Pronunciation help

by hanyeseul Wed Jul 01, 2009 3:48 pm

What is good English pronunciation?

There are three levels of English pronunciation:
• Level 1: People often don't understand what you want to say. You use the wrong sounds in English words.
• Level 2: People understand what you want to say, but it is unpleasant to listen to you.
• Level 3: People understand you, and your English is pleasant to listen to’
Level 3 will be called good pronunciation. Notice that good pronunciation is not "perfect American or British accent". You don't have to sound like the Queen of England or the President of the United States of America.

Why not? Because there are many regional kinds of English. In England, people from Newcastle speak English differently from people in London. In America, people from New York City, California, and Texas each have their own pronunciation. So it is no problem if you have your own accent.

But your accent must be close to the standards (American and British English). What does it mean? Turn on your TV and watch channels like CNN International, NBC, EuroNews, BBC, or Sky News. You will hear many different people (news anchors, reporters, etc.) from Germany, France, and other non-English-speaking countries. They all have good accents — easy to understand and pleasant.

The rule is: If you are close to the standard, you can always communicate, and your English will be pleasant. If you are far from the standard, sometimes you won't communicate successfully.

How to learn English pronunciation

1. Learn the sounds of English
English uses different sounds than other languages. For example, the first sound in the word thin and the first sound in the word away are never heard in many languages.
Therefore, you have to:
1. know all the English sounds
2. listen to how they sound in real words and sentences
3. practice your pronunciation — listen to English words and sentences, and try to repeat them as well as you can
It's not so important to spend a lot of time practicing; it's more important to do it regularly. Many learners find that just starting to pay attention to pronunciation helps them improve a great deal.

It is a good idea to try to imitate English words whenever you're listening to anything in English (watching TV, watching a movie, etc.). You should also try to pronounce English words whenever you're somewhere alone with a little time to spare, e.g. while waiting for the bus, taking a shower, or surfing the Web. Once your mouth and tongue get used to the new sounds, you will not find them difficult at all.

You will need at least some talent for imitating sounds (for instance, if you can imitate people in your own language, it should be easy for you to "do" English pronunciation). However, if you don't have these skills, you can achieve a lot with persistence and a little technology. One helpful technique is to record your voice and compare it with the correct pronunciation. This way, you can see where your pronunciation is different from the original and you can gradually make it more native-like.

Oh, and one more thing: Don't let other people tell you that "since you are a foreigner, you will always have a foreign accent".

(ST)

Pronunciation help 3369d19a210586b031eb18bea9d12f10

by [kei] Thu Jul 02, 2009 8:37 am

3. practice your pronunciation — listen to English words and sentences, and try to repeat them as well as you can

The very important tips, it makes my english better ^^. Try this

Pronunciation help

Pronunciation help

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