This website was created to help people improve their American English pronunciation. At the core is a series of videos explaining in detail how each sound is created, as well as a blog.
In this American English pronunciation video, I'm going to go over how to pronounce the word 'to' in conversation.
The word 'to' is a preposition, so it's a function word. Function words will normally be unstressed in a sentence. And the word 'to' will even reduce. Reduce means a sound will change. So, 'to' on its own: true T with the 'oo' as in 'boo' vowel. But, in a sentence, it will be come to, true T with the schwa sound. Or, it might even become to, D sound with the schwa sound. Using the flap T pronunciation will smooth out your line even more. I've looked at lots of examples to try to figure out: is there a rule for when it's appropriate to use the Flap T or not? And I've decided you can use the flap T in the word 'to' any time except when the word 'to' follows a word that ends in a T. Now, if this rule is too confusing for you, don't worry about it. You can always pronounce it with a true T and a schwa, and that reduction is fine. However, a flap T will smooth things out just a little bit more.
So, let's look at some examples. We went to dinner. [3x] Now you'll notice the word before ends in T, so I'm pronouncing 'to' 'to'. True T, schwa sound. I'm not pronouncing two T's. We went to dinner. [2x]
Come to my party. Here I'm pronouncing the T as a flap. Duh, duh, duh. Come to my party. [2x] Much smoother than 'Come to my party'. Come to my party.
Let's go to the store. Here, 'to' is pronounced duh, duh. Go to, go to, go to the, go to the. Let's go to the store. I wanted to get more. Wanted to, wanted to. Notice I'm not pronouncing two D's here. Wanted to. The first D, at the end of 'wanted', is a stop. Wanted to. Then I'm pronouncing 'to' with the flap T/schwa sound. Wanted to [3x]. I wanted to get some more.
Did you notice that I did not pronounce the T sound in the word 'wanted'. I said wanted, I dropped the T. This is not an uncommon practice when the T follows an N. Other examples: 'center' becomes cenner, cenner. Or, interview can be pronounced innerview, innerview. Dropping this true T smooths out speech. Even though I dropped the T, the -ed ending still follows the rule for a word that ends in T or D, and is pronounced with the 'ih' as in 'sit' vowel and the D consonant. Wanted is a fairly common word. Don't be afraid to pronounce it 'wannid' [2x], you'll notice many native speakers pronouncing it this way.
I wanted to get some more.
I thought to myself ... [2x] Here I'm pronouncing 'to', tt, with a true T because the word before ends in a T. Notice though, I am not pronouncing two T's. I thought to myself. [2x]
We're going to your play. Going to, going to: flap. We're going to your play.
Don't forget to reduce and link the word 'to'. It's a very important part of this stressed / unstressed nature of American English.
That's it, and thanks so much
for using Rachel's English.
I'm excited to announce that I'm running another online course, so do check out my website for details. You'll find on there all sorts of information about the course, who should take the course, and requirements. I really hope you'll check it out and consider signing up. I've had a blast with my first online course, and I'm looking forward to getting to know you.
Don't stop there. Have fun with my real-life English videos. Or get more comfortable with the IPA in this play list. Learn about the online courses I offer, or check out my latest video.
American English Pronunciation :: English - A Stress-Timed Language
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In this American English pronunciation video, we're going to go over why some words sound different when they're said on their own than they do when they're said as part of a sentence, like 'for', 'fer'.
A lot of people think, when they're studying a language and they're new to it, that they need to pronounce each word fully and clearly in order to be well-understood. But in English that's actually not the case. English is a stress-timed language. That means some syllables will be longer, and some will be shorter. Many languages, however, are syllable-timed, which means each syllable has the same length. Examples of syllable-timed languages: French, Spanish, Cantonese. So, when an American hears a sentence of English, with each syllable having the same length, it takes just a little bit longer to get the meaning. This is because we are used to stressed syllables, syllables that will pop out of the line because they're longer and they have more shape. Our ears, our brains, go straight to those words. Those are the content words. When all syllables are the same length, then there's no way for the ear to know which words are the most important.
So this is why stress is so important in American English. It's a stress-timed language. When you give us nice shape in your stressed syllables, you're giving us the meaning of the sentence. This means that other syllables need to be unstressed --- flatter, quicker --- so that the stressed syllables are what the ear goes to. This is why it's so important to reduce function words that can reduce in American English. When those function words are part of a whole, part of a sentence, they are pronounced differently. Let's look at some examples.
