Hi everyone! In this video, you'll learn how to pronounce the EE in bead and the
IH in bid vowels with a minimal pair listening quiz.
The EE in bead and the IH in
bid are two American English vowels that sound very similar, and most of my
clients have difficulty with them. Some of my clients substitute the EE vowel for
IH, so a word like live becomes leave. Or some of them substitute the EH vowel for IH,
so a word like bid becomes bed. In this video, I'll discuss how to make the EE in
bead and the IH and bid vowels, and then you can test your skills with a listen
and repeat quiz. First the EE vowel. EE. You probably have this vowel in your native
language. To make this vowel, the tongue tip is down and touching the back of the
bottom front teeth. The middle part of the tongue is arched up towards the roof
of the mouth. The tongue is tense and spread flat in the mouth. The lips spread
out slightly. EE. Listen to how I pronounce the EE vowel in the word see. See. The EE
vowel is held out, and the pitch of my voice goes down.
See. It's not see, with a flat, clipped EE sound. It's see, with an elongated sound
that glides down and pitch. In American English, it is common to hold out the EE
sound when it occurs at the end of a word and glide down and pitch. See. Now IH.
You may not have this vowel in your native language. IH. To make this vowel, the
tongue is in almost the same position as it is for EE. The tongue tip can stay down,
behind the back of the bottom front teeth.
The middle of the tongue is still arched up towards
the roof of the mouth, but it's not as high as it was for EE - it's a bit lower.
The jaw also drops just a bit for IH, and the lips relax.
There is also less tension in the tongue, lips, and a jaw for the IH vowel, and this is
one of the main differences between EE and IH. EE is a tense vowel. There's more
tension in your tongue and other articulators when you say this vowel.
And IH is a lax vowel - much less tension in the articulators when you
say this vowel. The lips and tongue should relaxed, and the middle of the
tongue drops just a bit. IH. EE: tension. IH: relaxed. EE. IH. EE. IH. EE. IH.
If you can't hear the difference between these two vowels - don't panic! Watch this video
over and over again and take the listening quiz that will follow every
day for a week or two. You will get better at hearing the difference between
EE and IH, and your ability to say EE and IH will improve. Now the listening quiz.
We're going to use minimal pairs for this quiz. Minimal pairs are two words
that differ by just one sound. So the words sit and seat are minimal pairs -
those words differ by one sound only, the vowel. The words big and bit are also
minimal pairs. Those words differ by one sound only - the final consonant. Minimal
pairs are a great way to practice difficult sounds. You'll see two words on
the screen. I'll say one of the words, and you decide which word I said. Repeat the
word after I say it so you can practice both listening and speaking. Imitate
exactly what you hear.
Thanks so much for watching, and let me know if you would like some help with
the EE in bead and the IH in bid vowels.