How to Study English Vowels. Method 1: From Sound to Spelling

This method proceeds from vowel sounds and shows typical spelling variants for them. Two lists of spelling examples are given below: one for the sound [i:], the other for the sound [i]. Expand the chart on vowel combinations given in English Vowel Sounds providing more examples of words for vowel sounds.

Этот метод идет от гласных звуков и показывает типичные варианты написания для них. Два списка примеров написания даны ниже: один для звука [i:], другой для звука [i]. Расширьте таблицу сочетаний гласных букв, данную в материале English Vowel Sounds, добавив больше примеров слов на гласные звуки.

SOUND [i:]

Spelling examples: me, equal, Japanese, remake, see, sea, piece, seize, police.

The sound [i:] is represented in writing by the following letters and letter combinations. (Звук [i:] представлен на письме следующими буквами и буквосочетаниями.)

Letter E

Under stress, in the root: (Под ударением, в корне слова)

me, be, he, she, we, eve, these, scheme, theme, scene, obscene, Pete, delete, compete, complete, obsolete, Crete, concrete, discrete, extreme, supreme, Steve, intervene, precede, recede;

equal, even, evening, evil, decent, recent, region, meter, Peter, secret, media, demon, detail, female, legal, genius, senior, convenient, frequent, veto, premium, previous.

Under stress, in the suffix: (Под ударением, в суффиксе)

Japanese, Chinese, Portuguese, Lebanese, Vietnamese, Maltese, Burmese, manganese.

Stressed or unstressed, in the prefix: (Под ударением или без ударения, в приставке)

remake, retell, rewrite, prehistoric, prewar, premarital, premature, prepaid.

Combination EE

Under stress, in the root:

see, flee, free, agree, degree, knee, feel, peel, seed, feed, proceed, succeed, exceed, seen, keen, teen, seek, peek, seem, screen, deep, creep, sleep, fleet, meet, greet, sleeve.

Under stress, in the suffix:

trainee, refugee, referee, addressee.

Combination EA

Under stress, in the root:

sea, flea, tea, peace, beach, teach, lead, read, beak, peak, leak, freak, deal, meal, reveal, seal, steal, beam, cream, scream, team, bean, lean, clean, heap, leap, reap, please, release, increase, tease, meat, beat, heat, beneath, breathe, creature, leave.

Combination IE

Under stress, in the root:

piece, niece, field, shield, yield, achieve, believe, grieve, relieve, retrieve, belief, grief, relief, brief, chief, thief, fiend, siege, shriek, priest.

Combination EI

Under stress, in the root:

seize, receive, receipt, deceive, conceive, conceit, perceive, ceiling, leisure, Leigh.

Letter I

In words of foreign origin: (В словах иностранного происхождения)

police, gasoline, machine, magazine, marine, routine, vaccine, sardine, prestige, regime, elite, naive, pizza, ski, liter, fatigue, intrigue, antique, physique, technique, unique.

Also the sound [i:]: key, people, Aesop, Oedipus.

SOUND [i]

Spelling examples: it, kiss, justice, enough, English, remove, rocket, symbol, antonym, lady, Annie, honey.

The sound [i] is represented in writing by the following letters and letter combinations.

Letter I

Under stress or unstressed, in the root, prefix, suffix or ending:

it, bit, fit, sit, miss, kiss, tip, lip, rip, pick, kick, sick, pin, sin, dinner, bring, sing, king, list, wrist, fill, kill, hill, trim, river, habit, unit, consist, ignore, inform, infinity, justice, classic, public, terrible, English, swimming.

Letter E

Under stress or unstressed, in the root, prefix, suffix or ending:

enough, effect, eleven, electric, emotion, English, despair, pretty, depart, remove, repair, repeat, reply, preliminary, prepare, security, illness, madness, actress, timeless, bullet, rocket, fixes, bridges, added, counted.

Letter Y

Under stress or unstressed, in the root:

symbol, Lydia, lyrics, myriad, hymn, nymph, pygmy, pyramid, Sydney, sympathy, synthesis, synchronize, crystal, system, typical, tyranny, mystery, myth, rhythm, antonym, synonym, pseudonym, acronym.

Unstressed, in the suffix:

lady, family, history, city, duty, Harry, carry, marry, hurry, worry, lovely, sunny, funny, happy, busy, dirty, pretty, any, many, very, nicely, hardly, Larry, Billy, Mary, Terry, Abby.

Combination IE

Unstressed, in the suffix:

Annie, Carrie, Katie, Abbie, Elsie, auntie, girlie, dearie, sweetie.

Combination EY

Unstressed, in the suffix:

honey, chimney, hockey, journey, money, monkey, pulley, trolley, valley, Sydney, Odyssey, Casey, Abbey.

Continue this work with the other vowel sounds. See Spelling Patterns for Vowels in the section Writing.

Продолжите эту работу с другими гласными звуками. См. Spelling Patterns for Vowels в разделе Writing.