Below is a text that should help those who teach
"advanced" students. I also strongly recommend that
all students own a good bilingual dictionary.
Paul Rogers
LEARNING TO SPELL IN ENGLISH
     Good writing in English should begin with good
spelling. Although advances in technology have given
us "Spell Check", it is the opinion of this author
that learning to spell well will lead to a "command"
of the English language. 
      However, learning to spell correctly is
difficult even for native English speakers. English
words are too often not spelled the way in which they
are pronounced, primarily due to the fact that English
is a mixture of other languages, such as German,
French, Spanish, and 
 who knows?
     It may be said that learning to spell depends
upon good pronunciation:  "The most effective way to
improve spelling is to improve pronunciation?"
Reference Manual For The Office, by Clifford R. House
and Kathie Sigler, 1989, Southwest Publishing Company,
Cincinnati, Ohio. 

      For EFL/ESL students, these difficulties in
spelling are compounded by the fact that one's accent
hinders one's ability to reproduce certain English
sounds which do not exist in one's native language.
And this problem, in turn, can lead to an inability to
hear and understand many words when spoken out loud. 
     The following is short list of such words:
read - "Read the word out loud."
red - "The house is red."
read - "Yesterday, I read the newspaper."
lead - "The conductor leads the orchestra."
lead - "Bullets are made out of lead."
led - "He led them through the woods."
     
     This chapter, then, is aimed at providing a
phonetic framework for the EFL/ESL student in learning
basic English spelling. Although the text focuses on
Spanish speaking students, it is expected that
students whose first language is not Spanish will be
able to write out the appropriate phonetic spelling
after hearing it from the teacher or from another
sound source.
     
A. "The Long and Short of It"
     Review of the vowels - a, e, i, o, u, and
sometimes y. 
    English vowels are divided into two sounds:
long and short. 
     1. Long = A vowel is said to be long when the
sound made is longer than the sound made for ...short
vowels! Plus the sound is made along the bridge of the
nose. Long a, e, i, and o are pronounced exactly like
their names; long u is pronounced like the u in tube,
and long y is pronounced like the word eye.
     2. Short = A vowel is said to be short when it is
pronounced using less air than long vowels, with the
sound located low in the throat (in the "Adam's
apple"). The short a has three sounds, whereas the
other vowels only have one specific short sound.

     Note: When the vowel E is at the end of a word or
follows an E, the sound is changed from short to long.

           PRACTICE 
LONG A  = "ei" 
all "ay" words:
bay (bei) - bahia
day (dei) - día
play (plei) - jugar o tocar
say (sei) - decir
way (wei) - metodo, via

cape bare fare plane

SHORT A = 3 SOUNDS - 
     1. Like the letter a in the word "cachucha" -
bar - barra
car - carro
far - lejos

     2. "ae" -
cap (caep) - cachucha
bad (baed) - malo
cat (caet) - gato
man (maen) - hombre
     
     3. Like the "o" in "octubre"
     all (al)
     ball (bal)
     call (cal)
     fall (fal)
     hall (jal)
     tall (tal)
     wall (iual)


LONG E =  "i"
be (bi) - ser, estar
he (hi) - el
me (mi) - mi o me
she (shi) - ella
we (wi) - nosotros
sheep (ship) - oveja

SHORT E = Like the e in "en"
get -obtener
ten - diez
hen - gallina
wet - mojado
when - cuando

LONG I = like the word "hay" -
mine (mayn) - mio
nine (nayn) - nueve
time (taym) - tiempo

SHORT I =  "ie"
fit (fiet) - caber
give* (giev) - dar
hit (hiet) - golpear
it (iet) - eso
live* (liev) - vivir
sit (siet) - sentar
*exception to the rule of e at the end of the word!

LONG O = like the  "o" in Spanish-
or (or) - o
before (bifor) - antes
more (mor) - más
old (old) - viejo/a

SHORT O =  'a' or like the  "o" in "octubre"
of (av) - de
off (af) - lejos
on (an) - en, sobre
other (ather) - otro
 
LONG U = just like the letter "u" in Spanish -
tube (tub) - tubo
fuel (ful) - combustible
cure (cur) - curarse
glue (glu) - pegamento
 
SHORT U = Like the "a" in "tia"
up (ap) - arriba
under (andr) - debajo
us (as) - nos
bus (bas) - camión

LONG Y = "hay"
by (bay) - por
cry (cray) - llorar
my (may) - mio/a
why (iay) - porque

