wonder word: with

---

Written TH is pronounced several ways.
I wonder how an American pronounces…

with
/wɪð/

In natural speech, we don’t say words separately.
We connect them together.  We link them.

On this page, we learn
the secret of linking…
with + a, an, the

First, let’s look at … with + a, an

 

th + vowel sound
[linking pattern #1]

with a … with an
/ˈwɪ–ðə/ … /ˈwɪ–ðən/

We move the th at the end of the
word ‘with‘ to the beginning of the next word.

we write:  with a … with an
we say:  wi tha … wi than
we stress the 1st syllable:  /ˈwɪ–ðə/ … /ˈwɪ–ðən/

 

with a
/ˈwɪ–ðə/

With a computer, she can get
pretty much whatever she wants.

 

<with a
/ˈwɪ–ðə/

She just came up with a great idea.

 

with a
/ˈwɪ–ðə/

She just graduated
with a bachelor’s degree in linguistics.

 

with a
/ˈwɪ–ðə/

She’s chatting with a friend of hers.

with an
/ˈwɪ–ðən/

She burned her hand with an iron.

 

with an
/ˈwɪ–ðən/

She didn’t study,
so she ended up with an F on her test.

 

with an
/ˈwɪ–ðən/

The teacher surprised the
class with an unusual question.

 

with a … with an
/ˈwɪ–ðə/ … /ˈwɪ–ðən/

The lumberjack never cuts down trees with a saw.
He always cuts them down with an ax.

 

with a … with an
/ˈwɪ-ðə/ … /ˈwɪ–ðən/

She’s relaxing with a good book.
She’s relaxing with an interesting book.

 

th + same consonant th
[linking pattern #3]

We say half of each consonant.
We say the first th…/ˈwɪð/, then hold it,
then finish it at the beginning of the next word…/-ða/

with the
/ˈwɪð–ða/

 

with the … with a
/ˈwɪð–ða/ … /ˈwɪ–ðə/

I helped the man with the package.
I helped the man with a package.

 

with the … with a
/ˈwɪð–ða/ … /ˈwɪ–ða/

She’s in bed with the flu.
Last month, she was in bed with a bad cold.

 

with the … with a
/ˈwɪð–ða/ … /ˈwɪ–ða/

The thief ran away with the money.
The thief ran away with a bag of money.

 

with the … with a … with an
/ˈwɪð–ða/ … /ˈwɪ-ða/ … /ˈwɪ-ðan/

Don’t argue with the crossing guard.
Don’t argue with a crossing guard.
Don’t ever argue with an angry crossing guard.

---