Can you hear the difference between the words:
Can you say these words accurately?
Can you say the sentence
accurately, like this?
Today we are going to work on so-called R-blends and L-blends
R-blends and L-blends are words that begin with a consonant
followed by the /R/ or /L/ sound.
Examples of R-blends are:
Examples of L-blends are:
There are four typical errors that Vietnamese people make with
R-blends and L-blends when speaking English:
First of all, the biggest problem is that
many times Vietnamese people don't say the consonant sound before the /R/ and the /L/
or they just say them very weakly.
So they will say "rank" instead of "prank",
"lay" instead of "play", "ring" instead of "bring",
"loom" instead of "bloom", "rove" instead of "drove",
"rhyme" instead of "crime", "row" instead of "grow",
"low" instead of "glow", and so on.
The second problem is that
people often forget to vibrate their vocal chords
when they want to say the /b/, /d/ and /g/ sounds before the /R/ and the /L/,
so they will say "try" instead of "dry", "class" instead of "glass",
"crow" instead of "grow", and "plush" instead of "blush".
The third error is when people confuse the /p/ and /f/ sounds
at the beginning of an R-blend or L-blend word.
So they confuse "fry" with "pry", and "fly" with "ply".
The fourth typical mistake is that very often
the "tr" consonants at the beginning of words (such as in "travel" or "try")
are pronounced as /tʃ/ in Vietnamese English.
This results in the confusion of "trip" with "chip" or "true" with "chew".
In this video
We will learn how to say R-blends and L-blends well
We will practice saying R-blend and L-blend words
and sentences with such words
and we will test your newly acquired skills.
So, let's correct these mistakes and start SPEAKING accurate English.
Are you with me?
Let's go!
There are two reasons why Vietnamese people don't say
R-blends and L-blends well with the /p/, /t/ and /k/ sounds:
The first, more general reason is that in the Vietnamese language
there is always a vowel after a consonant,
but in English we have a lot of words where consonants come one after the other
without a single vowel between them
like in the word "stress", which begins with 3 consonants.
So to a Vietnamese speaker it feels strange
to say two or more consonants together,
and they simply say only one and forget the other.
The second, more specific reason is that the /p/, /t/ and /k/ sounds
in Vietnamese are quite weak,
but in English we put a lot of power into these sounds at the beginning of words,
and we say them with a big puff of air.
We actually put a /h/ sound after the /p/, /t/, and /k/ sounds
when we begin a word with these sounds.
So we say "t(h)ea", "p(h)ie" and "k(h)ey".
We covered the /t/ and /k/ sounds in Episode 11,
so if you need any help on how to pronounce these sounds,
you can find the detailed instructions in that video lesson.
The /p/ sound was discussed in Episode 10,
so make sure you watch that video as well
if you feel that your /p/ sounds are not good.
So, when you want to say R-blend and L-blend words starting with the /p/, /t/ or /k/,
you have to say the /p/, /t/ and /k/ sounds strong,
with a lot of air, before you say the /R/ and /L/ sound.
Here are some examples of R-blends and L-blends
starting with a strong /p/ sound:
Here are some examples of R-blends and L-blends
starting with a strong /k/ sound:
Here are some examples of R-blends starting with a strong /t/ sound:
Pause this video and practice saying these words with a strong,
aspirated /t/, /k/ and /p/ sound,
followed by the /R/ and /L/ sounds.
Make sure that you use a short /h/ sound to make the /t/, /k/ and /p/ stronger.
/th/ - /th/ - /kh/ - /kh/ - /ph/ - /ph/
Be careful not to say a /tʃ/ sound instead of the /tr/.
I know that in Vietnamese dialects people pronounce the "TR" as /tʃ/,
for example in the words "trang" or "trung", but in English this is not correct.
Say the English /tr/ as /t(h)r/.
However, sometimes you can hear native English speakers
saying the /tr/ something like /tʃr/, such as /tʃraɪ/, /tʃrӕvl/ or /tʃrʌst/.
Don't be surprised if you hear this, as this pronunciation is also acceptable.
