How to Improve Your English Pronunciation

by Liliya Pavlova It's often found that people struggle to hold up a conversation for too long because they are not able to pronounce words correctly. Many people find it hard to get a job because they are not able to communicate well enough. There are several resources you can use to improve your English pronunciation. Listen to others Probably the easiest way to learn how to pronounce words correctly is to expose yourself to native-speakers. Practice as much as you can As they say, practice makes a man perfect; you should practice the language as much as you can. Don't give up For non-native speakers, learning English is not an easy job especially if your pronunciation is not up to the mark. Read out loud Grab some magazines or books and read out loudly. Be patient One of the most important things you need to remember is to be patient. Read and listen simultaneously Reading text yourself while you listen to someone speak can prove to be a great strategy for improving your pronunciation.

Improve Your Pronunciation One of the most important aspects of learning English is pronunciation. Without clear pronunciation, it is difficult to make yourself understood. However, you might be surprised by the following statement: Pronouncing every word correctly leads to poor pronunciation! Good pronunciation comes from stressing the right words - this is because English is a time-stressed language. In other words, some words - the content words - receive more focus, whereas other words - function words - are less important. Learn more below. Difficulty: Hard Time Required: Varies Here's How: Learn the following rules concerning pronunciation. Tips: Remember that non-stressed words and syllables are often 'swallowed' in English.

BBC Learning English | Pronunciation Tips Phrasal Verbs Phrasal verbs are mainly used in spoken English and informal texts. (The more formal a conversation or text, the less phrasal verbs are found.) Phrasal verbs consist of a verb plus a particle (preposition, adverb). The particle can change the meaning of the verb completely, e.g look up – consult a reference book (look a word up in a dictionary) look for – seek (look for her ring) look forward – anticipate with pleasure (look forward to meeting someone) There are no rules that might explain how phrasal verbs are formed correctly - all you can do is look them up in a good dictionary and study their meanings. Frequently Used Phrasal Verbs with: break, bring, call, carry, come, do, fall, get, go, keep, look, make, put, run, set, take, turn Position of the Particle The particle is placed either after the verb or after the object. Example: Write down the word. / Write the word down. If the object is a pronoun, however, the particle has to be placed after the pronoun (object). Write it down.

English Prepositions Exercises on Prepositions Prepositions are short words (on, in, to) that usually stand in front of nouns (sometimes also in front of gerund verbs). Even advanced learners of English find prepositions difficult, as a 1:1 translation is usually not possible. One preposition in your native language might have several translations depending on the situation. There are hardly any rules as to when to use which preposition. The only way to learn prepositions is looking them up in a dictionary, reading a lot in English (literature) and learning useful phrases off by heart (study tips). The following table contains rules for some of the most frequently used prepositions in English: Prepositions – Time Prepositions – Place (Position and Direction) Other important Prepositions Exercises on Prepositions

Cinco recursos para aprender inglés de manera divertida El inglés resulta esencial en la formación de los escolares, para abrirles las puertas a otros países y culturas y como herramienta esencial en su futuro laboral. Te recomendamos cinco recursos para motivar a tus estudiantes a estudiar inglés de una forma divertida. 1. Puedes incluir estos recursos y otros que consideres interesantes en tu Cuaderno del Profesor y en los Cuadernos de Estudio digitales de aulaPlaneta, para que tus alumnos los utilicen en clase.

Linking words Home » English Grammar » Linking words help you to connect ideas and sentences when you speak or write English. We can use linking words to give examples, add information, summarise, sequence information, give a reason or result, or to contrast ideas. Here's a list of the most common linking words and phrases: Giving examples For exampleFor instanceNamely The most common way to give examples is by using for example or for instance. Namely refers to something by name." Adding information AndIn additionAs well asAlsoTooFurthermoreMoreoverApart fromIn addition toBesides Ideas are often linked by and. "We discussed training, education and the budget." You can use also with not only to give emphasis." We don't usually start a sentence with also. As well as can be used at the beginning or the middle of a sentence." Too goes either at the end of the sentence, or after the subject and means as well." Apart from and besides are often used to mean as well as, or in addition to." Summarising Sequencing ideas

American English Pronunciation: Linking Practice At its simplest, linking is the merging of multiple words together until they sound as if they are only one word. Native speakers of English all do this naturally. Linking is an advanced topic for non-native speakers, but learning to correctly link words can result in significantly more fluid and fluent sounding English speech. Failing to link words naturally results in spoken English which may have awkward pauses, extra, unnecessary sounds, and which will sound very foreign to native speakers. Techniques used for linking words depend on specific adjacent sounds where the words meet in the sentence. Blending sounds Blending is smoothly transitioning from the pronunciation of one sound into the next sound. In the phrase "this month," the s sound /s/ blends smoothly into the m sound /m/. Blending can also be used to link continuous consonants and vowel sounds, as in the phrase "this afternoon." Coarticulation: overlapping sounds Assimilation: changing sounds Intrusion: Adding sounds

IdiomSite.com - Find out the meanings of common sayings Learning basic English Learn English lessons books exercise free Idiomatic Expressions Idiomatic expressions are a type of informal English that have a meaning different from the meaning of the words in the expression. Here's an example of an idiomatic expression. Hold your tongue. This idiom does not actually mean that you should stick your fingers in your mouth and grab a hold of your tongue. It means that you should not talk. People "hold their tongues" when they are in situations where they want to talk, but it would be better if they didn't. Every language has idioms, and they can be difficult to learn if you are not a native speaker of that language. The best thing to do is to have conversations with native speakers and ask them about phrases that you don't understand. 1. Made very happy 2. There was no competition 3. Sad or depressed 4. Very sick 5. Not well 6. Wake up and be happy! 7. You were very close, but you did not make it. 8. For a very long time 9. Very hard rain 10. Making me very annoyed 11. Very easy 12. A mild punishment 13. It is extremely expensive. 14. Just joking

The sounds of English and the International Phonetic Alphabet © Tomasz P. Szynalski, Antimoon.com This chart contains all the sounds (phonemes) used in the English language. For each sound, it gives: The symbol from the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA), as used in phonetic transcriptions in modern dictionaries for English learners — that is, in A. To print the chart, use the printable PDF version. Does this chart list all the sounds that you can hear in British and American English? No. For example, this page does not list the regular t (heard in this pronunciation of letter) and the flap t (heard in this one) with separate symbols. So this page actually lists phonemes (groups of sounds), not individual sounds. Take the phoneme p in the above chart. Typing the phonetic symbols You won’t find phonetic symbols on your computer’s keyboard. You can use my free IPA phonetic keyboard at ipa.typeit.org. You can also use the ASCII Phonetic Alphabet, which represents IPA symbols with “normal” characters that you can type on your keyboard.