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Engoo
Materials
Pronunciation
Minimal Pairs: /b/ & /v/
4
Intermediate
Exercise 1
Pronunciation Practice
Practice pronunciation with your tutor by reading the following words.
/b/ & /v/
berry
Noun
ˈbɛri
a small fruit that grows on some bushes
We are going to the woods to pick all kinds of forest
berries
.
very
Adverb
ˈvɛri
a lot
It's
very
cold today.
It was
very
hot yesterday.
boat
Noun
boʊt
something that people use to travel on water
We hired a
boat
around the city.
We took a
boat
to watch the whales.
vote
Noun
voʊt
an act of showing a choice in an election, competition, etc.
In a democracy, every adult gets one
vote
for president.
best
Adjective
bɛst
better than everyone or everything else
This is the
best
sandwich I've ever seen.
They look like
best
friends.
vest
Noun
vɛst
an item of clothing worn on the upper body that has no sleeves
The groomsmen all wore
vests
under their suits.
bolt
Noun
boʊlt
a streak of lightning
I managed to catch a lightning
bolt
on camera.
volt
Noun
voʊlt
a unit that measures electrical currents
Check how many
volts
are needed to run it before you plug it in.
bet
Noun
bɛt
money or other valuable things that you risk in hopes of winning more
The gamblers placed their
bets
on the table.
vet
Noun
vɛt
a veterinarian; an animal doctor
I had to take my dog to the
vet
this morning after he got into the trash.
bow
Verb
baʊ
to lower the head and the upper body when greeting someone in order to show respect
In Japan, it is common to
bow
when meeting someone.
She
bowed
as soon as she recognized me.
vow
Verb
vaʊ
to promise or say that something will be done
He
vowed
never to drink alcohol again.
The president has
vowed
to protect the nation's interests.
biking
Noun
ˈbaɪkɪŋ
the act of riding a bicycle
We went
biking
the other weekend along the river bank.
Viking
Noun
ˈvaɪkɪŋ
Scandinavian seagoing people famous for raiding and settling in many parts of north-western Europe
The
Vikings
attacked villages up and down the coast.
ban
Verb
bæn
to officially or legally not allow something
All cameras are
banned
in the building.
The company
banned
smoking in the office.
Hunting is
banned
in this area.
Cars are
banned
on this street.
The shoplifters were
banned
from the store for life.
van
Noun
væn
a large vehicle used for transporting goods or people
I recently bought a used
van
.
The delivery
van
should be arriving soon.
Exercise 2
Sentence Practice
Practice pronunciation with your tutor by reading the following sentences.
Jim is not feeling
very
well, and it looks like he ate a poisonous
berry
.
We couldn't decide what to name the
boat
, so we had a
vote
.
I asked the store assistant which
vest
would suit my new shirt the
best
.
Lightning
bolts
can have 100 million to 1 billion
volts
.
I
bet
that the
vet
is going to tell you that there's nothing wrong with your cat.
The knight
bowed
to the queen and
vowed
to protect her with his life.
We went on a
biking
tour of the city and learned all about
Viking
history.
I had to say goodbye to my amazing
van
. They passed the law to
ban
all motor vehicles in my area.
Exercise 3
Find the Sounds
Select the word that contains the sound listed below. There can be more than one correct answer.
Find: /b/
1.
My friend brought home a little lamb.
2.
The plumber came to repair the sink in our bathroom.
3.
He went on holiday for about six weeks.
4.
He was into gambling and owed a big debt.
Find: /v/
5.
I'm hoping for better weather tomorrow so we can visit our grandparents.
6.
There was a massive earthquake in San Francisco.
7.
Can you please record our song and later upload the video on YouTube?
8.
It was believed that Helen of Troy was one of the most beautiful women in the world.
9.
Dracula, the most famous vampire, was actually a real person.
Exercise 4
Tongue Twister
Practice pronunciation with your tutor by reading the following tongue twister(s). Read each tongue twister slowly at first, then try reading it faster.
How many berries could a bare berry carry,
if a bare berry could carry berries?
Well they can't carry berries (which could make you very wary)
but a bare berry carried is more scary!
Vivacious Vivian loved to voice vigorous verses vociferously.
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