To improve your pronunciation and reduce your accent, you need to work on these 6 areas:

–         Sentence stress

–         Word stress

–         Linking of individual words

–         Sound clusters (including reduced forms)

–         Correct use of sentence intonation

–         Individual sounds

When trying to improve their pronunciation, many learners focus on only one area – individual sounds – and ignore the others. You can drastically improve your pronunciation in shorter time if you focus on ALL these areas.

1. Sentence Stress

Sentence Stress is the most important and the easiest way you can improve your pronunciation in a very short time.

There are 2 kinds of words in an English sentence:

1)    Meaning words (important words, key words)

2)    Grammar words (small words, not so important)

Let’s look at the sentence ‘A teller at the bank was polite.’

How many words in total? Seven.

How many key words? Three (teller, bank, polite)

English language is like music. Music has a beat/rhythm. There are 3 beats in this sentence: boom, boom, boom = teller, bank, polite.

What happens to the grammar words? They join the key words in groups:

Ateller  atthebank  waspolite.

English language has the beat frequency of about 0.6 seconds. It means we say one key word every 0.6 seconds. It doesn’t matter to us how many grammar words are in the sentence – if there are many, we will speak them very fast because we must follow the rule of 0.6 seconds.

To learn more about the Sentence Stress and to practice, please click here.

2. Word Stress

Each word has a number of syllables, for example:

go, jump, goal, keep, move, school, smile (1 syllable)

quickly, moving, hotel, building, final (2 syllables)

industry, finances, translation, Canada (3 syllables)

application, surprisingly, industrial, Canadian (4 syllables)

communication,  intentionally (5 syllables)

internationally, identification, biotechnology (6 syllables)

Can you guess which words are the most difficult to pronounce and understand? The words with 2 syllables!

When learning new words, pay special attention to their pronunciation if they have only 2 or 3 syllables. These words look easy but they can be very tricky.

Word stress is the music of the word. Native speakers listen to this music when you speak. If you get the music wrong, people will not understand you!

Stress means you must speak one part of the word LOUDER than other parts. You can find word stress marked in all the dictionaries, but the best way to learn the correct pronunciation is to LISTEN AND REPEAT. This is how children learn the correct pronunciation – from listening and repeating.

3. Linking of Individual Words: Consonant + Vowel

In English, when a consonant sound is followed by a vowel sound, they link (=join) together and are spoken together.

English vowel sounds: a, o, u, i, e.  All the others are consonants (b, d, p, t, s, etc.)

Examples of Linking:

The word ‘it’ would almost always link to the word before it.

‘Open it’ sounds like ‘Openit’

‘Show it’ sounds like ‘Showit’

‘Find it’ sounds like ‘Findit’

Phrasal Verbs are almost always linked and are spoken as one word:

‘find out’ sounds like ‘findout’

‘pick up’ sounds like ‘pickup’

‘put off’ sounds like ‘putoff’

To learn more about Phrasal Verbs, please click here.

Because of linking, the sentence

‘I needed it so I took it.’ will sound like ‘I neededit so I tookit.’

‘I put it on the table.’ will sound like ‘I putiton the table.’

‘I gave it up.’ will sound like ‘I gavitup.’

Grammar words like articles, pronouns and prepositions would usually link to other words.

‘Can I get a sample?’ sounds like ‘CanI geta sample?’

4. Sound Clusters and Reduced Forms

When individual sounds and words meet, they often change and sound very different together.

Some examples of such changes are:

‘Do you want it?’ sound like ‘Dju wanit?’

‘What are you going to do?’ sounds like ‘Wacha gonna do?’

‘Could you help me?’ sounds like ‘Kuju help me?’

‘We should have gone earlier.’ sounds like ‘We shouldev gone earlier.’

The sound ‘t’ in Canadian pronunciation has many ways to change when combined with other sounds, for example ‘trip’ sounds like ‘chrip’ and ‘water’ sounds like ‘wader’.

5. English Intonation

Intonation is the music of the whole sentence – it’s the movement of the voice up and down.

There are three types of intonation:

1)    Rising (your voice goes up)

2)    Falling (your voice goes down)

3)    Combination (Rising and Falling)

In English, the voice moves UP:

1 In yes/no questions

For example:

Is it okay? Do you like it? Is he coming? Are you going now? Has the plane already arrived? Would you like me to help you?

2 In lists/enumerations

For example:

I went to the supermarket and bought some apples, bananas, bread, milk, yoghurt, pasta and sauce.

3 To show that your sentence is not finished

I decided to buy a house…(voice up oh the word ‘house’)… but then I changed my mind. (voice down on the word ‘mind’)

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In English, the voice moves DOWN:

1 In information questions

For example:

Where are you going? What are you doing? When is he coming? Why did you come to Canada?

2  At the end of a finished sentence

For example:

I like it. It’s beautiful outside today. I will come on Monday. He is wearing a jacket.

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In some languages, voice moves up and up and up. This may be confusing for the native speakers because they will be listening for your voice to move down to know when you finished your idea. Make sure your voice moves down on the last word of the sentence.

In English, the voice moves up and down a lot. In some cultures, people are taught to try to reduce the movements of their voice and to sound more monotone. Monotone is not good for English because people find it difficult to understand monotone speech. You need to learn to speak in waves – up and down. Add more vocal variety and people will understand you better.

When to use Rising Intonation:

–         At the end of ‘yes/no’ questions (for example: ‘Do you like it?’ ‘Is it cold?’ ‘Are you sure?’

–         In a list after each item (‘I bought apples, bananas, oranges, grapes….)

–         Any place in the middle of the sentence when you want to show that your sentence is not finished (you have not finished speaking yet and you don’t want other people to interrupt you)

When to use Falling Intonation:

–         At the end of ‘Question Word’ questions (for example: ‘What time is your flight?’ ‘Why is he not here?’ ‘How do you like your tea?’)

