The same letter combination ough appears repeatedly throughout the sentence, but the sounds are different every time.

相同的字母組合 ough 在整個句子中重複出現，但每次的發音都不同。

Though I coughed roughly and hiccuped throughout the lecture, I still thought I could plow through the rest of it.

儘管在整個講座過程中我一直粗聲粗氣地咳嗽、打嗝，但我仍然認為我可以上完剩下的課。

This incredible inconsistency can make English really to master for non-native speakers.

這種令人難以置信的不一致可以讓非母語人士真正掌握英語。

But what if English were phonetically consistent?

但是，如果英語在語音上是一致的呢？

Let's consider the letter A.

讓我們來看看字母 A，

The letter A can represent a number of different sounds.

字母 A 可以代表多種不同的發音，

Even ignoring its combined sounds like "ar" or "aw," you can get such diverse sounds as "father," "ape," and "apple."

即使忽略“ar”或“aw”等組合發音，您也可以得到“father”、“ape”和“apple”等不同的發音。

Let's take the first of these: "ah" as in "father."

讓我們選第一個："father" 裡的 "ah"。

Now, "A" is not alone in having different options for how it can be pronounced.

"A" 並不是唯一一個有不同發音選擇的人。

Let's consider the vowel "E".

讓我們看看母音 "E"。

Neglecting combination sounds like "er," we can still produce some strange, different pronunciations such as: "rewrite," "elk," and "one."

忽略像 "er" 這樣的組合，我們仍然可以發出一些奇怪的、不同的發音，例如："rewrite"、"elk"和 "one"。

Let's take the first of these again: "E" as in rewrite.

讓我們再次選第一個：rewrite 中的的“E”。

Of course, this means that silent Es at the end of words will now also be vocalized.

當然，這意味著詞尾不發音的 E 現在也將發聲。

Moving on, let's consider the vowel "I."

繼續，讓我們看看母音“I”。

Ignoring combination sounds like "ir" or "ing," this vowel can produce sounds: "like," "igloo," and "deviate."

忽略諸如“ir”或“ing”之類的組合聲音，該母音可以發出以下聲音：“like”、“igloo”和“deviate”。

Again, taking the first of these, we'll pronounce "I" as in "like."

再一次，我們選 like 裡面的 I。

Let's now turn our attention to the vowel "O."

現在，我們來看看母音 O。

Without combination sounds, we can still get a few options: "pony," "on," and "one."

如果沒有組合聲音，我們仍然可以獲得一些選項：“pony”、“on”和“one”。

Let's the select the first one of these: O as in "pony."

現在去掉 pony 裡的 O。

Having now made these selections, we are left with only one vowel "u."

現在做出這些改變後，我們只剩下一個母音“u”。

The vowel "U" can sound like this: "rule," "run," and "put".

母音“U”聽起來像這樣：“rule”、“run”和“put”。

While I will again remind the listener that this is somewhat arbitrary,

雖然我會再次提醒聽眾，這有點武斷，

we will select the first of these: "oo" as in "rule."

我們將選擇其中的第一個：“oo”，如“rule”中所示。

Putting all these together, we can hear how English would sound if it were consistent in the pronunciation of vowels.

把所有這些放在一起，我們可以聽到如果元音發音一致的話，英語聽起來會是什麼樣子。

Let's consider a passage from a Shakespearian Soliloquy.

讓我們看看莎士比亞獨白中的一段話。

To be or not to be, that is the question:

To be or not to be, that is the question:

Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer

Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer

The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,

The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,

Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,

Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,

And by opposing, end them. To die: to sleep;

And by opposing, end them. To die: to sleep;

No more; and by a sleep to say we end

No more; and by a sleep to say we end

The heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks

The heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks

That flesh is heir to, 'tis a consummation

That flesh is heir to, 'tis a consummation

Devoutly to be wish'd. To die, to sleep;

Devoutly to be wish'd. To die, to sleep;

To sleep: perchance to dream: ay, there's the rub;

To sleep: perchance to dream: ay, there's the rub;

For in that sleep of death what dreams may come

For in that sleep of death what dreams may come

When we have shuffled off this mortal coil,

When we have shuffled off this mortal coil,

Must give us pause: there's the respect

Must give us pause: there's the respect

That makes calamity of so long life;

That makes calamity of so long life;

Thank you for listening.

感謝收聽。

If you enjoy this video, please remember to subscribe.

如果你喜歡這段影片，請記得訂閱。