Questions tagged [american-accent]
For questions on how language is spoken in the US
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How do you pronounce the word "promptly"?
I have a question about the pronunciation of the word "promptly."
I've checked several sites, but it seems there are two variations.
One pronounces the word with the "T" as "...
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How should the name "Kimia" be spelled? [closed]
My name is Kimia, but I have no idea which of the following spellings is right; Kimia or Kimya. I gotta say the last syllable of my name is pronounced like Mia. Would you tell me which one is correct?
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A question on word stress
Video link:stress
It seems that two stresses are put in the following words in the video and all of the main stress are on the second syllable because the pitch is higher and rises on the second one.
...
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pronunciation/transcription confusion - pronouncing words as they are spelt vs pronouncing them just like the transcription
For example, here's the IPA transcriptions for the word "privacy": /ˈprɪvəsi,ˈprʌɪvəsi/
I want to pronounce "privacy" in a general american accent, like /ˈprʌɪvəsi/
if I say it ...
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How to pronounce /d/ vs /də/ as in dwell
My old teacher found I like inserting schwa after consonants. When I was pronouncing and, I said it like /əndə/. She asked me to drop the last d to avoid the epenthesis.
Now I'm learning the word ...
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Correct pronunciation of Masked
In the dictionary, I saw that masked pronunciation is written as :
/mɑːskt/ Does that mean that after saying mask, we emphasize saying kt?
So there should not be any sound of the letter d when saying ...
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Is it wrong to pronounce "to" as /tə/ before words starting with vowels?
In Oxford Dictionary, it says it is correct to pronounce "to" as /tə/ only before words starting with a consonant. It seems fair to me too because /tə/ sounds off and unsmooth before vowels; ...
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Pronunciation of "tag" in American English
I have heard some American English speakers saying the word "tag" like [tεg], but the [ɛ] vowel is somewhat lengthened. Is that a specific regional accent? I can't find this pronunciation on ...
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Intonation changes meaning
The audio includes two short conversations in which the speaker answers with different intonations of "pretty" so as to cause different meanings of the two answers. The second one means she ...
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Is the d in "lived in" flapped in American English?
I am trying to say the sentence :
how long have you lived in the US
My pronunciation of "lived in" feels so heavy handed compared to this audio recording.
I wonder, is the d flapped? It ...
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What methods should I use to soften or remove my accent? [closed]
https://voca.ro/1jeSBpuxHA4c
I've had a weird journey learning English. Having grown up in Canada, I learned English before I learned my own native language. Once I moved back to the country from ...
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Dropping the /t/ sound in words like, "wanted" [duplicate]
In my experience, a lot of Americans, on many occasions, don't make the standard /t/ sound in words like "wanted," "twenty," "accidentally," "presented," "...
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Where can I listen to a General American accent on the Internet so I can study it? [closed]
What about YouTube channels, movies, news, radio, and audiobooks?
Do all of them speak with a General American Accent?
How can I be sure they are 100% General American accent not just 90% of it? I ...
anon
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Is there a Russian accent in my pronunciation of "lee"?
My first language is Russian. I tried to learn American English pronunciation of the word "lee" and other words containing / li / sound, like "delete". When I compared the ...
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Is General American Accent the only choice for me so I am understood by everyone?
I am learning English. If I want to be understood by everyone, I need to learn an accent. I know no matter how hard I try, I will never sound perfect but learning 80% is enough for me.
Every time ...
anon
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"Law" vs "Lawyer" pronunciation, why is the "law" part sometimes pronounced differently?
So I've recently watched "Crazy Ex Girlfriend" (which is set in SoCal), and I've noticed everyone there pronounced "Law" and "Lawyer" differently, which was really ...
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US-American pronunciation of 'e'
Since quite some time I get the impression, that especially in US-American, spoken english the pronunciation of 'e' (as in 'best' — /ɛ/) seems to shift towards 'a' (as in 'flat' — /æ/). Some recent ...
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How to pronounce the "n" in "wasn't really..." fast?
When people say "wasn't really" really fast, does the tongue position for /n/ in "wasn't" exactly the same as an usual /n/?
(like in this description.)
I ask this question because ...
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Does google really pronounce a schwa here as it says rather than an "i"?
When I google "authentic pronunciation" or "enjoy pronunciation", it will show the followings:
However, they don't sound like "tuhk" or "uhn" to me as it says (what google pronounces when I click ...
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How can I get rid of my Indian accent and sound more neutral/native
I have recently moved to Canada and I feel I often end up having to repeat myself because of my typical accent. I am attaching a link to a very short audio and would love to know what can I do to fix ...
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Do we release all consonant sounds that appear at the end of the word which ends the sentence in AmE?
Do we release all the consonant sounds that appear at the end of the word ending a sentence?
Examples:
I am at work.
There was a Big Bang.
I have a new hope.
He has a big heart.
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Is it a very common and recognized way to pronounce the word "opposite" /ˈɑː.pə.sɪt/?
Cambridge Dictionary gives an IPA /ˈɑː.pə.zɪt/ for the word "opposite", which totally fits with what I know.
This American kindergarten teacher in the YouTube video titled: Antonym Rap: Reviewing ...
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How do you make the flap t sound as in the words city and letter
I'm having a hard time figuring out the right placement and motions of the tongue when making this consonant. I watched a few videos on this topic. People say that in order to make the sound you don't ...
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American pronunciation of "second" (edited)
I'm learning American English with some online classes, and the instructor says that the 2nd vowel 'o' of "second" sounds like "/e/" in everyday conversation (e.g. "Can I talk to you for a second?"). ...
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Pronunciation of "marry" and "carry" in American English [closed]
Should I use "a" as in "map" or "e" as in "pet"? Merriam-Webster says both ways are ok.
