🌯 P'tit guide d'accent 🌯
Salut 🙂
Your English is already amazing 🙂
Just a few tiny touches to make it feel even more natural
No pressure at all… just small improvements over time 💪
Think of this as a little practice corner, not homework 😄
What we’ll practice
The voiceless TH /θ/
think, three, thank you, bath, mouth, truth, worth
Light tongue between the teeth. Air flows gently. No voice, just air.
Practice
- think, three, thank, thin, thought
- bath, mouth, teeth, truth, worth
The voiced TH /ð/
this, that, they, them, mother, brother, breathe
Same position. Add voice. You should feel a small vibration.
Core words
- the, this, that, these, those
- they, them, their
- there, then, though
Practice
- mother, brother, other
- feather, leather, weather
- breathe, soothe, smooth, bathe
Switching between /θ/ and /ð/
- mother / math
- brother / broth
- other / oath
- breathe / breath
- bathe / bath
Sentences
- This is my mother.
- My brother is over there.
- I would rather breathe slowly.
The H sound
A soft breath before the word. Keep it, even when speaking quickly.
- ha, he, hi, ho, who
- have, happy, here, home
- eat / heat
- arm / harm
- is / his
Final consonants
- bat / bad
- cap / cab
- back / bag
Rhythm, syllables, and stress
English isn’t flat. Some words are stronger, others are softer.
Think of it like a small rhythm… not every word has the same weight 🙂
Focus on the important words
- I WANT to go to the STORE
- She WENT to the DOCTOR
- We NEED to TALK about it
- I REALLY like this PLACE
- That WAS a GOOD idea
Small words are lighter
Words like to, the, a, of, and are softer and faster.
- I want to GO to the STORE
- She went to the DOCTOR
- I need a BIT of TIME
Two-syllable words
These rules are not perfect, but they help a lot.
Nouns and adjectives often stress the first syllable
- TAble
- HAPpy
- PREtty
- QUIet
- TAsty
Verbs often stress the second syllable
- reLAX
- beGIN
- forGET
- deCIDE
- reTURN
Suffix stress
Some word endings help you know where the stress goes.
Stress before these endings: -tion, -sion, -ic
- eduCAtion
- converSAtion
- deCIsion
- geoGRAPHic
- draMAtic
Stress these endings: -ee, -eer, -ese
- employEE
- voluntEER
- enginEER
- JapanESE
- VietnamESE
Practice with contrast
- I WANT it vs I want IT
- She LIKES it vs She likes IT
- WE should go vs we should GO
Short sentences to copy
- I THINK it’s a GOOD idea
- We CAN go a LITTLE later
- I DON’T really KNOW yet
- That SOUNDS really NICE
Tip
Don’t try to stress every word. Let some words stay light 🙂
A few small details
- The English R comes from the middle of the mouth
- W uses rounded lips, not teeth
- Keep final sounds
Tiny daily practice
- TH warmup
- Minimal pairs
- H sound
- Final consonants
- Rhythm and stress
- Copy one sentence
You are already so close 🙂
Just tiny adjustments now
made with care ☀️