“The”: choosing the right pronunciation

The article “the” has two pronunciations. It can be either /ði/ or /ðə/.

Most students were taught the rule for choosing the right pronunciation. Unfortunately, it’s easy to forget the most important part.

Test yourself with these two examples:

1. the U.S.
2. the M.R.T.

Which pronunciation should each be?

 

 

 

 

 

 

1. /ðə/
2. /ði/

Were you right?

Many people remember that the pronunciation depends on whether the next letter is a vowel or not. But this is not actually correct.

The pronunciation depends on whether the next sound is a vowel sound or not.

The “U” in U.S. is /ju/. The first sound is not a vowel sound, so “the” is /ðə/.

The “M” in M.R.T. is /ɛm/. The first sound is a vowel sound, so “the” is /ði/.

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