Communicate Clearly with Your Voice in American English Archives • Page 11 of 12 • English with Kim

Key Difference Between Long and Short Vowels in English & How to Pronounce “Kim”

Let’s talk about something very important to me: how to pronounce my name, Kim! Many non-native English speakers struggle with the name “Kim” because it contains a short vowel. I recently received this question from Serg from Russia: I’ve listened a lot of teachers in the internet, but I still can not hear any difference between short “i” and long “ee.” They seem to be sounding the same. No difference at all. How short is … Read the article and watch the video lesson

Speak Up! Use Your Volume to Speak English More Effectively

I have a question for you, and I need you to be honest with me: Do you think Americans are loud? If you answered “yes,” don’t worry! I completely agree with you. Whether we’re living our daily lives in the United States or traveling abroad, many non-native speakers hear Americans like me speaking English and they turn, look at us, and stare. Americans are so loud! I first noticed this when I moved to Argentina … Read the article and watch the video lesson

Learn to Stress Short, One-Syllable Words to Speak English More Clearly

If you’re like most non-native English speakers, the idea of pronouncing long, complicated words probably stresses you out – literally. Many non-native speakers get really concerned about the pronunciation of four-, five-, and six-syllable words. Where does the word stress go? How do I say each syllable correctly? It can get quite challenging to get these words right! But there’s something you haven’t considered that’s actually affecting the way that you’re speaking English. We need to … Read the article and watch the video lesson

The Power of Pitch: Change Your Tone for Better Stress and Intonation in English

Want to speak clearly and express your emotions and attitudes through your voice? Then you need to learn to change your tone and use pitch variation for better stress and intonation in American English. In short, you need to embrace the power of pitch. The Role of Pitch in Spoken English Before we get started, let’s talk about what we mean by the word “pitch.” Pitch is the highness or lowness of your voice, and it’s … Read the article and watch the video lesson

Get Your Number Stress Right: How to Pronounce Numbers Clearly in English

It doesn’t matter if you’re a beginning English learner or totally fluent; chances are you have a little trouble pronouncing numbers correctly. If you’ve ever had to clarify whether a discount is fifteen percent or fifty percent, if your son is thirteen or thirty, or your date of birth, the time, or the year, it’s likely the issue wasn’t actually your pronunciation of the word, but your word stress. Let’s talk about number stress, and how important … Read the article and watch the video lesson

Seven Ways to Use Your Voice and Breath to Communicate Clearly in English

I have excellent news for you: sounding professional is NOT about having perfect pronunciation. When you’re trying to increase your authority, be taken more seriously, and achieve success in a professional or academic setting, you may obsess over these things: how your accent sounds to other people what you are (or rather your mouth is) doing wrong, or identifying the ways in which you don’t sound like a native speaker. Does this sound familiar? I know … Read the article and watch the video lesson