It is a mistake to think that pronunciation is any less important than reading, writing, listening and speaking skills. Pronunciation is the bridge between you and a native English speaker. It is the first thing that anybody notices about you, when you start to speak. It connects you. Without clear pronunciation, messages can get lost or confused. The listener might even start to feel frustrated because they don't understand what is being said!
Pronunciation is not about removing your accent. It is about making your English sounds clear and distinct, so there is no confusion about what you are saying.

Pronunciation is important. Here are three reasons why:

When you learn to make the correct sounds, your English will become easier to understand. You will sound more natural and learn to speak English more quickly.

It will help you listen to English better, because you will learn to identify and recognise the sounds that other people are making.

Your confidence will grow, exponentially. When you can get your message across clearly (not perfectly, but clearly) and you can understand other English speakers more clearly, your confidence will grow. You will start more conversations, you will get moire practice. You will improve faster.

Can I make it clear that SPEAKING PRACTICE IS NOT PRONUNCIATION PRACTICE?! Pronunciation is a completely different skill and it needs specific study and particular attention. Unfortunately, it is not often taught in classrooms because:
  • There is too much focus on testing (which focuses on reading, writing, listening and speaking) and not enough focus on how English is used in ‘real-life'. I haven't found an English school yet that tests pronunciation… But it is the FIRST thing that native speakers will notice when they speak to you.
  • Classroom teachers may not be native speakers, so it could be difficult to teach English pronunciation accurately.
  • Pronunciation can be a little boring! (But there are lots of ways to make practice fun!)

But… Just like you practice and study grammar, you MUST practice and study pronunciation. (You can practice with a couple of pronunciation lessons here and here).

I think that learning how to “say it right” is so important that I've also made 5 practice lessons for you – all completely free. I want you to try these lessons. They are fun and you can practice with them again and again, as you improve.

Write your name and email into this box below, I'll email you the first lesson, right now!