–         At the end of a sentence (‘I like it.’ ‘He is coming tomorrow.’)

When to use Combination Intonation:

Combination intonation can be used to express emotions (feelings), such as surprise, impatience, etc. It is very important to learn to use it correctly. If you don’t use it at all, people might think you are a cold person, or they might misunderstand your intentions.

For example, people might use the word ‘Really?’ with the Rise and Fall intonation to express these feelings.

The best and the easiest way to learn this intonation is to LISTEN AND REPEAT after the native speakers, copying the exact music of the word(s). This is how children learn to speak correctly. Adult learners are often shy to repeat the music of the English language, while children are not shy.

6. Individual sounds:

You need to know how a particular sound is formed inside your mouth. That means you need to know the position of:

1)    your tongue

2)    your lips

3)    your teeth

4)    how wide to open your mouth

5)    whether to add your voice or not

The reason individual sounds may be difficult is because you don’t have the same sounds in you first language (your native language) and so you don’t know how to position and move your tongue and lips correctly. You will need either a teacher/friend to show you the position and the movement (or you could find some videos online).

 

“WOW! VANCOUVER IS BEAUTIFUL!”: SPECIAL SOUNDS – INTERJECTIONS

Examples of interjections: Wow! Ouch! Hey! Oh, Hmm, Uh-huh

Interjections make your English sound natural. They show feelings. Canadians like to show good/positive feelings with everybody. They usually only show negative feelings with the people they trust (friends).

Ah! Aah! (long aaaaa)  – “Aah! It’s so nice and warm here. It’s freezing outside.” (the feeling of delight or relief)

Ahem (a – hem) – the sound of clearing your throat, meaning: “Attention, please!”

Achoo (a – choo) –  the sound of sneezing, usually the conversation goes like this:

A: Achoo! Excuse me.

B: Bless you.

A: Thank you.

Aww (pronounced long, stretched out)  2 meanings:

a) “Aww! How sweet!  //  What an adorable puppy!”

b) “Aww! That’s too bad!  //  I’m sorry to hear this happened to you.”

Blah-blah- blah  Meaning: nonsense talk, I was disappointed when I heard this (this is a negative interjection, so be careful and only use it when with your friends)

Er (Errrr – long sound)  – the sound made by somebody when they are thinking Meaning: “Let me think.” (filled pause)

Duh (d – uh) Meaning: “It’s stupid, it’s too obvious. I am annoyed.” (only use this interjection with your friends)

Eh? (e – i) Canadian interjection Meaning: “Do you agree with me? Right?” It was used a lot 20-30 years ago but now the younger Canadians don’t use it so often. They prefer to ask “Right?” (for example: “It’s so cold today, eh? It’s so cold today, right?”)

Eww (e – uuu) Meaning: “That’s disgusting!”

Geez! Meaning: “I can’t believe it!” (disbelief or feeling annoyed) This is a changed form of “Jesus!” and is used with a negative meaning

Hey  – to call attention “Hey! Where are you going?”

Hm or Hmm – “Hmm, let me think.” Meaning: “I’m confused // I wonder // I’m curious // I’m skeptical.”

Huh? – surprise, disbelief, confusion  “Huh? Repeat that? What did you say?” This is not a polite form, so only use it with friends.

Oh  “Oh, I see.”  Meaning: “I understand.”

Oops  Meaning: “Sorry, I didn’t mean to do it.” (when you did something accidentally, small mistake)  Children like to use it, so don’t use it with your manager.

Ouch!   Meaning: “It’s painful, it hurt.”

Phew  Meaning: “I’m relieved that it’s over.”

Meh  Meaning: “Whatever. I don’t care. Who cares.” (this interjection is negative, so only use it with your friends)

Shh  Meaning: “Be quiet!”

Psst – a sound used to get someone’s attention without alerting others, for example to tell a secret, usually followed by whispering

Shoo! – a sound used to scare an unwanted animal away

Ta-da! – a sound of triumph, used to call attention to something remarkable “Ta-da! I finished this puzzle! It was not easy.”

tsk-tsk-tsk-tsk  Meaning: “I disapprove of it.” Please be careful because this sound has a very strong negative meaning in Canada. It means contempt. In many countries this sound is not so strong, but in Canada people might be unpleasantly surprised when they hear it. It’s better only to use it with your friends.

Uh-huh (pronounced a-ha)   Meaning: “Yes. // I agree.”

Oh-oh Meaning: “I’m concerned, worried”. For example: “Oh-oh, it’s starting to rain. We might have to cancel going out.” Similar to “Oh no” but less strong.

Wow!  Meaning: “It’s amazing! I’m surprised!”

Yay! (pronounced yei )   Meaning: “I’m so happy!” the sound of cheer, approval, congratulations, triumph

Yuck  Meaning: “That’s disgusting.” Same meaning as “Eww” and same meaning as “Ick”. The word ‘yucky’ means ‘disgusting’ (used by children mostly).

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Yummy   Meaning: “That’s delicious”.  This word is used by children. Adults say “Mmmm…” to show that they like the food.

Yeah   Meaning: ‘Yes’. Sometimes means a strong ‘yes’. It is used very often in Canada to show friendliness in conversations, but ‘yeah’ is still informal so not recommended for a job interview or other first time business conversations.

Yup and Nope mean ‘Yes’ and ‘No’. These words are Canadian, friendly and informal. They are used with friends but not in business. The sound ‘p’ at the end is made by closing your lips.

Well,… Meaning: “I’m thinking. or  Let me think.” This word is used to introduce a remark.

Um… this is a sound that means “I’m thinking.” (filled pause, same as “Err”)