Tips for Pronunciation

[Pirate]

Hello everyone,

This is one part of the series "Tips for learning English". The series is today created in the sake of collecting and assembling tips which come from English learners. Post your own tips which really work Other members can learn from them, and if necessary we could discuss

You are in PRONUNCIATION section 8) .

English Pronunciation lessons: http://www.englishclub.com/pronunciation/

[Pirate]

When the English tongue we speak
Why is break not rhymed with weak?
Won’t you tell me why it’s true
We say sew, but also few?
And the maker of a verse
Cannot rhyme his horse with worse?
Beard is not the same as heard,
Cord is different from word,
Cow is cow but low is low,
Shoe is never rhymed with foe,
Think of hose and dose and lose,
And think of goose and yet of choose,
Think of comb and tomb and bomb,
Doll and roll and home and some,
And since pay is rhymed with say,
Why not paid with said I pray?
Think of blood and food and good;
Mould is not pronounced like could,
Why is it done but gone and lone –
Is there any reason known?
To sum it up, it seems to me
That sounds and letters don’t agree.

This poem is very good, hope U like it like I do :) . So just practise

[Dixie]

Very good!

I had another one, and harder. But I lost it, unfortunately! :D

[fionaa]

Thanks for your sharing!It is very clear and good tips for students.I really can't pronouce well sometimes.
Some long speelling words are very difficult to pronouce.
I have to practise more form it!I must learn from it as to improve my english speaking.

[Pirate]

Let's have a look at the basic pronunciation:

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/help/phonetics.htm

[crazyoddygal]

thank you for all the tips. my own experience is to imagine the pose of your mouth, your tongue, your throat, etc. b4 speaking the word out loud. i think it's the best tips for the English learners. i've been applying this tip for a long time, and now people say that my pronunciation is not bad :">

[Ordina_Lavender]

Hmm it's interesting.I'll pactise it. Sometimes we also could listen to the television especially English News, watching english movie or sing an english song.This could be the basic steps of learning pronunciation.

We also could sing a song.From the simple level to the hardest one.

"Twinkle twinke little stars, how i wonder what you are.."

"When marimba rhythms start to play
Dance with me, make me sway
Like a lazy ocean hugs the shore
Hold me close, sway me more

Like a flower bending in the breeze
Bend with me, sway with ease
When we dance you have a way with me
Stay with me, sway with me"

:D :D :D :D

[Pirate]

How about tounge-twisters? I think they are useful and give us more fun to learn.

A classic one: She sells the sea-shells by the sea shore. If she sells the sea-shells, show me the sea-shells she sells.

[GiddyGad]

How about tongue-twisters? I think they are useful and give us more fun to learn.

A classic one: She sells the sea-shells by the sea shore. If she sells the sea-shells, show me the sea-shells she sells.

Tongue-twisters are good for warming up and most welcome at the very beginning of each class - much like short and rather simple songs from 'Children's favorite songs' you may find on the Holywood site:

It ain't gonna rain no more no more,
It ain't gonna rain no more,
How in the heck
Can I wash my neck
If it ain't gonna rain no more.

...and the like.

Songs are as well a good way to round up classes though...

[Ordina_Lavender]

It is very difficult to say Pirate..I'll practise it more

[tandedao]

My thanks is beyond words.

[maythet]

I'm in trouble with word-stress.
I don't know where can i make stress in words .

[ahmedxzxz]

Hi Pirate !
I agree with you.
You are right at your tips for pronunciations.

[BenWizard]

My native language is Spanish and I want to improve my English language skills. Could you tell me or any body where I can get that book "Not study, but learn"?. I couldn't find it in Amazon.com. Thanks a lot friends.[/b]

[amandacool]

Very interesting.
actually, i am now doing research on how to acquire native-like pronunciation.
well, my questions is how can i motivate lazy students who rarely practice their pronunciation?

[Jads]

I'll share some of the most stupid n boring styles of how i learn pronunciation.....

I guess pronunciation comes from your confidence in your mouth;which is the tongue and throat. I know this is really an absurd idea & suggestion.

But i believe if you put in confidence in your 'tongue' something like;we practise it with a mirror or perhaps our daily conversations with some other races could help, then of course the tongue twister is great too(tt' peter-pickled is recommended for asians).Then 4 the throat if we practise singing classical english song/music can help a little and also whenever we are shouting at the top of our voice to convey whatever msg when we are angry,somehow it(maybe something like that... of..our mind-perception work) would always make the word or pronunciation seems almost perfect or correct.

It somehow works for me since young we cant avoid those small quarrels over something(which is 4 the throat part) and also the best part is to learn from cacausians that kind of thick accent which we hardly encounter in our asian city. It is like 'wow' cacausians, but that was in 90's so not anymore nw!!!Then some will be motivated to learn that accent,eventually get to learn the pronunciation correctly

[ipicthat]

Hi There

Just wanted to let people know of a FREE TO USE website which may help with pronunciation. The website is http://www.ipicthat.com it is the world's first online talking dictionary. The site basically comprises of a ‘dictionary’ of approximately 5,500 words in an A-Z format and uses photographs to help identify each word. Every word has a written and spoken breakdown, highlighting any unusual soundings. In addition there are 'Letter Sounds', 'Rules', 'Categories', 'Scenarios' and a 'Help' section. Every part of the website is completely talking. You just need to register (which is FREE) and away you go - hope it helps . Please feel free to pass on to your friends.

