How often have you heard a divine British accent and desperately wanted to speak just as elegantly? Congratulations: with the help of our article, your chances of mastering “English” English will skyrocket. Here you will find instructions on common pronunciation standards in British English, as well as watch videos and listen to audio recordings of speakers of this beautiful accent.

It is no secret that in the UK there are a huge number of dialects of the English language - often residents from one part of the country cannot understand the speech of British people living in a neighboring city (more details within the UK).

We will look at the “classic” British version of the language - Received Pronunciation, abbreviated RP.

Learn the Rules, or Rules in British English

Let's look at the basic rules of pronunciation of sounds that clearly characterize British English.

Probably everyone who has been studying English for a long time knows that some words are pronounced differently in the British and American dialects. At first glance, the British version may seem easier than the American one, since the British pronounce most of the sounds as part of the word. But, as a rule, except for this fact, British English is still more difficult than American English.

U– pronounced | juː| or word you(and in the American version - just like ). For example, duty= |d juːti| (British) or |duːti| (Amer).

In words with a letter A in the British version the sound is more often used |ɑː|, in the American version |æ|. Popular example: can't= |kɑːnt| (British) or |kænt| (Amer).

Don't forget the letter T– in British English it is pronounced in most cases and is not replaced with R, as is customary among Americans. For example, the phrase “give it away” An American will pronounce it as “give r evey.”

There is also a peculiarity in the pronunciation of the letter R– in British English, the R is not pronounced after the vowel at the end of the word, for example, the word car the RP owner will pronounce |kɑː|.

Don't forget to check the pronunciation of individual words. This can be done in online dictionaries, for example, dictionary.cambridge.org.

You will find even more cool examples (from Beatles songs!) of the differences between British and American accents in this wonderful video.

This is also where you can add all unfamiliar words to study. 🙂

Learning the rules of pronunciation is the foundation, but then the fun begins - endless hours of practice trying to remember the typical intonations used by the British in speech.

The best way to gain such experience is to communicate with a native speaker. Alas, it is not available to everyone. Therefore, the inhabitants of English-language YouTube come to the rescue, which you will learn about in the next section of the article.

Practice Is the Key, or Watch and Learn

After the nth number of hours of watching YouTube channels, typical British intonations will begin to creep into your speech.

On the Screen, or Films and TV Shows with a British Accent

What better way to get used to the British accent than? Catch our list of films and TV series:

• series of films about Harry Potter. Pay attention to the speech of Professor McGonagall and Hermione - they are gorgeous;
• For lovers of classic English novels, film adaptations of Jane Austen's works are suitable. For example, the mini-series “Pride and Prejudice” (1995);
• series “Sherlock” (it will be difficult, but we believe in you!);
• series “Downton Abbey”. Even the name sounds very British;
• “The Diary of Bridget Jones.” An excellent British accent performed by American Renee Zellweger;
• film "The King's Speech". Briton Colin Firth as the English king is something!

And this, of course, is not all - there are so many films in the world where you can hold your breath and listen to English spoken with a British accent!

Conclusion: How to Speak with a British Accent

In this article we have shared useful materials for mastering the British accent. Watch videos, films, listen to podcasts - and your brain will automatically begin to remember typical “tricks” of British English. Then very soon, on a trip to the UK, you will not only understand the speech of foreigners, but also respond with the intonations of a typical Londoner.

Which accent is closer to you: British or American? Which one seems louder, clearer? Share your opinion in the comments!

I know a man who was told at school that foreign language he's worse than ever. Unfortunately, he believed this and after school he never tried to start learning a foreign language again. But what he was really good at was the ability to copy dialects. He did it (parodied) very well. Who knows, but it seems to me that he had a hidden talent in learning foreign languages, which he never used.

Most people are very good at parodying the voices and accents of other people (take our pop artists), which is one of the indicators ability to learn foreign languages. Fortunately, you can also make progress in learning a foreign language if you simply try to copy the accents in your native language.

