Are you intelligible? Did you mean ‘cheap’ or ‘sheep’, ‘live’ or ‘leave’, ‘draft’ or ‘drought,’ ‘heart’ or ‘art’?

Research shows that miscommunication is usually due to mispronunciation, rather than deficiencies in grammar or fluency.  However, developing correct pronunciation is often neglected in language learning, with the result that acquisition of pronunciation skills lags behind that of other language competencies.

Here is part of my favourite pronunciation chart, published by Mark Hancock, 2018.  I use this with all my clients when working on their phonological control.

This tool presents the ‘Segmentals’ of the English language – a hexagon of the 19 vowel sounds (shown above) and a box of 25 consonants that we use in English to form our words.

Your goal is INTELLIGIBILITY in global business, not a perfect sound, as indeed this does not exist and there is a huge variation in quality and regional accent, even between native speakers.

When working with students, first, I create an awareness of our ‘articulators‘ – the mouthparts we use to make different sounds.  Then, depending on the pronunciation level, we travel (with noise and laughter) through the consonants, gaining an understanding of ‘stop’ and ‘friction’, as well as voiced and unvoiced consonants as we go. I also highlight the many silent consonants hidden in our language.

Next, we look at the vowels, focusing on the difference between short and long vowels, and how we pronounce some spellings (for example ‘ou’ or ‘ough’) in a multitude of ways.

The good news is, research shows that when learners speak with greater clarity, they understand other accents better and their listening improves.

Publication of Sound Chart kindly given by Mark Hancock.

If you are looking to discuss your organisation’s (corporate, NGOs, Associations and Universities) Business English communication needs (including Pronunciation support) or Presentation skills, I offer free 30-minute consultations through my site. I’d love to meet you.