which in turn, improves your pronunciation,

your accent, and how natural you sound when speaking American English.

We're going to do a Ben Franklin exercise.

00:00:23,660 --> 00:00:27,260 I've been doing these exercises for years with my students

and i've seen that they are truly one of the best ways to understand how Americans really speak.

So what we do is we take a bit of speech that a real American is speaking,

and then we do a full analysis of the pronunciation.

We'll look at the stress, we'll look at reductions, we'll look at things like a flap T,

so that you understand everything that's being said and how to say that yourself.

First, the speech that we're going to analyze.

I'm going to talk about a fall baking weekend that I had with my friend, Laura.

This year, the fall baking weekend was a little bit different.

because now we have not just one kid, not just two kids, but three kids, including a newborn.

So everything was a little chaotic when my friend Laura and her family came to visit.

We made a caramel custard tart.

It was delicious.

But most importantly, we had an amazing weekend spending time together with our families.

And now, the analysis.

This year, the fall baking weekend was a little bit different because—

That was a long thought group.

I didn't take a breath or make a longer break until after the word because, but I did put a little bit of a lift.

Was a little bit different--

This year, the fall baking weekend was a little bit different because —

This year, the fall baking weekend was a little bit different because —

This year, the fall baking weekend was a little bit different because—

And by just putting a little lift, a little tiny break in the voice, it brings those out more of those words,

it makes them more important.

Also 'was' I made that pretty long, I drew out the vowel a little bit.

Often, the word 'was' is reduced and then it's pronounced: wiz, wiz, said very quickly.

But I didn't do that. I fully pronounced it. Did not reduce to the schwa.

But I left the UH as in butter vowel.

Was, was, was a little bit different.

Was a little bit different

Was a little bit different

Was a little bit different

Was a little bit different

And we have flap T in the word 'little'.

That's always pronounced that way.

Little, da-da-da-da.

With the tongue flapping against the roof of the mouth.

And then we have a stop T in 'bit'.

A little bit different, different.

And also in different.

the stop T in bit, followed by a consonant.

same with the stop T in different.

The NT ending, whether it's in a word like this, or where it's N apostrophe T,

is often pronounced as a nasally stop T.

So we have two stops here.

A little bit different, nt-nt-nt-nt-nt--

With that nasal N sound coming to an abrupt stop in the nose.

A little bit different, a little bit different, a little bit different.

Notice how I'm pronouncing the word 'different'.

This is a word that can be pronounced with three syllables, diff-er-ent or two, diff-rent,

and I pronounce it as two. Its more common, it's easier.

So go ahead and just think of it as two syllables with the first syllable being stressed.

diff-rent, rent, rent, rent.

And notice this is a schwa, not much of a vowel, and the second syllable said very quickly.

Rent, diff-rent, different, different.

different, different, different.

What about the top line?

All of those words said really quickly, but there are important words there.

The fall baking weekend.

I'm talking about an event.

Why did I say these words so quickly?

Listen to how quickly I said them.

This year, the fall baking weekend--

This year, the fall baking weekend--

This year, the fall baking weekend--

Well, I had already introduced the idea that I was going to be talking about the fall baking weekend,

so that's why this second time, I said it more quickly.

I'm not introducing the idea, i've already told you that's what I'm going to talk about.

So what was the most important part about this sentence to me, was describing it, not introducing it.

You already know I'm talking about the fall baking weekend, that's why that ended up sounding faster.

That's why it was said more quickly.

and the information about it that it was a little bit different is what was more stressed and more clear.

This year, the fall baking weekend--

This year, the fall baking weekend--

This year, the fall baking weekend was a little bit different because--

So then I say because, because.

because, because, because.

It's not reduced.

Often this word is reduced, but I'm saying it more clearly here.

Be-- unstressed syllable with the IH as in sit vowel, then a stressed syllable, UH as in butter vowel.

Because, because.

Because, because.

Because now we have not just one kid--

Now we have-- And I put a break, not just one kid.

Now we have not just one kid--

Now we have not just one kid--

Now we have not just one kid--

And I really stress the first word of each of those thought groups.

Now we have not just one kid--

Now we have not just one kid--

Now we have not just one kid--

Now we have not just one kid--

And again, a stop T in 'not' because the next sound is a consonant.

Not just one kid--

What do you notice about the T in the word 'just'?

Not just one kid--

Not just one kid--

Not just one kid--

It's actually dropped.

I don't say it at all.

Why?

We often drop the T when it comes between two consonants.

So when the ST cluster is followed by a word that begins with a consonant, we drop it.

Now you're thinking, hold on, the letter O, that's a vowel.

You're right.

But the word 'one' is pronounced beginning with the W consonant.

Www-uhh-nn.

So whenever we're talking about rules with the T, we're talking about sounds, not letters.

The sound T here comes between two consonant sounds, the consonant sound S

and the consonant sound W.

Now, even though this word is spelled with the letter O at the beginning, that doesn't matter.

It still comes between two consonant sounds, and it's dropped.

Just one, just one.

