Welcome back! Have you checked out my Accent Reduction classes yet?
One of the most effective ways to improve your American English pronunciation is to use syllable stress correctly. The problem is that many students of spoken English don’t know the syllable stress patterns. Here is a general rule that will help you-
Most two syllable nouns are stressed on the first syllable. Other two syllable words including many verbs, reflexive pronouns and prepositions are stressed on the second syllable.
Here is a video from Charles Kelly that you can use to practice pronouncing words with second syllable stress.
Note-Charles does not always use the schwa sound for the unstressed “e” in words such as between. Keep in mind that many American English speakers use the schwa sound for these vowels. You can read more about the schwa sound here-
Also, instead of listening and repeating each word after Charles, say it along with him. That way you’ll really feel the stress pattern!
American English syllable stress video
Related posts:
