There are two ways to spell vowel E in Indonesian. Yes, two! There are two sounds of the vowel.
One of them can be matched to the sound of the same vowel in English but the other can’t.
Let’s see what English words that is similar to the sound if Indonesian E is pronounced.
The words I choose for examples are as followings :
- Sand
- Bet
- Get
- Let
The above words can represent one of the two sounds of vowel E in Indonesian. Let me call it as E number#1 to distinct it from the other.
How to spell vowel E number#1
Please try your pronunciation of Indonesian E number #1 using below words. As usual there is an audio file (small size) to accompany your practice.
| WORDS | SYLLABLES | MEANING |
|---|---|---|
| BELA | BE-LA | DEFEND |
| MEJA | ME-JA | TABLE |
| DESA | DE-SA | VILLAGE |
| LELE | LE-LE | CATFISH |
| MERAH | ME-RAH | RED |
| BEBEK | BE-BEK | DUCK |
This is the audio to check your pronunciation.
How to spell vowel E number#2
For the sound of the type #2, as there is no equivalent in English, it is better for you to replicate how the sound from the audio file. After that, please take a look at the word table and try again.
The words mentioned in the audio are
| WORDS | SYLLABLES | MEANING |
|---|---|---|
| SEDIH | SE-DIH | SAD |
| KERAS | KE-RAS | HARD |
| BELI | BE-LI | BUY |
| HELA | HE-LA | DRAG |
| SEBAB | SE-BAB | BECAUSE/CAUSE |
| BERI | BE-RI | GIVE |
So now you already know how to spell vowel E in Indonesian. Although there are two ways, but I don’t think it’s difficult.
Keep on practicing mate!