In this new post, GlobalExam will help you learn everything there is to know about the English alphabet, from A to Z!
→ How to pronounce the English Alphabet.
→ Vowels and consonants of English.
→ Why is it important to learn the English alphabet?
→ Some exercises to help you master the English alphabet.
→ How to learn the English alphabet with General English, GlobalExam’s new program.
Now without further ado, let’s get into it!
How to easily pronounce the English Alphabet correctly
In this first part, you will find a complete chart about the English alphabet and how to pronounce it!
| Letter of the Alphabet (upper/lower case) | Pronunciation | Example in a word |
|---|---|---|
| A a | ei | apple |
| B b | bee | bee |
| C c | cee | cat |
| D d | dee | dog |
| E e | ee | excited |
| F f | ef | flower |
| G g | gee | giraffe |
| H h | aitch / haitch | home |
| I i | i | ice-cream |
| J j | jay | jelly |
| K k | kay | king |
| L l | el | lion |
| M m | em | moon |
| N n | en | night |
| O o | ow | orange |
| P p | pee | panda |
| Q q | cue | queen |
| R r | ar | rabbit |
| S s | ess | serpent |
| T t | tee | tree |
| U u | yu | umbrella |
| V v | vee | violet |
| W w | double yu | walrus |
| X x | eks | xylophone |
| Y y | wye | yoyo |
| Z z | zed | zebra |
What are the vowels and consonants in English?
Firstly we will talk about the English vowels and afterwards the consonants.
2.1 English Vowels
There are 5 vowels in English:
| Letter | Pronunciation |
|---|---|
| A | ei |
| E | ee |
| I | i |
| O | ow |
| U | yu |
Although the letter Y is a vowel in some other languages, it is trickier in English as it can be considered as a vowel and a consonant too.
One of the particularities of the English vowels is that there exists long and short vowels. Each vowel has a long vowel corresponding sound, they’re generally written like so : /a:/ – /e:/ – /i:/ – /o:/ – /u:/
| Vowel | Pronunciation / example |
|---|---|
| /a:/ | long a - like in car |
| /e:/ | long e - like in keep |
| /i:/ | ai - like in bike |
| /o:/ | long o - like in home |
| /u:/ | yu - like in cute |
The last important thing about the English vowels there is to know are what we call “diphthongs”. They are long vowel sounds that merge two different sounds in one. “ei” like in “face” is one of them.
There are seven diphthongs in English:
| Diphthong | Example |
|---|---|
| ei | face |
| ai | fine |
| oi | choice |
| aw | mouth |
| ow | boat |
| ea | fair |
| ie | deer |
2.2 English Consonants
There are 21 consonants in English :
| Letter | Pronunciation |
|---|---|
| B | bee |
| C | cee |
| D | dee |
| F | ef |
| G | gee |
| H | aitch / haitch |
| J | jay / jee |
| K | kay |
| L | el |
| M | em |
| N | en |
| P | pee |
| Q | cue |
| R | ar |
| S | ess |
| T | tee |
| V | vee |
| W | double yu |
| X | eks |
| Y | wye |
| Z | zed |
But there are 7 extra consonant sounds that are very important:
| Consonant Sounds | Pronunciation |
|---|---|
| wh | like in “what” |
| ng | like in sing |
| tsh | like in chips |
| ch | like in shop |
| th | like in teeth (almost like an “f” sound) |
| th | like in mother (almost like a “z” sound) |
| zg | like in treasure |
Learn English Alphabet: Why is it important to learn it?
Learning a language is a very exciting journey. And learning its alphabet is the very first thing to do.The English alphabet is very easy to learn although there are some extra sounds that are not in the alphabet but are sounds of their own (like you saw in the vowels and consonants section)
But why is it so important to learn the alphabet? Why should you absolutely learn the English alphabet? Well here are four reasons why:
Reason#1: It will help you learn how to read
Children start to learn the alphabet to read their own language, why shouldn’t you learn the alphabet too if you want to speak English? The alphabet is the core, the skeleton of the English language and it will help you learn and read the vocabulary, words and useful phrases. You will be able to remember the written forms of different words and thus, remember vocabulary!
Reason#2: It will help your pronunciation
Learning the alphabet and its particularities (like short and long vowels, consonant sounds etc) will help you a lot with pronunciation too: knowing the sounds of English is very important!
Reason#3: It will help with your spelling
Knowing the alphabet will help you not only to read but also to remember how the words are formed: this is called spelling! It is a very good way of increasing your orthographic skills.
Reason#4: Develop your general knowledge of English
Learning the English alphabet along its particularities will give you a great insight into the English language. Why some vowels can be long or short, when and why the “y” is either a consonant or a vowel… there are so many things to explore!
4. Some exercises to help you master the English alphabet
Now that you’ve read all there is to know about the English alphabet, here are some exercises to check if you have truly mastered it.
1.What is the missing letter?
- D E _ G – A _ _ D
- N O P _ – _ H _ J
- U _ W X – Q R _ _
2.What is this sound?
- Example : Potato –> sound : “P”
- sing → ___ night → __
- zoo → ___ dog → __
- Key → __ table → __
- Car → __ fish → __
3.What is this letter?
- – cee → __ – ef → __
- – yu → __ – i → __
- – ei → __ – wye → __
- – em → __ – cue → __
- – eks → __ – tee → __
5. Our tips to learn quickly and efficiently the English alphabet
Tip#1: Find pangrams
What are pangrams? They are sentences with all of the letters of the alphabet! They can help you train your writing skill and memory. The most famous English pangram is :
“The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog”
Tip#2: Create or download flashcards
To make flashcards with the letters of the alphabet, you will only need 26 pieces of paper and images. Write the letter of the alphabet on one side and an illustration + the pronunciation on the other side.
You can find inspiration online or even draw your own illustrations!
Flashcards are a great method to improve your memorization.
Tip#3: Find mini games about the alphabet
There are a lot of websites that provide mini games for ESL (English as a Second Language) learners. Hop on websites such as Kahoot, Quizlet or BBC learning English to find fun activities to practice your alphabet.
Tip#4: look at videos and listen to songs about the alphabet
There are tons of songs and videos online about the English alphabet and they are a great support if you have an auditive memory or if you just want to sing along with the alphabet song!
Tip#5: learn the IPA
It’s the International Phonetic Alphabet. It will give you tons of resources regarding pronunciation, diphthongs, stresses etc as well as give you a perfect equivalent in your own language, so you can truly understand the sounds of the English alphabet.
Learn English thanks to our General English program
If you’ve decided to start learning English then you’ve come to the right place. Whether you’re a beginner or an intermediate learner, someone who is completely new to the English language or someone that has a bit of knowledge then our General English program is made just for you. It will allow you to have access to:
- Academic training that is fun and engaging so you can stay focused and motivated.
- Detailed corrections that will ensure you progress safely and leave nothing unexplained behind.
- Revision sheets that are accessible every time you need in your account.
Our program is tailored to your level so your progress is meaningful and it will help you gain confidence in your learnings. So, what are you waiting for? Hop on with us and let’s learn English together!
