Introduction

Limericks for Pronunciation - Vowels (L4PV) is an online publication for intermediate learners of British English. It consists of 20 units, each of which practises one of the vowel sounds of British English. L4PV can be used in class, or as self study. Internet access is required.

Each unit is built around one limerick, and a single vowel. The vowel is contrasted with other vowels which students often confuse. Limericks are wonderful for language learning: they are short, they establish a context very quickly, and they allow pronunciation practice of single, pairs, and groups of vowels. They are also great for work on linking, rhythm, and on varying the speed of speech.

Limericks

A limerick is a five-line verse. It is very rhythmic, and is strongly rhymed. Limericks are easy to remember because:

• they are short
• they have a very clear rhythm
• they make use of strong rhymes at the end of lines
• they tell a story
  

The rhythmic shape of a limerick is like this:

1. ba BA ba ba BA ba ba BAA
2. ba BA ba ba BA ba ba BAA
3. ba BA ba ba BAM
4. ba BA ba ba BAM
5. ba BA ba ba BA ba ba BAA

Lines 1, 2, and 5 always have three prominences (BA BA BAA), and usually have eight syllables.
Lines 3 and 4 have two prominences (BA & BAM), and usually have five syllables.
Lines 1,2, and 5 have the same rhyme (BAA), and lines 3 and 4 share a different rhyme (BAM).

The following limerick follows the above pattern:

There once was a man from Dundee
Who'd swim every day in the sea
He said 'There's no chance
That I'd swim in France -
The sea at Dundee is for me!'

In order for words and meanings to fit this pattern, limericks sometimes have unusual or old-fashioned expressions. And sometimes the order of words is changed to help preserve rhythm, and to get effective rhymes.

What do limericks mean?

Everyday limericks are usually funny and sometimes rude. Often the limerick is about a ridiculous situation, which could never happen in real life. They usually begin by introducing a character, and the place they are from (There once was a man from Dundee), then they give some more information (Who'd swim...), and they end with a line that delivers 'the message'. Often this message is ridiculous, and funny. But the main purpose of this publication is to practice pronunciation and therefore I have preferred to make the last line rich with words which feature the target sound. So in the limerick above, there are three words 'sea', 'Dundee' and 'me' which all contain the long vowel /iː/. None of the limericks in this publication is intentionally rude.

Unusual vocabulary and are word-order are explained in a simple way.