Pronunciation is very difficult to correct if you have been
speaking English for a long time. As you know, practice does not make
perfect, it makes permanent. That means if you practice incorrectly, it
will become permanent. You need to correct this problem before moving
forward because having bad pronunciation is one of the most difficult
aspects of speaking to someone who does not speak English well.
The pronunciation lessons provided here are American English
pronunciation and will provide you with an explanation, instruction, and
audio files to help you pronounce sounds correctly. If you don't have
access to a native speaker to give you feedback, I encourage you to
record and listen to yourself. Although it might be tedious, you'll be
surprised at how helpful this actually is.
Pronouncing the letters B and P
Pronouncing the letters B and P
Listen to the lessonThe letters P and B are similar.
Instruction: Have your lips pressed together and then slighly push air out of your mouth forcing your lips apart.
These two letters do not require any nasal sound.
Here
are some words and sentences to help you hear what they should sound
like. Click on any word or sentence to hear the correct sound.
BorderBaseballAbnormal"
The baseball player got hurt when he went to bat""
The border patrol was given the best officer award""
The Abnormal tissue was being carefully examined"PaintingAppealLapse"
The painting that was stolen was a precious art piece""
The pesty lawyer went to appeal his case""
The lapse of time caused him to bite his lip"
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Pronouncing the letters D and T
Instruction:
Have the tip of your tongue pressed against the top of your mouth right
behind the front tooth. Then slightly push air separating your tongue
and upper mouth.
Every time the letters D and T are spoken, the tip of your tongue should touch the upper part of your mouth.
Here
are some words and sentences to help you hear what they should sound
like. Click on any word or sentence to hear the correct sound.
DentistLadderBlood"
The dentist did a great job on the filling""
He was a little nervous climbing down the ladder""
The blood on his shirt indicated that he got a cut somewhere"TerribleComputerFast"
He felt terrible after eating the soup""
His computer stopped working after he installed the service pack""
The fleet footed runner couldn't be caught"
Pronouncing the letters G and K
This lesson will cover the hard sound for letter G. For the soft sound of letter G, please refer to the CH and J lesson.
Instruction:
The rear portion of your tongue should move up towards the rear part of
the mouth, slightly touching it when the sound is made.
Here
are some words and sentences to help you hear what they should sound
like. Click on any word or sentence to hear the correct sound.
GooseTogetherTug"
The big goose flew off with my golf ball""
The guests won't mind if we pay together""
The constant tug of the little girl finally woke up the father"KellyMakingPotluck"
My friend Kelly said she will come by soon""
I was making the ingredients for breakfast""
I didn't need to bake anything for the potluck"
Pronouncing the letters CH and J
Instruction: Just like the letters D and T, have the tip of your tongue
pressed against the top of your mouth right behind the front tooth. At
the same time, press your side cheeks inward so both cheeks are firmly
pressing against your side teeth. Then slightly blow out.
Here
are some words and sentences to help you hear what they should sound
like. Click on any word or sentence to hear the correct sound.
CherryCatcherBatch"
The little cherries were very delicious""
The catcher gave the wrong signal to the pitcher""
The batch of cookies were perfect"JamBridgingRidge"
What is the difference between a jam and a jelly spread""
Bridging the gap between the two rivals was very difficult""
You can see the house just beyond the ridge"
Pronouncing the letter H
Instruction:
The whole mouth is open. This sound is made by using the vocal chord
in the throat. The difference between a h sound and an "ah" or an "eh"
sound is that it is more hollow in the mouth when the air passes.
Here
are some words and sentences to help you hear what it should sound
like. Click on any word or sentence to hear the correct sound.
HomeDoghouseHelium"
After the long day, he went home to sleep""
The little puppy didn't like the big doghouse""
The helium balloons filled the room for the birthday girl"
Pronouncing the letters F and V
Instruction: Press the top front teeth against the bottom lip and release as you blow air out.
Here
are some words and sentences to help you hear what they should sound
like. Click on any word or sentence to hear the correct sound.
FictionInflictedLaugh"
Even though the story was a fiction, the children were afraid""
The damage the car inflicted was too severe to fix""
His laugh was so loud, the whole floor was shaking"VaseCurveballBelieve"
This vase is over a hundred years old and is very important to the country""
The batter had a hard time hitting the curveball""
Whether you believe it or not, I was victorious"
Pronouncing the letters S and Z
Instruction:
Slightly press the middle portion or your tongue to the top of your
mouth. More pressure should be on the side of the tongue than the
center as you press the top portion of your mouth. Then blow air
outward through the small opening.
Here are some words and
sentences to help you hear what they should sound like. Click on any
word or sentence to hear the correct sound.
