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3. Diphthongs ending in {-a]: [ia, ea, ua, oa]

Fig. 39. English diphthongs [ia], [ea|, |oa], [ua]

beard    hit    heat here

reared    pick peak peer

||*| should be differentiated from [a:]:

bead

feed

beard

§ 54. As can be seen in Fig. 39, these diphthongs, which share the finał element [-a], differ with the initial sounds. They are sometimes called centring diphthongs, as during their articulation the tongue shifts the po6ition of the central mid vowel [»]. A morę recent term is unstabl diphthongs, because in present-day R.P. they show a tendency towi monophthongization, i.e. they are often levelled.

A good example of such levelling is the old diphthong [oa], as ii conservative pronunciation of door, pour, which in current R.P. has consistendy replaced by the pure vowel [o:]. The diphthong [oa] cot^ wełl have been omitted from this work as the pronunciations [d< for door, pour are not recommended today, if it were not for the i that many speakera use this diphthong as a yariant of [ua]. Thus, can be pronounced as [/ua] [/oa], or [/o:]. In this particułar word, last yersion appears to be most freąuent.

While in the closing diphthongs [i] and [u] were never quite reachłj in the centring diphthongs, except when levelling takes place, [a] actually pronounced, and in some contexts it is quite long.

§ 55. This is a diphthong which occurs in such words as here, beer, idea. It starts with the English [i], gliding immediately to [a]. Neidicr ||i» firet nor the second element should be prolonged. The letter r is no| pronounced unless direcdy followed by a vowel.

Examples:

herc, mere, sphere, austere, sińcere, aeverc

l>eer, checr, leer, peer, deer, queer, steer, jeer, sneer

rur, dear, elear, fear, hear, tear, gear, rear, speer, appear

Noto 1. [ia] occurs also in the poeition before a consonant: • learful, cheerful, fearful, eariess, feariess, cherrie®, deaiiy Iwanl, appeared, emeared, feared, reared, pieree, fierce

Nule i When [ia] is followed by a vowel, the letter r is pronounced, as ll|p|icd yariant:

llMinr, dcarer, clearer, dreary, eerie, weary, hero, zero, era

II. The letter r is also pronounced when the word that follows ! with a vowel, provided that there is no pause:

Here and there. Beer and winę.

4. |is) should be differentiated from [i:]: herc    tea    tear

lieer    lee    Lear

|!|, |i:] and [ia] should be cleariy different:

(m«i

b. Diphthong [ua]

N ni mi ml which occurs in poor, moor, surę, While pronęuncing i|i it i« necessary to pass immediately from [u] to [a], without |r of the dements. The letter r is not pronounced. Examples

HIDhi, ł|MMir, lnmr. surę

>|1ts illplilhong [ua>] often occurs in combination with [j] <