TEXT

Dearest Creature in creation

Studying English pronunciation,

I will teach you in my verse

Sounds like corpse, corps, horse and worse.

I will keep you, Susy, busy,

Make your head with heat grow dizzy;

Tear in eye your dress you'll tear;

Queer, fair seer, hear my prayer.

Pray, console your loving poet,

Make mu coat look new, dear sew it!

Just compare heart, beard and heard,

Dies and diet, Lord and word,

Sword and sward, retain and Britain

(Mind the latter how it is written);

Made has not the sound of bade,

Say, said, pay, laid but not plaid.

Now I surely will not plague you

With such words as vague and ague,

But be careful how you speak,

Say gush, bush, steak, streak, break, bleak,

Previous, precious, fuchsia, via,

Recipe, pipe, studding-sail, choir,

Woven, oven, how and low,

Script, receipts, shoe, poem, toe.

Hear me say, devoid of trickery,

Daughter, laughter and Terpsichore

Typhoid, measles, topsail, aisles

Exiles, similes, reviles.

PHONETIC TRANSCRIPTION

/dɪ́rəst krítʃər ɪn kriéʃən

stə́diɪŋ ɪ́ŋglɪ̀ʃ pronə̀nsiéʃən,

áj wɪ́l títʃ jú ɪn máj və́rs

sáwndz lájk kɔ́rps, kɔ́r, hɔ́rs ǽnd wə́rs.

áj wɪ́l kíp jú, súzi, bɪ́zi,

mék jɔ́r hɛ́d wɪθ hít gró dɪ́zi;

tɛ́r ɪn áj jɔ́r drɛ́s júl tɛ́r;

kwɪ́r, fɛ́r sír, hɪ́r máj prɛ́r.

pré, kɑ́nsol jɔ́r lə́vɪŋ póət,

mék mú kót lʊ́k nú, dɪ́r só ɪ́t!

dʒə́st kəmpɛ́r hɑ́rt, bɪ́rd ǽnd hə́rd,

dájz ǽnd dájət, lɔ́rd ǽnd wə́rd,

sɔ́rd ǽnd swɑ́rd, rətén ǽnd brɪ́tən

(májnd ðə lǽtər háw ɪ́t ɪ́z rɪ́tən);

méd hǽz nɑ́t ðə sáwnd ə́v béd,

sé, sɛ́d, pé, léd bə́t nɑ́t plǽd.

náw áj ʃʊ́rli wɪ́l nɑ́t plég jú

wɪθ sə́tʃ wə́rdz ǽz vég ǽnd ǽgjù,

bə́t bí kɛ́rfəl háw jú spík,

sé gə́ʃ, bʊ́ʃ, sték, strík, brék, blík,

príviəs, prɛ́ʃəs, fjuː.ʃə, vájə,

rɛ́səpi, pájp, stʌdɪŋ-sél, kwájər,

wóvən, ə́vən, háw ǽnd ló,

skrɪ́pt, rəsíts, ʃú, póəm, tó.

hɪ́r mí sé, dɪvɔ̀jd ə́v trɪ́kəri,

dɒ́tər, lǽftər ǽnd tə́rpsəkɔ̀r

tájfɒjd, mízəlz, tɑ́psel , ájlz

ɛ́gzɑ̀jlz, sɪ́məliz, rivájlz./