SaladMassiveHouse"
He bought some lettuce to make salad for dinner""
The massive tornado only left a few number of houses standing""
The small green house was on a large piece of land"ZebraResumeRose"
The zebra was too quick for the lion""
The game will resume after a brief intermission""
The cozy house had a beautiful rose bush in the backyard"
Pronouncing the letters M, N, and NG
Instruction:
These three sounds are mostly made with the nasal pathway. For M,
press the lips together and make a sound blowing air out of the nose.
For N, press the tongue on top of the upper portion of the mouth and
blow air out of the nose. And for NG, press the very rear portion of
the tongue and upper mouth together and blow air out of the nose.
These
three sounds are made the same way using the air you breath out of the
nose. The only difference is the lip and mouth position. If you plug
your nose and try to make this sound, it will not be correct.
Here
are some words and sentences to help you hear what they should sound
like. Click on any word or sentence to hear the correct sound.
MaryAmountDrum"
Mary was very moody after the mid-term exam""
The amount of sugar she used for the muffins was perfect""
Stop beating the drum at 1 in the morning"NiceNancyPedestrian"
They could not be any nicer.""
Nancy was not herself that morning""
The pedestrian helped the old lady cross the street"BringDancing"
Tell the young maid to bring the mop""
The couple were dancing all night long"
Pronouncing the letter L
Instruction: Slightly press the tip of your tongue on the top portion of
your mouth. The position of the mouth is similar to the D and T sound,
but is much softer.
Here are some words and sentences to help
you hear what they should sound like. Click on any word or sentence to
hear the correct sound.
LittleReflectAll"
The little cat was chasing the mouse below the deck""
He often came to this quiet place to reflect on his performance""
All the people were laughing at his jokes"
Pronouncing the letter R
The
letter R is difficult for many English learners. I will try to provide
a good explanation with many examples to help students practice
pronouncing the letter R.
Instruction: To successfully make the R
sound, curl the tongue upward without touching the top portion of the
mouth. You should also curl the sides of the tongue upward so it is
very close to the upper molars. In this position, make a roaring sound
like a lion forcing air out of the nose and mouth at the same time. If
you are confused about how you should position the tongue, try to make
the shape of a bowl with your tongue. The sides should touch the top,
but the tip of the tongue should not touch the top part of the mouth.
Here
are some words and sentences to help you hear what they should sound
like. Click on any word or sentence to hear the correct sound.
RacingRoadGrowlCarryVeryFaster"
He got a speeding ticket for racing""
The road home is usually long and lonely""
The dog was growling at the cat""
She hurt her leg so he had to carry her home""
You did a very good job""
If the zebra doesn't run any faster, the lion will catch up"
Pronouncing the letter W
Pronunciation for the W sound is not too difficult. This sound is very close to vowel sounds.
Instruction:
Make the lips narrow and close to each other without the lips touching.
Also make the inside of the mouth closer together. Then move the lips
and mouth further apart as you make this sound.
Here are some
words and sentences to help you hear what they should sound like. Click
on any word or sentence to hear the correct sound.
WhenWorkAway"
When will you do your homework""
Who is going to drive you to work""
How far away do you live"
Pronouncing the letter Y
Pronouncing the sound TH
Instruction:
To create the TH sound, place the tongue on the bottom of the upper
tooth. Your tongue should almost be sticking out. Then blow air
between the tongue and the top teeth.
Here are some words and
sentences to help you hear what they should sound like. Click on any
word or sentence to hear the correct sound.
ThereToothpasteBath"
There is a bike in front of that store""
Brush your teeth with a toothpaste that has fluoride""
My son played in the mud puddle, so I am going to give him a bath"
Pronouncing the sound SH
Instruction: To create the SH sound you should make your mouth in a
small position. Bring the top and bottom teeth close together without
having them touch. Also, curve the tongue so the middle portion of the
tongue is elevated slightly.
Here are some words and sentences to
help you hear what they should sound like. Click on any word or
sentence to hear the correct sound.
ShapeHash brownHush"
The shape of that shoe was very unique""
Hash browns are my favorite breakfast item""
Hush! The show is about to start"
Pronouncing the various sounds of the letter A
There are multiple sounds using the letter A. The difference is where
the sound is created within the mouth. There are sharp sounds, regular
sounds, and hollow sounds. In order to pronounce the various sounds of A
correctly, we should look at the differences and practice them
separately.
First, the sound of A that comes from the front of
the mouth are the opposite of hollow sounds so I will call them sharp
sounds (although the A sound is not really sharp).
Here are some words that come from the front of the mouth.
