Rhythm Practice: Reducing Prepositions

This lesson accompanies the YouTube video found HERE.  It's important to reduce prepositions in sentences in order to achieve stressed-timed rhythm.  Practice the story below by imitating each sentence.  Speak out loud during the pauses in the recording.  Repeat exactly what your here.  Try to imitate the rhythm and everything about the sentence, including how fast and how loud each word is.  Copy how I connect the words together also.  Listen to the repetition audio here:

Sheila Lebedenko · Reducing Prepositions Repetition

for = fur

to = tuh (t’) or duh (d’)

tuh after a consonant

duh after a vowel or voiced consonant

on = stays on!!

in = stays in!

of = uh (a) before a consonant but stays “of” before a vowel!

than = thun

at = et

as = ez

Remember, prepositions at the end of a sentence or phrase won’t reduce.  

Practice:

I called for a taxi to go to the mall on Third St..  I got in the back of the car and told the driver where I wanted to go.  When the driver started to take a different route than the one I’m used to, I tapped him on the shoulder to ask him where he was going.  To my surprise, instead of answering me, the driver screamed, lost control of the car, hit the curb at high speed, and stopped 2 inches in front of a pedestrian.  As the taxi driver stared at the frightened pedestrian who cursed at us louder and longer than a machine gun, I feared for the driver, but the driver continued to the mall as though nothing had happened.  He calmly told me, “Don’t tap me on my shoulder anymore.  You scared the heck out of me.”   I apologized, for I hadn’t realized that a tap could scare him as much as it did.  The driver assured me it was more his fault than mine.  “Today’s my first day as a taxi driver.  I’ve been driving a funeral car for the last 25 years.”

Future Perfect and Future Perfect Progressive Tenses: Grammar and Pronunciation

           

Find the YouTube Video here.     

           1. You’re a lot younger than me.  By the time you start college, I'll have graduated.

           2.  I’m working at the water station at the half way point.  By the time runners get to my station, they'll have been running for more than an hour, so they'll be very thirsty.

           3.  My friend already bought me ice cream, but I’m sitting in a traffic jam.  By the time I get there, the ice cream will've been sitting on the table for more than 10 minutes and it'll have melted.  I'll have to buy a new one.

           4.  After the long test, we should plan some exercise because we'll have been sitting for 3 hours.  Our legs'll be cramped.

          5.  I’m going to be late to the potluck party, so I'l bring dessert.  By the time I get there, everyone will've eaten dinner and should be ready for dessert.

          6.  He’s going trick-or-treating for 3 hours!   By the time he gets home, he'll have collected enough candy to last for 6 months!  He’ll probably be very hyper because he'll have been eating candy for those 3 hours.  We 'll have to throw away half of the candy!

          7.  Tomorrow morning we should be able to go skiing.  The blizzard will've stopped by then!

          8.  We can’t go skiing until the ski resort has made enough snow.  By this time next week, the resort will've had enough time to make ample snow.  The snow blowers'll need maintenance though.  They'll have been running them all week.

          9.  If you start a college savings account for your baby now, he 'll be so rich by the time he goes to college.   The money will've been sitting in the account for 18 years,  It'll have accumulated so much interest!

         10.  If you wait till next year to refinance your house, the interest rates will've risen.  Just do it now, while the rates are low.

         11.  I wouldn’t buy 6 pairs of the same shoe.  When you finally wear the 6th pair, your taste will've changed and you won't want them anymore.

         12.  We had better prepare dinner for Charlie.  He 'll be hungry when he arrives because he'll have been driving for 6 hours.

American English Rhythm Practice: Do and Can Reductions

Rhythm Practice : Do and Can reductions

Find the audio tracks below!

            Do = də (if helping verb)

1. How do you know?

2. Why do you have to take my picture?

3. Where do you think you’re sleeping? 

4. What do you do if you want to look silly?  (Ava and giselle)

5. Do you want to go to the movies?

6. Wanna go to the movies?  (“Do you” omitted)- informal 

7. Do they fly?  Yes, they DO. (end of utterance)

Can = kin or kən

1. I can wait.

2. Do you think he can reach it?

3. Do you know where I can get a new smile?

4. Can he stand up straight?

5. Exception:  end of utterance: “I think I CAN.”  “Do what you can.”

6. When do the kids get to decide who can take their picture and who can’t?

7. You can distort your photo or do whatever you can do to make yourself look more interesting because you can.

American English Rhythm Practice: Blending

Here are the written and audio materials for the video lesson on American English Rhythm Practice: Blending.  Listen to me saying each sentence and repeat after me in the blank space provided.  You will say each sentence several times.  Each time, you should notice something new about how I say the sentence.   Even if I say the sentence exactly the same way, you will still notice something you didn't notice the first time.  Sometimes, I say the sentence slightly differently, perhaps faster or slower or with different intonation.  Try to improve your observation and imitation skills.  Notice everything about the sentence: my pitch, volume, consonants, vowels, stress, linking of words and of course the blending.  Then imitate.   You can try recording yourself doing the audio so that you can compare your version to my version.  This is how you will improve.