----. Do you know what I'm saying? A native speaker might not either. But, in the context of a sentence, "I'm going to the store," a native speaker would know exactly what I was saying. I'm going to the store. I'm going to the store. When 'to the' is pronounced ---- (reduced and linked), 'going' and 'store' become the obvious words in that sentence. I'm going to the store.
What about ----? Can you understand what I'm saying? A native speaker might not either. But, in the sentence fragment "Because of my job," "Because of my job," a native speaker would know exactly what I was saying. Because of my job. Because of my job. 'Because' and 'of' are so unstressed, so reduced and low in pitch, that the word 'job' is able to really jump out of the sentence. Because of my job.
This is really of primary importance in American English pronunciation. As you're working on pronunciation, keep in mind this idea of a word being part of a whole.
The word 'for': part of a word becomes fer, fer, fer you, fer me, fer dinner. Practice it this way. Drill it over and over. Other words that can reduce: 'and' can become 'n'. 'Them' can become 'thum' or 'em'. 'At' can become 'ut'. 'To' can become 'tuh' or 'duh'. 'Can' can become 'kun', 'kun'. 'Are' can become 'er', 'er'. 'Was' can become 'wuz', 'wuz'. 'That' can become 'thut', 'thut'. 'Your' can become 'yer', 'yer'. 'At the' can become 'ut the', 'ut the'. And so on. So keep an eye out for this as you're studying pronunciation and listening to native speakers.
That's it, and thanks so much for using Rachel's English.
I'm excited to announce that I'm running another online course, so do check out my website for details. You'll find on there all sorts of information about the course, who should take the course, and requirements. I really hope you'll check it out and consider signing up. I've had a blast with my first online course, and I'm looking forward to getting to know you.
Don't stop there. Have fun with my real-life English videos. Or get more comfortable with the IPA in this play list. Learn about the online courses I offer, or check out my latest video.
American English Pronunciation :: t's Contractions
Video Text:
In a recent video, I said, "I like that phrase, ts'a good one." I reduced the word "it's" to simply the TS sound, ts, ts. There are two other words that can reduce to this sound. In this video, you'll learn all about it.
First, let's watch the clip I mentioned in the intro.
>>I like that phrase. Ts'a good one.
It's a good one, it's a good one. You've probably noticed that native speakers will contract "it is" and say "it's". So, that's the IH vowel and the TS cluster. But of course, as I've just pointed out, we may also drop the vowel altogether, and leave it to just ts, ts. "It is" becomes "it's" becomes "ts". Let's listen again.
Ts'a good one. [3x]
Other examples: it's alright, it's ok. What do you notice? It's alright, it's ok. The TS sound links directly to the next word, there is no break, and that must happen if we're going to reduce "it is" to "it's" or even "ts". Ts'okay. So, it's like the TS cluster begins the next word. Or should I say, ts'like. Ts'like the TS cluster begins the next word.
Try it: ts'alright. ts'okay. ts'funny.
What else can be reduced to simply TS? "What is" becomes "what's", can become "ts". Take for example the sentence, What's his name again? Ts'is name again? Notice how I'm dropping the H in the word 'his'. This is a pretty common reduction. I've made a video on dropping the H. So, this leaves us with 'iz' - the IH sound and the Z sound for the word 'his'. Notice that the TS connects right up into that. Tsiz, tsiz, ts'is name again, ts'is name again? Other examples: what's going on? ts'going, ts'going, ts'going on? Or, ts'up? ts'up? I'm guessing you've heard that one before.
I said there were three words that could reduce to this. So what's the third? "That is" becomes "that's", can become "ts". So, you might hear "That's nice" reduce to "ts'nice", ts'nice.
So if all three of these words can reduce to 'ts', how do you know which word it is? Well, we're talking about function words here, they don't affect the meaning of a sentence, so you don't need to worry about it.
Unless you have a very minimal accent, it's probably best to pronounce the contraction: that's, it's, what's. However, it's good to know what's going on when you hear it. Or, should I say, ts'good to know, ts'good to know what's going on.
Normally, I would say, "That's it, and thanks so much for using Rachel's English". But do you know what I'm going to say today?
Ts'it! And thanks so much for using Rachel's English.
Don't stop there. Have fun with my real-life English videos. Or get more comfortable with the IPA in this play list. Learn about the online courses I offer, or check out my latest video.
