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ESL forum >
Grammar and Linguistics > The pronunciation of "THE".
The pronunciation of "THE".
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LittleFatMan
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The pronunciation of "THE".
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What are the rules regarding the correct pronunciation of the word "the"?
I work at a junior high school in Japan, and I have found that Japanese students are taught that "the" is pronounced "thee" at certain times (if the following word begins with a vowel) and "the" at other times (if the following word begins with a consonant).
I am from the US and have never heard of these rules before! Can someone help me clear this up?
Thanks!
Alan
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10 Mar 2010
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yanogator
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You �re almost right, Alan. It �s the sound of the following word, not the letter, that determines the pronunciation of "the."
Thee before a vowel sound
The apple
The other one
The hour (silent "h", so the first sound is a vowel)
thƏ before a consonant sound
thƏ paper
ThƏ Once and Future King (The first sound of "once" is "w")
Bruce |
10 Mar 2010
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donapeter
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we also use THEE when we want to stress a certain world , to highlight its meaning. For example: THEE man , when we want to stress that the MAN is someone important we refer to.
I also agree with yanogator. |
10 Mar 2010
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anahutten
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This is also because of LINKING!
When the next word starts with a vowel, speakers have a tendency to lenghen the final e and link it to the following vowel, almost like it �s the same word, no pause.
theeapple
But you make a short pause when the next word starts with a consonant.
the book.
LINKING is the hardest thing for students to understand, because in class they usually see and study the words separately, but native speakers link all the time!
There �s a great book about it. It �s Whaddaya say? by Nina Weinstein.
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10 Mar 2010
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