Pronunciation/Articulation

Improving pronunciation and articulation relies on mindset, openness, regular practice such as reading out loud, recording oneself, singing songs, and stepping out of your comfort zone. It's a fascinating topic that connects with self-perception and adopting different accents and speech patterns.

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What prevents you from pronouncing words according to your desired pronunciation?

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Phonetic Differences? - Did you study English phonics as a child?

Articulation and Muscle Control - A difficulty in coordination?

Mouth Movements - A lack of mouth movement practice for better articulation?

Lack of exposure and practice? - An underappreciation of the beauty of English language?

Influence of native language? - Does it interfere?

Fixed mindset? - Locked into your national identity?

Cultural and psychological factors? - Lack of confidence? 

Not knowing how to improve your pronunciation? (Most common reason)

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Articulation, mouth movements and muscles

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Understanding that your abilility to articulate certain sounds/accents/pronunciations largely depends on how well developed our mouth movements and muscles are.  Methods to create better mouth movements that lead to better pronunciation are discussed in all lessons here at Break The Cycle.

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Does considering English to be a "Foreign" language impede your progress in achieving native-like pronunciation?

 

While it's undoubtedly true that English is in fact a "foreign" language to non-native speakers, it's important to understand the negative associations that come with the word "foreign" such as unfamiliar, strange, or peculiar. 

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How would you pronunce words if you thought of them as native, and not foreign?

 

Have you ever noticed that non-native English speakers who sing English songs well often tend to also pronounce English words well, and what insights can we gather from this intriguing observation?

 

Understanding the mindset and learning habits of those who pronounce English words well is necessary for positive change.

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