Should you enunciate or annunciate? Many native English speakers are unaware of the difference. Annunciate is to announce while enunciate refers to pronouncing a word properly so if you are planning in learning English focus on how to enunciate.
It is a wise decision if you are living in an English-speaking country to learn English. To be blunt, it will make your life much more pleasant in many ways.
Before you start on your training, here are a few statistics that might interest you:
- An expatriate or new immigrant in the U.S. usually has an English vocabulary of 4,500 words
- A native English speaker aged 4 years old would know about 5,000 words; an 8 year old would know 10,000 vocabulary words
These numbers show that immigrants and foreign workers have a long way to go to be on par with an 8 year old native English speaker and should learn at least 4 new vocabulary words per day to catch up.
The good news is that the vocabulary of a native English speaker typically reaches a peak, based on reading habits, by the age of 15. This means it is possible to catch up by developing a vocabulary similar to an adult your age who is a native English speaker. Aside from building your new vocabulary, you will have to work on reducing your accent so it is easier for others to understand you when you are speaking English socially and professionally.
Learn English: Tricks To Hide Your Heavy Accent
- Practice enunciating letters that sound similar like B and P, D and T, and F and V. You should also practice the different sounds of the letters A and E, and the sound of TH.
- The crazy letters R and L are dead giveaways if you mispronounce them, so practice and keep practicing! Keep in mind that the trick is in how you roll your tongue. An accent coach can show you how it is done.
- Learn the American pronunciation of the vowel sound in words like big, pig, and dig.
- Don’t try to sound American. Just try to lessen the accent.
- Practice opening your mouth wider while speaking. This is a trick that will help you reduce mumbling and develop the resonance used in American English.
- Read aloud daily to practice the sounds that create your accent.
- Greet people on the street every day and get used to communicating in English even if it’s just to say “Hello, how are you?”
One thing you have to remember is that you have your accent because, as a child, you copied the people who spoke to you. This means it is a learned habit. Habits can change so the more you communicate and listen to American English speakers, who grew up in the U.S., the easier it will be for you to pick up their accent. With these simple tricks, you can learn English and speak it in a Standard American accent in no time at all.
Learn English: What else can I do?
For more Accent Reduction help, take a look at our office and online programs. All the clients partaking in either program have seen a 50% or more reduction in their accent by the 12th session! This is great next step to take to learn English and the American Accent along with it.
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