Caribbean Phrasebook

Caribbean Phrasebook

By John C. Rigdon

Caribbean Phrasebook

1st Printing – MAR 2018  0/0/0/0/cs

© 2018 Eastern Digital Resources.  All Rights Reserved.  No part of this book may be reproduced by any means without the express written consent of the copyright holder.

Published by:

Eastern Digital Resources

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Cartersville, GA  30120

http://www.wordsrus.info

EMAIL: Sales@Researchonline.net

Tel. (678) 739-9177

Contents

Introduction.......................................................

A Guide to English Pronunciation............................

The English Alphabet

English Vowels

Vowel Sounds

A Guide to Spanish Pronunciation..............................

A Guide to French Pronunciation..................  .........

Sorting It All Out

Consonants

Stress

Linking

Elision

Silent Letters

Six Easy Rules for Vowels

Vowels and Diphthongs (non-nasalized)

Nasalized Vowels

Vowels in Contrast

e caduc

Liaison

A Guide to Creole Pronunciation.............................

Vowels

A Guide to Jamaican Patois Pronunciation..................

Jamaican alphabet

Greetings.........................................................

Introductions.....................................................

Conversation.....................................................

Questions.........................................................

Questions Vocabulary...........................................

Transportation...................................................

Transportation Vocabulary...................................

Accomodations..................................................

Accomodations Vocabulary.................................

Meals............................................................

Street Foods of the Caribbean..............................

Beverage......................................................

Food............................................................

Utensils........................................................

Measurements................................................

Animals........................................................

Numbers.......................................................

Dates...........................................................

Months.........................................................

City.............................................................

Clothing........................................................

Colors...........................................................

People...........................................................

Art...............................................................

Home............................................................

Electronics......................................................

Nature...........................................................

Directions.......................................................

Seasons..........................................................

Bathroom........................................................

Time..............................................................

Body.............................................................

Shopping.........................................................

Family............................................................

Emergency.......................................................180

The Lord’s Prayer 

Padre Nuestro

Notre Père

Papa Nou

Jamaican Patois

Sources..........................................................

Introduction

Approximately 100 million people travel to the Caribbean islands each year.   Most miss the real charm of the islands because they can’t communicate with the people who live there.  Once you learn a few phrases however, you’ll find that the people and culture of the islands will open up to you in ways you never imagined.

If you’re planning a Caribbean Vacation or just want to learn the languages spoken there, then this book is for you.  The Caribbean Phrasebook is a different kind of cruise guide that you should use alongside your favorite tourist guide to really immerse yourself in the culture of the people and enjoy trying your skills with speaking their native languages.  They’ll appreciate your wanting to learn and often go out of their way to share with you secrets of  their culture and language.

If you’re planning a Caribbean Vacation or just want to learn the languages spoken there, then this book is for you.  We’ve chosen the most commonly encountered languages and included phrases and vocabulary terms you’re likely to encounter.  Here you’ll find commonly used words and phrases in 5 languages.

English

Spanish

French

Haitian Creole

Jamaican Patois

MAJOR TOPICS INCLUDED are accommodations, travel, street foods of the Caribbean, food, beverages. dining, shopping, and conversation.

You’ll also find a special section for emergencies and medical information which could prove invaluable should you find yourself in need of assistance.

A Guide to English Pronunciation

For anyone who wants to understand the major rules and subtle guidelines of English grammar and usage A Guide to English Pronunciation offers comprehensive, straightforward instruction.

This easy to use  resource includes simple explanations of grammar, and usage and scores of helpful examples with audio to help you learn to use English effectively.

Clear and concise, easy-to-follow, offering just the facts

Fully updated to reflect the latest rules in grammar and usage along with new quizzes

Ideal for students from seventh grade through adulthood.

English is not a phonetic language.  It has borrowed many words from other languages and words are often not pronounced as they seem.  This book gives you the rules of English usage and pronunciation, but you can benefit most by using the book in conjunction with the audio.  Whenever you see the speaker ( ) symbol you can  hear the word or phrase spoken using the audio on our website.  You can also download the set of mp3 files at www.wordsrus.info/catalog/english_pronunciation.html.