SHORT Y =  "i" 
body (badi) - cuerpo
pretty (preti) - bonita
necessary (nesesari) - necesario
city (siti) - ciudad

 PRONUNCIATION OF CERTAIN CONSONANTS

1. The soft G and the  J - 
The intial sound is made by forcing air along the
space between the back teeth while, at the same time,
making a face that can only be described as a little
grin. G is completed with a long e, J with a long a.
garage (garadch) - garage
George (yiorch) - Jorge
orange (orandch) - naranja
juice (yus) - jugo

2. The sound of the H is made by blowing out air in a
sigh, with the mouth slightly open, similar to the J
en español.
hello (jelo) - ola
hi (jai) - ola
help (jelp) - ayudar

Q - is usually followed by a U, and is pronounced KW 
(or like kiu in Spanish).
Queen (kiu-in) - reina
quiet (kwayet) -  silencio

R - The English r is not rolled 
run (ran) - correr
rain (rein) - lluvia


V - The sound of the V is made by placing the two
front top teeth upon the lower lip while forcing air
out making a vibration.
Do not confuse the V with a B!	
     every (evri) - cada	
     valley (vali) - valle
     Victoria
     vehicle

Y - When the Y is a consonant, it is pronounced like
"ll" in Spanish.
yes (lles) - si
yellow (llelo) - amarillo
you (lliu) - tu, Usted, Ustedes
young (llang) - joven
       
     COMBINATIONS OF CONSONANTS

CH - 
three sounds
1. Just like the CH in Spanish-
chair (cheir) - silla
church (chuerch) - iglesia
2. Like SH - pronounced like the CH but while blowing
out more air -
 Chevrolet (shavrolei)
Chevron (shavran)
Charlotte (sharlat)
3. Like K -
chemical (kamakal) - quimico
cholera (kolera) - colera

S followed by a consonant S___
There is no E in front of the English words!
school (skul) - escuela
space (spes) - espacio
station (steishan) - estación
star (staer) - estrella
student (studant) - estudiante
study (stadi) - estudiar
slow (slo) - despacio
speak (spik) - hablar
sports (sports) - deportes
start (staert) - empesar
stay (stei) - dejar
stop (stap) - parar

SH - See above under CH -
     She sells seashells, down by the seashore
     (ella vende conchas en la playa)
 
TH  - The pronunciation of TH is very comical and must
be practiced with a sense of humor!!! Stick your
tongue out and blow!!

1. With a vibration:
the (tha) - el, la
other (athr) - otro
that (thaet) - ese
this (thies) - este, esta
they (thei) - ellos
there (their) - alli, alla
their (their ¡también¡) - de ellos
therefore (theirfor) - por eso

2. Without a vibration
three (thri) - tres
thirsty (thiersti) - sed
thin (thien) - flaco
think (thienk) - pensar
thumb (tham) - pulgar
Thursday (thiersdei) - jueves

WH - 
two sounds
1.  Omit the  W and just pronounce the H
whole (jol) - entero	Also-hole(jol) = ollo
who (ju) - quién
2.  Omit the H, 
what (iuat) - que
when (iuan) - cuando
where (iuer) - donde
why (iuai) - porque

       VOWEL COMBINATIONS
AI - TWO SOUNDS:
     Short like the letter e in 'best'-
again - agen (otra vez)
against - agenst (contra)
     Long like the long a -
gain - gein (ganar)
main - mein (principal)
pain - pein (dolor)
rain - rein (lluvia)
stain - stein (mancha)
train - trein (tren)	

AW - LIKE THE SHORT O
awning - onning - (toldo)
dawn - donn - (madrugada)
lawn - lonn - (césped)
yawn - iuonn - (bostezo)

EA - four sounds:
   1. Like the long e:
bean (bin) - frijol
clean (klin) - limpiar
clear (klir) - claro
dear (dir) - venado y querido/a
each (ich) - cada
ear (ir) - oreja
eat (it) - comer
hear (hir) - escuchar
heat (jit) - calor
lean (lin) - magro
meal (mil) - comida
mean (min) - significar, intentar, y malo
near (nir) - cerca
read (rid) - leer
teach (tich) - ensenar
year (llir) - año

   2. Like the short e:
bread (bred) - pan
dead (ded) - muerto
head (jed) - cabeza

    3. like "ur" when followed by r
early (erli) - temprano
earth (erth) - tierra
learn (lern) ready - listo

