10 More Advanced English Words for Fluent English

How to Practice English Pronunciation - 5 Steps

Here are the five steps that I recommend you follow in order to improve your pronunciation and make your accent as native-like as possible. 

Connecting English Words to Sound Like a Native Speaker

This video will teach you the importance of connecting words together when you're speaking English. When you connect words (also called  "linking") you will automatically sound more fluent and your accent will be better.  Remember, linking does not mean we are speaking faster. Our speech is just smoother and more natural. If you don't connect words, your speech will sound choppy, like a beginner who is just learning to speak English.  Watch the video until the end so that you can do the practice exercises.

Vowel Pronunciation Test

Check your knowledge of American English vowel sounds by taking this test

Which word is pronounced with a different vowel sound? (doesn’t rhyme with the other words?) 

This test is not as easy as it seems.  If you get 12 or more right, your pronunciation of American vowels is very good.  If not, you can improve by listening carefully to native speakers. Also, you can review Video 1 from my video series "50 Rules You Must Know." 
(answers are at the bottom)

                   A              B                      C                    D

1.       food              foot                       mood                     moon                      same

2.       cookie           look                       put                        wool                       same

3.       would           should                   boot                       pull                         same

4.       most              post                       toast                      cost                        same

5.       said               head                      dead                      bed                         same

6.       no                 sew                        flow                      Joe                          same

7.       bean              been                     seen                      scene                      same

8.       does              what                     come                     up                           same

9.       none             done                     nun                       fun                         same

10.   sail                sale                        ate                       eight                      same

11.   call                coal                       role                       roll                        same

12.   was               what                      won                      watt                      same

13.   hurt               work                     burn                    world                     same

14.   were             where                   bear                      pair                        same

15.   bone             done                     none                     one                        same

answer key:

1. B,  2. same,  3.C,  4.D,   5. same,   6.same,  7. B,   8. same,  9.same,  10. same,  11. A,  12, D,   13. same,  14. A, 15. A
copyright © all rights reserved [Lisa Mojsin] [2015]

Practicing the American Accent with film and TV scenes

A great technique for improving your accent is reading short scenes from your favorite film or TV show.  You can often find the script on line. Then watch the scene and try to imitate the actors'  way of speaking.  Practice a short, three or four minute scene over and over again.  You can even try to memorize it.  Pay attention to the word stress, intonation and linking of word groups together. Try the following scene:

Practice Exercise:

Here is an example of a very popular TV series:  Breaking Bad.  Here is YouTube clip of the scene
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPk3TN81y_c

Below are the transcripts for you to practice reading:

 

Mike: You got a good thing going here. We all do. You want to risk it all on one junkie? Now I realize you two have a history, but this kid's been on the bubble a while now. It's a long time coming.

Walter: What is?

Mike: [Chuckles] Um... I used to be a beat cop, long time ago. And I'd get called out on domestic disputes all the time, hundreds probably over the years. But there was this one guy, this one piece of shit, that I will never forget: Gordy. He looked like Bo Svenson. You remember him? Walking Tall? You don't remember?

Walter: No.

Mike: Anyway. Big boy; 270, 280. But his wife, or whatever she was, his lady, was real small. Like a bird, wrists like little branches. Anyway, my partner and I get called out there every weekend and one of us would pull her aside and say, "C'mon, tonight's the night we press charges." And this wasn't one of those 'deep down he really loves me' setups, we got a lot of those, but not this. This girl was scared. She wasn't gonna cross him no way, no how. Nothing we could do but pass her off to the EMTs, put him in the car, drive him downtown, throw him in the drunk tank. He sleeps it off, next morning out he goes, back home. But one night, my partner's out sick and it's just me. And the call comes in and it's the usual crap. Broke her nose in the shower kind of thing. So I cuff him, put him in the car and away we go. Only that night, we're driving into town, and this sideways asshole is in my backseat humming 'Danny Boy'. And it just rubbed me wrong. So instead of left, I go right, out into nowhere. And I kneel him down and I put my revolver in his mouth and I told him, "This is it. This is how it ends." And he's crying, going to the bathroom all over himself, swearing to God he's gonna leave her alone, screaming – much as you can with a gun in your mouth. And I told him to be quiet, that I needed to think about what I was gonna do here. And of course he got quiet. Goes still, and real quiet, like a dog waiting for dinner scraps. And we just stood there for a while: me acting like I'm thinking things over, and Prince Charming kneeling in the dirt with shit in his pants. After a few minutes I took the gun out of his mouth and I say; "So help me if you ever touch her again I will such and such and such and such and blah blah blah blah blah".

Walter: Just... just a warning?

Mike: Hmph. Of course. Just trying to do the right thing. But two weeks later he killed her. Of course. Caved her head in with the base of a Waring blender. We got there, there was so much blood you could taste the metal. The moral of the story is, I chose a half measure when I should have gone all the way. I'll never make that mistake again. [stands up] No more half measures, Walter.

 

Speaking with a more powerful voice

A lot of my students struggle with various voice issues. All of these issues can prevent you from speaking English clearly and may make your foreign accent even stronger. For example:

• speaking too fast
• speaking with a weak voice
• breathing incorrectly
• mumbling (not opening mouth enough)
• loss of energy at the end of the sentence 
• hesitation and lack of confidence in their voice

These issue can affect how easy or difficult it is for others to understand what you are saying.
Here are two videos by voice coach Jay Miller.  I believe that his techniques and exercises will help you to speak with more confidence, especially at the workplace.
Keep practicing!!!   By changing your voice, you can change your life!  Successful people speak with energy, enthusiasm and a powerful voice.

New English Pronunciation Videos for Sale

The new videos are called "Say It Correctly - Fixing the Most Common Pronunciation Errors of Words."   They contain lessons on how to fix the biggest mistakes that non-native speakers make. I have collected lists of words that are universally difficult to pronounce for my accent reduction students.  I made lessons that will teach you how to fix those mistakes and gain more confidence when you're speaking English. The videos are almost 2 hours long.  They are intended for intermediate and advanced learners of English. You can either download them or get the physical DVDs in the mail.  Please go to:  AccurateEnglish.com