Ways to improve your English pronunciation

One of the questions I get asked most often is ‘How can I improve my English pronunciation?’ so I’ve put together a list of my top tips PLUS a collection of video trainings.

Top tips for better English pronunciation

Here’s a list of things you can do to work on your English pronunciation in just a few minutes a day:

• Read aloud: Whenever you’re reading in English, do it out loud. This will help you to get used to forming the mouth shapes you need for different words
• Sing along to music: Choose your favourite English songs and learn the lyrics, then sing along. This will help you with intonation and rhythm. Not sure which song to start with, here are a few songs which work well
• Learn the IPA: This sound chart can look overwhelming at first but learn it bit by bit. Then, whenever you look up a new word in your translator or dictionary, you can use the IPA to know exactly how to say it
• Use a mirror: If you’re struggling to produce an English sound, watch the speaker’s mouth closely and then use a mirror to make sure you are making the same shape
• Record yourself: Do you know what you sound like in English? Record yourself speaking on your phone and then listen to see where you could sound clearer. Then repeat the task!
• Listen – a lot!: Listening and pronunciation go hand in hand. Find lots of things to listen to (TV shows, songs, podcasts, the radio, other people’s conversations) and pay close attention to the features of pronunciation

I hope you’re going to try some, or all of those tips – You can let me know in the comments at the bottom of this blog post. But don’t stop there, watch the video trainings too.

10 Video trainings for better English pronunciation

1. Master these five common irregular verbs!

I often hear mistakes with these everyday verbs so check you know exactly how to say them and listen closely to how they sound in a fast example.

2. Work on pronouncing contractions to sound more natural in conversations

Using contractions is a great way to instantly sound more natural so try this repetition exercise.

3. Difficult English pronunciation for Spanish speakers

This one is just for my Spanish speakers. We’re going to focus on those words that you find tough to say!

4. Learn these 20 high frequency silent letter words

Silent letters can be soooo annoying but you’ll know exactly how to pronounce these common ones with this tutorial. Plus, as a free bonus, this one comes with a reminder PDF of those silent letter words

5. Eight Tricky everyday words

I hear SO many mistakes with these words, which can hinder communication, so let’s practise them together! Grab a mirror so you can check you’re making the right shape with your mouth.

6. Using sentence stress like a pro!

In this tutorial, I cover exactly what sentence stress is, how to use it naturally and how to use emphatic stress too.

7. Do you know what minimal pairs are?

Find out with this lesson and play the game with me! Knowing which minimal pairs your nationality tends to struggle with is a great way to improve your English pronunciation.

8. Eight more tricky words

Here’s another set of words which lots of English learners find difficult. Practise with me!

9. The TH sound

Ahh, that pesky TH sound that most English learners hate, especially in these confusingly similar words! Don’t worry, we’ll master them in this lesson.

10. How to sound more fluent

In this lesson, I demonstrate the reason it’s often tricky to understand native English speakers and how you can use that knowledge to sound more fluent

If you want to re-watch any of these trainings, you can find a YouTube playlist of pronunciation videos here!

So there you go, lots of practical ways to improve your English pronunciation.

Don’t feel overwhelmed though, just keep working on it daily and make sure you’re having fun with it too! You do not need to sound like a native English speaker, you just need to be easily understood and feel confident so that you can have successful conversations!

Any thoughts on your favourite tip? Let me know in the comments below 😊