WAEC 2024 English Language · Question 20

/ɜː/ — From the words lettered A-D, choose the word that contains the sound represented by the given phonetic…

Question

From the words lettered A-D, choose the word that contains the sound represented by the given phonetic symbol. /ɜː/

A.heart
B.floor
C.herb
D.fork

Answer: C. herb

Explanation written with AI and checked against the answer key

Analyze the question You are asked to find the word containing the vowel sound /ɜː/. This is the long central vowel heard in "bird," "girl," "nurse," and "her."

Explain the concept /ɜː/ is usually spelled with er, ir, ur, or(w)or- (as in "word," "work"), and ear (as in "learn," "earth"). Each option should be matched with its sound:

Check each option

A. heart is /hɑːt/. The "ear" here gives /ɑː/, not /ɜː/.
B. floor is /flɔː/. This has the /ɔː/ sound.
C. herb is /hɜːb/ in British English, which is the standard for WASSCE. The "er" spelling gives /ɜː/. (In American English it is /ɜrb/ or /ɝb/, which also has the r-coloured version of the same vowel.)
D. fork is /fɔːk/. This has /ɔː/ again.

Answer Only herb has the /ɜː/ sound, so the answer is C.

Tip "er, ir, ur" almost always give /ɜː/: her, bird, turn. Be careful with "ear," which can be /ɜː/ (earth, learn), /ɑː/ (heart), or /ɪə/ (hear). Also watch out for "or" and "oor," which are usually /ɔː/ (fork, floor).

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