But always remember that there is also an /r/ sound after the /tʃ/.
If you feel that your /p/, /t/ or /k/ sound is not strong enough,
then make the /h/ sound between the first consonant
and the /R/ and /L/ sound a little longer.
So practice saying the words like /phhress/, /phhrɑbləm/,
/phhleɪ/, /phhli:z/, /khhrӕb/, /khhrɑs/, /khhlu:/, /khhlʌb/, /thhrɑɪ/, /thhrӕvəl/,
and when you can say them like this, then reduce the /h/ to a normal length:
/phress/, /phrɑbləm/, /phleɪ/, /phli:z/, /khrӕb/, /khrɑs/, /khlu:/, /khlʌb/, /thrɑɪ/, /thrӕvəl/.
To test the power of your /p/, /t/ and /k/ sounds,
put your hand in front of your mouth when you say the words,
and you should feel a lot of air hitting your palm.
/th/ - /th/ - /kh/ - /kh/ - /ph/ - /ph/
Pause now.
The main reason why Vietnamese people don't say R-blends and L-blends
well with the /b/, /d/ and /g/ sounds is that,
as we mentioned it before,
a word with two or more consonants together
(without any vowel between them)
sounds strange to a Vietnamese ear,
so people usually choose to pronounce only one of the consonants.
In addition, in some Vietnamese dialects the /b/, /d/ and /g/ sounds
are not very strongly vibrated and they sound more like /p/, /t/ and /k/.
But in English the vibration in the throat is quite powerful
when we say the /b/, /d/ and /g/ sounds,
especially at the beginning of words.
The /b/ is the vibrated pair of the /p/,
the /d/ is the vibrated pair of the /t/ and the /g/ is the pair of the /k/.
So we make the /b/ the same way as the /p/,
the only difference is that we vibrate the vocal chords when we say the /b/,
while in the /p/ sound there is no vibration.
And the same is true for the /d/ - /t/ pair and the /g/ - /k/ pair.
The other important difference between voiced
and unvoiced sounds is that the voiced (vibrated)
sounds need less air than non-vibrated sounds.
You can visualize this by imagining
that the vibration replaces some of the air power,
so the /b/, /d/ and /g/ are less powerful than their /p/,
/t/ and /k/ pairs,
but the vibration in the /b/, /d/ and /g/ helps us to distinguish them.
You can test this difference in air power
by putting your hand in front of your mouth
and saying first the /p/ and then the /b/ sound.
You will feel a lot more air coming out of your mouth
with the /p/ sound. /p/ - /p/ - /b/ - /b/.
In fact, if you put too much air into the /b/, /d/ and /g/ sounds,
then you will lose some of the vibration,
because it is very hard to vibrate your throat
AND blow out a lot of air, at the same time.
So, when you want to say R-blend and L-blend
words starting with the /b/, /d/ or /g/,
you don't have to say these sounds with so much air as with the /p/, /t/ and /k/ sounds,
BUT you do have to vibrate your vocal chords in your throat quite hard.
Here are some examples of R-blends and L-blends with a /b/ sound:
Here are some examples of R-blends and L-blends with a /g/ sound:
Here are some examples of R-blends with a /d/ sound:
Pause this video and practice saying these words with a /d/, /g/ and /b/ sound,
followed by the /R/ and /L/ sounds.
Sometimes you can hear native English speakers saying /dr/ something like /dʒr/,
such as /dʒraɪ/, /dʒrɑp/ or /dʒri:m/.
Don't be surprised if you hear this, this is also correct,
but always remember that both the /dʒ/ and the /r/ sound have to be pronounced,
you cannot drop either of them.
If you feel that you cannot vibrate the /b/, /d/ or /g/ sounds strong enough,
then here is a useful tip:
Try saying these sounds as quietly as you can,
with only minimal air.
This way, you can reduce the air power to almost zero,
so you can focus on the vibration.
Now practice saying first the sounds, then the words, very softly,
like "b", "brother", "b", "blow",
"g", "grab", "g", "glue", "d", "dry"
And when you can say them like this, then increase the volume back to a normal level.