But do it carefully! I'm not asking you to laugh at anyone (I think that's the point of a parody). In no case! But when you hear a regional or foreign accent on the radio or in a movie, try to imitate it immediately. In the same way, you will use this useful skill when learning a foreign language: When pronouncing new words, try to make an accent as if you were a native speaker.

Once you become good at imitating regional and foreign accents in your native language, you will automatically learn to produce the correct accent in the language you are learning.

You may already know that the American accent differs from region to region. Residents of the Southern United States, New York and California pronounce words differently.

But if you want to sound like an American, don't worry. We will tell you simple ways to develop and improve your American accent.

But first, an important point:

What makes the American accent unique?

Although English is spoken by more than 800 million people, most English speakers are not native speakers. However, many English language learners strive to develop a distinct American accent.

The American accent is actually older than the British one. The American accent, as we know it today, originally belonged to the settlers who settled in the land that later became the territory of the United States of America.

The main feature that distinguishes an American accent from a British one is that the American accent is “rhotic” (with some exceptions, which we will discuss below). This means that Americans pronounce the "r" sound in words like "hard" (har-d). And those whose accent is non-rhotic drop the "r" and pronounce the word "hard" as hah-d.

Regional differences in North America

Different areas of North America have their own accents - there is no single accent throughout North America. Here are some regional differences you may encounter in this country.

Southern accent

A Southern accent, also known as a "southern dialect" or "country accent", is characterized by slower pronunciation and shorter words. Southern influences seeped into American speech throughout the country.

In the South, for example, they say git instead of get And lemme instead of let me.

To get an idea of ​​the differences in American accents, consider the following examples:

Some schoolchildren, when they don’t get what they want, hear one saying from their teachers. In the Northern part of the USA it sounds like this: “You get what are you get so don't be upset"(you will only get what you get and there is no need to be upset).

And in the South it’s a little different: “You get what are you get so don't throw a fit". (you will only get what you get and there is no need to throw a tantrum). Fit in this case has the same meaning as the word tantrum.

Where can you hear a southern accent:

• in TV shows that air in the south, such as “True Blood” (Real blood).
• in the works of American country music artists such as Carrie Underwood, LeAnn Rimes and Tim McGraw.

Midwestern accent

The Midwestern accent, sometimes also called "Whole American," is commonly heard in the American entertainment industry. It is understood and spoken throughout America.

The Midwestern accent is the rhotic accent, which we already discussed above.

Even though it is a common American accent, its use varies so much that it is difficult to pinpoint distinctive features by region.

Video English Course for Beginners

Video English Course for Intermediate Level

Where you can hear a Middle American or All-American accent:

• on national news programs such as CNN.

New English accent

The New English accent is also known as the "Boston accent". This regional accent implies a non-rhotic pronunciation. There is one phrase that demonstrates its peculiarity well: Pahk yuh cah in hah– vud yahd (Park your car in Harvard Yard - Park your car in the Harvard Yard).

Where can you hear the New English accent:

• in series or films shown in the region, such as “Family Guy” (Family Guy)

• in films shown in Boston, such as “Spotlight” (In the spotlight) and “Good Will Hunting” (Good Will Hunting)

New York accent

The stereotypical "New York" accent may be dying out, but it can still be heard from locals from time to time. The New York accent also has non-rhotic elements.

Speakers of this accent may "round" short vowels, for example "father" becomes "faw-thuh" and "dog" becomes "daw-ug".

Where can you hear a New York accent:

• in gangster films that show New York, for example, “Gangs of New York” (Gangs of New York) and “Goodfellas” (Good guys)

• Joey, one of the main characters in the series Friends, speaks with this accent (more information about this show is given below).

Canadian accent

If you are traveling in Canada, be aware that Canadian English is different from American English. Despite the fact that Canadian speech also mainly has a rhotic accent, it has a number of distinctive features.