T is dropped and the two words are linked together.

Just one, just one, just one kid.

Kid, this is a more casual way to say child, very common in English.

Just one kid, just one kid.

Just one kid, not just two kids.

Not just two kids.

Again, stressing not, and again, a stop T.

Not just two kids.

Now here, we have the T followed by a T.

Ok, those just combine just to make one true T.

because a T beginning a stressed word like 'two' will always be a true T.

Not just two kids.

So the S links right into that true T.

Not just two kids, not just two kids.

Not just two kids, but three kids.

But three kids.

So I'm stressing 'three'.

So I stressed not, not, and then three.

I'm saying first of all, what we didn't have, one kid, two kids. That would have been simple.

But we had three kids in the house.

Three. This is a tricky word, isn't it?

We have the unvoiced TH, thhh-- and then the R consonant, thr, thr.

So the tongue tip must come through the teeth for that unvoiced TH, then the tip pulls back

so it's not touching anything inside the mouth to make the R.

Thr-, thr-, three.

But three kids, but three kids, but three kids including a newborn.

Including a newborn.

So 'include', stress on the middle syllable there.

A, a schwa just linking these two words together.

Including a newborn.

In the word newborn, the first syllable of stress but I make my pitch go up at the end

to show that I'm not done talking about this.

What about the fact that we had three kids? Well, I'm about to tell you that.

Including a newborn, including a newborn, including a newborn.

newborn, newborn.

So the intonation goes up.

Well, what about that?

Well, that means everything was a little chaotic.

A newborn, a newborn, a newborn, so everything was a little chaotic.

So everything was a little chaotic.

A little chaotic, chaotic.

First syllable stress there, that's the most stressed word there, and we have a flap T.

Did I say first syllable? definitely meant middle syllable.

Cha-o-tic.

chaotic with a flap T beginning the third syllable.

Notice this CH here?

not pronounced ch--, also not pronounced sh-, but instead pronounced kk- like the K sound.

Chaotic, chaotic, chaotic.

So everything was a little chaotic.

So everything was a little chaotic.

So everything was a little chaotic.

A little chaotic.

Again, the word 'little'.

T's there pronounced as a flap T.

A little, a little, a little.

And the letter A, the word 'a', just a quick schwa.

A- a- A little, a little.

A little chaotic, little chaotic.

So everything was a little chaotic.

Everything was a little chaotic.

Ev-- First syllable stress, and also the word 'was' reduces here.

On the first screen, we talked about how it wasn't introduced, it was pronounced was,

but here, it's pronounced: was, was, was, said very quickly, linking into the next word.

Was a, was a, was a, everything was a little chaotic.

Ev-- and a, chao--, are the most stressed syllables there.

The other syllables said pretty quickly, maybe a reduction, like in was: was a, was a.

So everything was a little chaotic.

So everything was a little chaotic.

So everything was a little chaotic when my friend--

When my friend--

when my friend--

when my friend--

Okay the word 'when' definitely not pronounced.

Whe-- with a full EH as in bed vowel that's really sounding reduced.

When, when, when, when.

I would write that with the W, the schwa, and the N.

Also notice WH, that can be pronounced with a little escape of air.

When.

But I did not do that, and I don't do it, really.

I find it a little old-fashioned and my mom does it.

She's not old-fashioned, but she maybe talks that way sometimes,

but most people, more modern is just to do a clean W sound with no escape of air beforehand.

When my friend.

When my friend, when my friend Laura.

when my friend Laura--

So I then say her name, I put a tiny lift between the words 'friend' and 'Laura'.

and if I hadn't, I probably would have dropped the D, my friend Laura, my friend Laura,

because it's very common to drop the D between two consonants just like we did with the T in the words

'just one'.

Just one, just one.

Friend Laura.

Would very often be pronounced: friend Laura, friend Laura, with no D,

but I put a little tiny break before her name to emphasize it, and so I do give a light D at the end of the word 'friend'.

When my friend Laura, when my friend Laura.

when my friend Laura and her family came to visit,

Laura and her family came to visit.

So what are the most stressed words there?

The clearest, the longest?

Laura and her family came to visit.

Laura and her family came to visit.

Laura and her family came to visit.

Laura and her family came to visit.

Two nouns and a verb.

What about the other words?

What about and and her?

They get reduced. Let's listen.

Laura and her family--

Laura and her family--

Laura and her family--

Laura and her family--

Laura and her family--

And her, and her, and her, and her, and her.

The word 'and' reduced to just schwa N: and, and, and.

The word 'her' reduced to just schwa R.

er, er, er.

So I dropped the H, I dropped the D, I reduced the vowels: And her, and her, and her, and her.

Laura and her family--

And her, and her, and her.

Said very quickly, very unclear, yet this is the pronunciation that Americans use

And that is clear to Americans because it makes the stressed words, the more important words.

stick out of the phrase more and be more clear.

It's like giving the listener the most important words.

So the contrast that we like in American English is only possible when we make some words less clear

like 'and' and 'her'.

These are function words.

Laura and her family.