Disappearing /h/
In spoken English, unstressed pronouns beginning with /h/, like he, her and him, usually drop the /h/ sound after a consonant.
Listen to these sentences:
Give (h)er a dollar.
Is (h)e ready to go?
I told (h)im to call me.
|
Pronoun |
Pronunciation |
|
he |
/i/ |
|
his |
/iz/ or /əz/ |
|
him |
/im/ or /əm/ |
|
her |
/ər/ |
|
them |
/əm/ |
NOTE: You can drop the /h/ and /th/ in the pronouns he, him, her, his and them when these words are: unstressed, at the end of a sentence, in the middle of a sentence. Do not reduce these words if they start a sentence.
He gave me the money.
Give the money to (h)im.
Practice saying these sentences. Record in your voice board "Dropped /h/ and /th/".
1. I like her.
2. Is he here?
3. Was he sleeping?
4. Ask her about it.
5. Look them up.
6. Give her a call.
7. She's crazy about him.
8. Did he or didn't he?
9. Where's his coat?
10. Is he very busy?