1. He’ll congratulate you.
2. I won’t interrupt you.

3. He’s glad you’re watching.

4.  He hasn’t had any food yet.

5.  He hurts your ears.

6.  He tricks you with a book. 

7.  She wears your groceries.

8.  She rides your bike recklessly.

9. Watch your step.

10. Look at Mary’s yellow dress.

11. I miss you.

12. Did you go?

13. Can’t you go?

14. How was your vacation?

Better Rhythm with Disappearing H

 Disappearing H Practice

(We can omit and often omit his, her, hers, he, and him at the middle or end of a sentence.  Doing so helps us squeeze the pronouns between content words and achieve better rhythm.)

  Repeat after me.  Listen to the audio practice above.  Observe and imitate everything about the sentence.

1. He’s got her head on his shoulder.
( got her = godder.  on his = onniz)

2. How does she keep her head on her shoulders?

(keep her = keeper.  on her = onner)

3. He’s holding his hamster on his shoulder.

(holding his = holdingiz.  on his = onniz

4. He’s holding his daughter on his shoulders with his hands on her legs, and she has her arms on his head. 
holding his = holdingiz.  on his = onniz.  with his = withiz.  on her = onner.  has her = hazzer.  on his = onniz.

5. She has a pain on her back right next to her shoulder.

(on her = onner.  to her = toower)  Adding a W smoothly links “to” to “er.”)

6. He’s riding his bike with his girlfriend sitting behind him holding on to his hips.

(riding his = ridingiz.  with his = withiz.  behind him = behindim.  to his = toowiz.

7. She’s holding her daughter in her lap and helping her paint a picture.

(holding her = holdinger.  in her = inner.  helping her = helpinger.

8. She’s helping her son keep his balance on a log.

(helping her = helpinger.  keep his = keepiz.  

9. She’s sharing her carrot with her horse, but the horse’ll probably beat her to it.

(sharing her = sharinger.  with her = wither.  beat her = beader)  T becomes fast D between vowels.

10. He’s sharing his money with his buddy. 

(sharing his = sharingiz.  with his = withiz.)

11. Let’s talk to him before he changes his mind.

(to him = towim.  before he = beforee.  changes his = changeziz.)

12.  I gave her a chair and took one for myself, but she left hers in the other room.

(gave her = gaver.  Stress hers and say the H because we are contrasting it with “my” chair.)

13.  Tell him that he has to do it himself.

(Tell him = tellim.  that he = thudee.  that is reduced to thut, and T becomes Fast D between vowels.  it himself = idimself.)

How to Say Coal, Core, Cold and Cord

How to  Say Coal and Core, so you don't sound like "Co" and "Co."
This lesson has a video.  Click here.

If your tongue isn't strong enough, no one will hear the L, unless you do this:

CO + W + UL

1) Round your lips for O.
2) Round your lips even more for W.  Your lips will grow forward. (W connects the O, or any round and tense back vowel, to the next vowel.
3) Put a Schwa in front of the L to make the L more noticeable.

This 3 step process is most noticeable when "coal" is at the end of a phrase.  By stretching the word out, we can give it intonation.

I want to buy some coal.

Be sure to say it all in one breath of air!  The air should exit your mouth at a  constant rate.  You will go up on "CO" and down on "WUL" However, don't have 2 puffs of air; in other words, don't let the 2 parts of the word be sharply contrasted.  The up and down should be rounded out.

Suppose the word "coal" is not at the end of a phrase.
"coal miner"
Now I stress "coal" but go down on "miner."  So I have less time to stretch "coal."  I will still have the two parts, but everything will be faster.    Otherwise, you might sound like "co-miner"

How do you make the L at the end of "coal"?   It's not the same as the L in "light."  Don't raise the tip of your tongue to the top of your mouth, like in "light."  Don't make a clear L;  instead make a dark L.

To make a Dark L, try putting a pencil or popsicle stick in your mouth.  Rest it on your bottom teeth.  Let the front of your tongue press up against the stick.  Make your tongue tense and really push up on the stick.  The tongue can't go higher than the stick and that's what we want.

