1 00:00:00,299 --> 00:00:06,499 In this American English Pronunciation video, we’re going to go over phrases for locating something. 2 00:00:12,920 --> 00:00:16,880 Have you ever found yourself telling someone where something is? 3 00:00:16,880 --> 00:00:23,620 - Rachel, where are those scripts? - I put them in the bottom drawer of the filing cabinet in the office. 4 00:00:23,640 --> 00:00:28,640 - Where is the lens cap? - I put it in a basket on the table next to the door. 5 00:00:28,640 --> 00:00:33,800 These phrases are important and useful, and today we’re going to go over a bunch of 6 00:00:33,809 --> 00:00:38,280 different phrases you’ll want to know in these situations. 7 00:00:38,280 --> 00:00:45,780 Luckily, the other night, I happened to find myself in my kitchen and I couldn’t remember where anything was! 8 00:00:45,780 --> 00:00:53,360 Let’s get started. First, we’re going to hear a bunch of different phrases where David is directing me around the kitchen. 9 00:00:53,360 --> 00:00:57,620 - Hey David! Where is the silverware? - In the drawer next to the sink. 10 00:00:57,629 --> 00:01:00,889 Oh right! Perfect! Thank you! 11 00:01:00,889 --> 00:01:05,000 - Where is the ladle? - In the drawer to the right of the stove. 12 00:01:05,009 --> 00:01:09,049 Oh right! Perfect! 13 00:01:09,049 --> 00:01:13,240 - Where is that big silver mixing bowl? - It's above the refrigerator. 14 00:01:13,240 --> 00:01:20,760 Oh! Oh yeah! There it is! 15 00:01:20,760 --> 00:01:24,200 - Where is the trash? - It's in the cabinet under the sink. 16 00:01:24,200 --> 00:01:27,900 Under the sink. Great! Thank you! 17 00:01:27,900 --> 00:01:32,040 - Where are the glasses? - In the cabinet to the left of the sink. 18 00:01:32,040 --> 00:01:36,240 Oh! Yes! Thank you! 19 00:01:36,240 --> 00:01:40,100 - Where are the muffin tins? - In the drawer below the oven. 20 00:01:40,100 --> 00:01:46,960 Oh, below the oven. I didn't know there was a drawer there. Awesome! 21 00:01:46,960 --> 00:01:55,020 - David where is the tin foil? - In the middle drawer on the island. 22 00:01:55,020 --> 00:01:57,340 Hey David! Where are those cookie cutters? 23 00:01:57,340 --> 00:02:04,120 - On the second shelf in the middle cabinet. - Middle cabinet. Second shelf. Yes! Thank you! 24 00:02:04,130 --> 00:02:06,040 Sarah gave me these. 25 00:02:06,040 --> 00:02:11,400 - Hey David! Where are the other vases? - On the top shelf of the cabinet to the left of the stove. 26 00:02:11,400 --> 00:02:15,800 Oh, okay. Oh, I can't reach that. 27 00:02:15,810 --> 00:02:19,450 - David, where are the serving spoons? - In the island. 28 00:02:19,450 --> 00:02:25,550 - Oh! - No, all the way to the left. 29 00:02:25,550 --> 00:02:30,150 Ok, let’s talk about all the different phrases that were used. 30 00:02:30,150 --> 00:02:33,440 First we’ll talk about phrases like ‘in the drawer’, 31 00:02:33,440 --> 00:02:40,680 ‘in the cabinet’, and then we’ll talk about phrases like ‘to the left of’, ‘under the’, and so on. 32 00:02:40,680 --> 00:02:45,340 What are the places you heard where things can be in the kitchen? 33 00:02:45,340 --> 00:02:49,460 We have ‘in a drawer’, ‘in a cabinet’, 34 00:02:49,460 --> 00:02:54,780 ‘in the island’, and ‘on a shelf’. These are the containers. 35 00:02:54,780 --> 00:03:00,500 In a bedroom you might also have a dresser, or a nightstand. In an office, you might have 36 00:03:00,500 --> 00:03:04,170 a filing cabinet or a desk, or a book case. 37 00:03:04,170 --> 00:03:10,830 When we’re speaking generically, we use the article ‘a’, an indefinite article, 38 00:03:10,830 --> 00:03:18,280 which we pronounce with the schwa: 'a' It’s in a drawer. A-a. A drawer. 