Accent Reduction Tips
Simply listen! Use every opportunity you have to listen to Americans speak. Watch movies, TV, radio, podcasts, and lectures (who said learning shouldn’t be fun)
Watch! Watch the mouth movements of native speakers
Focus! Pay attention to word endings
Speak as much as you can! Don’t be afraid to speak, it is not always easy but your accent will not disappear overnight. The more you speak the more your English pronunciation will improve.
Speak slowly! Make it easier for your listeners to understand you. It is better to speak slowly and be understood than to speak fast and make your listeners cope with speedy (and sometimes wrong) pronunciation. Don’t worry; once you will learn the correct intonation and rhythm of English, you will be able to speed up you speech without effort.
Use dictionaries and the web! Most dictionaries provide phonetic symbols. Look up the correct pronunciation of words you find hard to pronounce. Use the internet to find audio and visual examples for pronunciation (some examples can be found here)
Ask for help! List words that are hard for you to pronounce and ask an American to pronounce them for you. Don’t be shy, many times they wanted to correct you but thought it was rude.
Record yourself and listen! Record yourself and listen for pronunciation mistakes. it will help you become conscious of the mistakes that you are making.
Read aloud! Read aloud as much as you can. Daily practice will help you train the different mouth muscles that are used in English. Don’t be afraid to exaggerate. Sometimes, over doing the American accent can help you actually feel different muscles.
Relax! As long as you practice and put the effort your accent will improve. It will not happen in a day but you would notice some change in weeks. Don’t give up and you will see that the effort will be produce results faster than you think.
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