Today in the Fun Easy English classroom you are going to
learn to pronounce the sound a as in
the words hat,
jam,
pan,
ran. Remember "practice makes
perfect" if you want to improve your English speaking ability.
Hey
if you cannot understand something on this page,
then use the Fun Easy English
dictionary
(opens in a new window)
Pronounce the sound a as in
the words hat,
jam,
pan,
ran. Watch the following pronunciation
videos and learn to pronounce this sound correctly.
Video:
American English Pronunciation Lesson 8
Spelling
a
abbey,
after,
an,
animal, bag,
bath, battle,
bland, fast,
glass, hat,
jab, jam,
lamb, man,
pan, ran,
stand, tap,
valley
Note: the red
letters all have the same sound
Sound:
Voiced and Unvoiced
This is a VOICED sound which means Your Vocal Cords DO
vibrate when making this sound.
You CAN
LISTEN to your Vocal Cords vibrating if you cover
your ears with your hands.
Try covering your ears with your hands as Akiko is doing in
the picture.
Now make the sound of this lesson. Can you listen to your vocal cords vibrating?
VERY GOOD
You CAN
FEEL your Vocal Cords vibrating if
you place your hands on your neck.
Try placing your hands on your neck as Akiko is doing in the
picture.
Now make the sound of this lesson. Can you feel your vocal
cords vibrating?
VERY GOOD
The following diagram shows the most important parts of your
head and mouth used for pronouncing the sounds of English.
It also shows the location of your Vocal Cords.
Position: Mouth, lips,
and tongue
The following descriptions explain the proper mouth, lips,
and tongue position when you make this sound.
Mouth
Your
mouth should be relaxed.
Lips
Your lips should be unrounded.
Tongue
The front part of your tongue should be in the lower part of your
mouth.
Practice video
Listen to the video and practice repeating each word.
Pronunciation practice words
Look at your mouth in a mirror and practice pronouncing
the following words. Make sure your mouth, lips, and
tongue are in their proper positions.
after
an
animal
bag
bland
fast
hat
jam
lamb
pan
ran
stand
Note: the red letters all
have the same sound (watch the video above)
Test: Pronunciation word test
Choose the correct
word from the pronunciation practice word list above to
complete each sentence.
1.
I like to read a book ________ I eat breakfast.
2.
A cheetah can run very ________.
3.
He ________ all the way home from the store.
4.
The ________ was full of groceries.
5.
They had to ________ in line for hours.
6.
The food was very ________.
7.
She likes to wear a ________ during the afternoon.
8.
It is common to cook vegetables in a ________.
9.
Americans often eat bread with butter and ________.
10.
An aardvark is an interesting ________.
From
YOUR Teacher:
Nasal Sound
The sound in this lesson is pretty much a nasal sound
which means it kind of comes from your mouth and your
nose.
Additional Lessons
About These
Lessons
The following classroom lessons are great for students
who want additional conversation, listening, and reading
practice.
Conversation Lesson -
Intermediate Level. Let's
Learn English conversation lesson
with a conversation video, a video script, audio
listening practice, and a new
words section.
Conversation Lesson
19 - Movie Night
(Intermediate -
Conversation, Listening, Reading)
In this lesson Anna loves movies! And Pete has invited
her to see one with him. But is that a good idea?
Lesson Video
Watch the video and then read the video script.
Video Script
Anna: Hi, can you tell me how to get to your movie theater?
(Movie theater worker on the phone gives directions.)
Anna: Oh, that’s easy. OK, thank you. Bye.
(Anna meets Pete outside of the theater.)
Anna: Hi, Pete! Thanks for the movie invitation.
Pete: Yeah, sure Anna.
Anna: I love movies. I love the plot! I love the set design! I love the
costumes! I love -
Pete: Anna, I take movies very seriously. You're not one of those people who
talks during a movie, are you?
Anna: No.
Pete: Good.
Professor Bot: Anna loves movies. And..she loves talking about movies. And Pete
doesn’t sound happy about that.
But he’s trying to be polite. He can do that with Indirect Questions.
We can ask a question directly: Where is your movie theater? or indirectly as
Anna does:
Anna: Can you tell me how to get to your movie theater?
They have the same meaning. But indirect questions are more polite and a little
more formal.
