American Accent Training

( Word Connection, Pronunciation, Reduced Sounds )

Note: Some exercises came from The American Accent Training by Ann Cook

EXERCISE 1-1 REDUCED SOUNDS

LOOKS LIKE….. SOUNDS LIKE….

today t’day
tonight t’night
tomorrow t’marou
they hope to find it they houpta fin dit
we don’t know what to do we don’t know w’t’do
to be or not to be t’bee(y)r nat t’ bee
he didn’t get to go he din gete gou
he told me to help he told meeda help
she told you to get it she tol jooda geddit
the only way to get it is… thee(y)only wayde geddidiz
you’ve got to pay to get it yoov gotta payde geddit
so to speak.. soda speak
one at a time wanada time
give it a try givida try
who’s it from? whozit from?
Ham and eggs hame neggz
Bread and butter bredn buddr
they keep going back and forth they keep going backn forth
where are you from? wher’r you from?
you need a break you needa break
what are you doing? wha’dr you doing?
those are no good. thozer no good.
what did you mean? w’j mean?

EXERCISE 1- 2 :

1. To be or not to be is a very famous line.

2. Can I have a glass of milk,please and ham and eggs?
3. You can’t get that for free . You’ve got to pay to get it.
4. That was a great offer. Why don’t you give it a try?
5. Those are no good for you. You should be careful.
6. I am trying my best but I need to do it one at a time to get it right.
7. Can I have some bread and butter, please?
8. I was expecting him last night but he didn’t get to go.
9. I did not like what you said. What did you mean by that?
10. English is a hard language to learn. The only way to get it is , to practice all the time.
EXERCISE 2 : MORE REDUCTION AND WORD CONNECTION EX.:

Note: When the letter that comes after “the” is a vowel ( a,e,i,o,u ) , the is pronounced as “thee”

thee (y) individual Each of the individual must do their part.

thee(y) abduction (Eachov the must do their part )
thee(y) only The abduction was a sensation on t.v.
thee(y) expression (The abduction waza sensation on t.v.)
thee(y) invisible The only problem we have right now is the venue.
thee(y) other ( The only problem we have right nowiz the venue)
thee(y) ugly cat The expression on his face was weird.
thee(y) opposite ( The expression on hiz face waz weird)

thee(y) instrument Did you watch the Invisible Man?

thee(y) accent I saw the other car yesterday.

thee(y) apple You should have seen the ugly cat.

thee(y) university The opposite of yes is no.

thee(y)umbrella (The oppositov yesiz nou)

thee(y)information Do you have the instrument we need for tonight?

thee(y)internet Learning the accent can be difficult.

The apple he gave me was rotten.
( The apple he gave me waz rott’n)
The university I went to was the best.
( The university I went to waz the best)

Exercise 2-1 : Read the article .Remember to connect words and pronounce words correctly

Hometown Visit

I wazin in North Carolina a few weeks ago. Oh my! Things have changed. Whenai went to vizit
thee(y)universidy I went to, I couldn’t believe my(y)eyez. It looked todally diff’rent ! Thee(y)
Information Office which used to be locatedon the first floor haz been moved. Thee(y)only thing that
waz recognizable to me waz thee(y)Internet Café. It still looked quite the same.

Professors seem unrecognizable to me now. Theyare notaz friendly az they used to be. It seems like
az I pass them by, thee(y)only thing that catches their attentions are the new students. Things seem
much beder before. Oh and by the way, I went to check out the cafeteria. I decided to have breakfast,
but thee(y)only problem waz, food choices were limited. Sowai had to seddle for hame neggz and of
course, I had to have bredn buddr on the side. Ordered some fruits, too but thee(y)apple waz kinda
rott’n.

Azai waz leaving, rain starded pouring so hard. Poor me, thee(y)umbrella I had waz broken so(w) I
din gete gou home early. Had to wait for the rain to stop.
Exercise 2-3 : Read the article again on your own

Hometown Visit

I was in North Carolina a few weeks ago. Oh my! Things have changed. When I went to visit the
university I went to, I couldn’t believe my eyes. It looked totally different ! The Information Office
which used to be located on the first floor has been move. The only thing that was recognizable to me
was the Internet Café. It still looked quite the same.

Professors seem unrecognizable to me now. They are not as friendly as they used to be. It seems like
as I pass them by, the only thing that catches their attentions are the new students. Things seem
much better before. Oh and by the way, I went to check out the cafeteria. I decided to have breakfast
but the only problem was, food choices were limited. So,I had to settle for ham and eggs and of
course, I had to have bread and butter on the side. Ordered some fruits, too, but the apple was kinda
rotten.

As I was leaving, rain started pouring so hard. Poor me, the umbrella I had was broken so I didn’t get
to go home early. Had to wait for the rain to stop.