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Speaker 1: These days, it seems like a lot of people all

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over the world speak English, doesn't it. And that means

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that there are a ton of different English accents out there,

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which is totally fine, you know, But if you are

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concerned about your English pronunciation, then stick around till the

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end of this podcast. I have a lot of ideas

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to help you out.

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Speaker 2: Welcome to another Happy English podcast, coming to you from

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New York City. And here's your English teacher, Michael.

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Speaker 1: All right, thank you John, and thanks everyone. It's Michael

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here from Happy English and I help people speak English better.

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And this is Happy English Podcast, Episode seven sixty three.

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How to improve pronunciation? Is it orange or orange? And

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what about coffee as we call it in New York

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or coffee as they call it in La do you

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park your car? Or as they say in Boston, pak yaka.

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I heard one time that there are over thirty regional

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accents here in the USA, So no matter which one

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you like to listen to and use, here are my

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top three tips for improving pronunciation and accent. Let's dive

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right in. First of all, and this may sound obvious,

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but to improve your pronunciation, you need to listen to

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a lot of English. Listen to and imitate native speakers.

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Have you ever noticed that the more you listen to

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a native speaker, the more natural their speech starts to sound.

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Maybe you've been listening to this podcast for a long

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time and you can understand me clearly. That's because you're

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picking up on things like rhythm, stress, and intonation. You

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might not even realize it, but your brain is learning

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how sentences flow in English. Here's what I recommend when

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you're listening to English, whether it's a podcast, a TV show,

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or even a YouTube video. Don't just focus on the

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meaning of the words. Pay attention to how they're saying it.

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Where do they pause, how do they link words together?

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Next up, here's a fun exercise called shadowing. This means

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you listen to a short sentence or phrase, pause the audio,

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and repeat it immediately, trying to match the native speaker's

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intonation and rhythm as closely as possible. Do this for

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a few minutes each day, and you'll notice a big

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difference in how natural your speech sounds. Also, mix up

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your sources. Try listening to different types of English accents.

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You can watch movies, listen to podcasts, or even watch

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the news. This way, you'll become more familiar with different

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ways English is spoken around the world. The next one

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may be challenging for some of you, but it is

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a good idea to record yourself. Oh, Bud, Michael, Uh,

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I don't like the way my voice sounds when I

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do that. Yeah, I know. Recording yourself does need a

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bit of a strong stomach, and doing it might feel

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strange at first, but it's actually a fantastic way to

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improve your pronunciation. Most people don't know how they sound

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to others, so when you record yourself, you get to

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hear exactly what your speaking sounds like. And here's how

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you can use this tip. Choose a short text or

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just talk about your day in English, and record yourself

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speaking for one or two minutes. Afterward, listen back to

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the recording, Compare how you sound to a native speaker,

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and then take notes. Do you notice any sounds that

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are different? Are there parts of your speech that you

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feel are unclear? Another great thing about recording yourself is

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that you can track your progress over time. Record yourself

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every week, and after a few months listen to the

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older recordings. You'll be amazed at how much you've improved.

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My friend and fellow English teacher Jonathan Huggins, has been

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recording himself speaking several languages every day for years now.

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It does help, that's for sure. And you can start

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with simple sentences like I went to the store or

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she's studying at the library. Over time, you can practice

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more complex sentences and conversations. Lastly, the third tip for

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today is to focus on how you move your mouth

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and your muscle memory. You may not have thought about this,

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but pronunciation is physical. To pronounce certain sounds in English,

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you need to move your mouth in ways that might

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feel strange at first, but with practice, your muscles will

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get used to it and those tricky sounds will become easier.

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Let's take the th sound for example. Many learners find

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this sound difficult because it doesn't exist in their native language.

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To make this sound correctly, you need to place your

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tongue between your teeth and blow the air out. It

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might feel awkward at first, but with practice, your mouth

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will remember how to do that. The the I recommend

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practicing in front of a mirror. Watch how your mouth, lips,

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and tongue move when you say words that are difficult

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for you. This will help you become more aware. Of

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what's happening physically when you speak. You can also do

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mouth exercises exaggerate the pronunciation of certain sounds like B

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P or V pop keeps playing volleyball. Now, we don't

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generally speak that way, but if you exaggerate the pronunciation

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over time, this will help build muscle memory and pronouncing

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these sounds will feel more natural. Just like in sports.

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Your muscles need training, and the more you practice, the

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better you'll get. All right, let's recap the top three

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tips for improving your pronunciation. Listen and imitate native speakers.

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Focus on how people are speaking, not just what they're saying,

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and try shadowing short sentences. Record yourself. Hearing your own

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voice will help you identify areas to improve, and it's

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a great way to track your progress. Finally, focus on

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mouth movements and muscle memory. Pronunciation is physical practice in

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front of a mirror and work on forming sounds correctly

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to build muscle memory. Oh yeah, and find opportunities to

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speak English regularly, like in my podcast Learner's Study Group.

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There you can make new friends. Join us for live

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group lessons every week where we practice these podcast lessons together.

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Plus you get access to the pdf transcript and audio

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download for every Happy English podcast in the past and

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in the future. And on top of that, each episode

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has exercises where you can practice this English point with

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speaking and writing checked by me. To learn more, just

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visit Myhappy English dot com and choose podcast lesson seven

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sixty three. Remember, learning another language is not easy, but

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it's not impossible, and I'm here to help you on

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your journey.

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Speaker 2: This podcast is brought to you by Happy English. Please

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visit Myhappy English dot com show your support for Happy

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English by leaving us a review. Get English, Get Happy,

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Happy English.