Resource of the Week #22: A Resource on Pronunciation of English

This week I learned of a resource on English-language pronunciation. This resource might especially help non-native users of English who want to speak English as clearly as possible—for example, to present papers effectively at international conferences.

The resource is a website called Rachel’s English. As stated on its homepage, "This website was created to help people improve their American English pronunciation.”

Rachel’s English includes videos on pronunciation of various sounds. In each video, a woman named Rachel shows and explains how to pronounce a sound. A written version of the text accompanies the video.

The website also contains a blog. The blog entries too appear both as video and as text. They provide help with various aspects of pronunciation.

Other items on this site include

• pictures of mouth positions for pronouncing sounds
• exercises
• a resource section listing recommended books and websites

Two items to note: This website focuses on American pronunciation of English, which differs somewhat from British pronunciation. Also, even among Americans, pronunciation differs somewhat among individuals.

Do you know of other helpful resources on English-language pronunciation? If so, I hope you’ll mention them in a comment.

Until the next post— Barbara