Thanks

[Krisha]

I practice reading english text loudly – as you read loudly, you will be able to identify the mistakes in your pronunciation.

If you can find a person who has good English then much better. Preferably, find someone who is a native English speaker and who can speak the language fluently. Practice by communicating with him or her. Use all your knowledge and experience that you've gained till now and try to make sure you speak as fluently as possible. One thing to remember is that it's perfectly alright to mispronounce a word or two or even more.

[phrazzlemecom]

Pronounciation:
>
> Vowels vs. Consonants:
>
> There are two ways to pronounciate English words:
>
> With the vowels being pronounced as in Latin.
>
> A-ah
> E-eh
> I-y
> O-oh
> U-u
>
> Or English:
>
> A-ai
> E-i
> I-ay
> O-ou
> U-iu
> Y-this is considered a vowel and is pronounced as an "I".
>
> Vowels win and are pronounced as in English when there is the
> same amount in a word. If there are more consonants than
> vowels, or if there are two consonants together, the sound is
> Latinized. This system doesn't work 100% of the time and
> usually works with the first 4 to 6 letters...but it does
> simplify the majority of the words in the English language and
> allows a student to be able to know how to pronounce a word
> even though he has never seen it before. I have been using the
> system for 7 years now.
>
> Example:
>
> APE (english)
>
> APPLE (latin)
>
> CAP(latin)
>
> CAPE(english)
>
> IRONIC(english)
>
> FAMOUS(english)
>
> INFAMOUS(latin)
>
> INSTILL(latin)
>
> UNANIMOUS(english)
>
> HAT(latin)
> HATE(english)
>
> NUMBER(latin)
> NUMERIC(english)
>
> UNCOMMON(latin)
>
> HE(english)
> HI(english)
> MY(english)
>
> HELP(latin)
> HILL(latin)
> MYSTICAL(latin)
>
> My explanation may be a little confusing but the examples
> speak for themselves.
>
> I hope you like it and it helps.
>
> Marcelo.

[englishhelps]

It's best to listen to a native speaker on how they pronounce it. You can check a dictionary to see how it's pronounced then practice it. Then you listen to a native speaker on how he pronounce it and compare notes. Then practice how he pronounce it.

[englishhelps]

Another tip is to make sure that you pronounce your end consonants properly. For example, the word "end". Make sure that you pronounce the letter d properly. If you don't, it would seem like you're eating your words and it will make it harder for your listeners to decipher what you're saying.

[englishhelps]

Before you pronounce a word that you've never pronounced before, imagine the pronunciation first in your mind. Imagine what sound it will make and the positioning of your mouth when you say it.

[rando]

Try this ultimate test of pronounciation from http://www.vocabularywiki.com/English_Pronunciation ....

The Chaos

by G. Nolst Trenite' a.k.a. "Charivarius" 1870 - 1946

Dearest creature in creation

Studying English pronunciation,

I will teach you in my verse

Sounds like corpse, corps, horse and worse

I will keep you, Susy, busy,

Make your head with heat grow dizzy.

Tear in eye your dress you'll tear,

So shall I! Oh, hear my prayer,

Pray, console your loving poet,

Make my coat look new, dear, sew it!

Just compare heart, beard and heard,

Dies and diet, lord and word,

Sword and sward, retain and Britain.

(Mind the latter, how it's written).

Made has not the sound of bade,

Say said, pay-paid, laid, but plaid.

Now I surely will not plague you

With such words as vague and ague,

But be careful how you speak,

Say break, steak, but bleak and streak.

Previous, precious, fuchsia, via,

Pipe, snipe, recipe and choir,

Cloven, oven, how and low,

Script, receipt, shoe, poem, toe.

Hear me say, devoid of trickery:

Daughter, laughter and Terpsichore,

Typhoid, measles, topsails, aisles.

Exiles, similes, reviles.

Wholly, holly, signal, signing.

Thames, examining, combining

Scholar, vicar, and cigar,

Solar, mica, war, and far.

From "desire": desirable--admirable from "admire."

Lumber, plumber, bier, but brier.

Chatham, brougham, renown, but known.

Knowledge, done, but gone and tone,

One, anemone. Balmoral.

Kitchen, lichen, laundry, laurel,

Gertrude, German, wind, and mind.

Scene, Melpomene, mankind,

Tortoise, turquoise, chamois-leather,

Reading, reading, heathen, heather.

This phonetic labyrinth

Gives moss, gross, brook, brooch, ninth, plinth.

Billet does not end like ballet;

Bouquet, wallet, mallet, chalet;

Blood and flood are not like food,

Nor is mould like should and would.

Banquet is not nearly parquet,

Which is said to rime with "darky."

Viscous, Viscount, load, and broad.

Toward, to forward, to reward.

And your pronunciation's O.K.,

When you say correctly: croquet.

