Learn English Through Song

Country Roads - by John Denver Photographs of West Virginia by Roger Spencer

1 Pronunciation: “S” Sounds

2 (It's) Almost heaven, West Virginia, Blue Ridge Mountain, Shenandoah River.

LESSON Often-used "s" sounds, especially n word endings aren't found in many
languages. (st) repeat twice: almost toast boast; east west crest zest

3 Life is old there, older than the trees, younger than the mountains flowing like the
breeze.

LESSON Plural nouns have "s" ending sounds. repeat twice: trees bees knees peas
seas; hills mills mountains fountains

4 Country roads, (Sing!) take me home to the place I belong, West Virginia, Mountain
Mama.

LESSON Words ending with "ce" and "se" have a strong "s" sound. repeat twice place
mace face lace pace; race brace trace base case

5 Take me home, country roads.

LESSON Even the letter "x" /eks/ has an ending "s" sound. repeat twice: box fox lox
pox sox; vex hoax x Rex hex

6 All my memories gather round her, miner's lady, (a) stranger to blue water.

LESSON Possessive adjectives have an "s" ending sound. repeat twice: miner's lady
farmer's friend John's car; doctor's son girl's purse sister's dress

7 (It's) Dark and dusky, painted on the sky.

LESSON Contractions with the verb to be "is" have ending "s" sounds. repeat twice: it's
he's she's Jane's soup's lesson's school's

8 (It has a) Misty taste of moonshine, (and makes) teardrops in my eyes.

LESSON After "e' sounds, "s" sounds have a high frequency in English. What words
have "s" sounds in the above sentence of the song.
9 Country roads, take me home to the place I belong, West Virginia, Mountain Mama.

LESSON How many "s" sounds are in the sentence above? What parts of speech are
they?

10 Take me home, country road.

LESSON Because the latter "s" is used so much, there are many "tongue twisters." A
popular tongue twister is "She sells seashells by the seashore."

11 I hear her voice; in the morning hour she calls me.

LESSON 3rd person singular verbs have "s" endings. repeat twice: she calls she sees
she studies he walks he freezes he remembers

12 Radio reminds me of my home far away.

LESSON An "s" ending is on the 3rd person singular verb in the above sentence.
"reminds" means "makes me remember."

13 Driving down the road, I get a feeling that I should of been home yesterday.

LESSON Modal verbs such as shall - should can - could will - would do not use "s"
endings.

14 Country roads, take me home to the place I belong, West Virginia, Mountain Mama.

LESSON Letters, characters and numbers may have "s" endings. Consider the
following: Xs or X's 80s or 80's or eighties Ks or K's sevens or 7s or 7's sixes

15 Take me home, country road.

LESSON The suffix "ess" sometimes signals feminine (i.e. female) gender. Repeat
twice: lion - lioness tiger - tigress actor - actress emperor - empress prince –
princess

16 (I want to hear you now.) Country roads, take me home to the place

LESSON High register nouns are made with the suffix "ness." repeat twice: sweetness
kindness truthfulness meanness sourness trustworthiness

17 I belong, West Virginia, West Virginia, Mountain Mama. Oh Lord!

LESSON High register adjectives have the suffix "less" (often the opposite of "ful")
repeat twice: harmless tireless hatless loveless penniless lifeless
18 Take me home, country roads.

LESSON Try and say the following tongue-twister "three times fast." "Shirley surely
shivers in short, sheer, shirts."19 Take me home, that country roads. Take me home,
that country roads. What's the error in the above sentences?

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