Pronunciation - Vowel Sounds

Pronunciation - Vowel Sounds

To learn a sound, you have to make it yours -until it is not foreign anymore.

How?
Ah, that takes time. And work. The only place where success comes before work is in the dictionary!

How about some quick revision of pronunciation?
Here are a couple of short videos (about 2 minutes each) which focus on vowel sounds.

The videos go a little fast at times. Have the mouse ready to pause and make a mental record of each sound.

Long Vowel Sounds


Short Vowel Sounds



Note: Pronunciation of R.
British English is R-less (so pretend the R is not there!). The voice on the video has an American accent.

Consistency
To sit for the FCE exam (and for lifelong learning as well), you need not use British English exclusively. Whichever accent you choose to speak, it is important to be consistent when you talk and write.

Practice makes perfect!
The idea is to hear the sounds in your mind before you attempt to imitate them. You need to have a memory of them to compare and contrast what you hear -to achieve recognition. That will be your database to start modelling your own sounds.

Tip
This video can be useful to spot which sounds you still need to practise.

And if you need sound practice, you are reading the right blog.

Related Posts
Pronunciation Starter Pack
For details on each sound of the system with contrastive pairs.

Sounds and Spelling
If you need more detailed explanation to produce a sound, a look at this post will take you to a site with tutorials on how to articulate.


Thank you Steve Mac for sharing these videos! I wonder how you would describe your own accent.