Now try it without the stick, but pretend the stick is still there.  Your tongue will be tense.  At the same time, feel the area between your chin and throat.  Something tense pops out of that area.  That's the back of your tongue working hard to make the Dark L sound.  There will be tension in your throat too.  If you're not used to the Dark L, this tension will make you tired.  Practice every day.  It's like going to the gym to make your arms stronger.  You need to make your tongue stronger for Dark L.

The whole word is "Coal."  The 2nd half of the word is lower-pitched.  It will sink down into your chest.

How about "Cold?"  How do we add the D?   It's not a true D, as in "dog."  It's a held D.  I make it by swallowing or cutting off my air supply in my throat.  Do it suddenly and you'll have a  held D.

How about "Core?"

CO + W + ER

To make ER, pinch the corners of the lips, to make your mouth narrow.  Then pull your tongue straight backward, like you're going to swallow it.  Because your mouth is narrow, the sides of your tongue will touch the inside edges of the top molars.    Practice pulling your tongue backward to develop tongue strength.

You can also say "cord" if you stop exhaling.   The sudden stop of air will create the held D.    If you don't hold the OR long enough, it will sound like "court."  So stretch out the "OR."

Let's practice:  Coal Core Cold Cord Repetition Audio

Repeat after me  Observe carefully and then imitate:

coal
cold
core
cord
coal cold
core cord
soul sore
toll tore
bowl bore
dole door
foal four
goal gore
hole whore
mole more
pole pour
coal miner
I want to buy some coal.
The worm ate through the apple's core.
They scored four goals.
She poured milk in the bowl.
I need more old doors.
It's boring to do chores.
Scroll through the whole text.

Questions?  See www.smooth-english.com

Word Stress: Nouns and Verbs

Word Stress

Find the full course on Word Stress here:  Click here for Word Stress course.

 To study word stress, we must understand that many words are made up of more than one syllable. A syllable is a unit of pronunciation that has only one vowel sound. The vowel sounds are related to a,e,i, o and u. All syllables are not of equal importance. Some syllables will be louder, held longer and have higher pitch than other syllables.

 Example: Roses has 2 syllables. “Ros” has one vowel “o”. “es” has another vowel “e.” Don’t treat the 2 syllables equally. Only one will be stressed. For 2 syllable nouns, we usually stress the first syllable. RO-ses, not RO-SES . VIO-lets, not VIO-LETS. HON-ey, not HON-EY If a word has only one syllable, like “word,” the word stress is easy. There are no choices.

 But we will look at rules for determining stress in words with more than one syllable:

 Word Stress Rules
 1) Nouns and adjectives – 1st syllable (rabbit, blossom, permit, addict, conduct, pretty)

     2 or 3 word nouns (compound nouns) – 1st word (parking lot, credit card, bookmark, football, database, laptop, baseball bat, bedroom furniture)


 Example Sentences:  (Play the above track and repeat after me  Try to imitate everything you hear.  Doing so several times will improve your observation and imitation skills as well as your muscle memory.  The more you practice, the sooner your accent will change.)
 1. The woman has a credit card.
 2. Put sunglasses on your checklist.
 3. The Russian needs a green card.
 4. The bus driver bought a plane ticket.
 5. The football coach gave me his cell phone number.

2) verbs – 2nd syllable ((permit, addict, conduct, prevent, discuss, demand) Exceptions

                -(same whether noun or verb) – (copy, honor, market, measure, notice, practice, promise, purchase, sample, service, study, total, affect, alarm, attempt, demand, design, exchange)

 Example Sentences:  (Play the above track to practice.)
1. The addict is addicted to cocaine.
2. The permit permits you to camp here.
3. Have you sampled the sample?
4. Have you studied the study?
5. Have you discussed the problem and exchanged your thoughts?

 3) Phrasal Verbs/Nouns Verbs:
Verbs + particles (phrasal verbs) – 2nd word ((look over, pick out, turn down, rip off, let on)

Phrasal nouns: 1st word (cut off, work out, turn up, turn off)

Example Sentences: (Play the above track to practice.)
1. His body odor was a turn off; it turned me off.
2. I took car in for a tune-up. The mechanic looked at the engine and tuned it up.
3. The salesman ripped me off. The car was too expensive; it was a rip-off.
4. She wore cut offs (pants that are cut into shorts.) The other car cut me off when I tried to change lanes.
5. Go to the gym to work out. Enjoy your workout!