In this American English pronunciation video, we're going to take a look at how this letter is pronounced.
I often get emails from people asking questions like, 'Why is the CH in CHICAGO pronounced differently than the CH in CHOICE?' SH vs. CH. And my answer is always, unfortunately, the sounds of American English do not correspond one-to-one with the letters of the alphabet. To know for sure how a word is pronounced, you need to either hear a native speaker say the word, or look up the word in a dictionary that has the International Phonetic Alphabet transcription.
Let's take a look at the letter E. In the word 'shed', it is the EH, EH vowel. In the word 'be', it is the ee, ee vowel. In the word 'pretty', it's the IH vowel, IH, pretty. In the word 'anthem', it is the schwa, uh, uh, anthem. In the word 'sergeant', it's the AH vowel. Sah, sergeant. In the word 'cafe', it is the AY diphthong. Cafe.
So when you see this letter in a word, you can't make assumptions about how it is pronounced. Look it up in a dictionary, or have native speaker say the word to you.
That's it, and thanks so much for using Rachel's English.
Don't stop there. Have fun with my real-life English videos. Or get more comfortable with the IPA in this play list. Learn about the online courses I offer, or check out my latest video.
American English Pronunciation :: Identify the N vs NG Sounds
Video Text:
In this American English pronunciation video, we're going to test your ability to identify the N and NG sounds.
I've already done some work on the N and NG, but, to recap: the N sound is made when the front part of the tongue reaches up and touches just behind the front teeth: nn, nn. The NG is made at the back of the mouth: ng, ng. The back part of the tongue reaches up and touches here. The soft palate comes down to meet it, ng. The tip of the tongue remains forward and down. So, the two positions are very different. N: nn, and NG: ng. In this video, you're going to see words with no sound, and I want you to guess if it ends in an N or an NG. Because the positions are so different, it should be very easy to see.
What is the final position you see here? You see a good bit of the tongue with the tongue tip down, that means the tongue is up in the back, so it must be the NG. Watch again.
Wing.
What position is this? Looks like the tongue tip is up at the roof of the mouth. Let's watch again, and see if you can see the tongue flick up at the end. It must be an N.
Tan.
What position is this? The mouth looks dark inside. That must mean what's happening is happening at the back. So, it must be an NG.
Song.
Hmm. It's hard to tell what's going on here, as the jaw is quite closed. But, it does look like the tongue tip is down, and the tongue is raised in the back. That must be NG.
Feeling.
What sound is this? It's pretty clear that the tongue tip is raised, touching the roof of the mouth. That must be an N.
On.
Again, it's quite clear that the tongue tip is raised, touching the roof of the mouth. This must be an N.
Fun.
The space inside the mouth is dark, it's a bit hard to see what's happening. That must mean the tongue is raising in the back, and not in the front. So, this must be an NG.
Lung.
Here, after having said this would be an easy exercise, I see it's not so easy. Again, there's not much jaw drop here. Yet, it does look like the tongue is down in the front and raised in the back. So, it must be an NG.
Seeing.
You can see the tongue tip raised in the front, touching the roof of the mouth. This is an N.
Done.
Here it's clear: tongue up in the back, down in the front. It's an NG sound.
Strong.
Did you see the tongue tip come up? I think I did, too. In that case, it must be an N. Let's watch again.
Fine.
How did you do? If it was easy for you to tell the difference, then I hope it will be easy for you to pronounce them differently as well. A lot of people have difficulty with ending in an N vs. an NG. If you're one of those people, practice with a mirror lists of words and watch your mouth to make sure it takes the correct position.
That's it, and thanks so much
for using Rachel's English.
Don't stop there. Have fun with my real-life English videos. Or get more comfortable with the IPA in this play list. Learn about the online courses I offer, or check out my latest video.
American English Pronunciation :: Lots of Idioms while Making Pizza!
Video Text:
In this American English pronunciation video, we're going to ride our bikes into Brooklyn to make some pizza. And of course, you'll learn some American English pronunciation on the way, including the idioms to catch up and to fill in. Oh boy!
This is my bicycle, Jenny. I didn't name her, she came named. Tonight we're going to go for a bike ride into Brooklyn. Brooklyn is the borough just east of Manhattan (one of the boroughs just east of Manhattan). So let's look at Brooklyn. It has two O's. Now, there are four different ways to pronounce two O's: oo, as in boo, uh as in book, uh as in blood, and oh as in brooch. So how is it pronounced in Brooklyn? Uh, uh, Brooklyn. What's your guess? The answer is: it's the same as the vowel in 'book'. Brooklyn. Now. Let's get going before it gets dark.