39 00:03:18,280 --> 00:03:26,330 I’m not saying which drawer. So I use ‘a’. But David used the definite article ‘the’. 40 00:03:26,330 --> 00:03:33,210 That’s because he was telling me specifically where things were. The exact drawer. 41 00:03:33,210 --> 00:03:36,990 - In the drawer next to the sink. - Oh right! 42 00:03:36,990 --> 00:03:40,030 In the drawer. 43 00:03:40,030 --> 00:03:47,700 Which word is the most clear in that phrase? It’s ‘drawer’. ‘In’ and ‘the’ are function words, 44 00:03:47,700 --> 00:03:52,220 they’re less important, we say them quickly, and you should as well. 45 00:03:52,230 --> 00:03:57,930 Don’t make every word of equal importance in American English. You will not sound natural. 46 00:03:57,930 --> 00:04:06,130 Take ‘in’ and ‘the’ and pronounce them like David did, quickly. In the. Listen again. 47 00:04:06,130 --> 00:04:10,250 In the drawer next to the sink. 48 00:04:10,250 --> 00:04:12,500 In the...In the...In the... 49 00:04:12,500 --> 00:04:18,880 I have a video that goes over the phrase ‘in the’ and other function word phrases with ‘the’. 50 00:04:18,880 --> 00:04:22,940 You’ll learn tips and tricks to make these phrases really quickly. 51 00:04:22,940 --> 00:04:26,520 I’ll put a link to that video at the end of this video. 52 00:04:26,520 --> 00:04:32,000 In the drawer. Ok, ‘drawer’. That’s a pretty hard word. 53 00:04:32,000 --> 00:04:36,080 We start with the DR consonant cluster, dr. 54 00:04:36,080 --> 00:04:43,900 DR can sound like JR, jj, jj, jjr; many Americans pronounce it this way. 55 00:04:43,900 --> 00:04:50,260 So if it’s easier for you to think of it as JR, drawer, then do so. 56 00:04:50,260 --> 00:04:56,620 For the R consonant, the tongue should be pulled back and up a bit so the tip isn’t touching anything, 57 00:04:56,620 --> 00:05:09,240 Drrrrrrr. See that the lips flare a bit. Drrrrrr. Next we have the AW as in LAW + R consonant. Draw. 58 00:05:09,240 --> 00:05:15,320 I made a video on the word ‘quarter’, which also has the AW + R combination. 59 00:05:15,320 --> 00:05:21,300 I explained that when the AW vowel is followed by R, the tongue is further back and the lips round 60 00:05:21,300 --> 00:05:25,040 more than when the AW vowel is not followed by the R. 61 00:05:25,040 --> 00:05:31,380 So it’s draw-, -aw-, -aw-. See how the lips round. 62 00:05:31,380 --> 00:05:36,860 The tongue pulls back in the mouth. Draw-. At the end of the video, 63 00:05:36,860 --> 00:05:42,879 I'll put a link to the video on the word ‘quarter’. For the R at the end of the word, we actually 64 00:05:42,879 --> 00:05:49,659 bring the tongue up a bit more forward again. Drawer. 65 00:05:49,659 --> 00:05:54,679 It should be lifted so the middle is close to, or lightly touching the sides of, 66 00:05:54,680 --> 00:05:58,300 the middle of the roof of the mouth. Drawer. 67 00:05:58,300 --> 00:06:04,340 Draaaawwwwrrrrr. 68 00:06:04,340 --> 00:06:12,980 In the drawer. Keep ‘in the’ short, and ‘drawer’ longer and clearer. In the drawer. 69 00:06:12,980 --> 00:06:16,300 Do that with me. In the drawer. 70 00:06:16,300 --> 00:06:22,879 What about cabinet? It’s a three syllable word, but many Americans drop the middle syllable. 71 00:06:22,880 --> 00:06:24,520 Listen to David. 72 00:06:24,520 --> 00:06:28,420 In the cabinet to the left of the sink. Cabinet. Cabinet. Cabinet. 73 00:06:28,420 --> 00:06:36,360 Cabinet, two syllables. You can do this too, why not make it a little easier. Cabinet. 74 00:06:36,360 --> 00:06:43,740 The back of the tongue comes up for the K consonant, touching the soft palate. Ca-. 