IPA pronunciation practice
Start with 22 sound-pair lessons: compare mouth positions, listen to example words and practise in sentences. Use the 44-symbol chart below for a quick lookup.
22 sound-pair lessons
Compare the two sounds, study mouth position, listen to words, then practise in sentences.
The reference chart uses British IPA. English RankUp uses American audio and speech recognition, so some vowels have different symbols and pronunciations.
Lesson 1
/iː/ · /ɪ/
sheep / ship
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Lesson 2
/uː/ · /ʊ/
blue / book
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Lesson 3
/ɑː/ · /ʌ/
car / cup
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Lesson 4
/e/ · /æ/
bed / cat
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Lesson 5
/ɔː/ · /ɒ/
saw / hot
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Lesson 6
/ɜː/ · /ə/
bird / about
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Lesson 7
/ɪə/ · /eə/
near / hair
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Lesson 8
/ʊə/ · /əʊ/
tour / go
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Lesson 9
/aʊ/ · /eɪ/
now / day
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Lesson 10
/aɪ/ · /ɔɪ/
my / boy
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Lesson 11
/p/ · /b/
pen / bad
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Lesson 12
/k/ · /ɡ/
cat / go
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Lesson 13
/f/ · /v/
fish / van
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Lesson 14
/t/ · /d/
tea / dog
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Lesson 15
/s/ · /z/
see / zoo
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Lesson 16
/ʃ/ · /ʒ/
she / vision
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Lesson 17
/tʃ/ · /dʒ/
chair / job
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Lesson 18
/θ/ · /ð/
think / this
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Lesson 19
/h/ · /m/
hat / man
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Lesson 20
/n/ · /ŋ/
no / sing
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Lesson 21
/w/ · /j/
wet / yes
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Lesson 22
/r/ · /l/
red / leg
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Quick sound chart
Choose a sound to start practising
/iː/
Example word
sheep /ʃiːp/
Mouth shape
Spread the corners of the mouth wide, tongue high and tense near the front, hold the vowel long.
This browser does not support speech recognition. You can still listen to and repeat each example word.
Video guide
Source: BBC Learning English
Word stress practice
9 rules, a tap-the-syllable drill and a different-stress quiz — on its own page
How to practise effectively
Listen two or three times, observe the mouth position, then speak slowly and clearly. The microphone recognizes words or sentences; it does not score individual IPA sounds.
- Listen to the example 2-3 times before repeating, paying attention to the exact sound and stress.
- Practice in front of a mirror to watch your lips, tongue and jaw shape.
- Record your own voice and compare it with the example to spot mistakes yourself.
- Practice easily-confused pairs (e.g. /iː/–/ɪ/, /p/–/b/) by reading them alternately.
- Practice 15-30 minutes daily rather than cramming one long session.
- Listen to and imitate native speakers via subtitled shows or podcasts to get used to natural intonation.