It's about a 45-minute bike ride from my home in Manhattan to my friend's home in Brooklyn. It involves taking the Manhattan bridge over the East River.
>> Hey.
It's seven o'clock on the nose, seven o'clock sharp. Those idioms mean, of course, exactly seven o'clock. We're right on time. We're very punctual. Punk - chew - ul. Let's go Sara.
>> So we rode our bikes in from Brooklyn.
>> No! In from Manhattan!
>> We rode our bikes from Manhattan into Brooklyn --- because it's been a while since we've seen each other. So we're making some dinner, we're making pizza, and we're going to catch up.
>> Um-hm, we're going to catch up.
>> We're going to catch up.
>> Find out what's going on in each other's lives.
>> That's right. Catch up. An idiom that you would use if you haven't seen somebody in a while, and you want to know what's going on. You would say, "let's catch up". You could also say, "fill me in". What else could you say? Ketchup, by the way, spelled this way, is also a condiment.
>> This girl can cook. You remember -- from the turkey.
Cook. Does that 'uh' sound sound familiar? It's the same sound as in 'book' and 'Brooklyn'. Listen again.
>> This girl can cook. You remember -- from the turkey.
>> Oh boy.
>> Oh boy. I like that phrase.
>> Oh boy?
>> It's a good one. What, do you say that when you're exasperated? Oh boy.
>> Overwhelmed, like when you're overwhelmed?
>> It's a good one. Oh boy.
>> Or excited.
>> Or excited. Oh boy!
>> Is this done Beads? I don't know?
>> Yeah, no, I mean, yeah, I think, well. The first pie always takes longer because of the oven.
Did you hear how I said 'cuz of the oven'? Cuzof, cuzof, cuzof. If I said that out of the context of a sentence, nobody would know what I was talking about. But as a part of the whole, that's they way it makes sense to say it. Cuzof. We reduce it, it's low in pitch, cuzofthe, cuzofthe, cuzofthe oven. Then the 'oven' is the stressed word. So, this is very important in English: that the function words, the less important words, are low in pitch, strung together, maybe reduced, to contrast with the shape of the stressed word: cuzofthe oven.
>> So, when it's pretty much cooked. Actually, when it's cooked.
>> Hold on, did you, did you guys notice, she just said 'pretty', with a flap T. Can you say that again?
>> What? It's pretty much?
>> Yeah, but say it at the camera!
>> Pretty much.
>> Thank you for the demonstration.
>> You're welcome!
>> Ok, when it's pretty much cooked?
>> When it's pretty much cooked, we're going to bring it out, and we're going to put arugula---
>> Hold on. Did you notice? She's using 'gonna'. We're gonna bring it out, we're gonna put arugula.
>> Yes, we're going to put arugula, and we're going to put prosciutto, and we're going to crumble some more blue cheese and we're going to drizzle it with honey.
>> Wow, that sounds amazing, and it was such a good demonstration of using 'gonna'. Thank you.
>> You're welcome.
>> This looks pretty good. Pretty good.
>> Pretty: flap T!
>> Ok. Let's slice this baby up.
>> My favorite topping: pepperoni. I like it almost as much as I like buying shoes.
Then we made a second pizza, totally different from the first, and sat down to a nice meal. After the lovely evening, it was time to say good-bye.
>> Bye! Thank you so much!
>> Bye! You're welcome.
>> It was good to see you, it was so good to catch up!
>> It was good to catch up.
That's it, and thanks so much
for using Rachel's English.
Don't stop there. Have fun with my real-life English videos. Or get more comfortable with the IPA in this play list. Learn about the online courses I offer, or check out my latest video.
It's a beautiful spring day here in New York, and we're going to talk a little bit about the flap T. Pretty. The T's here are a flap T because it comes between two vowels, and the T is not starting a stressed syllable. Pretty, pretty. So, you may want to pronounce it as a true T, tttt, pretty, pretty, but most Americans will make this a flap T, it smooths out the line. And Americans are always going for a smoother line. Pretty, pretty.
Ben, can you think of any other words with a flap T?
>> City.
City! That's a good one. City. So again, the T here, coming between two vowels, not starting a stressed syllable, so it's a flap. City, city. It's such a pretty day in the city.
