American English Pronunciation Blog

Can I Reduce My Accent?

susan — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 02:13:55 +0000

Will you ever be able to totally eliminate your foreign accent when you speak American English? The truth is, probably not. However, you can improve the way you speak so that people will understand you. To do that you need to learn the accent reduction strategies that will help you and practice those strategies every day.

How much you improve will depend on these factors:

Your ability to target the speech features that are contributing to your accent
Your motivation to improve
Your ability to practice daily

Learning to improve your spoken American English does not mean simply learning the 44 vowel and consonant sounds. You must also learn the key factor to speaking English like an American. That means learning to use the correct stress patterns in words and thought groups.

You will not change your accent overnight but with focused practice and commitment you can speak English more confidently and clearly!

If you are not sure which sounds and patterns you need to change to reduce your accent you may want to consider an Accent Assessment. This is a very valuable and affordable way to start your personal accent reduction program!

How to Teach American English Pronunciation

susan — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 11:13:07 +0000

I know that many of my readers are teachers who are looking for quality lessons and resources they can use to teach American English pronunciation to their students. I am currently working on a resource page for you and it will be up soon.

In the meantime please check out Teach American English Pronunciation to find some of the best books, lessons and websites you can use with your students.

The Importance of the Schwa Sound

susan — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 11:00:02 +0000

WOW! This week many people have emailed to ask me to explain the English schwa vowel sound. This vowel sound is found in both American and British English and it is the most common sound in the English language.

The best place to learn about the schwa is here on the BBC website. Be sure to view the funny video at the bottom of the page.

Click here to see the best American English Audio course for learning about the schwa vowel sound.

American English Pronunciation: The Importance of Voiced and Voiceless Sounds

susan — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 11:00:32 +0000

In spoken American English there are many pairs of consonant sounds that are articulated using the same tongue and mouth shape. The difference between these pairs of sounds is that one sound is voiced and the other is voiceless.

Voiced sounds cause the vocal chords to vibrate. Voiceless sounds are softer and do not cause the vocal chords to vibrate. Here are a few examples:

In spoken English the /s/ & /z/ sounds employ the same tongue position and mouth shape but the /z/ is voiced and the /s/ is voiceless.

The English /k/ & /g/ sounds are both produced in the back of the throat but the /g/ is voiced and the /k/ is voiceless.

The /p/ & /b/ sounds are both made by pushing your lips together and then releasing them but the /b/ is voiced and the /p/ is voiceless.

Many non-native English speakers used the voiceless sounds /s/, /k/ & /p/ when they should use the voiced sounds /z/, /g/ & /b/. Making this type of pronunciation mistake will both contribute to your accent and cause misunderstandings.

IPA for American English

susan — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 11:00:00 +0000

Many of you have written and asked me questions about the IPA and how to read phonetic transcriptions of English words.

I did some searching on the web and found this page from the Antimoon site. The page shows you how to read and write phonetic transcriptions. Each word and transcription has an audio recording using American English. Check it out!

IPA for American English

Learn the Rhythms of Spoken English with American Accent Training

susan — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 11:07:10 +0000

One of the best books for learning and practicing the rhythms of spoken American English is Ann Cook’s American Accent Training. The book includes 5 CDs. You can read the reviews of this best selling book here American Accent Training

Syllable Stress in Nouns & Verbs

susan — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 11:08:02 +0000

A couple of days ago I explained that heteronyms are two words that are spelled identically. The way the words are stressed determines the meaning.

One good example is the word: OBJECT.
The way you use syllable stress say the word ‘object’ changes the meaning of the word.

When the stress is on the first syllable the word is a noun as in this sentence:
James has many beautiful OBjects in his home.

When the stress is on the second syllable the word is a verb as in this sentence:
Sylvia əbJECTed to her husband’s drinking.

Note that the reduced syllable in the verb form has a schwa (ə) vowel sound. I teach all about heteronyms in my free 4 week accent reduction e-course.

Why You Need to Use Syllable Stress Correctly

susan — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 12:53:40 +0000

One reason that you need to use syllable stress correctly when you are speaking is because English has many heteronyms.

Heteronyms are two words that are spelled identically. The way the words are pronounced determines the meaning.

One good example is the word: ADDRESS.
When you say the word ‘address’ the way you use syllable stress changes the meaning of the word.

When you place stress is on the first syllable, address is a noun as in this sentence:
Susan’s ADdress is 2010 Pine Street.

When you place stress on the second syllable, address is a verb as in this sentence:
Susan will ədDRESS the class tomorrow.

Note that the reduced syllable in the verb form has a schwa (ə) vowel sound.

There are many more examples of syllable stress in heteronyms and I’ll post more of these in the next couple of days.

BTW-don’t forget to add this blog to your bookmarks!

American English Pronunciation Practice-Mirroring

susan — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 00:25:26 +0000

Lots of people will tell you to watch American television shows to hear authentic examples of American English. That’s an excellent idea but you can take it a step further to get some serious pronunciation practice.

Instead of simply watching your show, choose a character to imitate. As soon as your character starts to speak, try to say exactly what they are saying. Speak right along with the character!

Mirror the character’s spoken English for about 15 seconds at a time. This will really help you get a feel for the way American English speakers use syllable stress, sentence stress, linking and intonation patterns.

Don’t be a couch potato! Put your TV time to work.

American English Pronunciation: Linking and Liasons

susan — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 11:00:38 +0000

Here is some excellent information from Ann Cook about how to improve your American English pronunciation using linking or liaisons. If you use liaisons like native speakers do your speech will sound smoother and less choppy to American listeners.

Liaisons in American English

Here is a link to reviews of Ann Cook’s book American Accent Training.