Carib Pronunciation and Spelling Guide

˜Vowels

Character We Use:	Sometimes Also Used:	IPA symbol:	How To Pronounce It:
a		a	Like the a in father.
e	ee	e ~ ε	Like the e sound in Spanish, similar to the a in gate. In an unstressed syllable it is often pronounced more like the e in get.
i	ii	i ~ I	Like the i in police. In an unstressed syllable it is sometimes pronounced more like the i in bit.
y	ï, i	i	This sound does not exist in English. It sounds like the i in police only pronounced further back in the mouth. If you've ever heard a Slavic language like Russian or Polish being spoken, it is the same "dark i" sound from those languages.
o	oo	o ~	Like o in note. Sometimes it is pronounced more like the au in naughty.
u	uu	u	Like u in flute. In an unstressed syllable it is sometimes pronounced more like the u in put.

˜Consonants

Character We Use:	Sometimes Also Used:	IPA symbol:	How To Pronounce It:
b		b	Like b in boy.
ch		t	Like ch in cheese.
d		d	Like d in day.
g		g	Like g in good.
h	j	h ~ x	Like h in hay. Sometimes in the middle of a word it is pronounced more raspily, like the j in Spanish jalapeño.
j	y	j	Like y in yes.
k	c, qu	k	Like the soft k sound in English ski.
kw	qu	kw	Like qu in queen.
m		m	Like m in moon.
n		n	Like n in night.
ng		ŋ	Like ng in sing.
p		p	Like the soft p in spin.
r	l		Like the r in Spanish pero, somewhat like the tt in American English butter.
s		s	Like the s in sun.
sh			Like sh in shell.
t		t	Like the soft t in star.
w	hu	w	Like w in way.
’			A pause sound, like the one in the middle of the word "uh-oh."

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