BatBaseAteGreatFake"
The batter at bat was known to be a good slugger""
He was running the bases so slow that he was thrown out at second""
The little boy ate the whole pizza""
He was a great man""
It was hard to tell which one was real and which one was fake""A"
Sounds that come from the center of the mouth are a little different.
Pay close attention to the different sounds from the audio files and
copy after what you hear.
ZebraFarmerBarnWater"
The constant kicking of the zebra made the tiger give up the attack""
The farmer was tired from harvesting crops all day long""
The barn was filled with animals""
Clean water is not available in all countries"Finally,
the "A" sound that is hollow and deep comes from the rear of the mouth.
You should put focus on creating the sound in the back of the mouth.
ClockFallMallRaw"
The clock wasn't moving because the batteries were dead""
Fall is a busy shopping period for the Christmas season so the malls are usually packed""
Raw fish is very popular in Japan"Review: Hear the difference between using the front, middle, and rear part of the mouth.
Ah (front)Ah (middle)Ah (Rear)
Pronouncing the various sounds of the letter E
There are three common sounds using the letter E. The ee sound is used
with the front part of the mouth, the eh sound is used with the middle
portion of the mouth, and the er sound is used with the rear portion of
the mouth.
Here are some words that come from the front of the mouth using the sound ee.
MeatWeekBeat"
I like my meat fully cooked""
What day of the week is it""
If you beat me tonight, I'll buy you dinner"An example of sounds coming from the middle portion of the mouth is seen through eh.
BetBreadFed"
I will bet you that I will not lose tonight""
We need to go to the grocery store to buy some bread""
I am so fed up with him"For sounds that come from the back part of the mouth, we can look at the sound er.
EarthPurrAfter"
The earth moves at a constant speed""
The purr of the cat was all anyone could hear""
I will go home after dinner"Like
most vowels, the sound of E varies according to which consonant is next
to it. The R sound uses the middle to back portion of the mouth so
combining the letter E with R makes it so you use the back portion of
the mouth.
Pronouncing the letter I
There
are two sounds using the letter I. The short of way saying "I" is very
similar to the ee sound such as pin and win. The long sound is like
the letter "I" that is actually considered a multi-vowel sound with A
and I together such as pie and fry.
Let's first take a look at the short "I" sound.
SwimPrimroseTrimFish"
Do you know how to swim""
How to grow primroses in your garden""
You need to trim off the fat""
The fin was small in comparison to the size of the fish"The long "I" sound is a combination of "A" and "I" together. The sound starts with ah and ends with ee as in "I"
AisleTryComply"
Who is going to walk you down the aisle""
Don't try so hard or you'll burn out before finishing""
You should comply with all the rules and regulations"
Pronouncing the letter O
There
are multiple sounds using the letter O. In most cases, you make this
sound with the rear portion of the mouth. You start with your mouth in
an open state. Your tongue should also be away from the top part of the
mouth. Then you make the sound by bringing in the lips in a circular
manner and the tongue moving upward and towards the front of the mouth
ending right in the middle.
If you combine the "oh" and "oo"
sound, you have the sound of the letter "O". Along with these sounds,
it is common to use "O" with other vowels such as "OU" as in Hour. We
will see examples for all these types below.
Let's first take a look at the "oh" sound.
BoatOlderMold"
He bought a nice big boat""
My parents object to my girlfriend because she is much older than I am""
The mold in the walls is a major cause for concernHere are some examples of the "oo" sound.
TrueBlueFlu"
The examination was in the standard true and false question format""
My favorite color is blue""
I got the flu this year because I didn't take the flu shot"Two variations of the "O" sound is when it is combined with a different vowel. Let's take a look at them both.
The first one is when you combine "O" and "U". It starts with the "ah" sound and ends with the "oo" sound.
HourSourCowardSouth"
How many hours are you going to study for?""
The lemon was too sour""
He was such a coward""
Ducks fly south for the winter"The second variation of "O" is when you combine the letters "o" and "i" together.
OilBoyTroy"
The tanker spilled oil that ultimately spoiled the water""
The little boy wanted to be a cowboy""
The story of Troy is quite interesting" |
Pronouncing the letter U
There are multiple sounds using the letter U. The sound of "U" is usually created using the center portion of your mouth.
Many
of the sounds created from the standard "U" sound is captured in many
different sounds such as "oo" and the "Y" lesson, but the short form of
"U" as in fun and run will be covered here.
UmbrellaFunCrumb"
It's going to rain in the afternoon, so don't forget to bring your umbrella""
It's so much more fun when the sun is out""
My poor little dog eats the crumbs that fall off the table"
Source;http://www.talkenglish.com/LessonDetails.aspx?ALID=019
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