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  • In this American English pronunciation video,

  • you're going to get even better at speaking with rhythmic contrast.

  • We're going to practice 3-syllable words with third syllable stress.

  • First, if you are just going to watch this video, don't. That would be very boring.

  • This video only works if youre willing to practice your English out loud.

  • So, if you're somewhere where you can't do that, make sure to come back to this video later.

  • When learning English as a second language, most people don't make unstressed syllables

  • as fast, low in pitch, or quiet, as they should.

  • The tendency is to over-pronounce them, but that's not good English.

  • In English, we have clearer, stressed syllables: DA,

  • and less clear unstressed syllables: da.

  • So for these syllables, don’t be afraid to be less clear.

  • In this video, we're just going to do 3-syllable words, with third syllable stress,

  • like this: da-da-DA. da-da-DA.

  • That's all you're going to hear.

  • You're going to get into a groove with the rhythm.

  • After each repetition of the word, repeat it just like you hear it.

  • Don't over-pronounce unstressed syllables.

  • This is going to move quickly. See if you can keep up.

  • Everyday. da-da-DA. Everyday.

  • Fifty-one. da-da-DA. Fifty-one.

  • Cigarette. da-da-DA. Cigarette.

  • Volunteer. da-da-DA. Volunteer.

  • Guarantee. da-da-DA. Guarantee.

  • Japanese. da-da-DA. Japanese.

  • Disagree. da-da-DA. Disagree.

  • Engineer. da-da-DA. Engineer.

  • Kitchenette. da-da-DA. Kitchenette.

  • Pioneer. da-da-DA. Pioneer.

  • Matinee. da-da-DA. Matinee.

  • Picturesque. da-da-DA. Picturesque.

  • Recommend. da-da-DA. Recommend.

  • Afternoon. da-da-DA. Afternoon.

  • Understand. da-da-DA. Understand.

  • Now, we're going to go back to the beginning and just do the words one time each.

  • Repeat each word and don't worry too much about the sounds.

  • This is a drill exercise in rhythm.

  • Everyday

  • Fifty-one

  • Cigarette

  • Volunteer

  • Guarantee

  • Japanese

  • Disagree

  • Engineer

  • Kitchenette

  • Pioneer

  • Matinee

  • Picturesque

  • Recommend

  • Afternoon

  • Understand

  • Now we're going to go back to the beginning

  • and just do the words one time each with a short sentence.

  • Repeat the word and the sentence keeping the right rhythm when it's in a sentence.

  • Everyday – I jog almost everyday.

  • Fifty-one – I just turned fifty-one.

  • CigaretteCigarettes are expensive.

  • Volunteer – I’d like to volunteer there.

  • Guarantee – I guarantee it.

  • Japanese – I love Japanese food.

  • Disagree – I disagree.

  • EngineerThe engineer will check.

  • KitchenetteIt only has a kitchenette.

  • PioneerShe’s a pioneer in her field.

  • MatineeWell see the matinee.

  • PicturesqueIt’s very picturesque.

  • Recommend – I highly recommend it.

  • Afternoon – I’ll come by this afternoon.

  • Understand – I understand completely.

  • What other three-syllable words with third syllable stress can you think of?

  • Put them in the comments below to give everyone more words to practice with.

  • Stress is something I stress in my book American English Pronunciation.

  • If you want an organized, step-by-step resource to build your American accent,

  • click here to buy the book. I think youre going to love it.

  • That’s it, and thanks so much for using Rachel’s English.

In this American English pronunciation video,

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