Are accents such as American, Australian and Britsh acquired?

Question

Lets say for a person whose mother tongue isn't English. Is it possible that by practicing he/she can acquire whatever accent?And how long it might take ?

Answer 1

Yes, accents are definitely acquired from living with others in the location, particularly when in the formative years. I'm an Australian, originally British, and have a friend from the US. We each speak with the same 'accent', as do our children.

By the way, you don't need to 'practice', only regularly converse with others. As for time, the younger you are the quicker your accent changes. Children are talking the same 'lingo' within a few weeks!

Answer 2

Oh the only way that u can acquire an accent is by being at the place where the accent is very strong and spend at least a year there. When u come back u've been with the ppl in that country to so much adn talked to them so much that uve got their accent now. But the weird thing is, i lived in Boston for 16 years and now im 16.5 but i haven't got an accent at all. I don't even think i have any accent. But the weird sest one was when i found outt hat Americans have an accent, and that people try to have our accent and speak like us. I can't believe that. Do we have an accent?

Answer 3

Absolutely. It depends on what sort of person you are though. If you enjoy acting and if you are able to turn into someone else at will, you can pick up any accent you like and keep it without feeling weird. But the trick is to actually become a local. I have done it in several countries, and loved it. You may be found out every once in a while, depending on how strong your ties to your original culture are, but since I never had one, and was a chameleon all my life, I have always been able to act in such a way that people did not believe me when I let on that I wasn't a local. You'll find that this works better in some places than in others. I'm invisible in Canada and NZ, but Americans will think I'm Canadian and Britons wil think I'm American... it never always works equaly well in all locations, strangely enough.

Answer 4

It is possible to acquire any accent but it depends on the learner's "ear". According to Multiple Intelligences theory, some people have linguistic intelligence, which allows them to not just learn a language but sound natural, whereas others may not able to do that despite practice and exposure. The older you are, the higher the chance you will not acquire one particular accent because our muscles set in certain ways as we grow older, and this is why it is important to be exposed to many languages when we are young, and our sound producing muscles are still pliable.

Answer 5

Well my native tongue is not English, but I speak in an American accent. A friend of mine speaks in a British accent, while my other friend speaks in an Aussie accent.
I got my American accent when i was staying in the US for 3.5 years. My friend was forced to learned the British accent when he was in Dubai, because he went to an international school, with a Britt sh English teacher. My other friend got the accent while speaking and learning it from his brother, who lives in Aussie.
I would say it will take about a year, if you speak the language everyday, listen to its conversation or watched the American movies or television show. I have an American friend whom I met online who taught i was american when we talked using microphone using messengers. I still have the accent even though i have lived in malaysia for 8 years already.

Answer 6

I am learning english and I am learning american accent... I think according to my teachers the american accent it's more standar accent.. of course I am not learning slang just the standar way or formal ways.. but british is the second most popular.. I think aussie accent it sounds like british they pronounced the letters r in the end of the words for example in britain they dont letter.. they say something like that without the r

Answer 7

Yes, definitely. I have a Filipino-Chinese friend who speak with a American accent because he lived there when young. I have a Indonesian-Chinese friend who speak with an Aussie accent because he lived there in his University days. Hongkongers tend to speak with British accent even though they are Chinese because it used to be a British colony. I speak with a light British-American accent because I watch too much TV...

Answer 8

Australian and British the comparable? Lol. i'm Australian, and that i think of that British have an ever extra advantageous accessory than individuals. I went to u . s . a . final twelve months, and individuals would desire to truly understand us, which grew to become into incredibly unusual by way of fact we've been conversing English. i'm undecided, yet am curious to verify the solutions :).

Answer 9

All accents are acquired. It all depends on where the are studing english, and with whom. Accents are also able to change. As far how fast it all depends on how often you are speaking and with whom.

Answer 10

By living there. Yes. Varies.