How to Pronounce THE English Pronunciation Lesson
Vanessa: Hi, I’m Vanessa from SpeakEnglishWithVanessa.com.
Are you ready to correctly pronounce an important
word?
Th-uh, th-ee, th-uh, how do I pronounce it?
Let’s talk about it.
Vanessa: I remember standing in front of a
classroom of 25 Korean kids, about nine years
old, and they were reading a story around
the room.
One of the kids was reading, and another kid
shouted, “Hey, teacher, he said that wrong.
It’s th-ee elephant, not th-uh elephant.”
So I said it out loud a couple times.
th-uh elephant, th-uh elephant, th-uh elephant,
it sounded right to me.
It was my first year teaching, and I didn’t
know the rules for th-ee and th-uh, so the
student decided to correct me, and he said,
“No, no, no teacher.
When there’s a vowel, you should say th-ee,
th-ee elephant, and when there’s a consonant,
you should say th-uh, th-uh light.”
So he knew the rule, but did he know how to
naturally use it in daily conversation?
Well, kind of.
Vanessa: Today, you’re going to learn two
tips about how to naturally pronounce T-H-E
in daily conversation, and at the end of the
lesson, I want to give you an extra bonus
tip to explain how it’s sometimes used in
maybe a little bit more of a confusing way.
Vanessa: Th-uh first way to pronounce T-H-E
is th-uh, th-uh.
Let’s break down this word.
When we say T-H, make sure that your tongue
is between your teeth, th-uh, or it’s at least
touching the back of your teeth.
When we say it quickly, sometimes, your tongue
just touches the back of your teeth, but it
needs to be up there anyway.
So make sure you say th-, th-, and then there’s
a vowel sound after that.
It’s called th-uh schwa sound.
It kind of sounds like a short U, th-uh, th-uh,
th-uh.
Vanessa: A common pronunciation mistake that
I hear is students putting their tongue at
the top of their mouth and saying, “Duh,”
like a D sound, dog.
Duh, but, instead, it should be th-uh.
Make sure your tongue is at the front of your
mouth, either between your teeth, th-uh, or
directly behind your teeth, th-uh, th-uh.
Vanessa: Let’s practice a few sample sentences.
these sentences might seem a little bit strange,
but you’ll see why I chose them in just a
second.
The menu is over there.
I want the fried chicken, th-uh menu, th-,
th-, th-, th-, th-uh menu.
There should be vibration happening here.
I want the fried chicken.
Do you hear that schwa sound?
Th-uh, uh, uh, th-uh.
The company and the people pay.
Th-uh company and th-uh people pay.
It’s the main thing.
It’s th-uh main thing.
Vanessa: I’m going to quickly repeat those
sentences, and I want you to say them with
me.
Notice how the word after the begins with
a consonant.
That means it is not A, E, I, O, U.
It is any other letter.
Let’s say these sentences together.
Th-uh menu is over there.
I want th-uh fried chicken.
Th-uh company and th-uh people pay.
It’s th-uh main thing.
Vanessa: Are you curious why I chose those
kind of weird sentences to talk about the?
Well, if you’ve been following my YouTube
channel for a while, you might recognize these
clips.
I chose four clips from previous YouTube videos
so that you can hear the word the in a quick,
fast sentence, not just in a lesson format,
but in a conversation.
Vanessa: Let’s listen to each one a few times.
Notice how sometimes when you’re saying the,
it is so fast that your tongue doesn’t have
time to come between your teeth.
It just touches the back of your teeth.
The main thing, the main thing.
Let’s watch these clips, and I hope that you’ll
be able to hear how it’s used naturally.
Dan: Our special’s are on the menu board over
here.
Our special’s are on the menu board over here,
on the menu board, on the menu board, on the
menu board.
Vanessa: I think I’m going to go with the
fried chicken special.
I think I’m going to go with the fried chicken
special, the fried chicken special, the fried
chicken special, the fried chicken special.
Gayle: A lot of times, the company would pay.
Sometimes, the people would pay.
A lot of times, the company would pay.
Sometimes, the people would pay, the company
would pay, the company would pay, the company
would pay.
Dan: That’s probably the main thing.
That’s probably the main thing, the main thing,
the main thing, the main thing.
Vanessa: How did you do?
Did you hear th-uh, th-uh, th-uh really fast?