This book is a part of our language learning site – Words R Us.  (www.wordsrus.info) Dozens of languages are available with phrasebooks, dictionaries and language learning tools at

www.wordsrus.info

A Guide to English Pronunciation and Grammar will  enable you to:

• Quickly master basic English grammar and tackle more advanced topics.

• Properly use nouns, pronouns, adjectives, determiners, verbs, adverbs, dates and numbers.

• Master verb tenses, including irregular verbs and exceptions.

• Avoid embarrassing grammar errors.

• Immediately put your skills into action!

Become a more effective writer and communicator with the spoken audio which accompanies this book.

The English Alphabet

English Vowels

A

E

I

O

U

Y

Vowel Sounds

[1]

A 

The letter A has both a short sound (like in "apple") and a long sound (like in "ape").

It can also sound like a short o, usually when followed by u. For example, in the word auto.

E

The letter E has both a short sound (like in "hello") and a long sound (like in "ear").

It can also sound like a short o, like it does in the first letter of entree.

I

The letter I has both a short sound (like in "in" and a long sound (like in "irate").

O

The letter O has both a short sound (like in octopus) and a long sound (like in orange).

U 

The letter U has both a short sound (like in "under") and a long sound (like in ukelele).

2- Vowel Combinations

SOME OF THESE CAN HAVE multiple pronunciations depending on which letters are around it.

1.) aa (baa)

Pronunciation: Short o sound.

Example  

SHEEP SAY "Baa."

2.) ae (archaeologist or bae)

Note the difference: In the first word, ae makes the long e sound. In the second word, it makes the long a sound.

Examples

HAROLD STUDIED TO BECOME an archaeologist.

Anne called Thomas "bae" the other day.

3.) ai (hair)

Pronunciation: Like the long a sound, but a little softer.

Example

SAMUEL’S Hair is a beautiful golden color.

4.) ao (chaos)

Pronunciation: In this case, you say the a part first with its long sound, immediately followed by the short o sound. This one can be tricky.

Example

WHEN THE INTERNET WENT down, the neighborhood found itself in chaos.

5.) au (audio)

Pronunciation: Short osound.

Example

SHE COULDN’T FIGURE out how to fix the audio on her computer.

6.) ea (eat)

Pronunciation: Long e sound.

Example

WHAT TIME DO YOU WANT to eat dinner?

7.) ee (feel)

This double vowel has two common pronunciations.

Pronunciation 1: Long e sound.

Example

Linda didn’t know what to feel after failing the exam.

Pronunciation 2: Long a sound.

Example

RILEY’S MOUTH WATERED as the waiter brought out the entree.

8.) ei (weird)

Pronunciation: Long e sound.

Example

EVERYONE THOUGHT IT was really weird when Ellen left the party early.

9.) eo (theology)

Pronunciation: This is another tricky one like ao. This one is pronounced by first saying the e with its long sound, immediately followed by the o with its short sound.

Example

HAROLD WASN’T SATISFIED with his archaeology career, so he quit and studied theology.

By the way, if you noticed the aeo in Harold’s first career choice, worry not. We’ll go over how to pronounce this, as well as a couple of other triple vowel combinations, in the next section.

10.) eu (euro)

Pronunciation: In the word above, this vowel combination is pronounced sort of like the y sound. (Imagine saying "yuro.")

Example

REYNOLD ONLY HAD euros on him, so he couldn’t purchase the shirt he wanted on vacation.

11.) ia (Maria orMariah)

Note the difference: In the first word, the i in ia makes a long e sound, and the a makes a short u sound. In the second word, because the vowel combination is followed by an h, the i makes a long i sound and the a maintains its short u sound.

Examples

MARia didn’t feel well, so she left school early.

Mariah sat alone at lunch because her friend Maria was gone.

12.) ie (carries)

Pronunciation: Long e sound.

Example

ELISA CARRies a lot of responsibility, having three kids.

13.) io (Mario)

Pronunciation: Another tricky one. First pronounce the i with a long e