2.2.12. ʒ

ʒ 这个音在中文中不存在，是位于 r 和 dʒ 之间的音。这个音对亚洲人来说，有点难。其实，只要肯反复练习，这个音对中文普通话使用者来说并不像最初以为的那么难。先试试说一下 dʒ（中文普通话拼音中的 zh），然后，把顶在上颚上的舌面略微下放一点点，留出一个缝隙以便气流通过 —— ʒ和 dʒ 的区别就是这个缝隙。

还记得吗？母语中不存在的音素其实相对更容易学（2.2.2），但，有相似的就相对更难。ʒ 就因为与 dʒ（中文普通话拼音中的 zh）太相似了，所以才被中文普通话使用者全部都用 dʒ 替代……

幸运的是，含有这个音在英文词汇其实很少，在最常用的 10,000 英语词汇里只有 69 个，而最常用的也就十几个：

• beige /beɪʒ/ A pale sandy yellow-brown color
• collage /kəˈlɑːʒ/ A piece of art made by sticking various different materials such as photographs and pieces of paper or fabric onto a backing
• corsage /kɔːrˈsɑːʒ/ A small bouquet of flowers worn on a woman's dress or around her wrist
• decision /dɪˈsɪʒən/ A conclusion or resolution reached after consideration
• decoupage /ˌdeɪkuːˈpɑːʒ/ The art or craft of decorating objects with paper cut-outs
• garage /ɡəˈrɑːʒ/ A building for housing a motor vehicle
• genre /ˈʒɑːnrə/ A category of artistic composition, as in music or literature
• leisure /ˈleʒər/ Time free from work or duties
• massage /məˈsɑʒ/ The rubbing and kneading of muscles and joints of the body with the hands, especially to relieve tension or pain
• measure /ˈmeʒər/ To ascertain the size, amount, or degree of something
• mirage /mɪˈrɑːʒ/ An optical illusion caused by atmospheric conditions
• montage /mɒnˈtɑːʒ/ The technique of producing a new composite whole from fragments of pictures, text, or music
• pleasure /ˈpleʒər/ A feeling of happy satisfaction and enjoyment
• regime /reɪˈʒiːm/ A government, especially an authoritarian one
• rouge /ruːʒ/ A red powder or cream used as a cosmetic for coloring the cheeks or lips
• treasure /ˈtreʒər/ A quantity of precious metals, gems, or other valuable objects
• usual /ˈjuʒəwəl/ Habitually or typically occurring or done
• vision /ˈvɪʒən/ The ability to see; sight