Ben, can you think of another word with a flap T?
>> No.
No. That's ok. It doesn't matter. Matter! There's another word with a flap T. So again, the T sound is coming between two vowels, not starting a stressed syllable, flap. Ddddd, matter, matter.
I just thought of another.
>> What is it?
And you just did another one too! Thought of, thought of, thought of. So here --- that was a loud pigeon --- So here the T comes at the end of a word, but the next word begins with a vowel, so still the T is coming between two vowels. And still, it is not starting a stressed syllable, so we can flap that. Thought of, duv, duv, duv, thought of. And Ben said, 'What is it?' Again, the T ends what, but the next word begins with a vowel, so the T is coming between two vowels, not starting a stressed syllable, so we can flap that. Diz, diz, what is, what is it?
>> Ben, aren't those tulips pretty?
>> Oh, they're so pretty!
>> Rachel, look at this tree! Isn't it so pretty?
>> Wow, this tree is really pretty.
>> Such a pretty tree.
This tree, also really pretty. Don't forget to flap your T's!
That's it, and thanks so much
for using Rachel's English.
Don't stop there. Have fun with my real-life English videos. Or get more comfortable with the IPA in this play list. Learn about the online courses I offer, or check out my latest video.
American English Pronunciation :: Easter (and lots of useful stuff!)
Video Text:
In this American English pronunciation video, we'll look at English in action and take a look at the 'aa' vowel followed by nasal consonants.
>> Hey Jovon, happy Easter.
>> Oh, hey, happy Easter.
>> Hi Ben.
>> Hello Rachel.
>> Happy Easter.
>> Happy Easter.
>> Ben brought a ham for us to eat.
>> I brought a ham.
>> Ben brings a ham every year because he's a dear. And I don't mean deer the animal, I mean dear, D-E-A-R, a kind and thoughtful person. 'Dear' and 'deer' are homophones.
>> What is this, Ben?
>> This is a ham. And it is made with pineapple and brown sugar.
>> Oh, delicious. Ham. This is a teachable moment.
>> Here comes the ham. Now the word ham --
>> (it's really hot)
>> -- is an interesting word because it's the AA as in BAT vowel followed by a nasal consonant, in this case, M. So even though it's written in IPA just with the H consonant, AA vowel, and M consonant, it's not actually pronounced that way. That would be "haam", "haam". But we say, ha-uh-m. And there's that UH sound that's not accounted for in IPA: aa-uh, aa-uh. Ham. So, if you add this UH sound to your AA vowel, you'll sound much more American. Other examples, camera. AA-UH-M. Cam-, Camera. This is also true if the sound after the AA is the N sound. For example, 'ant'. AA-UHnt. Ant. Now, one last thing. If the AA vowel is followed by the NG consonant, then it changes also, but, in a different way. In that case it becomes a sound more like the 'ay' diphthong, ay. For example, in the word 'thanks': thanks. Or, bank, bank. So pronounce your AA vowel this way when it's followed by N, M, or NG.
>> Michelle, what are you working on here?
>> I'm making Eggs Benedict.
>> Ooo.
>> So I'm poaching eggs --
>> Uh-huh.
>> And then making them with salmon and spinach.
>> Oh, that looks delicious.
>> Jovon's always taking pictures. It's a good thing I'm used to the camera, right? So this is what I made for our meal. Some green---it probably doesn't look as good under plastic, eh? Some asparagus. I roasted it yesterday, gonna serve it chilled with a dijon vinaigrette. Yum.
>> What did you make, Kate?
>> I made Easter egg chocolate / peanut butter candy.
>> Oo, that looks good. Now these are special, right?
>> They're special: they're vegan.
>> They're vegan.
>> No dairy.
>> Wow. Let me zoom up on that. Jovon's been trying to sneak one of those ever since you made them yesterday.
>> I found the little ladle. That's a hard little phrase. Say that five times quickly! Little ladle [x5].
>> Ben, this ham is delicious.
>> Thanks.
>> You guys are so clear, such good actors for my Rachel's English audience. Totally natural.
>> They're hamming it up.
>> They are hamming it up. Thank you, Matthew, for brining up another use of the word 'ham'.
Matthew cleverly pointed out a second definition for the word 'ham'. An actor or performer who overacts. As a verb: to act with exaggerated expression of emotion, to overact. So the idiom, to ham it up, simply means, to overact. Example sentence: He really hammed it up for the camera.
