How to improve diction?

[calebmelvern]

I am fluent in English and my writing skills are quite good, but I am not confident when it comes to speaking in English. I have always had a problem with my diction, especially with the letter R. Some say that I tend to pronounce my Rs as Ls, and that's something I want to change. What can I do to improve my diction? Do you have any sites, apps or exercises to recommend?

[Kektheman]

Try to learn the International Phonetics Alphabet (IPA). It's not that hard and it will help you immensely. After you have done that, practice reading the phonetic transcriptions out loud. There are many resources online that offer phonetic transcriptions, one of the good ones being the sond "The Chaos". Google it.

[calebmelvern]

Try to learn the International Phonetics Alphabet (IPA). It's not that hard and it will help you immensely. After you have done that, practice reading the phonetic transcriptions out loud. There are many resources online that offer phonetic transcriptions, one of the good ones being the sond "The Chaos". Google it.

Thanks man! First time I've heard of the International Phonetics Alphabet. I'll have to look into this and start practicing.

[Kektheman]

Thanks man! First time I've heard of the International Phonetics Alphabet. I'll have to look into this and start practicing.

No problem! The IPA is huge, so focus on either BP (British Pronunciation) or GA (General American), depending on which type you wish to speak. Best of luck!

[RicardoRodrigues]

It kind of depends on the person nationality and main language but you can practise by listening to people that says it correctly and try to repeat.

[SpringBreeze]

I've never heard of the IPA. Very interesting! I'm going to have to look that up.

As for my advice... I'd say: watch soap operas in that language. The actors tend to speak the language better and slower. You can also watch commercials. They are fun, short, and most importantly [they] usually use proper pronunciation and diction. I'm learning Spanish. So, when I watch Spanish commercials, I repeat words and phrases after they are said. This is best done with commercials because you don't have to keep track of what is being said in the commercial. When I am alone, I also like to read a few lines in books, magazines, ads, and etc out loud and slowly. Speaking carefully and slowly helps a lot.

[g2narat]

Try to learn the International Phonetics Alphabet (IPA). It's not that hard and it will help you immensely. After you have done that, practice reading the phonetic transcriptions out loud. There are many resources online that offer phonetic transcriptions, one of the good ones being the sond "The Chaos". Google it.

This is a very good advice! I haven't heard of IPA before. I checked out some sites about it and it seems like a great idea for those that want to be understood clearly. I mean, I love accents but if it's making communicating verbally difficult then you do need to improve on diction. In the end it's all about being understood when you speak. 

[maryannballeras]

I understand you, that's also how I was before, I was good in writing English but not in speaking it. What I did, and I also suggest that you do it because it worked for me, was I watched tons of English movies and TV series constantly.  You'll know how to say words correctly.  Give it a try!

[sidney]

I remember being slightly teased by my relatives and cousins when I say anything that has an "R" in it, and as a kid, I really don't know what's wrong with how I say it, and until now I still don't know, since I wasn't able to hear myself saying it, but I think my "R" has improved once I became a grade schooler, like around 9 or 10 years old. I didn't do anything special, but I think in your case you can try saying any "R" word repeatedly, like how the Mexicans and Spaniards say it. I noticed that they say the "R" in any word quite strongly and more emphasized.

[Traveler]

You could carry around a little dictionary, bookmarked in the R section. Or have a dictionary app on your phone and access it when you need to. Perhaps look up poems or other works using the letter R using alliteration, or practice writing such things yourself and reading them aloud. I think you could have a lot of fun with this.

[Muthoni]

I also have a similar problem especially if I am pronouncing words that are used together if they contain L and R. Example of a sentence, “ The land Rates have been increased” Being self conscious makes it easier to make a pronunciation mistake. I think the best way to improve diction is to read extensively and pronounce the words out loud as you read. It works for me.

[Baburra]

I'd recommend just practicing by yourself and with others. If you find your own natural way to speak then it wouldn't matter as much even if your accent is a bit off. If you can, just try and repeat the phrases by yourself and find which tones you are most comfortable with. You could also try to find some Skype partners to converse with, and soon enough you should get used to it that it becomes second nature.

[czarina84]

I would just watch American shows and movies, paying special attention to words with "r" in them.  Listening to music can also help.  There are times in some songs where they emphasizes words, so that may help.  I have trouble with "r"s in French. 

