The Americans, the British and the Aussies all speak the same language, English. If you listen carefully, you will find a drastic difference in their pronunciations. This difference in pronunciation is what brings about so many different accents.
Accent Neutralisation:
English accents change a lot within India. Every region has its own way of pronouncing letters and words. Sometimes it becomes difficult for a native speaker to perceive all these differences, thus making the colloquial form of Indian English a bit hard to understand. This is where neutralising the accent comes into play. You learn to speak not American or British English, but the right way to speak English. You shed all your typical Indian pronunciations and learn to speak English that is neutral and easily understandable.
- Neutralisation Tips:
Drop the Tune -
Drop the tune of your native tongue. English has its own tune and voice modulation. Do not drag the English words to the tune of your vernacular language. If your native tongue has a musical touch to it, lose that while speaking English. This would be the first step to neutralizing. Listen to newsreaders. Watch how their mouths move while pronouncing each word.
Listening and Observing -
Listening and observing are the best way to learn. Practice the mouth movements slowly. Practice this for words used in day-to-day conversation.
Phonetics-
Use a dictionary to learn phonetics. Phonetics is the pronunciation of letters in a word. A letter has a specific accent. But when it comes to a word, it might have a different sound. To learn this, using a dictionary is the best. The phonetic symbols will help you understand the correct way to pronounce the word.
Stress-
Stress is an integral part of speech. Every word has specific stress given to it either at the beginning, end or somewhere in the middle. Shifting the stress can even change the meaning. Learning the correct stress points of the words is essential to communicate clearly. For example, pronounce has a stress on the n, and pronunciation has stressed on n and a. The syllable before the stress mark is pronounced for a short time.
Diction-
The next thing to concentrate on is diction. Diction is articulating the words. Articulation is pronouncing the words properly. The clarity in diction will result in the precise pronunciation of words. The pace of speech, modulation of words and sentence construction while speaking mark diction.
These are not just neutralisation tips but also tips for speaking English. If anyone wants to improve their overall English speaking skills, they should consider these points seriously.
Apart from these methods, one can ask for some professional help. As they are language experts, they can suggest various ways to improve neutralising the English accents. Their customised courses are much more scientific and work faster. So someone in a hurry to speak neutral accent English can certainly contact and hire a professional. The special spoken English classes dedicated to solving such speaking issues are best. Spoken English classes online are the best options to join now. Such classes can be attended even while staying indoors. During the pandemic situation, the demand for such spoken English classes has increased. It is because of the easy accessibility and comfortable lesson learning process. Many working people who are busy with their careers also like to choose the option for Spoken English classes online as they can join the class even after working for so many hours. Thus such classes are highly beneficial in every aspect.
Few Tips on Pronunciation
Many words in English are just half pronounced while speaking. For example, better is pronounced as bet-uh. The r, in the end, is not pronounced fully.
· R is merely aar and not aarrr. The tongue vibrates just once, unlike the vernacular rra sound.
· The o sound of No, know, so, source, etc is not just o, but ou. The o is dragged a little bit.
· The words starting with w should NOT be pronounced as the vernacular va. The teeth do not touch the lower lips as they would do in v. For a w, the lips should make a small o while pronouncing the w. Try pronouncing went and vent; wow and vow; wine and vine. You will understand the difference.
With a neutral accent, you can communicate well with any native English speaker. Neutralise your accent first and then go on to master other native English accents. Practice is the key to success. Read more articles on how to improve English speaking
1. Improve your English vocabulary -- Tips and Tricks
2. Improve English Pronunciation -- Tips and Tricks
