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LISTEN |
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/ɑɪ/.../ɑɪ/.../ɑɪ/.../ɑɪ/...
light...pie...sign...mile |
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WHAT IS IT? |
Pronunciation:
The sound /ɑɪ/ is a diphthong. This means your mouth should move from one position to another.
The sound /ɑɪ/ is a diphthong. This means your mouth should move from one position to another.
- Lower your jaw and tongue and make your lips very open and wide (as for /ɑ/). Your tongue should be low, tight, and pulled backwards.
- Breathe out and let your vocal cords vibrate.
- As you breathe out, quickly raise your tongue and spread your lips widely (as for /ɪ/).
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This vowel is usually stressed, as in these words.
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However, /ɑɪ/ can also be unstressed, as in these words:
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Spelling:
- "i"(e) - line, mile
- "igh" - light, high
- "ie" - pie, died
- "y" - my, type
- "uy" (not common) - guy, buy
- "ei" (not common) - feisty, heist
- "eigh" (not common) - height
Grammar Tip:
The sound /ɑɪ/ is part of the common suffixes “-ify/-efy,” and "-ize", which are used to form some verbs. These suffixes are usually unstressed.
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COMPARE |
Compare /ɑɪ/ with /ɑ/:
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/ɑɪ/.../ɑ/.../ɑɪ/.../ɑ/.../ɑɪ/.../ɑ/...
The sound /ɑ/ is a low, central vowel. The sound /ɑɪ/ starts as /ɑ/, but it moves quickly into a high, front vowel. |
You can hear the difference between /ɑɪ/ and /ɑ/ in these words.
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1. A. light, B. lot
2. A. ride, B. rod 3. A. like, B. lock 4. A. swipe, B. swap 5. A. fire, B. far 6. A. blind, B. blond |
Practice recognizing words with /ɑɪ/ and /ɑ/ by taking the quiz below.
Now, compare /ɑɪ/ and /iy/:
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/ɑɪ/.../iy/.../ɑɪ/.../iy/.../ɑɪ/.../iy/...
The sound /ɪ/ is a high, front, tense vowel. The sound /ɑɪ/ starts as a low, central, tense vowel, but it moves quickly to a high, front, lax vowel. |
You can hear the difference between /ɑɪ/ and /iy/ in these words.
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1. A. fight, B. feet
2. A. lice, B. lease 3. A. bike, B. beak 4. A. died, B. deed 5. A. tire, B. tear 6. A. style, B. steal |
Practice recognizing words with /ɑɪ/ and /iy/ by taking the quiz below.
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PRACTICE |
Listen and repeat these words:

words_with_-ai-.mp3 | |
File Size: | 596 kb |
File Type: | mp3 |
1. my
2. sight 3. type 4. rice 5. cry 6. ride 7. like 8. kind 9. fire 10. style |
11. crisis
12. bicycle 13. timing 14. arrival 15. idea 16. isolation 17. realize 18. finally 19. inspiring 20. environment |
Now practice /ɑɪ/ in sentences. Say the words first, then the sentences.
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1. I - find - my - flashlight
I can't find my flashlight. 2. describe - guy - tried Can you describe the guy who tried to follow you? 3. decide - kind - buy I can't decide what kind of food to buy. 4. fire - inside - ice A fire started inside the ice cream shop. 5. like - drive - ride Would you like to drive or just ride? 6. idea - why - fighting Do you have any idea why they're fighting? |
To practice with different varieties of English, choose another native English speaker by clicking one of the links below:
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USE IT! |
Practice the task below. Then, record yourself completing that task. Give your recording to a teacher or an English-speaking friend for feedback.
Prepare:
What do you dislike doing?
Prepare:
What do you dislike doing?
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- Riding a bicycle
- Driving a car
- Crying
- Arguing about ideas
- Being outside (or inside)
- Fighting
- Flying in an airplane
- Being in a place with no light
- Writing a paper for school
- Being isolated (away from people)
- Lighting a fire
- Trying to be stylish
Record:
Describe 3 things that you dislike doing and explain why you dislike them.
©2018-2021, Christine Wingate

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.