Accent Reduction for Greek Speakers

5 English pronunciation tips for Greek speakers who want to improve their English accent:

Greek pronunciation

1) “s” /s/ and “sh” /ʃ/

  • These two sounds are often confused.
  • SH is made with the tongue further back in the mouth and with the lips rounded.
  • S is further forward and the lips are more relaxed. The S sounds higher in pitch.
  • Check she compared to see.


2) How and When to Pronounce R

  • R is made with the tip of the tongue curling back in the mouth. We don’t touch the top of our mouths when pronouncing a R sound in English.
  • We only pronounce a R sound when there is a vowel sound after it: Really, Tree, Carry
  • We don’t pronounce a R sound when there is no vowel sound after it: Car, Learn, Here

3) The /i:/ sound in sheep and the /ɪ/ sound like in ship.

  • The tongue is more tense for /i:/ and more relaxed for /ɪ/.
  • Compare: seat-sit, feet-fit, beat-bit

4) H

  • This sound is much softer compared to the Greek equivalent – like at the beginning of the word: χώμα

5) Addition of nasal consonants before /b/ and /d/

  • Check that you don’t add a /m/ before /b/, and a /n/ before /d/, if it is not there in the spelling.
  • For example, able and not amble, and idle and not indle

 

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