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Question

Difficulty: MediumConsonant Sounds

Match each word containing underlined letter(s) on the left with the correct phonetic consonant sound it represents on the right.

  • ch in choirThe voiceless velar plosive /k/
  • wh in whistleThe voiced labio-velar approximant /w/
  • s in measureThe voiced post-alveolar fricative /ʒ/
  • mb in tombThe voiced bilabial nasal /m/

Answer

'ch in choir' matches 'The voiceless velar plosive /k/'; 'wh in whistle' matches 'The voiced labio-velar approximant /w/'; 's in measure' matches 'The voiced post-alveolar fricative /ʒ/'; and 'mb in tomb' matches 'The voiced bilabial nasal /m/'.
Each word features a distinct orthographic representation for its consonant sound: 'ch' in 'choir' is pronounced /k/, 'wh' in 'whistle' is pronounced /w/, 's' in 'measure' is pronounced /ʒ/, and 'mb' in 'tomb' ends in the silent-b nasal sound /m/.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the sound produced by 'ch' in 'choir'
Despite the 'ch' spelling, 'choir' is pronounced /ˈkwaɪər/, meaning 'ch' represents the /k/ sound.
Identify orthographic exceptions where 'ch' yields /k/ instead of /tʃ/ or /ʃ/.
2
Analyze the sound produced by 'wh' in 'whistle'
'whistle' is pronounced /ˈwɪs.əl/, making the initial sound /w/.
Identify initial digraph pronunciations where 'h' is silent.
3
Analyze the sound produced by 's' in 'measure'
'measure' is pronounced /ˈmeʒ.ər/, where 's' forms the /ʒ/ sound.
Recognize intervocalic 's' producing the voiced palato-alveolar/post-alveolar fricative /ʒ/.
4
Analyze the sound produced by 'mb' in 'tomb'
'tomb' is pronounced /tuːm/, meaning the 'b' is silent and only the nasal sound /m/ is articulated.
Apply the rule for silent 'b' following 'm' at the end of root words.

Key Concept

Phonetic realization of consonant spellings and silent letters
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Topics

Consonant Sounds

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