   3. Like the long a:
bear - oso
great - grande
pear - pera
wear - usar ropa

EE - The same as a long e:
bee (bi) - abeja
feel (fil) - sentar
exception: been (ben) past particple of be

*EI - Like the long ‘a’
     neighbor
     weigh
*IE - Long e
     believe
     relieve

** THE I BEFORE E RULE:
I before E except after C -
BUT the following are the exceptions
either, foreign, heifer, height, leisure, neither,
seize, weird.
An acronym to help remember:
Neither leisured foreigner nor financier could seize
the heifer on the weird heights (compliments of my 7th
grade English teacher, Miss Prebble). 	



OA - Like the long o:
boar (bor) jabalí
boat (bot) - barco
coat (cot) - chaqueta
goat - chivo
throat - garganta
 
OO - Two sounds:
Short like the short u:
look - mirar
book - libro
cook - cocinar
Long, like the long u:   
zoo - zoologico
too - también

Ou and sometimes Ow sound like au:
loud - alto
out -  a fuera
“out loud” - en voz alta	
How  - como
brown - café (el color)
cow - baca     
now - ahorra

Ow also sounds like the long o:
crow (cuervo) = cro
grow (crecer) = gro
flow (fluir) = flo
low (bajo) = lo
glow (lucir) = glo
grow (gro) = crecer
slow (despacio) = slo
 






VOWELS COMBINED WITH CONSONANTS
AUGH - two sounds:
1. ____ff:
laugh (laff) - reir
2 mute:
caught (cat) - atrapó
taught (tat) - enseño

EIGH - two sounds:
1. like "eye" -
height (hayt) - altura
 2. like the long a -
neighbor (naybor) - vecino
weigh (iue) - pesar
weight (iuet) - pesa

IGH - Like the long i:
fight (fait) - pelear
high - (jai) - alto
light (lait) - luz
night (nait) - noche
right (rait) - derecho, justo, y correcto

ER, IR y UR - 
her (jer)bird - pajarro
sir
fur
     
OUGH - five groups:
1. short o- 
bought (compró, pasado de buy)
fought (peleó, pasado de fight)
ought (debe)
sought (buscó, pasado de seek)
thought (pensó - pasado de "think")
2. long u -
through - através
3. ou -
bough - brazo del árbol
plough - arado
4. __ff
cough - tos
enough - bastante
rough - tosco
tough - duro, difícil
5. o 
although - aunque
though - aunque

OULD - Like the short u, and the L is mute: 	
1. could (kud) - pasado de "can"- poder
          I could walk to the store - 
          Yo podría caminar a la tienda

2. should (shud) - condicional o deber
   You should do it - 
           Ud. debería hacerlo
     
3. would (iuud) - subjunctivo
       She said she would go
       Ella dijo que iría 
 

PRACTICE:
     
1. Short I versus "ee" -
La "I" corta-"ie"-versus el sonido de "I"
did (pasado de "do")    deed (una acción)
is (el es)        ease (tranquilidad)
it (eso)          eat (comer)
live (vivir)     leave (salir)
hit (golpear)  heat (calor)
sit (sentarse)  seat (asiento)
ship (barco)   sheep (oveja)
pit (hueso)     Pete (Pedro)
fit (caber)      feet (pies)
still (todavía) steal (stil) robar - steel (stil)
acero



2. TH verss T
La "TH" y "T"
thigh (muslo) tie (corbata)	
thanks (gracias)tanks (tanques)
bath (baño)    bat (bata)
three (tres)tree (arbol)
those (a ellos)toes (dedos de pie)
booth (puesto)boot (bote)
there (allí)tear (rasgar)

3. La J y Y
joke (broma)yolk (yema)
jam (mermelada)yam (ñame), y ham (jamón)
jail (carcel)Yale (una universidad)
Jess (Jessica)yes (sí)
	

4. B y V
bat (bata)vat (barríl)
boat (barco)vote (votar)
boys (muchachos) voice (voz)
best (el mejor)vest (corpino)
ban (prohibición)van (panel)
curb (crila)curve (curva)

COGNATES
    Cognates are words which are very simiar in at
least two languages. English, of course, contains many
words that are similar to Spanish, French, German,
Norwegian, Italian and Greek. Below is a list for
Spanish speakers: 

1. ___________ción changes to ________tion (shan)
terminación                           termination
descripción                            description
cooperación                            ???
atención                                 ???

