to adults that knowledge of foreign languages opens up great opportunities for a person. Your child most likely will not understand this. That's why it's better to turn learning the alphabet into a fun game.
English letters and pronunciation
How to quickly learn the English alphabet? The first thing you need to do to learn the English alphabet is to find the alphabet itself, where in addition to capital letters there will also be capital letters, the pronunciation of each letter in Russian, as well as several words in English that begin with this letter. There are 26 letters in the English language.
| Aa | Hey | apple - apple | ant - ant | air - air |
| Bb | bi | bee - bee | boy - boy | ball - ball |
| Cc | si | cat - cat | cake - cake, pie | camera - camera |
| Dd | di | dog - dog | date - date | dress - dress |
| Ee | And | egg - egg | eye - eye | ear - ear |
| Ff | ef | frog - frog | face - face | farm - farm |
| Gg | ji | garden - garden | girl - girl | grass - grass |
| Hh | HH | hat - hat | history - history | hour - hour |
| II | ah | ice - ice | idea - idea | insect - insect |
| Jj | Jay | jump - jump | journey - journey | judge - judge |
| Kk | kay | kiss - kiss | kangaroo - kangaroo | knife - knife |
| Ll | el | love - love | land - earth | letter - letter |
| mm | Em | mother - mother | man - man | mist - fog |
| Nn | en | name - name | night - night | news - news |
| Oo | OU | orange - orange | oil - oil | owner - owner |
| Pp | pi | paper - paper | pig - pig | price - price |
| Cue | question - question | queen - queen | ||
| Rr | ar(a) | rabbit - hare, bunny | rain - rain | river - river |
| Ss | es | sea - sea | soup - soup | son - son |
| Tt | you | table - table | talk - conversation | time - time |
| Uu | Yu | umbrella - umbrella | uncle - uncle | up - up |
| Vv | in and | voice - voice | view - view | violin - violin |
| Ww | double | wall - wall | window - window | watch - watch |
| Xx | the ex | xylophone - xylophone | ||
| Yy | wy | year - year | ||
| Zz | zed | zebra - zebra |
Now that we have the English alphabet with and words, we can start studying.
Learning the English alphabet using copybooks
How can a child quickly learn the English alphabet? For everything to work out quickly, the child must have some associations with letters. First, you can draw analogies between the English alphabet and the Russian alphabet, and then show the words that are presented above. These are quite easy words that the child could have known before (some school programs start with learning words) will help you learn the English alphabet. How to learn it using these words? You need to open your notebook, take a pen and start writing from the beginning. capital letter, then lowercase, and then words. It is important that the child writes only one letter on each line in the notebook and pronounces it. This method will take the child quite a lot of time (about an hour or two), but a parent will not be needed, writing skills in English will develop, and the alphabet will be remembered for a long time!
If you have copybooks for a foreign language at home, you can use them. In copybooks for children younger age There are always exciting coloring pages, pictures and easy English words.
Learning a foreign alphabet and singing songs
If you notice that your child’s visual, rather than visual, function is better. auditory memory, you are very lucky! On the Internet you can find a lot of audio and video recordings of children singing the English alphabet. Such songs help you learn it very quickly, literally in 5 minutes.
Learn the English alphabet with bright cards
Bright cards with words help you quickly learn the English alphabet. How to learn it with flashcards? Such cards can be bought at any bookstore or children's store, or you can make them yourself with your child, which will take quite a long time, but is very effective. If you bought cards, then the instructions will definitely tell you what to do and how. Learning the English alphabet with a child is quite troublesome this way, but the words and letters will be remembered for a long time.
Typically, cards are divided into letters of the alphabet. On each card one word is written and a picture is drawn that is interconnected with this word. The child can learn these words that begin with the same letter either orally or in writing.
Various alphabet memorization games
In fact, the child must perceive everything as a game in order to remember the English alphabet. How to learn the letters of a foreign language if you constantly sit and cram? To a small child who still have to play and play, it will be quite difficult to do this. How to quickly learn the English alphabet - we learned earlier, but how to consolidate the knowledge?
The first game. Write the English alphabet in large letters on paper and cut it into squares. Hand out the cards randomly. The child must assemble a complete alphabet from these cards.