Rounded, wounded, grieve, and sieve,

Friend and fiend, alive, and live,

Liberty, library, heave, and heaven,

Rachel, ache, moustache, eleven,

We say hallowed, but allowed,

People, leopard, towed, but vowed.

Mark the difference, moreover,

Between mover, plover, Dover,

Leeches, breeches, wise, precise,

Chalice, but police, and lice.

Camel, constable, unstable,

Principle, disciple, label,

Petal, penal, and canal,

Wait, surmise, plait, promise, pal.

Suit, suite, ruin, circuit, conduit,

Rime with "shirk it" and "beyond it."

But it is not hard to tell,

Why it's pall, mall, but Pall Mall.

Muscle, muscular, gaol, iron,

Timber, climber, bullion, lion,

Worm and storm, chaise, chaos, and chair,

Senator, spectator, mayor,

Ivy, privy, famous, clamour

And enamour rime with hammer.

Pussy, hussy, and possess,

Desert, but dessert, address.

Golf, wolf, countenance, lieutenants.

Hoist, in lieu of flags, left pennants.

River, rival, tomb, bomb, comb,

Doll and roll and some and home.

Stranger does not rime with anger.

Neither does devour with clangour.

Soul, but foul and gaunt but aunt.

Font, front, won't, want, grand, and grant.

Shoes, goes, does. Now first say: finger.

And then: singer, ginger, linger,

Real, zeal, mauve, gauze, and gauge,

Marriage, foliage, mirage, age.

Query does not rime with very,

Nor does fury sound like bury.

Dost, lost, post; and doth, cloth, loth;

Job, Job; blossom, bosom, oath.

Though the difference seems little,

We say actual, but victual.

Seat, sweat; chaste, caste.; Leigh, eight, height;

Put, nut; granite, and unite.

Reefer does not rime with deafer,

Feoffer does, and zephyr, heifer.

Dull, bull, Geoffrey, George, ate, late,

Hint, pint, Senate, but sedate.

Scenic, Arabic, Pacific,

Science, conscience, scientific,

Tour, but our and succour, four,

Gas, alas, and Arkansas.

Sea, idea, guinea, area,

Psalm, Maria, but malaria,

Youth, south, southern, cleanse and clean,

Doctrine, turpentine, marine.

Compare alien with Italian,

Dandelion with battalion.

Sally with ally, yea, ye,

Eye, I, ay, aye, whey, key, quay.

Say aver, but ever, fever.

Neither, leisure, skein, receiver.

Never guess--it is not safe:

We say calves, valves, half, but Ralph.

Heron, granary, canary,

Crevice and device, and eyrie,

Face but preface, but efface,

Phlegm, phlegmatic, ass, glass, bass.

Large, but target, gin, give, verging,

Ought, out, joust, and scour, but scourging,

Ear but earn, and wear and bear

Do not rime with here, but ere.

Seven is right, but so is even,

Hyphen, roughen, nephew, Stephen,

Monkey, donkey, clerk, and jerk,

Asp, grasp, wasp, and cork and work.

Pronunciation--think of psyche--!

Is a paling, stout and spikey,

Won't it make you lose your wits,

Writing "groats" and saying "grits"?

It's a dark abyss or tunnel,

Strewn with stones, like rowlock, gunwale,

Islington and Isle of Wight,

Housewife, verdict, and indict!

Don't you think so, reader, rather,

Saying lather, bather, father?

Finally: which rimes with "enough"

Though, through, plough, cough, hough, or tough?

Hiccough has the sound of "cup."

My advice is--give it up!

(",)

[englishhelps]

Haha. That's pretty hard! Just do it slow and focus on pronunciation.

[englishhelps]

In order to master pronouncing the English language, you have to master the "schwa" sound. I believe it is the most common sounds that is used in many words.

[englishhelps]

It's also a good idea to invest in a recording device. Read out loud a chapter of a book. Then have a native speaker listen to it and ask him if he understood you well. It doesn't matter if you have an accent. If you pronounced it correctly, he should be able to understand what you were saying.

[englishhelps]

One of the most commonly mispronounced words are "tree" and "three". You should practice pronouncing this because we always say those words. :)

[clevermae]

I agree with you pirate! I had fun doing a tongue twister with my friends, and now I am proudly say I am good in english pronunciation. It's the best way to improve your pronunciation by just playing and enjoying to twist your tongue.

[easylsl]

When the English tongue we speak
Why is break not rhymed with weak?
Won’t you tell me why it’s true
We say sew, but also few?
And the maker of a verse
Cannot rhyme his horse with worse?
Beard is not the same as heard,
Cord is different from word,
Cow is cow but low is low,
Shoe is never rhymed with foe,
Think of hose and dose and lose,
And think of goose and yet of choose,
Think of comb and tomb and bomb,
Doll and roll and home and some,
And since pay is rhymed with say,
Why not paid with said I pray?
Think of blood and food and good;
Mould is not pronounced like could,
Why is it done but gone and lone –
Is there any reason known?
To sum it up, it seems to me
That sounds and letters don’t agree.

This poem is very good, hope U like it like I do :) . So just practise

Thank you pirate :)