Say it in English

Interactive pronunciation practice, B1 → B2 · standard British English

Even a president had a go! In India, in 2013, François Hollande spoke English in front of the world’s press. His accent is strong, but his message is clear, and that is what matters most. If a president can speak in front of the cameras, you can speak in front of your class. Listen to him, then listen to our British voices. Which sounds are different?

Key idea: English spelling is not enough. Listen, repeat, record yourself and compare.

1. Minimal pairs: /ɪ/ or /iː/

Listen to the word, then choose the sound you hear. You can listen again as many times as you need.

ship

/ʃɪp/

Tip

For /ɪ/, keep the vowel short and relaxed: ship, sit, fill. For /iː/, make it clearly long: sheep, seat, feel. The two sounds must not be the same.

2. The “th” sound: /θ/ or /ð/

Put your tongue gently between your teeth. For /θ/, just blow air: no vibration. For /ð/, your throat vibrates.

think

/θɪŋk/

3. Word stress

Listen, then choose the stressed syllable. Clap on that syllable before you answer.

banana

/bəˈnɑːnə/

4. Weak forms and schwa

Repeat the sentence naturally. Small words without stress become shorter.

I want to go to London.

/aɪ wɒnt tə ɡəʊ tə ˈlʌndən/

Listen for this

Without stress, to usually becomes /tə/, and becomes /ən/, for becomes /fə/ and can becomes /kən/.

5. Shadowing: listen, repeat, record

Listen to the model. Repeat it and copy the rhythm and the links between words. Then record yourself once. Your recording stays on your device: it is not sent on the internet.

What are you doing?

/wɒt‿ə juː ˈduːɪŋ/, often /wɒtʃə jə ˈduːɪŋ/

Ready

Check your recording

Can you hear the difficult sounds clearly?
Are the important words stressed?
Are the weak words shorter?
Do the words link without useless pauses?
Does the sentence have a natural melody?

6. Intonation

Listen to the two questions. A wh- question usually goes down. A yes/no question usually goes up.

Where do you live? ↘
Do you live in London? ↗