SWEDISH Long Ä väg ( T'oad) (we 7, 7,) väl läsa (to read) (nose) näsa (to compete) tävla
(here) hä r där (there) bär (berry) (iron) j ä rn (to teach) I ä ra
You can heaT' how much broader and more open the Ä sound is if it is followed by an liR". Take the word järnväg (railroad) where you have an example of both types of long Ä. Say it: järn-väg, järn-väg, järn-väg. The short Ä is also bT'oad and open before an "R". It is similar to the first vowel sound in the English words "carryJ" "marorYJ" etc. Before other consonants it sounds just like the short Swedish E sound (ett, mest, hem). Now listen to the shorot Ä sound and no te the difference be tween the Ä fo lZowed by an "R" and the Ä fo lZowed by other consonants. Short Ä ärr (scar) färja (feny) vä rre (worse) märka (to notice) ärm (sleeve)
vägg (wa7, l) kvä I I (evening) v än ( friend) bäst (bes t) n ästa (next)
Now we/Il read the words with long Ä and alternate with words with short Ä. Try to worok on the long Ä that is not folZowed by an "R"J since you are not used to making this sound long in English. Long Ä
Short Ä
här
ärr ärm nästa vägg kvä I l
j ä rn
näsa väg vä I
Guide to Swedish Pronunciation
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