Welcome back! Have you checked out my Accent Reduction classes yet? People often ask me, “Why does the ‘t’ sound different in the middle of American English words?”
Here is the answer…
In American English a ‘t’ in the middle of a word often sounds more like a quick /d/. This quick /d/ sound is called a [...]
Posts under ‘Learn American Accent’
Why does the ‘t’ sound different in the middle of American English words?
Accent Reduction Techniques for Spanish Speakers
Spanish speakers frequently drop the consonant sounds at the ends of words. This can cause your speech to sound both accented and grammatically incorrect.
If you are a Spanish speaker, here is one technique you can use to reduce your accent.
Words in Spanish do not typically end in a consonant clusters but English words frequently do. [...]
Improve Your English Pronunciation with Popular Songs
Using songs is an effective and fun way to improve your spoken English. This is a fun and energizing way to improve both listening and pronunciation.
One thing that I like to do in my American English pronunciation classes is sing popular songs with the students. This helps them with English rhythm, linking and intonation.
Carolyn Graham’s [...]
Reduced Speech in American Spoken English
I get a lot of questions from people about the reduced speech forms that they hear when they listen to American English conversations. Examples include: gonna, wanna and hafta.
Here is a link to Nina Weinstein’s Voice of America episode on reduced speech. Nina is the author of the book Whaddaya Say. You can see the [...]
Pronunciation of the Vowel Combination ou
Continuing on my theme of American English vowels I’m going to write briefly on the pronunciation of the vowel combination ou.
This vowel combination can be pronounced 3 ways in American English. Here are some examples.
ou can be pronounced like /oʊ/
shoulder
soul
though
doughnut
although
ou can be pronounced like schwa /ə/
cousin
enough
country
tough
couple
ou can be pronounced like /aʊ/
loud
sound
south
found
house
If you want to learn [...]
English Audio Lesson: Reduced Speech
Several of my students tell me that they have trouble understanding the spoken English of native speakers. This is not at all unusual.
One reason that native English speakers are difficult to understand is because they often use reduced speech. When native speakers use reduced speech the words seem to run together and this can make [...]
American English Pronunciation Problems for Speakers of Haitian Creole
Haitian Creole speakers and French speakers have some of the same problems with spoken English.
One of these is the tendency to delete the /h/ sound at the beginning of words. Word initial /h/ is almost always pronounced in American English. That means that the /h/ must be articulated clearly in words such as: hat, here, [...]
Linking within Words for Smoother Speech
If you are an advanced student of American English pronunciation you have probably learned about linking (or liaisons). Linking refers to the connections between words. Ann Cook, author of American Accent Training, says that these connections “allow us to speak in sound groups” instead of word by word.
Spoken English has linking between words and also [...]
American English Pronunciation: How to Make the /n/ & /l/ Sounds
Chinese speakers from some dialects tend to confuse word medial and word final /l/ & /n/ sounds when they are speaking English. This causes communication problems and contributes to your accent.
The /n/ & /l/ sounds are articulated in almost the same manner as the tongue touches behind the tooth ridge. The tongue is a bit [...]
Reduced & Connected Speech in American English
This week several of my students asked me if reduced speech was only appropriate in informal situations. I don’t believe that it is.
Whenever people speak, they have a tendency to save energy by connecting sounds together. This connected or reduced speech is not necessarily sloppy or informal, it’s the way most Americans speak English [...]