Many indirect questions begin with:
Can/Could you tell me…
Would/Do you mind…
Would it be possible…
or
Do you know…
Hmm, do you know if Anna will stop talking? I sure don’t.
Keep watching. And, this time look for indirect questions that begin with: Would
you mind…
Anna: I love the smell of popcorn. I love seats that rock.
(Her chair makes noise as she rocks back and forth.)
Pete: I love when people are quiet.
(The lights go down and we see movie light on their faces.)
Anna: Ooh look, the previews are starting. I love to see what movies are coming
out. Oh, this one looks good!
Pete: Anna, the previews are part of the movie experience. So, would you mind
not talking?
Anna: Oh, sure, sure.
(Anna eats her popcorn loudly. Then, she begins drinking her milkshake loudly.)
Pete: Anna, I was wondering: are you almost finished with that?
Anna: No. There's still a lot of milkshake at the bottom.
(She drinks loudly again. And again.)
Pete: Anna, do you mind not drinking so loudly?
Anna: I'll try. But it's really thick.
(She moves the straw around and makes even more noise.)
Pete: Anna, what are you doing?!
(A person in the audience shushes Pete.)
Person in audience: Shh!
(Pete tells the person what was happening.)
Pete: I’m not the one making all the noise.
Person in audience: Shhh!
Anna: I’m done now.
(Anna now holds many noisy boxes of candy. Finally, she chooses a candy bar.)
Pete: Anna, would you mind opening that a little bit more quietly?
Anna: I'll try.
(She tries to open it quietly but cannot.)
Pete: Anna, just give it to me!
(He tears it open with his mouth. It makes a loud noise. Again, someone in the
audience thinks he is making too much noise.)
Person in audience: Shhh!
Pete: (to the person) It's not mine. I'm opening it for her. Here.
Person in audience: Shhhhhh!!
(He gives the candy bar quickly back to her.)
Pete: Here!
Anna: Thanks, Pete.
Pete: Now, would you mind being more quiet?
(The light of someone’s phone shines in Pete’s face. He asks the person a
question.)
Pete: Excuse me, would you mind turning down your phone light?
(Then, Anna’s phone rings.)
Anna: Oh, sorry! I forgot to turn my phone off.
(She tries to turn it off but drops it under the seat.)
Anna: Oh no! I dropped it. Where is it?
(She looks under the seat in front of her.)
Pete: Anna, can you please turn off your phone?
(She speaks to the person Pete just asked to turn their phone light down.)
Anna: Excuse me, would you mind lending me your phone light for a minute?
Pete: No! I’ll get it!
Person in audience: Shhhhh!
(People shush Pete again. He finally has had enough.)
Pete: Look, people, I’m not the noisy one here! So, you all need to shush the
right person. And I should know about shushing! I shush people all the time!!
Security guard: Excuse me, sir. You can’t yell in a movie theater. Would you
mind coming with me?
Pete: You're kicking me out? Me? But I’m always the quiet one in the movie!
(The security guard takes Pete out. Anna watches the movie and eats quietly from
her bag of popcorn.)
Anna: Pete should know better. You have to be quiet in a movie theater. Shh, the
movie’s starting!
Professor Bot: Well, that’s a surprise! I thought Anna would be the noisy one.
Well, she was … with her food. But Pete did all of the talking. At least he
tried to be polite by using indirect questions.
Listening
Now practice listening to only the audio portion of the conversation.
Practice
Now, you try it!
When you are in a new city or place, you may have many questions. For example,
maybe you are visiting a museum, restaurant or some other place. You don't know
how to find it. So, you ask someone a question. Then, when you arrive at the
place, you have more questions.
Read about indirect questions below. Then, use the Comments section to practice
making indirect questions!
Indirect Questions
Direct questions are questions that we can ask
family, friends, or other people with whom we are close.
Ex: “Where is the movie theater?”
Indirect questions are polite and a little more
formal. We use them when we talk to strangers or people we are not close with
and in work situations.
Ex: “Could you tell me where the movie theater is?”
Common indirect phrases:
Can/Could you tell me…
Would you mind…
Would it be possible
Is there any chance….
Do you know…
Do you have any idea...
Word Order
When we make indirect questions, the word order changes. Look carefully at the
sentences below.
Direct: Why didn’t Penelope come?
Indirect: Can/could you tell me why Penelope didn’t come?
WRONG: Can/could you tell me why didn’t Penelope come?
Direct: Where is my phone?
Indirect: Do you know where my phone is?
WRONG: Do you know where is my phone?
Direct: Where is he?
Indirect: Would you mind telling me where he is?
WRONG: Would you mind telling me where is he?
Using do/does/did
For direct questions with do, does or did, this word is removed from the noun
clause in the indirect question. (The noun clause in the first example below is
"what time the meeting starts.")
Direct: What time does the meeting start?
Indirect: Do you have any idea what time the meeting starts?
WRONG: Do you have any idea what time does the meeting start?
Direct: Where do you want to sit?
Indirect: Can you tell me where you want to sit?
WRONG: Can you tell me where do you want to sit?
Using can/could
With some direct questions that begin with can or could, this word is removed
from the indirect question.
Direct: Can/could I come to the movie?
Indirect: Would it be possible for me to come to the movie?
WRONG: Would it be possible can I come to the movie?
Direct: Can/could you share your popcorn?
Indirect: Would you mind sharing your popcorn?
WRONG: Would you mind can you share your popcorn?
“Yes or No” Questions
A “yes or no” question is a question whose expected answer is “yes” or “no.”
For "yes or no" direct questions without what, where, why, who, when and how, we
use if or whether in the indirect question.
Direct: Does Anna take movies seriously?
Indirect: Do you know if Anna takes movies seriously?
Indirect: Do you know whether Anna takes movies seriously?
WRONG: Do you know does Anna take movies seriously?
Direct: Is this the right theater?
Indirect: Can you tell me if this is the right theater?
Indirect: Can you tell me whether this is the right theater?
WRONG: Can you tell me is this the right theater?
Direct: Has the movie ended?
Indirect: Do you have any idea if the movie has ended?
Indirect: Do you have any idea whether the movie has ended?
WRONG: Do you have any idea has the movie ended?
New Words
candy bar –
n. a long, thin, sweet food, usually covered in
chocolate
direct –
adj. connected or related to something in a
clear way
formal –
adj. suitable for serious or official speech
and writing
indirect –
adj. not direct
invitation –
n. a written or spoken request for someone to
go somewhere or to do something
kick out –
v. to force someone to leave a place
lend –
v. to give something to someone to be used for
a period of time and then returned
milkshake –
n. a thick drink made of milk, a flavoring
syrup, and often ice cream
plot –
n. a series of events that form the story in a
novel, movie, or live theater performance
polite –
adj. having or showing good manners or respect
for other people
popcorn –
n. corn in the form of hard yellow seeds that
burst open and become soft and white when they are heated
preview –
n. a selected group of scenes that are shown to
advertise a movie or television show
rock –
v. to move someone or something back and forth
or from side to side
seat –
n. something, such as chair, that you sit on
set design –
n. the creation of film, television or
theatrical scenery
shush –
v. to tell someone to be quiet using the
interjection “shh”
straw –
n. a thin tube used for sucking up a drink
take (something) seriously
– expression. to treat someone or something as
being very important and deserving attention or respect
thick –
adj. not flowing easily
turn down –
v. to lower the volume, temperature or channel
of something by pressing a button or moving a switch
turn off –
v. to stop the operation or flow of (something)
by pressing a button, moving a switch, etc.
Study all 30 English intermediate conversation lessons.
Let's Learn English conversation lessons each with a
conversation video, a video script, audio listening
practice, and a new
words section.
These lessons are for
intermediate students.
Study all 52 English beginner conversation lessons. Let's Learn
English conversation lessons each with a conversation
video, a video script, audio listening practice, video
speaking practice, video pronunciation practice, a new
words section, and a writing activity.
These
lessons are for beginning students.
Avoid Ineffective Study Methods. An audio lesson to help
you study English more effectively. The English is
spoken at 75% of normal speed. Great English study tips.
Click here to visit the lesson page with the written script for this
audio program.
You CAN
LISTEN to your Vocal Cords vibrating if you cover
your ears with your hands.
You CAN
FEEL your Vocal Cords vibrating if
you place your hands on your neck.
Mouth
Lips
Tongue
