Keywords
English pronunciation, phoneme-grapheme mismatch, orthography, phonology, spelling irregularities, second language learning
Abstract
English is notoriously inconsistent in the relationship between its written form (orthography) and spoken form (phonology). This paper explores the complexities of English pronunciation, focusing on the irregular correspondences between letters and sounds. Through phonetic analysis and illustrative examples, it demonstrates how historical linguistic changes, loanwords, and spelling conservatism have created mismatches between graphemes and phonemes. The study highlights the challenges these irregularities pose for learners and proposes strategies for teaching pronunciation effectively. The findings are significant for applied linguistics, phonology, language pedagogy, and orthographic reform.References
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