12 Ways on How to Improve Your English Accent || About English Accent || English Speaking Way
What Is An English Accent?
An English
accent is the way a native English speaker (an Englishman or an Englishwoman)
speaks.I know what you're thinking, accents are funny things.They change the
way how we talk.Just try talking with a French accent and you'll see what I mean.Here's some information about
English accents and where they came from.As
well as a bunch of useful links to get you started if you want to talk with an
English accent or know more about them.
An English
accent is a group of regional or social accents spoken by people in
England,that share certain features based on such factors as their geographic
or social origin to distinguish them from other English (or British) accents.An
English accent can also refer to the set of dialects of English used in
England.
Contrary to common
belief, there is no "English accent".There are numerous regional
accents (yes, even within England) and many idiosyncratic ones.If you mean "British
accent", then this is a distinct but related variety of dialects from
those found in Scotland, Ireland, Wales, etc.
Whether
you're studying English phonetics and looking for a clear explanation of
different English accents,or you're just curious to know how some people sound,
this article will give you a great overview of the most prominent types of
English accents.
While a
British accent is common,it can be hard to find an authentic accent if you are
not a native.You might have
heard of 'Received Pronunciation or 'Oxford accent', but how can you
replicate an English accent as an American, Canadian, or Australian?Learn
everything you need to know about English accents and learn how to perfect
your English pronunciation.
12
Tips to Improve Your English Accent
Improving
your English accent can be a difficult task.Many people find it challenging to
learn how to speak with an American accent.One
of the most common problems that non-native English speakers have in
pronouncing certain sounds correctly.However, with practice and guidance, you
can improve your accent and sound more fluent in English.Here are 12 ways to improve your accent:
1. Use the proper mouth position
To make some
vowel sounds, you need to round your lips.To
make others, you need to lift the corners of your lips or spread them wide.You may need to move your
tongue or jaw forward or backward when speaking.It’s important for you to learn where your mouth
needs to be positioned at all times during speech so that you can pronounce
sounds correctly.
2. Broaden your mouth as much as
possible when speaking:
When
speaking in English,we don’t use our lips as much as we do in other languages
(such as Spanish).Instead, we open our mouths wider when making sounds so that air can pass between
our teeth and tongue more easily.This helps us make certain consonant sounds
such as “v” and “th”.
3. Drop the mother tongue accent:
The best way
to improve your English accent is to get rid of an accent you already have.The
more you speak English, the more you will develop a natural-sounding accent.
4. Listen carefully to native
speakers:
An essential
way to learn the rules of English pronunciation is to listen closely to native speakers.To do this effectively,
you need to know what different sounds are called.Here are some helpful resources for you:
5. Practice intonation patterns:
Intonation
refers to the rise and fall of your voice as you speak.An important part of
your English accent is using the right intonation patterns when asking a
question or making a statement.Check out this video from our team of expert
trainers for some advice on how to do this:
6. Try tongue twisters:
Tongue
twisters are groups of words that sound similar but are spelled differently and
have different meanings.They may be hard at first,but they will improve your
pronunciation greatly if you practice them regularly.
Have a
30-minute conversation with someone who has mastered the accent you want.Be aware of their intonation,
stress patterns, and sound combinations.
Learn how
to pronounce the 40 most common phonemes in English.
The readout
is loud for 10 minutes every day from a book you enjoy.This will also help you
learn new vocabulary and improve your reading ability.
Record
yourself saying a short paragraph,then listen to it.Did you stress the right
words and use intonation correctly?Did you use ALL of the sounds in English
clearly?
Speak in
your new accent when you are alone or in situations where you don’t have to
speak with others.
Speak in
your new accent when you are with people who want to help you achieve your goal
of improving your accent.Avoid people who may not be supportive of your goals
or efforts.
When
speaking with friends or family, practice your new accent only for short
periods at a time,so that they can understand what you are saying when speaking
English.
Here
are 12 tips to improve your accent
1. Listen to the way native speakers talk(e.g. on the radio)
and imitate their pronunciation sounds and intonation patterns.
2. Focus on one new sound at a time, e.g. don’t try to change
all of your vowel sounds at once,just choose one that you want to improve and
listen to how it is produced by native speakers then practice saying it
yourself.
3. Record yourself saying words, sentences,and longer pieces of
speech so that you can hear what you sound like now and compare these
recordings to the way native speakers produce the same utterances.
4. Repeat difficult sounds over and over until you get them
right, or at least closer to correct!You may not notice a difference yourself
but your listeners will!
5. Read aloud from books or newspapers,firstly concentrating on
pronunciation then later focusing more on intonation patterns and speed of
delivery,and expression of emotion via tone of voice(you might like to ask a
friend to record you reading aloud so that you can listen back).
6. Watch movies in English with subtitles turned on then turned
off after watching for a while with them turned on so that the language becomes
familiar enough for you to understand.
You may be a
native English speaker, but that doesn't mean you can't improve your accent and
speak more clearly.Speaking more clearly is important for everyday
communication as well as business communication.
1. Do not drop your 't' at the end of
words
Words like
water and better have a 't' sound at the end of them.It is one of the most common problems that people have
in English;they forget to pronounce the 't' sound which is an important part of
speaking clear English.
2. Learn how to pronounce the letter
'r'.
It's another
problem that many people have when speaking English; they do not know how to
pronounce the letter 'r' correctly.This is because in some languages there is
no sound similar to this letter.If you learn how to make this sound correctly,
it will help you speak much more clearly and correctly.
3. Use strong vowel sounds
Another
problem that many people have when speaking English is their vowels sounds are
weak,especially if you are from a non English speaking country where the vowel
sounds in your language are different from those in English.Make sure you
practice pronunciation by listening to native speakers and repeating what they
say out loud.
4. Practice tongue twisters!
These are
short phrases that sound very similar and are difficult to say quickly.They can
help you train your mouth to move faster and more accurately:"She sells
sea shells by the sea shore.""Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled
peppers." "Red lorry yellow lorry," etc.They're also fun so you
might as well try them! If you enjoy them,there's even a book of tongue twisters for every
language level at Fluent (and lots more!).
While
there is no fool-proof silver bullet for improving or eliminating your English
accent,there are a number of small steps that you can take to make it easier to
eliminate the problem altogether.With enough practice and dedication, you can have an American
accent that others won't be able to identify.
Your time is
valuable.If you're looking for the coup de grâce of English tools, materials,
and coaches to help you speak fluent English with a native accent,I'm just
going to give you my strongest recommendation: take a course from the Native
Accent Academy.It's the most
challenging and rewarding investment I've ever made in learning English, and it
will transform your whole world.what you can say, who you can talk to, and what
doors open for you,both personally and professionally.
I'm not a native speaker of English yet I have a good accent and I'm always booking acting jobs because of it.So I hope these tips will help you achieve that goal as well.GOOD LUCK!
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