Second game. This is a team game and requires at least two or three children. You pronounce the letter, and the children must form the corresponding letter. This game is very fun and exciting.
Third game. Take two sheets of paper, place one sheet on top of the other in the middle. Write the letter so that its top is written on one sheet of paper and its bottom on the other. Remove the second sheet, all that remains is top part letters. Ask your child to fill in the missing part.
How to learn the English alphabet with your child? You just need to show a little imagination!
Greetings, my dear readers.
Today we continue to talk about how to learn to read correctly, so the topic of today's article is transcription of English letters.
We have already introduced you to the concept and dealt with the pronunciation of sounds in English. Today we will figure out exactly how they are pronounced in various combinations.
I have a clear table for you. It contains letters of the English alphabet with transcription, Russian analogue letters and my notes, so that you can immediately put correct pronunciation. I also added examples of words with the sounds being studied and their translation.
What else can you find on the blog:
- with letters and transcription (you can study them online, download, print and work with them);
- for children I have a complete one.
Let `s start?
Features of English transcription:
- it is always formatted with square brackets. I can’t say exactly where it came from, but I think it’s just worth taking it for granted;
- to understand where the stress is, the transcription uses the sign [‘] before the stressed syllable;
- It is important to remember that transcription is about the sound, not the spelling of words. Sometimes the spelling can be 90% different from what we pronounce;
- to show that a sound is long we use a colon.
In general, I wrote about English transcription - please!
Letters of the English alphabet and their transcription in Russian and English:
| English letter | Transcription | Russian equivalent |
| Aa | Hey | |
| Bb | Bi | |
| Cc | Si | |
| Dd | Di | |
| Ee | AND | |
| Ff | [ɛf] | Eph |
| Gg | Gee | |
| Hh | H. | |
| II | Ay | |
| Jj | Jay | |
| Kk | Kay | |
| Ll | [ɛl] | Al |
| mm | [ɛm] | Em |
| Nn | [ɛn] | En |
| Oo | [əʊ] | OU |
| Pp | Pi | |
| Q | ||
| Rr | [ɑː] or [ɑɹ] | A or Ar |
| Ss | [ɛs] | Es |
| Tt | Tee | |
| Uu | YU | |
| Vv | In and | |
| Ww | [ˈdʌb(ə)l juː] | Double |
| Xx | [ɛks] | The ex |
| Yy | Wye | |
| Zz | , | Zed, zee |
But do you know what is the most interesting thing about English?
If combined different letters, they are pronounced differently!
That's why I prepared for you
Examples of English letter combinations in Russian and English:
| Combination | Transcription | How to pronounce | Example |
| ee | /i:/ | AND | bee - bee |
| ea | / ı:/ | AND | tea - tea |
| oo | /u/ | U | cook - to cook |
| th | / ð / / Ѳ / | Z, S (interdental) | thumb - finger |
| sh | / ʃ / | Sh | shout - shout |
| ch | /tʃ/ | H | chair - chair |
| ph | /f/ | F | phone - phone |
| ck | /k/ | TO | snack - snack |
| ng | / Ƞ / | Ng | song - song |
| wh | /w/ | Ua | why - why |
| wr | /r/ | R | write - write |
| qu | /kw/ | Kua | queen - queen |
| igh | /aı/ | Ay | high - high |
| all | /Ɔ:l/ | Ol | tall - tall |
| ai | /eı/ | Hey | Spain - Spain |
| ay | /eı/ | Hey | May - May |
| oi | /oı/ | Oh | point - point |
| oh | /oı/ | Oh | toy - toy |
| ow | /oƱ/ | OU | grow - grow |
| ou | /aƱ/ | Ay | out - outside |
| ew | /ju:/ | YU | knew - knew |
| aw | / Ɔ: / | Ooo | draw - draw |
| ee+r | / ıə / | Eeyore | engineer - engineer |
| ou+r | /aƱə/ | Aue | our - ours |
| oo+r | / Ɔ: / | Ooo | door - door |
| wo+r | / ɜ: / | Y/O | work - work |
| ai+r | /eə/ | Ea | chair - chair |
| oa+r | / Ɔ: / | Ooh | roar - scream |
| might | /Ʊd/ | Oud | could - could |
| ound | /aƱnd/ | Aund | round - round |
| eigh | /eı/ | Hey | eight - eight |
| -y | / ı / | AND | tiny - tiny |
| au | / Ɔ: / | Oo | Paul - Paul |
| gh | /f/ | F | laugh - laugh |
| aught | /Ɔ:t/ | From | taught - taught |
I know this table seems huge right now. Surely you think that remembering all this is unrealistic. I'll tell you this: at a certain point, when you have enough, you won't even pay attention to these combinations. Your brain will learn to quickly remember how exactly these letters sound. Moreover, even when you come across a word that is completely unfamiliar to you, you will be able to read it correctly. The only question is the amount of practice on your part.