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American English pronunciation: basically or "basicly"?
Does the final "a" drop out in words like "basically", "logically", etc, or should I pronounce it?
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American pronunciation of (tall, taught, law, bought) vs (father, pasta, drop)
I have two tutorials by Cook and by Cameron. Cameron suggests that these two groups are pronounced differently: e.g. in "drop" the tongue is perfectly flat, but in "jaw" it goes up by 1/8 of an inch. ...
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Do I have to pronounce the letter "l" as light or dark when there is a double "l" followed by a vowel in a word?
It is known that when the letter l is followed by a vowel then it is pronounced as light, and when it is at the end of a word or is followed by a consonant then it is pronounced as dark. But it is ...
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In American English, can we flap the /d/ in the phrases "Where did", "Where do", "Where don't" and "Where does"?
I am 99% sure Americans quite often flap the /d/ sound which comes right after /r/ in the phrases "Where did", "Where do", "Where don't" and "Where does" (I am talking about the initial /d/'s), and I ...
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What's the colloquial way to express those questions?
Now, if someone told me that the weather is very bad. I would like to ask about when it started to become bad and for how many days.
Is it okay to use "How long" like:
How long has it been bad?
...
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Pronunciation of "are"
In these sentences below, can I pronounce the "are"s as /ər/ instead of /ɑr/? I am talking about American English.
Sentences:
1) "Problems of most people are not big."
2) "People who smoke ...
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Can I make an unaspirated /t/ sound in the words like "best", "chest", "belt" etc. in American English?
As far as I know, if there is a vowel before the final /t/ or if there is the letter /n/ before the final /t/, we can make an unaspirated /t/ sound in American English. For example: "hot", "cut", "...
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Can I pronounce "you" as /ju/ intead of /juː/ in this kind of sentences?
"You want to see my muscles?"
"You love dogs."
"You wanna see my moves?"
"You like him."
"You come with me."
etc.
In this kind of sentences where "you" is at the beginning of the sentence, can I ...
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Americans flap the /d/ of the consonant cluster /rd / if it is between two vowels, right?
I am like 99% sure that Americans do what I said in the title, but I wanted ask you anyway. My question is: When a word ends with /rd/ after a vowel and when the next word starts with a vowel, also in ...
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How to pronounce a voiceless stop when it's at the end of a word which is behind a word that starts with a vowel?
I wonder if Americans usually make an unaspirated sound when the letters "k", "p" or "t" is at the end of a word and when the next word starts with a vowel. I know that I should make a flap sound when ...
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Can I drop both of the "h"s in the phrases "his or her", "him or her" and "his or hers"?
As you know the "h"s in the words "him", "his", "he", "her" and "hers", if there is a consonant before them, can be dropped. For example the "h" in the sentence "Why does he like you so much?" can be ...
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Pronunciation of the second /k/ in "excuse"?
The "p" in "application" is unaspirated and the "p" in "apply" is aspirated since it is the first letter in the stressed syllable, am I right? When an unvoiced stop is the first letter of a stressed ...
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Pronunciation of the "p" in the words like "splatter", "splash", "split", "explain" in American accent?
In the words like "splatter", "splash", "split" and "explain" should I make an aspirated or an unaspirated "p" sound? I can't decide which way is correct. I need your help.
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Palm RP and GA pɑːm pɑm pɑlm
I'm confused with the different pronunciations of "calm". I'm using lexical sets to understand the differences between Received Pronunciation and General American.
According to Wikipedia, the ...
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What's the better way to ask if someone have just done something at this moment of time
I want to ask someone if he at this moment entered the apartment. I mean he literally made his first step into the apartment at this moment. Should I say
Have you just entered the apartment?
Did you ...
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How to speak fluent in southern accent? [closed]
I want to speak like George W Bush's accent and like cowboys.
Example:
Y`all and Howdy?
I would die for this accent. I sincerely love this accent over cockney one.
user60854
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Is it possible to pronounce jury as /dʒɜːri/?
sometimes I hear Americans pronounce jury as ''/dʒɜːri/''. Is that right? Is it regional or generally they say this way?
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How do you make the flap t sound as in "Better" and "letter"?
How do I make the flap/tap t sound as in words like: better, matter, stutter, moto, but I'm, bottom and so?
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How can I learn one of the standard English accents? [closed]
A few months ago, I was asked to send a videotape of my self-introduction for a job of a language teacher in China. I was rejected citing the reason that my accent was not satisfactory.
I want to ...
user615
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Can we drop the T sound in word grunting in American English?
I was taught that when the T sound after an N sound, the T can be dropped in American English. As internet can be pronounced as innernet, winter can be winner, printer can be prinner.
What about ...
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Pronouncing The American R
I realize this might be more of an accent question, but trying to master that American R sound, I don't quite know if I'm doing it correctly. That is, I sound very similar to the recordings I hear but ...
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how to pronounce words 'baths' in actual conversation?
I was confused by the pronunciation of consonant cluster 'ths' at the end of the word.
For example: the cluster 'ths' in word months, according to ESL teaching videos on Youtube,video for months' ...
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What is the "American English" speaker saying?
Video
At 1:02: He says
Human beings should be ..... from each other.
Also a little bit confusion between 0:02 and 0:10. I believe it is:
Went through .......
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Should the last letter 'd' pronounced in word 'independent'?
I've got to know that the 'T' sound in American English has various pronunciation rules.
For example, flap T. And also one of the rule is when T sound followed by an 'n' sound or 'ən' sound, the 'T' ...
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Have you ever said "muna" instead of "gonna"?
What do you think about this word? Please watch this video for explanation.
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