The pronunciation of “eyes” and “ice” can be easily distinguished by their vowel sounds. Here’s how to pronounce each word:
Eyes
- Pronunciation: /aɪz/
- Breakdown:
- The first sound “ai” is a diphthong, which is a combination of two vowel sounds: /a/ as in “sky” and /ɪ/ as in “kit.”
- The second sound “z” is pronounced as the letter “z” in the alphabet.
- When spoken together, “eyes” has a long ‘i’ sound, similar to the ‘i’ in “highs,” followed by the ‘z’ sound.
Ice
- Pronunciation: /aɪs/
- Breakdown:
- The first sound “ai” is the same diphthong as in “eyes,” with the combination of /a/ and /ɪ/ sounds.
- The second sound “s” is pronounced as the letter “s” in the alphabet.
- When spoken together, “ice” also has a long ‘i’ sound, similar to the ‘i’ in “high,” followed by the ‘s’ sound.
While the initial vowel sound in both “eyes” and “ice” is the same, the context of the following sounds, ‘z’ in “eyes” and ‘s’ in “ice,” helps differentiate the two words. Practicing the pronunciation of each word slowly and paying attention to the vowel sounds will help ensure clarity in speech.