How to remember combinations of letters?
- Use cards. Visual perception is better developed in most people.
- Read. Pay attention to combinations of letters when or just texts.
- Don't get hung up. It is not necessary to immediately memorize these combinations and only then move directly to English. Learn as you go!
- Buy paper or download a good one e-book in order to quickly learn to recognize combinations and pronounce them correctly. Even if you, an adult, need this, do not hesitate to take books for children - everything there is explained in detail and is not without interest.
- Take the course « English from scratch» . This will make your path easier.
That's all, my dears. I hope you found it useful and understandable. I provide even more similar materials in the blog newsletter - subscribe and receive a dose of useful information regularly.
Learning any foreign language, including English, requires that first of all you must learn the English alphabet. An alphabet is a collection of letters arranged in a certain order. Letters are the basis of many languages. They are already used to make up words, phrases and sentences that make up our communication. cubes with the English alphabet Knowing the English alphabet will help you feel more confident. For example, foreigners, when they do not understand a particular word, are asked to spell it. Most often they ask for first and last names. Therefore, it is important to know by heart not only the letters of the English alphabet themselves, but also how they are pronounced correctly.
Below is a table of letters of the modern English alphabet. This table is equipped with Russian and English transcription. You can download it to your computer and print it out to make the alphabet easier to learn and repeat at any time.
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Letter |
English transcription |
Russian transcription |
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A a A a |
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B b |
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C c C c |
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D d D d |
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E e E e |
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F f F f |
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G g G g |
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H h H h |
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I i I i |
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Jj Jj |
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K k K k |
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L l L l |
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Mm Mm |
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Nn Nn |
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O o O o |
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P p P p |
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Q q Q q |
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R r R r |
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Ss Ss |
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T t T t |
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U u U u |
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V v V v |
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W w W w |
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X x X x |
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Y y Y y |
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Z z Z z |
Download English alphabet
Have you heard this sound?
The English language has had written language since the fifth century AD. Previously, the English alphabet included only 23 letters. Gradually new ones came - these are Y, J, W. Modern English language takes the Latin alphabet as its basis and this moment consists of 26 letters that represent 6 vowel sounds - A, E, I, O, U, Y, and 20 consonant sounds - B, C, D, F, G, H, J, K, L, M, N, P, Q, R, S, T, V, W, X, Z.
By the way, Y can represent both a consonant and a vowel. The letter W denotes a consonant sound, but is used only in combination with other sounds. In fact, the number of sounds in this language exceeds the number of letters in it. Also, in the Russian language there are no sounds that are pronounced with aspiration, but the sounds of the English language are almost all pronounced with aspiration.
It is worth noting that there are some differences in British and American pronunciation. For example, in the UK the letter Z is called “zed”, and in America it is called “zee”. The most common words in English are E and T, and the least common are Z and Q.
The English language is also known for the fact that it has digraphs. These are signs that indicate the fusion of two letters into one sound.
|
Digraph |
English transcription |
Russian transcription |
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as in the word "the" |
How I opened the transcription
Transcription is what is enclosed in square brackets. This is a graphical representation of how letters should be pronounced. Transcription is always recorded special characters in square brackets. The stress in it is placed before the stressed syllable. Transcription will greatly help you in your further study of the English language, because in this language there are significant differences between the way a word is written and the way it is read.
At the initial stage, having Russian transcription will make your life easier. However, if you decide to learn English seriously, then you should also learn transcription, because only it will be used later.
Further, you will come across transcriptions mainly in dictionaries, because the pronunciation of words is also recorded using transcription. And if in the future you have doubts about how a word is read, then the best solution would be to check the dictionary. English alphabet with transcription
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