Vowels: long i sound /ɑɪ/

Listen to the long i sound

How to pronounce the long i sound

The long i is a 2-sound vowel that ends in a brief y sound.

Part 1: At the beginning of the sound, the tongue is low and touches the bottom, side teeth.

Part 2: As the jaw closes slightly, the body of the tongue moves upward until it is near the tooth ridge, similar to the position of a y sound. The front sides of the tongue touch the inside of the top, side teeth.

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Common long i spellings

spelling	example		other pronunciations for spelling
i_e (VCe)	ice hide smile		none
igh	light bright sigh		none
ie[1]	tie pie die		long e (brief)
-y	shy sky dry		long e (happy)
-y-	cycle dynamic hyper		short i (symbol)

[1] ie spelling
Along with the long e and long i pronunciation, the ie spelling is occasionally pronounced as two adjacent vowel sounds, such as the words quiet, alien, and science. Consult a dictionary to be certain of the pronunciation of unfamiliar words spelled ie.

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The long i sound in suffixes

spelling	example		other pronunciations for spelling
-ize/-ise	emphasize exercise improvise		none
-fy	clarify specify identify		none

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Non-phonetic long i words

The long i sound is underlined in the following words:

eye mind kind child buy

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Pronuncian Lessons

  

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Introduction to Approximant Sounds

l sound /l/

velar l sound /ɫ/

Introduction to Stops

t sound /t/

b sound /b/

g sound /ɡ/

k sound /k/

Letter x Pronunciation: k+s or g+z

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