I am from India. I know the English language very well. All I want is to learn to speak English in the way the Americans do - in Amercan accent. So Please give me some techniques regarding the same.
I know a few of the techniques already, like:
1. Roll the R's
2. Bite the lips for v's
Can you help me out with the rest (explaining them in detail)...
regards,
2006-07-05 13:28:52 · 17 answers · asked by Raj 1 in Society & Culture ➔ Languages
When I teach English pronunciation, for the the biggest difference between Indian English and American English is the rhythm and pausing. Rhythm has to do with the length of syllables, and pausing has to do with where the speaker takes a breath or stops for a short period of time. In American English, stressed syllables are much longer than others. Americans listen for the stressed syllable to recognize the word. Also, Americans usually pause slightly after meaningful groups of words. Indian English has stressed syllables that are much shorter than stressed syllables in American English. Also, it seems that speakers of Indian English do not have regular pauses in their speech; instead they just pause when they need more air. So my main recommendations are that you learn to make stressed syllables much longer and that you pause after meaningful groups of words. These changes are much, much more important to understandability than learning how to make any individual sound like "v".
My students have used the pronunciation course called "Pronunciation for Success", and I think it's a good course because it covers very important topics and it's designed for self-study. You can purchase this course at www.eslvideos.com.
By the way, Americans do not roll r's.
2006-07-06 14:48:55 · answer #1 · answered by drshorty 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Wait, I have an issue here. Americans definitely do not roll our r's. I personally have tried to learn how to roll my r's while trying to learn other languages and have never succeeded, and I grew up in America. There is no r rolling going on here.
As for other tricks to sound more American...watch American movies and imitate the sounds. Different Americans speak different ways, depending on where they come from in the US.
The one bit of advice that I can give you (that I noticed when learning Russian in these last few years) is that Americans don't really move our mouths too much when we speak. We don't open particularly wide, and we move our lips more than our jaws. Also, we make noises for speaking using the front part of our mouths rather than the back. It's rare to hear any sound in english that originates in the throat.
I hope this helps!
2006-07-06 00:06:59 · answer #2 · answered by cay_damay 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Hey. Don't push a foreign accent on yourself... Just go with what you know. I think the Indian accent is a beautiful one, personally.
That being said, I understand you may run into some difficulty with service folks depending on where you are. I have a friend who used to buy old Elvis CDs and sing along and speak the lyrics afterward to help Americanize her accent. She's from Saudi Arabia, so I don't know if the accents are too different to help you?
I think the American accent is a tough one to get used to, but you won't need to be too worrisome about it. If you're around people they'll get used to the way you pronounce words and you'll get used to their way of it.
Take care.
2006-07-05 20:43:29 · answer #3 · answered by C-Mick 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I would say , that you should be yourself and if you really wish to learn the language properly , then go for British accent , besides , imposing an American accent wont change your India identity .Stop following Americans ,and be yourself !
Regards,
Sidra
2006-07-05 23:41:42 · answer #4 · answered by Sidra T 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Just listen!
Listen to a lot of American movies, shows, programs... every single day. Keep your TV on all day long so you get familiar with the way they talk.
Also, always keep the caption on, and from time to time see the movements of the people while the speak as you hear them.
It worked for me. I hope it works for you too.
2006-07-05 21:50:01 · answer #5 · answered by Armerys 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I'm an American.. but i defiantly have no American accent... I'm German... so i think sometimes my R aren't exactly rolled... and not all Americans bite their lips for Vs
2006-07-05 20:34:24 · answer #6 · answered by butterfly effect 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Read plenty of Dr. Seuss books. I'm being serious. It worked for some people I know. They still have a slight accent but their diction has greatly improved.
Good luck!!!
2006-07-05 22:30:33 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
enroll in an American Accent training program
2006-07-05 20:32:35 · answer #8 · answered by Isaac Hayes 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Honestly, most Americans (me included) don't think that hard about how our accent is formed.
The best thing you can do is to rent American movies and learn from that.
I hope someone else can offer you help!
2006-07-05 20:32:29 · answer #9 · answered by Lisa the Pooh 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I've heard that there are a couple of call centres in India that offer this as a free training program for staff
2006-07-05 20:40:43 · answer #10 · answered by Whodaman 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