Discussions
Back to Discussions

Pronunciation difference between "RANT" and "RENT"

SheeriMax
Hello, y'all. Is my pronunciation understandable or do I make some mistakes? (Most of the time when I meet any of these words, I don't hear the clear difference and understand only because of the context which one is used) [https://voca.ro/15bf1h0W5P4Q](https://voca.ro/15bf1h0W5P4Q)

13 comments

zebostoneleigh•
Rent sounds good. Rant needs work. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmpnK3-CYKM](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmpnK3-CYKM) What you say sounds more like one of these (which are not words): \- rahnt \- ront
Bunnytob•
If you gave me your rant with no context whatsoever, I think I'd interpret it as "runt". However, so long as you're consistent with it, I'd say what you have is a perfectly understandable 'palm' vowel (or 'long a'). And while I can't personally speak for what other people use, I use the long a in Rant, so **I**'d say you should be fine using it there, too.
ThomasApplewood•
Are you learning British English or American
kgxv•
In American English: Rant rhymes with can’t, pant, and the first syllable of “Santa.” Rent rhymes with bent, lent, meant, dent, pent, sent, tent, went. At least in American English, the pronunciations aren’t really comparable.
DemonStar89•
What is your native language? Rant has the "cat vowel" which does not exist in some other languages, such as Japanese.
Acceptable-Panic2626•
I can't see you but, from the way you say rant you are lengthening the a and you seem to be making a circular motion with your mouth when annunciating. This is making a strange sound between and a and an o. Rant is a very short vowel sound and your jaw should barely move. Literally open and shut so that a sound can come out and not so nasally.
AlternativeMinute289•
(California, USA)  You said "rent" perfectly. The "a" in rant is a very tricky vowel. You might get closer if you think of it as being two vowels spoken very quickly together: an "ah" sound just like the way you're saying the a in rant right now, sliding smoothly and quickly into a thinner vowel similar to the "e" in rent. 
listenandunderstand•
You can train your ears to hear the difference between english sounds and words! With videos like this, they speak in slow and clear english. If you watch enough, your ears will be trained to tell the difference! [https://youtu.be/\_BfvucYgteY?si=RWH-jl\_mFCsbULkr](https://youtu.be/_BfvucYgteY?si=RWH-jl_mFCsbULkr) (American) [https://youtu.be/-1iaGaam5Q0?si=xuIlQ6H1O8tJ3oW4](https://youtu.be/-1iaGaam5Q0?si=xuIlQ6H1O8tJ3oW4) (British)
IncidentFuture•
Rant uses the Trap vowel /æ/. It's an open front vowel, commonly it is \[a\] to \[æ\] but it is higher or further back in some dialects. Yours sounds more like the open central \[ä\] (often transcribed as <a>) which is common in other languages as the only or main "a" sound. The Palm vowel is commonly \[ä\] (and Start in non-rhotic), or close to it, due to the historic \[ɑ\] being fronted, so your pronunciation will sound more like that to many people, as well as Strut in some accents that have it as a similar short vowel. You could simply be confusing which English "a" is involved due to its orthography, and not have trouble with /æ/ otherwise. I suggest looking up the phonology of your native language. For example, if you have a contrast between \[æ\] and \[e\] then you can just use those as the Trap and Dress vowels in English. If you don't have something that close, you probably have a front vowel such as \[e\] that you can practice saying as a more open vowel.
couldntyoujust•
Rent is ɹent and rant is ɹænt
slayerofottomans•
English vowel sounds vary a lot depending on where you are, so it depends what kind of English you're learning. I think your question has been answered but in future don't worry too much about bad pronunciation, the great thing about English being an international language is that people are very used to hearing it spoken in a heavy accent. Your pronunciation is different from how a native would say it, you're still easy to understand because that's very common and not an issue. If your pronunciation is a bit off no one will mind, and they'll probably speak to you more clearly.
viggobf•
if you're aiming for a British English accent (I'm British) we would put less stress/emphasis on the 'a' in rant than you have (but how you said it was still understandable). You kind of said 'rarnt' (not a word). The a is like in ant or apple Rent was said perfectly :)
SnooDonuts6494•
There are a million different ways to pronounce English, and none of them are the "correct" way.