This is also a great test to check if you can vibrate the sounds strong enough.
Another way to test your /b/, /d/ and /g/ sounds
is to put your hand on your throat when you say the words,
and you should feel quite a lot of vibration.
And the vibration should be the same strength, whether you say the words loudly or softly.
Pause now.
Quite a lot of Vietnamese speakers of English have problems with the /f/ sound
and they often confuse it with the /p/ sound.
The main difference between the /f/ and the /p/ is in the lip position:
for the /f/ sound the upper teeth touch the lower lip,
while in the /p/ sound the upper lip touches the lower lip.
/f/ - /p/ - /f/ - /p/ - /f/ - /p/.
The other difference is in length:
the /f/ sound can be long: /fffff/
while the /p/ sound can only be short and explosive: /p/ - /p/ - /p/.
We learned about the /f/ sound in Episode 10,
so if you need any help on how to pronounce it,
you can find the detailed instructions in that video lesson.
So, when you want to say R-blend and L-blend words starting with the /f/ sound,
first you have to touch your upper teeth to your lower lip
to produce the correct /f/ sound before you can say the /R/ and /L/ sound.
Here are some examples of R-blends and L-blends
starting with a /f/ sound:
Pause this video and practice saying these words with a soft /f/ sound,
followed by the /R/ and /L/ sounds.
Make sure that you say the correct /f/ sound and not the /p/ sound
or a mix of the two sounds.
If you feel that your /fr-/ or /fl-/ sounds are not good enough,
then start saying the words with a long /f/ sound,
adjust your upper teeth and lower lips to the correct position,
and then continue the word with the /R/ and /L/ sounds.
So practice saying the words like
"fffffrom", "fffffree", "fffffly", "ffffflow"
and when you can say the words like this,
then reduce the /f/ to a normal length: "from", "free", "fly", "flow".
If you feel that your /fr-/ or /fl-/ sounds are still not OK,
then try putting a /h/ sound between the /f/ and the /R/ and /L/ sound.
So practice saying the words like
"fffffhhrom", "fffffhhree", "fffffhhly", "fffffhhlow"
and when you can say the words like this,
take out the /h/ sound and say the words normally,
like "from", "free", "fly", "flow".
Adding a "h" sound between consonants usually helps people
connect these consonants easier.
Pause now.
Saying more than one consonant at the beginning of English words
is quite challenging for Vietnamese people,
so let's look at some minimal pairs and practice saying R-blends and L-blends correctly.
Watch and listen to me saying these minimal pairs and focus on the differences.
In the first few sets of words, focus on the following:
1. I say the /p/, k/ and /t/ sounds
strong at the beginning of words, and I add a puff of air after them;
2. I vibrate the /b/, /g/ and /d/ sounds quite hard
Here are some minimal pairs with the unvoiced /p/ and voiced /b/ sounds:
Here are some minimal pairs with the unvoiced /k/ and the voiced /g/ sounds:
Here are some minimal pairs with the unvoiced /t/ and the voiced /d/ sounds:
In the next set of words,
listen how the /tr/ sound is different from the /tʃ/ sound:
In the final set of words,
listen how I can say the soft /f/ sound longer than the explosive /p/ sound.
Pause this video and practice saying these minimal pairs and focus on:
saying the /p/, /t/ and /k/ sounds strong at the beginning of words,
and adding a puff of air after them;
vibrating your throat at the /b/, /d/ and /g/ sounds;
distinguishing the /tr/ from the /tʃ/ sound;
and distinguishing the soft /f/ sound from the explosive /p/ sound;
Pause now.
In the first activity,
we will test your ability to recognize the R-blend and L-blend words.
You will hear 4 words
and you will have to make 4 decisions.
We start at "1".
After hearing each word, you'll have to make a decision:
turn left or turn right, based on what sound you hear in each word:
if you hear a voiced sound (so a vibrated sound)
before the /R/ or the /L/, then you have to turn to the left, and
and if you hear an unvoiced sound (so a non-vibrated sound)
before the /R/ or the /L/, then you have to turn to the right.
