Communication Solutions for Global Business

how to pronounce english words Knowing how to pronounce English words correctly every time is not easy! You’ll notice that I’ve started a series on this blog called ‘How to Pronounce…’. The goal of this series is to help you with the pronunciation of words that I commonly hear mispronounced. Words like, ‘colleague’, ‘purchase’,  ‘hippopotamus‘, ‘refrigerator’, and yes, even ‘pronunciation‘.

Each of these short articles shows you how to pronounce words correctly. You can either read the article, listen to the 60-second Quick Fix recording, or do both! The articles and recordings focus on 4 important factors:

1. Syllables
I break the words into syllables for you, so you can understand the foundation of the words.

2. Word Stress
You’ll hear me pronounce the words with the appropriate word stress. Word stress is extremely important in the correct pronunciation of words because improper word stress is one of the main reasons why you’ll be misunderstood.

3. Sound Production
I’ll explain the sounds used (vowel and consonants, vowel reduction, etc.). To pronounce words correctly, of course you need to understand the sounds that make up the words!

4. Repetition
I’ll say the word a few times throughout the recording so that you can hear it, and I’ll also use it in a few different sentences. Try to repeat after me and compare your own pronunciation to my recording.

If you put some effort into how you pronounce words, especially the commonly mispronounced words I cover in this series, you’ll notice an immediate decrease in the number of misunderstandings you have with others. You’ll also find that your awareness is raised and you’ll pay more attention to the pronunciation of words around you, either by friends and colleagues, or pronunciations you hear on the radio or TV.

If you run into a word that you don’t know how to pronounce in English, check the blog series. If it’s not there, leave me a comment here and I’ll add it to the list!

If you’d like to learn more about clear speech and pronunciation, please visit me at http://bit.ly/free8-partproncourse and sign up for my free, 8-part pronunciation short course.

I’ll see you there!

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  2. Aynur Gunes

    Hi, Heather. I need to improve my pronunciation in basic english. Videos would be very helpful for me. But, I haven’t found anything in this website. Could you help me with that, please. Thank you.

    yours sincerely,
    Aynur Gunes

    • Heather Hansen

      Hi Aynur

      Videos are on the way, and will definitely be a part of the full-length pronunciation course. For now, make sure you’re registered for the free audio course so you’ll be the first to know when video is coming. You can register in the sidebar to the right if you aren’t already logged in.

      Thanks for your interest!
      Heather

    • Heather Hansen

      Hi Mai
      Have you registered for the free course yet? Listen to Part 2 which covers vowel sounds.
      Vowels are tricky because they vary from accent to accent. The British vowels differ from the American vowels, which differ from the Australian vowels. The key is to pick one variety of English and be consistent.
      I’ll put this on the list to develop more information for everyone on English vowels. Thanks for the feedback!

  4. Brittany

    Hey Heather I’m having trouble pronounce my words. When I reading and get to a word I don’t know I’ll stop and try to sound it out but I’m having troubles with that I need help.:( I really want to improve and so people can understand what I am saying to them.

    sincerely,
    Brittany

  6. Shamonte Littlejohn

    Hi Mrs Heather my main problem is the pronunciation of some words.Like sometimes it sounds clear in my head but it don’t come out right.I am going to request pronuciation of vowels and consonants.

  9. Hau Phan

    Good evening Heather,
    I have seen your you tube channel. It sounds great! I am looking forward to improving my English pronunciation, especially stress and intonation. I really need your help. I will be wonderful to be your student
    Kindest regards
    Hau

  10. sidi

    Hello Heather,

    Thank you very much for everything you do.For a none English speaker like I trying to go through my children homework,your posting are so helpful.I’ve always struggled with the word:”TORTOISE”.I wa trying to register on your website,but there is an error message saying that the mailing list is not active.Can you please help me.Thank you in advance.

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