>> Happy Easter, guys.
>> Happy Easter, Rachel.
>> Hope you're learning lots of fun vocabulary.
>> They are.
>> We learned all about the word 'ham'.
>> Ham.
>> Oo, ham.
>> That's a good one.
>> It is a good one and --
>> It's a nasal one.
>> -- it's sort of an odd word because it's got this AA-UH sound.
>> haa, haaa. Like that.
>> Yeah. If you had to explain how you pronounce 'ham', what would you say?
>> Um, haa, aa. There's an H in there.
>> Yes?
>> There's an A, with an aa, kind of an aa?
>> Very nasal aa sound.
>> M, and then an M, mm, mm.
>> So if you had to say it in slow motion, say it in slow motion.
>> Haaauhm.
>> There you go! I heard that good UH sound. HaQuyen?
>> Ham.
Let's watch this in slow motion. As you know, AA followed by M has an 'uh' sound. AA-uh, AA-uh. You can see HaQuyen's tongue pull back to make that UH sound before her lips close for the M.
>> Ham.
>> Yeah, nice
>> Got that in the profile.
>> Yep, she gave the profile so we can see the movement of the tongue and everything. Thanks guys!
>> You're welcome Rachel.
>> You're most welcome.
That's it, and thanks so much
for using Rachel's English.
Don't stop there. Have fun with my real-life English videos. Or get more comfortable with the IPA in this play list. Learn about the online courses I offer, or check out my latest video.
American English Pronunciation :: Word Stress and Verbs
Video Text:
In this American English pronunciation video, we're going to go over the topic of word and verbs.
If you've already seen my video on an introduction to word stress, and my video on content words, then you know that main verbs will be stressed in a sentence. Today we're going to look at some sentences and see what this actually means, to be stressed. In the sentence, "I'm leaving soon," what do you notice about the pitch? I'm leaving soon. If you're not sure what you're hearing, here's a visual. I'm leaving soon. The blue line is the pitch. You can see the shape of the stress in the word 'leaving'. Up then down" leaving [3x]. So the voice goes up in pitch, and then down. That is the shape of stress. I'm leaving soon. So, that will be the shape of main verbs when you're speaking, because main verbs are content words, and content words are stressed.
Let's look at some more sentences. She's taking the bus. She's taking the bus. Taking. She's taking the bus. The up and down of the voice is not as dramatic here as it was in the first example. But you can still clearly see this little curve. That gliding up and down motion is the shape of stress. Taking. [3x]
We're running late. [4x] Here again, the change in pitch, up and down, is not so big. But it is unmistakable. Running, running.
I passed the test. [4x] Again, you see the glide up and glide down, curve of the voice on the stressed syllable, passed. Passed. [3x]
It's important that you don't rush through content words. Give them enough time to have this shape of up and down. This up/down shape is in contrast to function words, which will be flatter, lower in pitch, and also quicker. This contrast is what makes American English easy to understand to American ears. So, correct American English pronunciation depends on it. To work on this, take any text. First, pull out the verb and work on it on its own: work, work. Then speed it up, maintaining the shape, and put it back into the sentence, again, making sure that you have this up/down shape, to make sure you're stressing the word. Never go through the word so quickly that you're giving up the shape. Now that you know that main verbs should be stressed, and how to stress them, go out and do just that.
That's it, and thanks so much for using Rachel's English.
Don't stop there. Have fun with my real-life English videos. Or get more comfortable with the IPA in this play list. Learn about the online courses I offer, or check out my latest video.
Just announced! Rachel will hold an 8-week online course in July and August. See courses page for details and to sign up. 10 slots left.
Students in the current class are saying:
"The style and habit of my speaking English have been dramatically improved through the class. The learning approach and materials are great! Rachel's comments on hand-ins have been especially helpful for removing Mandarin-tones from my speaking and adding quality of native speakers into my speaking."
"[T]he feedback is super helpful and also I learned a lot in the course on how to work on pronunciation. This will be super helpful to help me with the process even beyond this class."
"I've picked up quite a few pointers on how to improve on my accent, in no small measure by dint of the feedback, and I think I've managed to put some of the pointers into practice, so I think I've made some headway, all told, and I'm plenty satisfied with that."
Check out this site ...
... I think it is a GREAT resource for studying pronunciation. You can slow down videos without the pitch changing, you can loop sections, you can look up words. It's an amazing resource, and I've enjoyed playing around with it.
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