I hope so.
Let’s go on to the second way that you can
pronounce T-H-E.
It is th-ee.
He is th-ee opposite of modest.
He is th-ee opposite.
Do you notice the word that comes after th-ee?
It’s the word opposite.
This word starts with a vowel.
A vowel is A, E, I, O, or U.
So when we have the plus a vowel, we need
to say th-ee opposite usually.
There are some exceptions.
We’ll talk about those in just a moment.
Vanessa: Let’s take a look at a couple sentences.
Are you ready to practice with me?
Here are some of th-ee ingredients.
Here are some of th-ee ingredients.
We’re still saying T-H in that same way with
your tongue coming out, th-ee, th-ee, but,
instead, the vowel afterwards is not uh, th-uh.
Instead, you’re making a long E sound.
Th-ee ingredients, th-ee ocean is in trouble.
Th-ee ocean is in trouble.
It’s better on th-ee inside, th-ee inside.
Vanessa: Did you notice with each of these
sentences, we’re adding a little sound between
T-H-E and the next word?
Listen to the sentence.
It’s better on th-ee inside.
there’s a little Y sound there.
th-ee inside.
Is the word yinside correct?
No, it should be inside, but, instead, when
we have th-ee, we’re going to add a little
Y sound.
Th-ee yocean, th-ee ocean is in trouble.
We’re adding a Y.
Here are some of th-ee ingredients, yingredients.
Vanessa: Before we take a look at a couple
clips from my YouTube channel, I want you
to practice saying these sentences with me.
He’s th-ee opposite of modest.
Here are some of th-ee ingredients.
Th-ee ocean is in trouble.
It’s better on th-ee inside.
How did you do?
Your pronunciation muscles feel like they’ve
been working hard?
Is your tongue coming out of your mouth for
each of those T-H sounds?
I hope so.
Vanessa: Let’s watch these clips from my previous
YouTube videos so that you can see how they’re
used quickly in natural conversation.
Th-ee, you’re going to hear th-ee a lot.
Dan: We actually knew a guy who was the opposite
of modest.
We actually knew a guy who was th-ee opposite
of modest, th-ee opposite of modest, th-ee
opposite of modest, th-ee opposite of modest.
Vanessa: Let’s talk about some of the ingredients
that I’m going to use.
Let’s talk about some of th-ee ingredients
that I’m going to use, th-ee ingredients that
I’m going to use, th-ee ingredients that I’m
going to use, th-ee ingredients that I’m going
to use.
Dan: I’m changing my answer because-
Vanessa: Theo, what about you?
Dan: Th-ee ocean can be in trouble.
I’m changing my answer because-
Vanessa: Theo, what about you?
Dan: Th-ee ocean can be in trouble.
Th-ee ocean can be in trouble.
Th-ee ocean can be in trouble.
Th-ee ocean can be in trouble.
Dan: On the inside, everything is better.
On th-ee inside, everything is better.
On th-ee inside, on th-ee inside, on th-ee
inside.
Vanessa: Did you hear th-ee opposite, th-ee
ingredients, th-ee ocean?
I hope so.
Vanessa: All right.
Let’s talk about some exceptions.
It wouldn’t be a rule if there weren’t some
exceptions.
Let’s talk about it.
Vanessa: Exception number one, sometimes,
when we’re speaking really fast, we use th-uh
with vowels.
Remember we talked about you should use th-ee
with vowels?
Well, this is a little bit of an exception
when you’re speaking quickly.
If you remember, I was talking about my Korean
students trying to correct me when I said
th-uh elephant is correct, not th-ee elephant.
Well, this is an exception because if you’re
speaking quickly, sometimes we just add T-H,
plus th-uh word.
Th’internet is slow today.
Th’internet is slow today.
I didn’t say, “Th-uh Internet.”
I just said, “T-H, th’internet is slow today.”
I saw her th’other day.
I saw her th’other day, th’other.
We pretty much cut out that E at the end of
the word, th-uh or th-ee, and we just say,
“Th’other, th’other day.”
I saw her th’other day.
I saw her th’other day.
I saw her th’other day really fast.
Th’essay’s due tomorrow.
Th’essay’s due tomorrow.
Th’essay, th’essay’s due tomorrow.