3. ________mente changes to _________ly (li)
casualmente                            casually
usualmente                             usually
rápidamente                            ???
  
4. "_____co" words omit the o in English:
Atlántico                                 Atlantic
Pácifico                                    Pacific
metálico                                  metallic

5. words that end in "al" are the same:
manual
total
capital
musical
normal
natural (nachural)
legal
universal

6. "__________ente" words remove the "e"
accidente                       accident
continente                     continent
cliente                           client
evidente                         ???

7. Some words that end in "a" in Spanish omit the a in
English:
artista                            artist
dentista                          dentist
lista                                ???

8. "____mento"- omits the "o"
implemento                     implement
monumento                     ???
fragmento                       ???

9. "_________ante"- omits the  e
abundante                       abundant
consonante                       ???
dominante                        ???




10. "___ia" changes to "_______e" and the e is silent.
policía           police (polis)
licencía          license (laisans)
 

11. ___oso changes to _______ous (as)
famoso                           famous
delicioso                         delicious
glorioso                          ??????

12. _____rio changes to ___ry (ri)
adversario                       adversary
aniversario                      anniversary

13. ___idad  changes to__ty (ti)
actividad                         activity 
ciudad                             ???

14. ___ar s changes to ___ate (eit)
dictar                           dictate
dominar                       dominate

15. Many words that begin with "es" in Spanish omit
the "e" in English.
escuela                         school
estudiar                        study
estudiante                     student

     CONFUSING WORDS 
bat (baet) murcielago
but (bat) pero	
bad (baed) malo

bear (beir) oso		 
bare (beir) desnudo	
beer (bir) cervesa

been (ben) pasado de be	 
bean (bin) frijol		
bin (bien) arcón

bow(bau) inclinarse	
bow (boh) arco

boys (boiz) muchachos
voice (vois) voz

buy (bai) comprar		
by (bai) por			
bye (bai) adios

chip (chiep) - nacho, o potato chip			
cheap (chip) barato
 
closet (klasat) ropero	
closed (clozd) cerrado

clothes (kloz) ropa		
close (kloz) cerrar		
close (klos) cerca

cost (kast) cuesta		
coast (kost) costa

dear (dir) querida		
deer (dir) venado

dip (diep) bañar		
deep (dip) profundo

here (jir) aquí
hear (jir) escuchar

kiss (kies) beso		
keys (keez) llaves

of (av) de			
off (aff) apagado

ship (shiep) barco		
sheep (ship) oveja

shot (shoet) disparo	
shut (shat) cerrado

sit (siet) sentarse	         
seat (sit) asiento

soap (sop) jabón		
soup (sup) caldo, sopa

thirsty (thiersti) sediento     
Thursday (thersdei) jueves

thirty (therti) treinte	
dirty (dierti) sucio

tree (tri) árbol	 	
three (thri) tres

wash (uash) lavar		
watch (uatch) mirar	
y watch reloj en la muñeca

wear (ueir) usar ropa		
where - donde		
were (uer) pasado de be

which (uich) cual		
witch (uich) bruja

wind (uiend) viento	
wind (uaind) enrollar

work (uerk) trabajar	
walk (uak) caminar

world (uerld) mundo		
word (uerd) palabra


Exercise:  Write the correct word: 
1. It is ___ for a ___ to bite you.
bat (baet)  but (bat)  bad (baed)  
2. The ____ was drinking the ____.
bear (beir) bare (beir)   beer (bir)  
2. Have you ____ to the food ___ to get the ____?
been (ben)  bean (bin)  bin (bien)
3. Robin Hood began to __ before he shot his ___.  
bow(bau)  bow (boh) 
3. The ___ has a loud ____. 
boys (boiz)  voice (vois)  
4. If you go __ the store, please __ some groceries.
buy(bai) by (bai) bye (bai) 
5. We should get the ___ potato ___because we do not
have much money. 
chip (chiep) - cheap (chip)  
6. Bring the ____  in the ____, and please ____ the
door.
closet (klasat)  closed (clozd)  
clothes (kloz)  close (kloz) close (klos)  
7. If you ____ your hand ____into the tub, you will
find the plug.
dip (diep)  deep (dip)  
8. Can you ___me if I stand ___?
here (jir) hear (jir)  
9. "Give me the ____", she said.
kiss (kies)  keys (keez)  
10. Turn ___ the  light.
of (av) off (aff)


       
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