[agentzero]

3 hours ago, czarina84 said:

I would just watch American shows and movies, paying special attention to words with "r" in them.  Listening to music can also help.  There are times in some songs where they emphasizes words, so that may help.  I have trouble with "r"s in French. 

This is how I'm able to speak English with American accent so this is quite good advice, however you can't always learn to speak purely by listening to others. You have troubles "r"s in French because you don't have a sound like that in English and despite hearing it many times (I assume) you still can't get it just right. Am I wrong? 

[czarina84]

On ‎11‎/‎30‎/‎2015‎ ‎11‎:‎01‎:‎35‎, agentzero said:

This is how I'm able to speak English with American accent so this is quite good advice, however you can't always learn to speak purely by listening to others. You have troubles "r"s in French because you don't have a sound like that in English and despite hearing it many times (I assume) you still can't get it just right. Am I wrong? 

Actually, I have trouble for a different reason.  I know how to make the r,  but the accent I speak with isn't my "natural" accent.  I was born in the South, so I have a Southern accent.  When I started school, we moved up North.  I had to hide my accent because I was mocked by my kindergarten classmates.  So, whenever I try for a French "r", for some reason, my Southern accent comes out and messes up the "r".

[agentzero]

42 minutes ago, czarina84 said:

Actually, I have trouble for a different reason.  I know how to make the r,  but the accent I speak with isn't my "natural" accent.  I was born in the South, so I have a Southern accent.  When I started school, we moved up North.  I had to hide my accent because I was mocked by my kindergarten classmates.  So, whenever I try for a French "r", for some reason, my Southern accent comes out and messes up the "r".

Really? That's so interesting. I knew there was a difference between Southern and Northern(?) accent in America, but I never knew there was such divide. I do know about Southern accent, and Bostonian, but I don't I know of any other accents you guys have. Unlike in Britain, where every village has their own.

[NATASHA]

get onto the internet and have a look for an alphabet lesson on youtube. You will find it helpful because it gives you the words and allows you to listen and pronounce them. It can also be paused so that you can go back and hear it again.

[czarina84]

20 hours ago, agentzero said:

Really? That's so interesting. I knew there was a difference between Southern and Northern(?) accent in America, but I never knew there was such divide. I do know about Southern accent, and Bostonian, but I don't I know of any other accents you guys have. Unlike in Britain, where every village has their own.

Oh, gosh, there are plenty.  To everyone reading this, feel free to chime in if there are some that I forgot.  I'm sure there are.  I want to also say that not all regional accent sound the same.   There are Southern drawls, Bostonian, Valley Girl accents, Midwest accents, Mid-Atlantic accents and, yes, here in Northeast PA, we even have our own accent.  The world is a funny little place, isn't it?

[agentzero]

1 hour ago, czarina84 said:

Oh, gosh, there are plenty.  To everyone reading this, feel free to chime in if there are some that I forgot.  I'm sure there are.  I want to also say that not all regional accent sound the same.   There are Southern drawls, Bostonian, Valley Girl accents, Midwest accents, Mid-Atlantic accents and, yes, here in Northeast PA, we even have our own accent.  The world is a funny little place, isn't it?

Indeed. i really though I had a better grip on American accents though. From your list I only heard about Valley Girl and I thought that was more a way people mocked... Well, Valley girls. But, I've never heard of a Midwest accent or a Mid-Atlantic, maybe I'd recognize them when I heard them though.

[Butterfly2015]

On 8/10/2014, 4:09:37, calebmelvern said:

I am fluent in English and my writing skills are quite good, but I am not confident when it comes to speaking in English. I have always had a problem with my diction, especially with the letter R. Some say that I tend to pronounce my Rs as Ls, and that's something I want to change. What can I do to improve my diction? Do you have any sites, apps or exercises to recommend?

