Welcome back! Have you checked out my Accent Reduction classes yet? Listen for all the different ways the th and the t are pronounced in this Thanksgiving video by Martha Stuart.
Here is a checklist you can use to guide you as you watch and listen. Print or copy these words and mark each one when [...]
Posts Tagged ‘american english consonants’
Pronouncing t & th in American English (with Martha Stewart)
American English Pronunciation Software
Many of you already know about the great free pronunciation software from the University of Iowa. However, for those readers who are new to my blog, I’m going to post it again.
This online software shows you how to pronounce all of the American English vowel and consonant sounds using audio and video. If you want [...]
American English Pronunciation Problems for South Asian Speakers
Many of my readers are from India and other countries in South Asia. These people read and write English extremely well. However the spoken English that they learned in school is not always comprehensible to American English listeners.
Here are a couple of American English pronunciation problems frequently made by speakers of South Asian languages.
Using a [...]
American English Pronunciation-The Tapped T Sound
When you are listening to American English speakers you may have noticed that when the letter “t” is in the middle of a word it often has a /d/ sound. Pronunciation teachers call this sound the flap or the tapped T because when we make this sound we slightly flap or tap our tongues behind [...]
How to Pronounce the L in American English
In American English the /l/ is referred to as a “liquid” sound. That’s because when you articulate this sound the tip of your tongue touches the ridge behind your upper teeth and the air flows through the sides of your tongue.
When /l/ comes after certain vowel sounds American English speakers will insert a schwa sound [...]
American English & Phonetic Pronunciation
I receive lots of requests from students for IPA charts and information about the pronunciation of American English vowel and consonant sounds. Here is some basic information.
The International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) is a system that was developed to represent the sounds of spoken languages. The system uses characters from the Latin and Greek alphabets.
The symbols [...]
American English Pronunciation-The Sounds of R & L
Many non-native English speakers have problems pronouncing the consonants R and L. Since R and L are found at the beginning and end of many American English words it is important to pronounce these sounds correctly.
Here are a few tips you can use to make these sounds.
Making the /r/ sound
To make the /r/ [...]
Accent Reduction Tip-The Dropped T Sound
English is not always pronounced the same way that it’s written and that is the cause of many pronunciation problems. One sound that American English speakers frequently drop is the /t/ sound.
The /t/ sound is often dropped after the /n/ sound in spoken American English. This is very natural and it helps speakers to pronounce clusters [...]
How to Pronounce Voiced & Voiceless Consonant Sounds
When you are speaking English it is important to recognize the difference between voiced sounds and voiceless sounds. A voiced sound causes your vocal chords to vibrate. A voiceless sound does not cause your vocal chords to vibrate.
American English has 8 voiced/voiceless consonant pairs. All of the vowel sounds are voiced. Try this so you can see what I mean.
Put your fingers lightly on [...]
English Pronunciation Videos
I finally took a closer look at the American English pronunciation videos created by the people at Fun Easy English. I had come across these on the web many times but I never took the time to check out the site.
I was really quite impressed with the number of video lessons they provide for American [...]
