Lessons Unit 0, lesson 1
Read the map: what every mark means
SayNative writes down what English really sounds like — every sound, the strong part of each word, and the letters you should not say. This first lesson shows you how to read those marks. Take your time: everything on this page is playable, so you can hear each mark as you learn it.
How to read your results
Every mark, with an example — press play to hear each one.
Why this page comes first
Every mark on a SayNative sheet is doing a job: the vowel symbols show the exact mouth shape, the stress mark shows which syllable to hit hardest, small grey letters mark a weak schwa, the struck-through ∅ tells you to skip a silent letter, and the ‿ tie shows two words joining into one breath. Learn to read these once and every later lesson opens up instantly — you are not learning new symbols each time, only new sounds.
How to use the map as you go
Don't try to memorize this page today. Play each mark, listen to what changes in your mouth, and move on. The sounds page keeps this full guide forever, and every lesson ahead reminds you of its own marks right when you need them. The habit that matters is small: look at the mark before you guess the sound.
That's the whole map. You don't need to remember everything now — the full guide is always on the sounds page, and each new lesson explains its marks again. Ready for your first sounds?