Lessons Unit 1, lesson 20

m as in moon

One consonant, on its own page. Hear it, watch where it sits in each word's sheet, then say the words yourself.

What do the marks mean?

ˈriːdread Stressed part — say it louder & longer.

təto Weak word — say it quickly & softly.

∅e Silent letter — don’t pronounce it.

θth Underline — these letters spell one sound.

wa·ter Dot · — a syllable break.

go‿on Linked — blend the words together.

?↗︎↘︎ Arrows — voice rises ↗︎ or falls ↘︎.

ˈsɛvən7 Number — how to say it aloud.

read² ² mark — has a second pronunciation.

guess? ? mark — a best guess; double-check it.

Want the full walkthrough? Read the map explains every mark, with practice.

mm as in my

Close your lips and hum: mmm. You can hold it as long as you have breath.

moon

mat

map

Now say it yourself

Read each word from its sheet, out loud, three times. Where there's a play button, listen first and copy what you hear. Slow is fine — speaking clearly matters more than speaking fast. Tap a word's microphone to record yourself and see which sounds landed.

mad

may

name

home

jam

Why this sound needs attention

m feels easy because almost every language has it, but English speakers hold it a beat longer than you might expect. In moon and map, the lips stay sealed while the hum builds before the vowel opens things up.

The trap is at the end of a word. In name or home, learners often let the lips pop open too soon, so the hum gets cut short and the word sounds clipped.

A quick self-test

Say jam and hold the very last sound: jammmm. If your lips are sealed and the buzz is coming out your nose, you're doing it right. If air is leaking past your teeth, your lips opened too early.

Watch out for swapping m for n at the end of a word — they feel similar but m closes the lips while n only touches the tongue tip to the ridge behind your teeth.