Canadian accents tend to have a "caught-cot" sound, meaning words like caught with an "au" sound and cot with a short "o" sound are pronounced the same.

Canadians also emphasize double-vowel sounds (diphthongs) in some words. For example, the word "about" is pronounced "ah-boot".

Where can you hear a Canadian accent:

• Canadian news channels, such as CTV.

3 fantastic ways to learn to speak

with an American accent

1. Use educational video courses on how to develop an American accent

You can find a lot of different resources on the Internet that help English language learners speak with an American accent. Here are some examples of such resources:

Speaking Your Best, Inc.: Speaking Your Best is a free online course taught by a licensed speech therapist. There are a number of techniques that help speakers of different languages ​​develop the desired accent. That is, you can select training materials that will be focused on the features of your native language and pronunciation.

You will learn to pronounce sounds almost the same way as Americans do, and you will also receive general recommendations and tips (for example, what It is very important for English language learners to speak slowly).

Let's’ s Talk: A new video appears on this YouTube channel every other day. The purpose of this resource is to help English language learners develop a neutral accent. Their videos contain helpful tips and fun facts that will make developing an accent a fun and enjoyable experience. Along with help in developing an accent, you will also be able to enrich your vocabulary and improve your grammar.

To learn English faster, many English language learners prefer to watch American TV series. The full range of American accents can be heard on American shows, although they typically feature Midwestern or All-American accents.

The options mentioned below are useful for English language learners because they are popular and you can hear everyday language in them. You can find these shows on DVD or online. Perhaps some of the episodes are even available on YouTube.

“ The Simpsons” (The Simpsons ): “The Simpsons” is a classic American cartoon that has been running since 1989. This cartoon is shown all over the world, its characters are so popular that they have become part of American culture. No matter which American you meet, he is sure to be familiar with The Simpsons. Some English training courses even include The Simpsons in their program.

“ Friends” (Friends): Friends was (and remains) one of the most popular sitcoms in the United States. It is shown in New York, and the characters of this series have different origins and, accordingly, speech patterns. Many of the themes raised in it are recognizable.

American news programs are a great help for those who want to hear the sound of American pronunciation. It is best to watch news programs that talk about events within the country; below you will see several examples. The presenters of such news usually speak with a general American accent.

When we walk down the street, have a meal in a cafe, walk in the park, go on the subway, we often hear people passing by skillfully trying to pronounce a Ukrainian word in Russian and, conversely, a Russian word in Ukrainian. How it hurts the ear and at the same time involuntarily causes muscle contraction on our face, which turns into a smile.

Some people say that this is surzhik (by the way, this is the name of bread that is made from a mixture of flour of different types of grain), while others advise getting rid of the accent.

What exactly is an accent? This is a pronunciation in which we hear the sound features of an adverb or foreign language, less often than individual pronunciation. In today's article, our team offers you some tips so that you can develop

We did not choose this topic by chance. The other day a new student came to school and contacted Native English School so that our school could help her with her speech. She also told us that it is very important for her to solve this problem, since the Russian accent in English gives her significant discomfort. Our teachers noticed that the new student follows the grammatical rules quite well, she writes correctly, but the quality of the spoken words differs significantly from the speech of native speakers. When student N came to an English-speaking country, local residents, hearing her speech, constantly asked where she was from, saying that she could hear from her accent that this person was a newcomer. And for student N, such remarks, even those made with good intentions, quickly enraged her. Therefore, the problem had to be solved. Referring to their considerable teaching experience, our teachers have identified several points that are worth the attention of those people who want to get rid of the Russian accent and develop an English accent.

3 points that will help you improve your English accent

The first point is called “Emphasis”.

Here, confusion most often arises when you come across a word that is quite familiar to you and seems to be read in Russian. Out of habit, you can put the stress on the syllable on which you put it in your native language. For example, the word "standard".

