IPA stands for the International Phonetic Alphabet.
The IPA is a system of phonetic notation which represents the different sounds of languages.
When we teach English as a foreign language we are concerned with the sounds, or phonemes, which make up the English language, rather than just the letters of the alphabet.
The IPA we deal with in TEFL has 44 sounds. These are all the sounds in English.
The IPA is a useful tool when it comes to teaching pronunciation.
Read more: An Introduction To The International Phonetic Alphabet