PRACTICE IPA

Unit 19: My hungry uncle /m/, /n/ and /ŋ/

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A. How to make the sound /m/

When you say /m/, the air comes through your nose, not your mouth. Look at the diagram. Listen and say the sound. Your lips are together, and there is voicing. Target sound: /mmmmm/

B. Sound and spelling

/m/ is usually spelled m or mm, but sometimes mb or mn. Listen and say these words.

  • me: /miː/
  • more: /mɔːr/
  • lemon: /ˈlem.ən/
  • swim: /swɪm/
  • film: /fɪlm/
  • some: /sʌm/
  • sometimes: /ˈsʌm.taɪmz/

Listen and say these other words with /w/:

  • summer: /ˈsʌm.ər/
  • comb: /koʊm/
  • autumn: /ˈɔː.təm/

Listen and say these phrases and sentences:

  1. sometimes in summer: /ˈsʌm.taɪmz ɪn ˈsʌm.ər/
  2. more for you, most for me: /mɔːr fər ju | moʊst fər miː/
  3. in the middle of the film: /ɪn ðə ˈmɪd.əl əv ðə fɪlm/

C. How to make the sound /n/

When you say /n/, the air comes through your nose, not your mouth. Look at the diagram. Listen and say the sound. Your tongue is pressed against the roof of your mouth behind the teeth, and there is voicing. Target sound:/nnnnn/

D. Sound and spelling

/n/ is usually spelled n, but sometimes nn or kn. Listen and say these words.

  • new: /nuː/
  • now: /naʊ/
  • sun: /sʌn/
  • one: /wʌn/
  • gone: /ɡɑːn/
  • dinner: /ˈdɪn.ər/
  • sunny: /ˈsʌn.i/

Listen and say these other words with /n/:

  • knew: /nuː/
  • know: /noʊ/
  • knife: /naɪf/

Listen and say these phrases and sentences:

  1. a sunny afternoon: /ə ˈsʌn.i ˌæf.tərˈnuːn/
  2. sun and moon: /sʌn ənd muːn/
  3. nine months: /naɪn mʌnθs/

E. How to make the sound /ŋ/

When you say /ŋ/, the air comes through your nose, not your mouth. Look at the diagram. Listen and say the sound. The back of your tongue is pressed against the roof of your mouth, and there is voicing. Target sound: /ŋŋŋŋŋ/
/ŋ/ is usually spelled ng.
The letter n is pronounced /ŋ/ if there is a /k/ or /g/ after it.
ng is sometimes /ŋ/ (e.g. singer) and sometimes /ŋŋ/ (e.g. finger).
nk is always pronounced /ŋk/.

F. Sound and spelling

/n/ is usually spelled n, but sometimes nn or kn. Listen and say these words.

  • evening: /ˈiːv.nɪŋ/
  • long: /lɔːŋ/
  • sing: /sɪŋ/
  • singer: /ˈsɪŋ.ər/
  • thing: /θɪŋ/
  • bank: /bæŋk/
  • thanks: /θæŋks/
  • think: /θɪŋk/
  • uncle: /ˈʌŋ.kəl/

Listen and say these other words with /n/:

  • angry: /ˈæŋ.ɡri/
  • finger: /ˈfɪŋ.ɡər/
  • hungry: /ˈhʌŋ.ɡri/
  • longer: /ˈlɔːŋ.ɡər/
  • single: /ˈsɪŋ.ɡəl/

Listen and say these phrases and sentences:

  1. thinking about things /ˈθɪŋ.kɪŋ əˈbaʊt θɪŋz/
  2. a long evening singing songs /ə lɔːŋ ˈiːv.nɪŋ ˈsɪŋ.ɪŋ sɔːŋz/
  3. a hungry man is an angry man /ə ˈhʌŋ.ɡri mæn ɪz ə n ˈæŋ.ɡri mæn/