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The Magic E: English Pronunciation Trick!

The Magic E, or Silent E rule, alters vowel pronunciation in English by turning short sounds into long ones. For instance, ‘not’ becomes ‘note’. This rule typically follows a vowel + consonant + silent E… Read more
How to use YouGlish to improve your English Pronunciation

The video introduces YouGlish, a tool designed to enhance English pronunciation and vocabulary. It allows users to search words or phrases and view native speakers using them in context. The guide covers features like accent… Read more
Improve English with ELSA Speak: AI Pronunciation App Review

The video reviews the ELSA Speak app, showcasing its new AI features such as ELSA AI Conversations and scenario creation. It offers practice lessons for various certificate courses and immediate pronunciation feedback. ELSA Premium provides… Read more

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Connected Speech

What is Devoicing of Final Consonants?

This video provides a brief introduction to devoicing in English. It explains how all English sounds can be categorized as either voiced or unvoiced, with devoicing often occurring in sounds at the end of words… Read more
What is catenation? – Consonant + Vowel Linking in English

The lesson explores consonant-vowel linking in English, known as catenation. It illustrates how words blend together, impacting pronunciation. Despite challenges for English learners, awareness of connected speech features and repeated practice can improve pronunciation. The… Read more
Yod Coalescence & Yod Dropping in Phonology

This video explores yod coalescence and yod dropping in English, focusing on the /j/ sound. Yod coalescence involves the combination of sounds, such as /d/ + /j/ = /dʒ/. This can occur within or across… Read more

Vowels: Monophthongs

Long & Short Vowel Sound Exercise

The video provides an overview of the 12 monophthongs of British English, including 5 long and 7 short vowel sounds. Recognizing and pronouncing these sounds correctly is crucial in English, as they can change the… Read more
Short Vowel Exercise

This video lesson focuses on practicing the seven short vowel sounds of British English, also known as monophthongs. It emphasizes identifying short vowels in words such as ‘fit’, ‘fun’, ‘fox’, ‘foot’, ‘fell’, ‘fat’, and ‘for’.… Read more
Semi-Vowels in English /j/ & /w/

The video lesson explores English semi-vowels /j/ and /w/, and briefly touches on /r/. It explains the distinction between semi-vowels and regular vowels, and why they are classified as semi-vowels despite being consonants. The lesson… Read more

Vowels: Diphthongs

The Diphthong /ʊə/ in English Pronunciation

This video teaches you all about the diphthong /ʊə/, a combination of the vowel sound /ʊ/, a near-close back rounded vowel and /ə/, the mid central vowel sound, also called ‘schwa’. These two come together… Read more
The Diphthong /aʊ/ in English Pronunciation

This video teaches you all about the diphthong /aʊ/, a combination of the vowel sound /a/, open back unrounded vowel and /ʊ/, a near-close back rounded vowel. These two come together and as we glide… Read more
The Diphthong /eə/ in English Pronunciation

This video teaches you all about the diphthong /eə/, a combination of the vowel sound /e/, an open-mid front unrounded vowel and /ə/, the mid central vowel sound, also called ‘schwa’. These two come together… Read more

Consonants

Place of Articulation for Plosives in English

In this lesson, we’ll focus on the place of articulation of plosives in English. Plosives are also called stops. Whilst all plosives share the same manner of articulation, they have different places of articulation. In… Read more
Mastering Trill Sounds: Special Consonants Explained

This video explores trills, a group of special consonant sounds produced by the vibration of the active articulator against the passive articulator. Unlike taps, trills rely on airflow rather than muscle movement for vibration. While… Read more
What’s the difference between English R vs. rolled Spanish & German R?

The video provides clarity on three commonly confused IPA sound symbols. It covers the standard English R (/ɹ/), the rolled R sound in Spanish (/r/), and the standard German R (/ʁ/ or /ʀ/). The differences… Read more

Phonology Topics

Place of Articulation in English Phonology

This video explores on the various places of articulation in English phonology, such as bilabial, dental, alveolar, post-alveolar, retroflex, velar, palatal and glottal. It delves into how speech sounds are formed at the various places… Read more
Manner of Articulation in English Phonology

This video offers a detailed exploration of English consonant sounds’ manner of articulation, explaining how the lips, tongue, and vocal cords produce plosives, fricatives, and other sounds. The host ensures accessibility by providing real-life examples… Read more
The Articulators & Vocal Tract

This video provides a clear explanation of the vocal tract and articulators. The vocal tract, which includes our oral and nasal cavities, pharynx, and larynx, plays a crucial role in sound production. The articulators, such… Read more

Intonation & Sentence Stress

The Last Lexical Item Rule (LLI) in English

The Last Lexical Item Rule (LLI) in English states that the main stress falls on the last lexical item in a sentence, unless the speaker wants to change the meaning. Lexical items are content words… Read more
The 3 Ts of Intonation in English

The video explores the three Ts of intonation: tonality, tonicity, and tone as defined by Wells (2006). Tonality concerns speech division into tone units, while tonicity pertains to the prominent syllable location within a tone… Read more
Tone units & Tonic syllables in English

The video explains tone units and tonic syllables in English intonation. It highlights the organization of spoken English into tone units and the importance of paying attention to the HOW of speech, not just the… Read more

Word Stress

The 8 Rules of Word Stress: What is Word Stress? – Part 2

In this second part of the series on word stress, the video emphasizes the importance of correct word stress and its impact on pronunciation and understanding. It explores 8 rules of word stress and commonly… Read more
What is word stress? – Part 1

In this video we are going to have a look at word stress in English. It is important to know which part, or better which syllable, in a word is more prominent so that the… Read more

Billie English on YouTube

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