75 00:06:43,740 --> 00:06:54,840 Next is the AA vowel, jaw drop, back of tongue lifted. Ca-cab-. Lips come together for the B, cab-. 76 00:06:54,840 --> 00:06:59,539 Then the tongue goes to the roof of the mouth for the N, and quickly flaps down 77 00:06:59,540 --> 00:07:02,420 for the vowel then right back up for the T. 78 00:07:02,420 --> 00:07:05,320 Cabinet. Nit. Nit. 79 00:07:05,320 --> 00:07:08,200 The second syllable should be shorter. 80 00:07:08,220 --> 00:07:15,480 Notice I’m stopping the air. I’m not releasing the T, cabinet. But, cabinet. 81 00:07:15,480 --> 00:07:18,880 This T is a Stop T if it’s at the end of a sentence, 82 00:07:18,880 --> 00:07:21,920 or if there’s a pause or break after it. 83 00:07:21,920 --> 00:07:29,640 It will be a Flap T, t- if it links to a word that begins with a vowel or diphthong, like ‘cabinet under’. 84 00:07:29,640 --> 00:07:33,500 Cabinet under. 85 00:07:33,500 --> 00:07:42,180 So something can be in a drawer, and it can be in a cabinet. Remember, ‘in the’ or ‘in a’ should be really quick. 86 00:07:42,189 --> 00:07:46,309 But we want to use ‘on’ with shelf. Listen to David. 87 00:07:46,309 --> 00:07:48,769 On the second shelf in the middle cabinet. 88 00:07:48,769 --> 00:07:54,149 Just like ‘in the’, ‘on the’ or ‘on a’ should be very fast. 89 00:07:54,149 --> 00:08:02,349 ‘Shelf’ begins with the SH consonant, she. Then we have the EH as in BED vowel and dark L. 90 00:08:02,349 --> 00:08:05,020 Shelf. 91 00:08:05,020 --> 00:08:12,560 Drop the jaw for the EH vowel, she-. The tongue lifts a bit in the middle. Shel-. 92 00:08:12,560 --> 00:08:18,080 Then we have the Dark L. Shel 93 00:08:18,080 --> 00:08:26,100 The back of the tongue presses back to get this sound: ull. Shel- 94 00:08:26,100 --> 00:08:34,860 Notice how the jaw relaxes back up. Shel-. And finally, the F consonant. The bottom lip comes up so 95 00:08:34,860 --> 00:08:43,620 the inside of it vibrates against the bottom of the top front teeth, ff. Shelf. Shelf. 96 00:08:43,620 --> 00:08:48,600 Something can also be ‘on’ the counter. Did you see the coffee pot? 97 00:08:48,600 --> 00:08:57,120 It was on the counter. Note with this word, some Americans drop the T after N, so it would sound like 'couner'. 98 00:08:57,120 --> 00:09:04,160 The coffee pot’s on the counter. I usually pronounce it this way. Couner. Counter. 99 00:09:04,160 --> 00:09:08,220 Now we have a different set of phrases to tell the specific location. 100 00:09:08,220 --> 00:09:12,110 Listen to the different locator phrases that David uses. 101 00:09:12,110 --> 00:09:16,660 In the drawer next to the sink. 102 00:09:16,660 --> 00:09:17,900 Next to- 103 00:09:17,900 --> 00:09:22,080 In the drawer to the right of the stove. 104 00:09:22,080 --> 00:09:23,420 To the right of- 105 00:09:23,420 --> 00:09:27,940 In the cabinet to the left of the sink. 106 00:09:27,940 --> 00:09:29,340 To the left of- 107 00:09:29,340 --> 00:09:32,900 In the middle drawer on the island. 108 00:09:32,900 --> 00:09:33,860 In the middle- 109 00:09:33,860 --> 00:09:37,660 No, all the way to the left. 110 00:09:37,660 --> 00:09:39,480 All the way to the left- 111 00:09:39,480 --> 00:09:43,020 It's above the refrigerator. 112 00:09:43,020 --> 00:09:49,580 Above. He could also have said “on top of”. On top of the refrigerator. 113 00:09:49,580 --> 00:09:53,960 It's in the cabinet under the sink. 114 00:09:53,960 --> 00:09:57,440 Under. ‘Under’ is the same as ‘below’. 115 00:09:57,440 --> 00:10:01,280 In the drawer below the oven. 116 00:10:01,280 --> 00:10:02,769 Below. 