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Pronunciation Archive

Song – Gran Torino by Jamie Cullum

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By
John
     October 27, 2009Category: Pronunciation

Recently, I watched a great movie starring Clint Eastwood.

Gran Torino

The movie is called ‘Gran Torino’.

It is about an old man who has lived most of his life in the same house.

One day an Asian family moves into the house next to him.

At first he doesn’t like them, but over time they become friends and he protects them from a dangerous gang.

I liked the movie and I also like the song. It was written by Clint Eastwood.

Listen to the Song. You can also read the lyrics (words):

Pronunciation Activity:

This is a nice slow song.

  1. Listen to the song and copy the pronunciation.
  2. In the comments below, record yourself reading some of the song.
  3. Listen to yourself. Compare your pronunciation to the song.

If you don’t like your pronunciation, try again!

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The song! Hot Cross Buns

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comments
By
John
     April 16, 2009Category: Culture, Pronunciation

Hot Cross Buns

One of my friends mentioned the song ‘Hot Cross Buns’. I haven’t thought about that song in a long time!

I used to sing it in primary school!

So here it is! A nice memory for me, and you can learn to sing it too!

Activity: Can you find a picture of real Hot Cross buns on the Internet? Put a link to one in the comments!

PRONUNCIATION: Learn the ‘Hot Cross Buns’ song.

Record yourself singing or saying the words in the comments!

Don’t be shy! Give it a try!

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G’day Mate!

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By
John
     January 21, 2009Category: Culture, Pronunciation, Vocabulary

 Q: I always hear Australian people saying ‘G’day mate!‘ What does it mean?

A: G’day, means ‘hello‘ (short for ‘good day‘) and mate means ‘friend‘!

 

Listen to the recording below. 

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In Australian slang, we often use the word mate.

 Example:

Listen to the recording below. 

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

“Me and me mates are going away this weekend.” = “My friends and I are going away this weekend.”

Notice that the speaker says ‘me mates‘, not ‘my mates’. This is common Australian slang!

 

Practice!
Listen to yourself saying ‘G’day mate’ using the recorder below. You will need a microphone! Watch your pronunciation!

 

1. Click on ‘OPEN VOICE RECORDER’ below, to practice.

Open Recording Tool

2. Record yourself in the comments! I will listen to your pronunciation and give you feedback!

NEW VOCABULARY:
  • G’day
  • mate
  • slang 
Question: Do you know what girls often use instead of the word ‘mate’?

Put your answer in the comments!

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IPA – Pronunciation

2
comments
By
John
     December 8, 2008Category: Pronunciation

Today, let’s look at the IPA to learn clear English pronunciation

Q: What is the best way to learn English pronunciation?
            

A: You need to learn to pronounce words and sounds clearly. We already know that katakana is not a good way to learn English sounds!

The best way to learn how to pronounce the sounds of English is to practice the IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet).?            

Did you know English has a special alphabet for sounds? This is a special alphabet that has all the sounds of English. Click on the link below, to see the IPA.

 

 

Q: Why is there a special alphabet?
             
A: Because the regular alphabet (A,B,C etc) does not show the sounds in English.
 Examples:

Let’s think about the use of the letter ‘c’ in English…

The word ‘cat‘ starts with the letter ‘c‘. In this word it makes a /k/ sound.

BUT in the word ‘face‘ the ‘c‘ makes a /s/ sound.

The IPA makes the sounds clear. 
Q: Wow that sounds confusing! Do I have to learn a new alphabet?

A: It can be helpful to learn the IPA, but you don’t have to.

However, you should practice pronouncing the sounds of the IPA. The best way to practice is to say words that:

  1. Start with the sound
  2. Have the sound in the middle
  3. Have the sound at the end

Let’s start to do this next time!

Question: Have you used the IPA before?

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Introduction to good English Pronunciation

4
comments
By
John
     November 20, 2008Category: Pronunciation

Today, let’s look at English pronunciation.

Q: What do I need to do to have good English pronunciation?

A: To have good pronunciation, you need to:

  1. pronounce the sounds of English correctly
  2. use the correct stress in English words and sentences
  3. use the correct intonation
  4. link words together correctly when you speak.

It sounds like a lot! But over the next few months we will practice all of those points!?

Watch to the video below.

Question: Can you hear the problems in the speakers pronunciation in this example? What are the problems? What tips would you give them to improve?

Put your answer in the comments!

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