Perfecting Your English Pronunciation

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Perfecting Your English Pronunciation

Perfecting Your English Pronunciation

Authors: Susan Cameron

Published: September 2011

eISBN: 9780071788489 0071788484 | ISBN: 9780071750172

Contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction

Part One: Getting Started

One: Retraining the articulation muscles

The articulators of speech

DVD exercises

Two: The International Phonetic Alphabet

Introduction to the consonant sounds

Introduction to the vowel sounds

Part Two: the Difficult Sounds of English

Three: The consonant th (θ/ð)

The th sound defined

Step 1: Feeling the placement of θ/ð

Step 2: Hearing the placement of θ/ð

Step 3: Applying the placement of θ/ð

Sentences: θ/ð

Sentences: θ/ð vs. t/d

Four: The consonant r

The r sound defined

Step 1: Feeling the placement of r

Step 2: Hearing the placement of r

Step 3: Applying the placement of r

Sentences: r

Sentences: r vs. /

Five: The consonant /

The / sound defined

Step 1: Feeling the placement of /

Step 2: Hearing the placement of /

Step 3: Applying the placement of /

Sentences: /

SIX: The consonant ng (ŋ)

The ŋ sound defined

Step 1: Feeling the placement of ŋ

Step 2: Hearing the placement of ŋ

Step 3: Applying the placement of ŋ

Sentences: ŋ

Sentences: ŋ vs. n

Seven: The consonants b, v, and w

The b, v,and w sounds defined

Step 1: Feeling the placement of b, v, and w

Step 2: Hearing the placement of b, v, and w

Step 3: Applying the placement of b, v, and w

Sentences: b vs. v

Sentences: v vs. w

Eight: The consonant j or g (omitted)

The (omitted) sound defined

Step 1: Feeling the placement of (omitted)

Step 2: Hearing the placement of (omitted)

Step 3: Applying the placement of (omitted)

Sentences: (omitted)

Sentences: (omitted) vs. 3

Nine: The vowel I

The I sound defined

Step 1: Feeling the placement of I

Step 2: Hearing the placement of I

Step 3: Applying the placement of I

Sentences: I

Sentences: I vs. i

Ten: The vowel e

The e sound defined

Step 1: Feeling the placement of e

Step 2: Hearing the placement of e

Step 3: Applying the placement of e

Sentences: e

Eleven: The vowel æ

The æ sound defined

Step 1: Feeling the placement of æ

Step 2: Hearing the placement of æ

Step 3: Applying the placement of æ

Sentences: æ

Sentences: æ vs. e

Sentences: æ vs. a

Twelve: The vowels of r (omitted) and (omitted)

The (omitted)/(omitted) sounds defined

Step 1: Feeling the placement of (omitted)/(omitted)

Step 2: Hearing the placement of (omitted)/(omitted)

Step 3: Applying the placement of (omitted)/(omitted)

Sentences: (omitted) vs. (omitted)

Thirteen: The vowel Λ

The Λsound defined

Step 1: Feeling the placement of Λ

Step 2: Hearing the placement of Λ

Step 3: Applying the placement of Λ

Sentences: Λ

Sentences: Λ vs. a

Fourteen: The vowel (Omitted)

The (omitted) sound defined

Step 1: Feeling the placement of (omitted)

Step 2: Hearing the placement of (omitted)

Step 3: Applying the placement of (omitted)

Sentences: (omitted)

Sentences: (omitted) vs. u

Fifteen: The vowel (omitted)

The (omitted) sound defined

Step 1: Feeling the placement of (omitted)

Step 2: Hearing the placement of (omitted)

Step 3: Applying the placement of (omitted)

Sentences: (omitted)

Sentences: (omitted) vs. a(omitted)

Sixteen: The vowels α and o(Omitted)

The a and o(Omitted) sounds defined

Step 1: Feeling the placement of a vs. o(omitted)

Step 2: Hearing the placement of a vs. o(omitted)

Step 3: Applying the placement of a vs. o(omitted)

Sentences: a

Sentences: o(omitted)

Sentences: a vs. o(omitted)

Part Three: the Rhythms of English

Seventeen: Syllable stress within words

Noun and verb variants

The principle of vowel reduction

Suffix spelling patterns that affect syllable stress

Sentences

Eighteen: Word stress within sentences

The rhythm of English speech

Weak forms

Contrasting operative and inoperative words

Speaking in phrases and clauses

Intonation or pitch variance

Part Four: Putting it All Together

Nineteen: Marking a business speech

How to prepare for a presentation

Step 1: Marking difficult sounds

Step 2: Marking operative and inoperative words

Further practice

Scoring your presentations

Appendix A: Prefixes, suffixes, and common word endings with I

Appendix B: Pronunciation of final s: s or z?

Appendix C: CD contents by track