Pre-Inter Unit 1: Pronunciation and Dictation
/B/ and /V/
Minimal Pairs (Words that differ only in /b/ vs. /v/)
- bat – vat
- berry – very
- ban – van
- boat – vote
- bow – vow
- best – vest
- buy – vie
- bet – vet
- brake – vague
- bill – vial
Other Common Words for Each Sound
Words with /b/
- big
- bring
- bottle
- cab
- crab
- baby
- bulb
- sob
- trouble
- club
Words with /v/
- village
- voice
- vine
- value
- velvet
- fever
- vivid
- survive
- involve
- driver
Sentence Drills
Read these sentences out loud:
Ben drove a van to the store.
She found a berry that was very sweet.
I took a boat ride, and she took a vote on the best route.
He made a bow before taking his vow.
The best jacket is warmer than the vest.
Increase your speed as you go along:
“I see a big bear.” → “I see a very big bear.”
“Bob bought a book.” → “Vera bought a violin.”
“The baby is bouncing.” → “The velvet is vibrant.”
“Ben broke his bat.” → “Victor voted today.”
Tongue twisters
“Bob’s blue boat barely bounced, but Vicky’s velvet vessel vanished.”
“Ben bought a big banana, but Vivian valued vanilla very much.”
“Bobby’s baby brother baked blueberry bread, but Vicky’s very vibrant vegetables vanished.”
“A very big bat bit a very brave boy.”
“Victor viewed a vast valley while Betty built a big barn.”