Dealing with Sounds

English for Today by Ganiu Abisoye Bamgbose (Dr GAB)

Dealing with Sounds

Senate: /senit/ or /sineit/

In English, sounds are different from letters. This explains why letter c can generate or be a part of four different sounds as seen in: cake, cell, machine and church.

The first few weeks of the English Diet will focus on sound-letter relationships in different word contexts. Note that the aim of these lessons is not to help you speak like native speakers of English. Why would you even want to, anyway? The goal is to help you articulate words correctly just so that we can understand when other speakers of English across the world use the language, and we can be clearly understood by them.

Be reliably informed that the “e” in senate is pronounced like the “e” in “end” and the “a” which could be schwa sound is pronounced more like the “i” in ink. So, say senate /senit/; not /sineit/.

English for Today will, henceforth, be posted on weekdays.

WELCOME BACK TO CLASSROOM!
GAB