Vanessa: Of course, you can say, “Th-ee essay,
th-ee essay is due tomorrow.”
No problem to use that full, correct form,
th-ee essay, but you’re definitely going to
hear native speakers say this in conversations,
movies, TV shows.
When we’re speaking really quickly, sometimes
we just use th-, th- in front of a vowel word.
Th’essay’s due tomorrow.
Vanessa: Exception number two, remember how
we talked about you should say th-ee with
words that start with a vowel?
Th-ee ocean, th-ee ingredients.
What about this sentence?
The European vacation was great.
That word European looks like it starts with
a vowel because it has an E and E is a vowel,
but listen to how it’s pronounced.
Don’t let your eyes deceive you when you see
the E. Listen to the pronunciation.
European.
Eu-European.
It actually starts with a Y sound.
So even though it’s an E, that E-U combination
is yuh, yuh, so it’s like a consonant.
We need to say, “Th-uh European vacation was
great.”
Vanessa: What about this sentence?
They cut th-uh one tree in their yard.
Look at our words here.
Th-uh one.
Th-uh word one starts with an O. That’s a
vowel.
So you should say th-ee one.
Nope.
Listen to th-uh sound that th-uh word one
starts with.
One, (w)one.
It starts with a W sound.
So here we’re going to treat it as if it were
a consonant.
Th-uh one tree.
They cut th-uh one tree in their yard.
Vanessa: Let’s practice those two sentences
together.
I want you to try to say them with me.
Are you ready?
Th-uh European vacation was great.
Th-uh European vacation was great.
They cut th-uh one tree in their yard.
They cut th-uh one tree in their yard.
Vanessa: Exception number three.
Sorry.
There’s three exceptions.
What do you think about this sentence?
Rick is th-ee gardener on our street.
Rick is th-ee gardener on our street.
The word gardener starts with a consonant,
G, so why in the world did I say th-ee gardener?
We’re supposed to use th-ee for vowels.
Well, here, I want to emphasize that Rick
is th-ee gardener.
He is th-ee best gardener.
He spends so much time pruning and weeding
and planting and watering.
He spends so much time on his garden that
really he is th-ee best gardener on our street.
Vanessa: All right.
Let’s take a look at a couple other sample
sentences that use this emphasis concept.
I’m going to say them one time myself, and
then the second time, I want you to repeat
it with me.
That was th-ee best movie I’ve ever seen.
Say it with me.
That was th-ee best movie I’ve ever seen.
That was th-ee movie of the year.
That was th-ee movie of the year.
This is th-ee best lesson on the word the.
This is th-ee best lesson on the word the.
This is th-ee lesson on the word the.
This is th-ee lesson on the word the.
Vanessa: Did you notice that sometimes I use
th-ee plus best?
Well, we don’t often need to add best.
This is th-ee best movie I’ve ever seen because
the word th-ee, when you emphasize it like
that, already shows us that you love it a
lot, but when you add the word best, it’s
just adding extra emphasis.
So you could say, “This is th-ee best lesson,”
or you could say, “This is th-ee lesson.”
It means the same thing.
Vanessa: Are you ready to do a review?
I want to show you a couple sentences that
we talked about, and I want you to say them
out loud.
Practice your pronunciation.
Try to say them as naturally as possible.
Th-uh menu is over here.
Th-uh company and th-uh people pay.
Th-ee ocean is in trouble.
He’s th-ee opposite of modest.
Th’internet is slow today.
I saw her th’other day.
Th-uh European vacation was great.
Rick is th-ee gardener on our street.
Vanessa: Now, I have a question for you.
In the comments, can you write a sentence
that uses both versions of the, th-uh, and
th-ee?
Th-uh test was hard, but th-ee essay was easy.
As a little bonus challenge, can you tell
me which four previous YouTube videos those
clips came from?
If you haven’t seen them, check out the description.
I’ll put links for all of those videos in
the description so that you can continue learning
English with me.
Thanks so much for joining me today.
I’ll see you again next Friday for a new lesson
here on my YouTube channel.
Bye.
Vanessa: Th-uh next step is to download my
free ebook, Five Steps to Becoming a Confident
English Speaker.
You’ll learn what you need to do to speak
confidently and fluently.
Don’t forget to subscribe to my YouTube channel
for more free lessons.
Thanks so much.
Bye.