Complete the exercise by:

1. Listening to the MP3 and noticing the sound differences
2. Listening & repeating each word out loud.

/ɐː/ – /ɜ:/ x 2

fast – first
fɐːst – fɜ:st

bath – birth
bɐːθ – bɜ:θ

far – fir
fɐː – fɜ:

ha – her
hɐː – hɜ:

hard – heard
hɐːd – hɜ:d

heart – hurt
hɐːt – hɜ:t

pass – purse
pɐːs – pɜ:s

bard – bird
bɐːd – bɜ:d

car – cur
kɐː – kɜ:

card – curd
kɐːd – kɜ:d

far – fur
fɐː – fɜ:

farm – firm
fɐːm – fɜ:m

guard – gird
gɐːd – gɜ:d

sparred – spurred
spɐːd – spɜ:d

barn – burn
bɐːn – bɜ:n

cart – curt
kɐːt – kɜ:t

carve – curve
kɐːv – kɜ:v

dart – dirt
dɐːt – dɜ:t

park – perk
pɐːk – pɜ:k

sharper – Sherpa
ˈʃɐːpə -ˈʃɜ:pa

star – stir
stɐː – stɜ:

barbs – burbs
bɐːbz – bɜ:bs

arc – irk
ɐːk – ɜ:k

blah – blur
blɐː – blɜ:

harpies – herpes
ˈhɐːpiz – ˈhɜ:piːz

parched – perched
pɐːʧt – pɜ:ʧt

quark – quirk
kwɐːk – kwɜ:k

shark – shirk
ʃɐːk – ʃɜ:k

tarps – turps
tɐːps – tɜ:ps

lark – lurk
lɐːk – lɜ:k

Tongue Twisters:

Practice phrases to read out loud:

1. Sharks work to shirk the vast universe.
2. The quirky workings of quarks stirs a laugh.
3. Lars hit the turps on the tarps while burping.
4. The stars start to learn to stir the dirt with darts.
5. The tern yearned to turn the tarnished yarn into ferns.
6. The fury birds and curs carved curves into the star‘s cars.
7. The worker marked the dirty purse full of darks for the lurker.
8. The girl murdered many burning martyrs on the farm’s firm barn.
9. We purchased a parcel of purses to perch on a parched worm’s parker.
10. The guard girded the dirk with darkness and sparred the spurred worm.