After 4 words, we will arrive in a city.
Your job is to correctly guess the name of the city where we have arrived.
Let's do an example:
we're going to the left
we're going to the right
we're going to the right
we're going to the left
And we are in Cleveland.
By the way, can you hear the L-blend with the /k/ sound
at the beginning of "CLeveland"?
In the first set of words I will say each word twice.
Are you ready?
Where are we?
Write the name of the city in the comments.
In the second set of words I will say each word only once.
Are you ready?
Where are we?
Let's do 2 rounds with new rules:
if you hear a consonant before the /R/ or the /L/ (like the /k/ in "class"),
then you have to turn to the left,
and if you don't hear any consonant before the /R/ or the /L/ (like in "lass"),
then you have to turn to the right.
In the first set of words I will say each word twice.
Are you ready?
In the second set of words I will say each word only once.
Are you ready?
Where are we?
To finish this game, let's do 2 rounds with the /tr/ and the /tʃ/ sounds:
/tr/ is to the left and /tʃ/ is to the right.
In the first set of words I will say each word twice.
Are you ready?
Where are we?
In the second set of words I will say each word only once.
Are you ready?
Where are we?
Write the name of the cities in the comments.
In the second activity,
we will test your ability to hear the different
consonant sounds at the beginning of R-blends and L-blends.
You can see 10 numbers on the screen,
from 1 to 0, like on a phone dialing screen.
Each number is represented by a word,
so there are a total of 10 different words on the screen.
These words all end in the /u:/ vowel
but they all begin with different consonant sounds.
Number 1 is "CRew"
Number 2 is "GRew"
Number 3 is "BRew"
Number 4 is "BLue"
Number 5 is "CLue"
Number 6 is "GLue"
Number 7 is "TRue"
Number 8 is "CHew"
Number 9 is "DRew"
Number 0 is "Rue"
I'm going to dictate you a phone number using these words.
Your job is to write down the correct phone number.
Let's do an example:
First number is "brew / brew"
-> number 3
Next number is "blue / blue"
-> number 4
Next is "glue / glue"
-> this is number 6
Next is "true / true"
-> number 7
Next is "grew / grew"
-> number 2
Next is "clue / clue"
-> number 5
Next is "grew / grew"
-> number 2
Next is "glue / glue"
-> number 6
Next is "crew / crew"
-> number 1
and the last one is "clue / clue"
-> number 5
So the phone number was
346 725 2615.
In the first set of words I will say each word twice and slowly.
Are you ready?
What is the phone number?
Write it in the comments.
In the second set of words I will still say each word slowly but only once.
Are you ready?
Write the phone number in the comments.
In the third set of words,
I will say each word once but a little faster.
Are you ready?
Write the phone number in the comments.
In the fourth set of words
I will say each word once and even faster.
Are you ready?
Write the phone number in the comments.
This third activity will improve and test your ability to distinguish
the initial consonants in R-blends and L-blends in sentences.
You will see a sentence on the screen, where one word has two options.
You will hear the sentence with one of the words being said.
Your job is to choose which word was used in the sentence.
Number 1
The options are "pride" and "bride"
Number 2
The options are "try" and "dry"
Number 3
The options are "train" and "drain"
Number 4
The options are "traced" and "chased"
Number 5
The options are "trip" and "chip"
Number 6
The options are "classes" and "glasses"
Number 7
The options are "lamb" and "clam"
Which words were said?
Write them in a comment.
The fourth and final activity will improve your ability to say
the R-blends and L-blends accurately in sentences.
Look at the sentences,
listen to me saying them and then pause the video after each sentence and practice.
Focus on saying the sentences accurately and slowly first.
Only say a sentence faster if you can say it accurately at a lower speed.
Here are the sentences:
Number 1:
Pause now.
Number 2:
Pause now.
Number 3:
Pause now.
Number 4:
Pause now.
Number 5:
Pause now.
Number 6:
Pause now.
Number 7:
Pause now.
Number 8:
Pause now.
Number 9:
Pause now.
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