Standard / ‘stændəd/ - stand A rt

It is clearly visible that in Russian and English the stress is placed on different syllables. Therefore, in order not to get confused, you need to check the word you doubt about in dictionaries.

The second point is called “Intonation”.

Our brother is often recognized by his intonation. A Russian-speaking person is accused of monotony. Some people living in English-speaking countries are even offended, because they believe that continuous pronunciation and lack of intonation expresses disrespect for the language. We must remember that we must put emphasis on the significant part of the speech. It can be a noun, pronoun, verb, adjective or adverb. But not a preposition, a conjunction, an interjection, or a word that does not carry a lexical meaning.

The third point is called “Articulation of sounds”

Last but not least significant point. Sound articulation tells us how we must correctly configure our speech apparatus in order to pronounce a certain sound. English transcription will help you read the letters correctly. But we will still highlight the main letters, which are very important to pronounce not in the Russian manner, but the way native speakers pronounce them. These are: W, R, O, TH. You also need to remember that we pronounce the voiceless consonants of the English language with a breath.

If we talk about the practical side, then in addition to communicating with native speakers, you can train your English accent at home. Find an interesting film in English with subtitles, watch it, scroll back and repeat phrases after the characters, trying to copy their pronunciation as much as possible.

Native English School wishes you success in developing an English accent and will always help you to speak good English. Come to English courses with native speakers. See you at school! =)

An accent is a special manner of pronunciation that people use in the area where they live. Despite the fact that English is the same language for everyone, sometimes it is very difficult to understand what the residents of Texas or the native British are saying.

When learning English, you need to rely on the standard of the language, on the classical version, but it will be nice to learn something new, namely the accents of the English language. So-called British English includes the following accents:

• British;
• Irish;
• New Zealand;
• Australian.

The British accent is further divided into the following dialects:

• Received Pronunciation
• Cockney
• Estuary
• Midlands English
• West Country
• Northern England
• Welsh
• Scottish

The British accent is a classic of the genre where the [r] sound is not pronounced. There are also differences in the use of some words that can only be heard in the British vocabulary, for example, luggage (Br. English) and baggage (Am.English), biscuit (Br.English) cookie (Am.English). Grammatical structures have also undergone changes. So, in Britain they use “I have got”, while in America they use “I have”.

Received Pronunciation is noticeably different from all other dialects of English, because... It is this emphasis that speaks of the good education received in prestigious schools in the UK. This option is also called BBC English. By the way, you can hear the sound of this English on a radio station with an identical name.

The next video will not leave anyone indifferent, because you will be able to enjoy 21 accents from the amazing Amy Walker, whose name you will definitely never forget. Here we are talking not only about English accents, you can also find Russian-English, Czech-English, and much more. Here's a very funny video:

Some scholars have identified 17 regional accents in the British Isles, and all of these accents can be heard performed by the artistic girl in the following video:

American English is also not far behind, divided into:

• American;
• Canadian.

While American includes 3 more dialects:

• basic American;
• eastern type;
• southern type.

You will find and hear a lot of interesting things for yourself in this wonderful video, which you will definitely like:

American English is very popular; many foreign language learners want to sound like real Americans, which, you see, is not easy. The difference with British English is that the [r] sound is pronounced in almost all positions. The sound [o] is replaced by the sound , so the words “sorry”, “hot”, “want” will sound different. Pay attention to words in which [t] is between two vowels, for example, “better”, “pretty”. In this case, you can hear inside each of these words not [t], but [d], or something in between. In the following video you can see all the differences between British and American English:

Since America has many accents, characteristic of almost every state, an American lexicographer named Noah Webster began standardizing speech, and using his textbooks, children of several generations learned to read and write. This is how General American appeared, which to this day is perceived as an American dialect without any distinct features. Such speech can be heard on radio and television, and each of us will understand it without much effort.

Learn a foreign language and remember that, despite the accents, we all speak the same English!

P.S. Can you determine which accents the LINGVISTER schools speak with? Write your versions in the comments below.