117 00:10:02,769 --> 00:10:08,989 For shelves or drawers, you can say ‘first’, ‘second’, ‘top’, ‘bottom’. 118 00:10:08,989 --> 00:10:16,209 On the second shelf in the middle cabinet. 119 00:10:16,209 --> 00:10:25,740 On the top shelf of the cabinet to the left of the stove. 120 00:10:25,740 --> 00:10:32,120 A lot of these phrases used ‘to’. Notice how David pronounces this, reduced to the schwa. 121 00:10:32,120 --> 00:10:39,100 To, to, very fast. Not ‘tooo’. To. Listen again. 122 00:10:39,100 --> 00:10:43,140 In the drawer to the right of the stove. 123 00:10:43,140 --> 00:10:51,180 To the right, to the left. Next to. American English is full of reductions like this, and they’re important. 124 00:10:51,180 --> 00:11:00,760 So pronounce this word with a quick schwa. Actually, these phrases had not just ‘to’, but ‘to the’. To the. 125 00:11:00,760 --> 00:11:05,760 Luckily, I have a video on that. Look for the link at the end of this video. 126 00:11:05,760 --> 00:11:12,119 Notice how we only need to make one T sound in the phrase ‘next to’. Next to. 127 00:11:12,120 --> 00:11:19,110 Think of dropping the first T and connecting the two words. Next to. Next to. 128 00:11:19,110 --> 00:11:25,160 So all of these directions have a bigger, or generic, location like a cabinet, a shelf 129 00:11:25,160 --> 00:11:33,380 in a cabinet, a drawer, and then a more specific location like ‘next to the sink’, ‘above the refrigerator’. 130 00:11:33,380 --> 00:11:40,400 Now you practice. I’m going to ask you a series of questions, and I want you to answer them out loud! 131 00:11:40,400 --> 00:11:44,040 If you need to, pause the video while you think of your answer. 132 00:11:44,040 --> 00:11:48,720 If you want to, try recording yourself answering one or all of the questions. 133 00:11:48,720 --> 00:11:54,560 Upload to Facebook or Instagram and use #RachelsEnglish so I can check it out. 134 00:11:54,560 --> 00:11:59,990 Ok, here are your questions. Don’t forget to practice out loud! 135 00:11:59,990 --> 00:12:03,430 Where do you keep your forks? 136 00:12:03,430 --> 00:12:07,020 Where are your glasses? 137 00:12:07,020 --> 00:12:11,520 Where’s your largest frying pan? 138 00:12:11,520 --> 00:12:17,760 Here’s the video on ‘to the’ that I mentioned earlier, and a video on reducing ‘to’. 139 00:12:17,760 --> 00:12:23,500 And here’s the video that goes over ‘in the’ and the video on ‘quarter’. 140 00:12:23,500 --> 00:12:26,740 Links are also in the description below. 141 00:12:26,740 --> 00:12:32,331 If you’re new to Rachel’s English, welcome. I have over 500 videos to help you speak better 142 00:12:32,340 --> 00:12:37,240 American English on my YouTube channel. Click here to visit my channel and subscribe. 143 00:12:37,240 --> 00:12:42,430 Or, see this playlist to get started with my videos. There’s no time like the present. 144 00:12:42,430 --> 00:12:48,040 Click now and start speaking better English. The link is also in the description below. 145 00:12:48,040 --> 00:12:54,340 And I have a great ebook – 290 pages with two and a half hours of audio. 146 00:12:54,340 --> 00:12:58,660 This book details my method for learning American English pronunciation. 147 00:12:58,660 --> 00:13:03,820 It organizes hundreds of my online videos into a path, start to finish, 148 00:13:03,820 --> 00:13:06,880 to help you speak beautifully and naturally. 149 00:13:06,880 --> 00:13:11,580 Click here or in the description below for more information and to purchase a copy. 150 00:13:11,580 --> 00:13:14,780 You’ll get free updates of the book for life. 151 00:13:14,780 --> 00:13:18,960 That’s it, and thanks so much for using Rachel’s English.