(Video Transcript)
American English Rhythm and Fluency: Reductions
What’s the secret to matching the rhythm and fluency of native speakers of English? What are native speakers doing to make their speech sound like…well, like English?
One word: Reductions
In this video, you’re going to learn the top thirty reductions that you can use to make your spoken English more fluent and rhythmic, just like a native speaker. So get ready to learn with me and become a more fluent speaker of English right now.
Reductions in American English
Let’s start with a quick definition: What are reductions? Reductions occur in spoken English - not in written English - and this word, reductions, refers to what happens to vowels in unstressed syllables. Now, most of you already know that English has stressed syllables - stressed, meaning these syllables are more important and have prominence over the surrounding syllables - and English also has unstressed syllables - unstressed, meaning these syllables are not important and they are weak compared to the stressed syllables that surround them.
Sometimes, unstressed syllables are also reduced - meaning, the pronunciation of the vowel in that unstressed syllable actually changes to a different vowel, one that is faster to say, so that the unstressed syllable is even more unstressed. It’s both unstressed and reduced down to a different vowel that’s really quick to pronounce. This helps that reduced syllable to be even shorter than the stressed syllables that surround it, and the filp side of this is also true: these really fast reduced syllables help the stressed syllables to have even more prominence.
But remember - reductions only happen in spoken English. Most of the time, the spelling of a reduced syllable won’t change - just its pronunciation. This makes reductions very tricky for non-native speakers to learn because oftentimes, they rely on the spelling of words to guide the pronunciation of words, and that’s not the best technique when it comes to spoken English. You need to train yourself to focus on how that word sounds when a native speaker pronounces it - don’t look at the spelling. Focus on the sounds that you hear, and imitate what you hear.
30 Reductions for English Fluency
Okay, so now we all know what reductions are and their purpose in spoken English. Now let’s learn thirty reductions that native speakers are using every single day to make their speech fluent and rhythmic.
Here’s how you’ll learn these thirty reductions. I’m going to show you a sentence, and I’ll read the sentence at my normal speaking rate. I’ll highlight the reduction, and then I’ll demonstrate what that sentence sounds like when I don’t use the reduction, just to give you the comparison. Then, you’ll have the chance to imitate the sentence using the reduction, because that’s what you want to get good at. Imitate what you hear, not how the word is spelled. In fact, I’m going to remove the sentence from the screen when it’s time for you to imitate it because I want you to rely on just your ears to help you with that part.
Are you ready? Let’s get started!
Determiners: Words that give details to nouns
A: I found a coin.
An: She bought an apple.
The: It was the biggest one.
That: She hinted that something exciting was coming.
These: I know these shoes will last for years.
They’re (sounds like there/their): My guess is they’re arriving after dinner.
Auxiliary verbs (helping verbs): a form of the words to be, to have, or modal verbs
Have: We’ll have dessert after dinner
Can: The puppy can learn new tricks.
Do: What do you want?
Could: We could arrive early tomorrow.
Would: She said she would help.
Should: You should drink water during the hike.
Are: The questions are challenging.
Conjunctions: Words that tie clauses (thought groups) together
Or: Will you join us or stay home tonight?
Because: The meeting was canceled because the boss was sick.
Prepositions: words that tell relation to other words
To: She decided to start her own business.
For: He baked cookies for the class.
Of: The title of the book interested me.
At: We’ll meet at noon.
On: The cat slept on the blanket.
Pronouns: words that replace nouns
I: She said I forgot my keys.
Your: I enjoyed reading your article.
You’re: Everybody knows you're a great tennis player.
He: Where is he going?
Him: We saved a seat for him near the front.
His: The crowd cheered after his performance.
Her: I liked her latest movie.
Them: We picked them up after school.
Okay so you just learned thirty reductions that are guaranteed to help your spoken English sound more fluent and rhythmic. How did it go? Was this hard, easy, somewhere in the middle? Did you learn any new reductions today? Let me know in the comments!
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English Pro: Online English Training
And if you want to train with me and learn even more reductions…and receive one to one coaching on your pronunciation during live English classes…then enroll in my comprehensive online training program called English Pro. You’ll receive training in all areas of the American accent and voice placement - the vowels, consonants, intonation, stress, reductions, vocabulary, and voice placement that native speakers are using in their everyday conversations. Plus, all students of English Pro can volunteer to work with me, one on one, during weekly live English classes, where I’ll give you feedback on your specific speaking patterns. So check out the description below to learn more about how we can work together to help you reach your English speaking goals.
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Thanks so much for watching, and happy practicing!
