Chapter # 5


How to Pronounce "the" in English

Normally, we pronounce "the" with a short sound (like "thuh"). But when "the" comes before a vowel sound, we pronounce it as a long "thee".



vowel sound ______ we write ______ we say

A ________ the apple _________ thee apple
E ________ the egg __________ thee egg
I ________ the ice-cream _____ thee ice-cream
O ________ the orange _______ thee orange
U _________ the ugli fruit ______ thee ugli fruit






It is important to understand that it is what we say that matters, not what we write. It is the sound that matters, not the letter used in writing a word. So we use a long "thee" before a vowel sound, not necessarily before a vowel. Look at these cases:




we write ________ with ___________ we say ___________ with
the house ________ consonant (h) ___thuh house ______consonant sound
the hour ________ consonant (h) _____thee hour ______vowel sound
the university _____ vowel (u) _____thuh youniversity ____consonant sound
the umbrella ______ vowel (u) _____ thee umbrella _______ vowel sound







Emphatic the [thee]

When we wish to place emphasis on a particular word, we can use "emphatic the" [thee], whether or not the word begins with a consonant or vowel sound. For example:

A: I saw the [thuh] President yesterday.
B: What! The [thee] President of the United States?
A: Yes, exactly.

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ஜ иστнιπg ιš ιмթΘรรιвlε тσ α ωιℓℓιиg нєαят ஜ