Hey buddy, there is no magic solution. But here is what I think is the secret: motivation and deliberate practice (lots of both!) What do I mean by this? Well, let me start by giving you two examples of two people. The first is a guy I met when I was in the US Navy. I worked in a Navy hospital pharmacy, and he worked along side me as a civillian pharmacy technician. He was from the Phillipines and his pronunciation and command of the English language was almost perfect. I asked him why his English was so good considering he had only been in the US for a short while. He said that when he was back in the Phillipines he loved to watch movies. He would watch American movies on his VCR and pause and and write down the phrases he heard, rewind and try to sound exactly like the actors. He would do this for hours everyday after work. And longer on his days off. He did what he loved (watched movies and pretended to be actors). He was motivated by his desire to immigrate to the US as a fluent speaker of English, and he put in the delibarate practice. He put in the time. He wanted to sound American when he spoke English, so he deliberately practiced sounding like the American actors in some of his favorite movies. He was motivated and he had fun learning the language doing something he loved. 

Another example is of an American guy from Houston, Texas that went to Taiwan to teach English. Basketball was his passion. He loved to play it, watch it, talk about it, read about it.... you get the idea. He would go to the basketball courts whenever he wasn't working and play basketball with the local teenagers. He learned basic Chinese by interacting with them everyday. He learned all of the basketball terminology in Chinese. He hung out with his basketball loving Taiwanese friends on and off the court becoming more and more fluent in the language, especially concerning anything to do with basketball and his favorite home team: the Houson Rockets. He eventually returned to Houston after 2 years in Taiwan. Sometime later the Houston Rockets hired an up and coming basketball player from China named YaoMing (I'm sure you've heard of him). YaoMing couldn't speak English, so the Rockets advertised for an English teacher for him. Thousands of people applied and interviewed, but the guy I'm talking about got the job of hanging out all day with YaoMing and teaching him English at basketball practice, shopping, going out to bars, etc. So out of thousands of people, he got the dream job, not by breaking his back in Chinese classes, but by doing something he loved. He was motivated to learn Chinese so he could play and talk with the locals about basketball. He deliberately learned the specific basketball terms he would need to join the locals. He put in the time. He had fun.

Hope this helps. 

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[OmniHead]

While I would say that the most advisable way to improve diction is practicing with a native speaker, one way to do it on your own is using Google.

Yes! Go to http://translate.google.com and type in the words or full phrases or texts you found hard to pronounce, then click on the right-side sound icon and you will listen how the typed words are pronounced.

Repeat after listening, and record yourself if possible. Google does not only provides instant translation but natural speaking speech engine that sounds exactly like a native American speaker talks. By repeating yourself the words (much in the way you do in school) your diction will improve with natural accent.

I have never understood why English is taught in schools by no-native English speaking teachers, same as audio/video English courses are recorded by Puerto Ricans, which does not help to get you talking like a native English speakers does.

[takibari]

As someone who's from the Philippines myself, one of my suggestions is to not deviate from the goal of acquiring the correct diction. It's unfortunate that sometimes we are scoffed at if we attempt to acquire the right American accent. Not wanting to be ridiculed, we tend to not speak the language and resort to going back to our local language. Thus, I echo others' suggestions here to keep on practicing and to put in the time to study. With speaking, one can never improve if one continues to keep his mouth closed for fear of being ridiculed.

[takibari]

On 11/08/2014, 3:28:46, Kektheman said:

Try to learn the International Phonetics Alphabet (IPA). It's not that hard and it will help you immensely. After you have done that, practice reading the phonetic transcriptions out loud. There are many resources online that offer phonetic transcriptions, one of the good ones being the sond "The Chaos". Google it.

I got curious about "The Chaos", and wow I'm floored! It's like you can learn the correct pronunciation of 800 words in just one sitting. WOW. Just wow. I thought I know how to read each of the words there, and boy was I wrong that there are words I'm apparently not saying correctly. Thank you for sharing this.

Anyway, just thought of sharing the video of "The Chaos" as read by YouTube user Jimmmy Jams: ENJOY!

The Chaos Of English Pronunciation by Gerard Nolst Trenité

 

[VinayaSpeaks]

I read this quote recently: Don't laugh at people if they say it wrong, this means they learned by reading.

I can relate to this quote because I learned English by reading English. I did not learn by speaking. Even when I speak English it is always with the people like me who are using it as a second language.

Once when I was learning English in British Council, the language instructor advised me to watch BBC and try to follow their pronunciation. This has helped me.

[reverserewind]

Practice, practice and only practice will save you. You gotta repeat a lot of tough words, word combinations and sentences tons of times. This will definitely work. However, you must check out the correct pronunciation first. In order to sound right like a native.