I'm trying to speak like an American but I'm experiencing difficulties with a couple of sounds. What are the different methods? Thank you in advance.
How does one improve their pronunciation?
I found that listening to children speak helps. At least it worked for me in German.
Take for example, the word 'gold'. It's the same word in both languages, but in German it has more of a "g-oy-ld" type of sound which is due to the "L" being palletized. This was the actual word I heard from a German 6 year old child once when I suddenly realized why Germans always had a hard time hearning my L's even though I insisted I was pronouncing them. (The English L is very guttural relative to the German one. Austrians, however have a similar L as ours...)
In English the word "table" is actually pronounced more like "taybo" by but many non-native speakers (at least Germans) over palitiize the "L" giving away their accent.
Very young children just go by what they hear and they also tend to speak slower, so it's easier to pick out the minor idiosyncrasies of a language by listening to them speak.
Anyway, I am not a language teacher or anything like that, but I have been learning German for over 20 years and that is something I have discovered from experience which may be helpful.
Take for example, the word 'gold'. It's the same word in both languages, but in German it has more of a "g-oy-ld" type of sound which is due to the "L" being palletized. This was the actual word I heard from a German 6 year old child once when I suddenly realized why Germans always had a hard time hearning my L's even though I insisted I was pronouncing them. (The English L is very guttural relative to the German one. Austrians, however have a similar L as ours...)
In English the word "table" is actually pronounced more like "taybo" by but many non-native speakers (at least Germans) over palitiize the "L" giving away their accent.
Very young children just go by what they hear and they also tend to speak slower, so it's easier to pick out the minor idiosyncrasies of a language by listening to them speak.
Anyway, I am not a language teacher or anything like that, but I have been learning German for over 20 years and that is something I have discovered from experience which may be helpful.
Learn IPA and search this forum for threads that contain phonetic transcriptions. Also, don't memorize the sound of words but their phonetic transcription. Each symbol has one single corresponding tongue position - practise them one by one.
Useful links:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Phonetic_Alphabet
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X-sampa
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manner_of_articulation
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Place_of_articulation
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_american
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_American_English_regional_phonology
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Splits_and_mergers_in_English_phonology
Useful links:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Phonetic_Alphabet
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X-sampa
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manner_of_articulation
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Place_of_articulation
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_american
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_American_English_regional_phonology
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Splits_and_mergers_in_English_phonology
I completely disagree your suggestions feati.
The only way to learn how to improve your pronunciation in *any* language is by listening to and mimicking native speakers. Learning all that linguistic mumboj-umbo is nothing but a waste of time.
The only way to learn how to improve your pronunciation in *any* language is by listening to and mimicking native speakers. Learning all that linguistic mumboj-umbo is nothing but a waste of time.
<<completely disagree your suggestions feati.
The only way to learn how to improve your pronunciation in *any* language is by listening to and mimicking native speakers. Learning all that linguistic mumboj-umbo is nothing but a waste of time. >>
Not really. If I hadn't known that TH in English was done with the tongue between the teeth, maybe I would never have figured out how to do it. It's not good to rely only on those technical explanations, but sometimes imitating alone is not possible, because sometimes our untrained ears and mouths can't understand certain sounds or any differences between them at first.
The only way to learn how to improve your pronunciation in *any* language is by listening to and mimicking native speakers. Learning all that linguistic mumboj-umbo is nothing but a waste of time. >>
Not really. If I hadn't known that TH in English was done with the tongue between the teeth, maybe I would never have figured out how to do it. It's not good to rely only on those technical explanations, but sometimes imitating alone is not possible, because sometimes our untrained ears and mouths can't understand certain sounds or any differences between them at first.
>>because sometimes our untrained ears and mouths can't understand certain sounds or any differences between them at first.<<
Sometimes? More like "almost always"... And that's exactly why this phonetic mumbo-jumbo is so important. Most English learners' perception is conditioned by their native language and the way their (non-native) English teachers speak. You hear what you're used to hear. Listening and imitating alone won't change that. You'll have to analyze your pronunciation and those of native speakers.
Sometimes? More like "almost always"... And that's exactly why this phonetic mumbo-jumbo is so important. Most English learners' perception is conditioned by their native language and the way their (non-native) English teachers speak. You hear what you're used to hear. Listening and imitating alone won't change that. You'll have to analyze your pronunciation and those of native speakers.
But I find that it's relatively easy to just "imitate" vowel sounds once you learn the difference between the phonemes, but it's really hard to get some consonant sounds right. I'm lucky because English doesn't have very different consonants compared to my native language, except for the TH sound which was completely "new".
In other languages you might have to spend more time on consonants though, or you might not be able to pronounce and distinguish certain phonemes at all.
In other languages you might have to spend more time on consonants though, or you might not be able to pronounce and distinguish certain phonemes at all.
I think that a combination of the phonetic and the listen/mimic methods is best. Using the English TH for example, I once had a friend from Munich who could mimic the sound of the TH but complained that she was always spitting when she pronounced it. She was holding her tongue loosely and making an airated, almost lisping, TH sound. I showed her that by controlling the tongue more while making the TH sound and using less breath produced a sharper sound and prevented any wetness on her co-communicators face. So, while she could recreate the TH sound, her lack of knowledge about the placement of the tongue led to some negative effects.
>>....her lack of knowledge about the placement of the tongue led to some negative effects.<<
My girlfriend had this same "problem", but now she's great at it!
My girlfriend had this same "problem", but now she's great at it!
Is that why young girls' have studs in their tongues, to help them pronounce the 'th' sound without spitting too much?
How to change your tongue ring
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-6LAdhqOyfw&feature=related
How to change your tongue ring
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-6LAdhqOyfw&feature=related