Polish my english
August 7th, 2016
Need help, i will apply for a job in a call center. And basically my english need more polishing. Any sites or steps you recommend to improve my english?
http://www.google.com?t=847187
or resetta stone.
If you look at this site you’ll find free English language courses.
http://www.google.com?t=19344840
Thanks guys
I’m sure you’ll find these Youtube English teachers extremely handy:
http://www.youtube.com/user/rachelsenglish
http://www.youtube.com/user/JenniferESL
https://www.youtube.com/user/TeacherPhilEnglish
http://www.youtube.com/user/SeattleLearning
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uc2Y7xxkp5s
Also, I suggest you download The American Accent Course – 50 Rules You Must Know:
http://www.google.com?t=19329820
If you don’t have a debrid account, Just use this premium link generator:
http://www.exrapidleech.info/
Forvo can also be a good resource (If you’re unsure on how to pronounce certain words)
http://www.forvo.com/
Now I’m gonna teach you some stuff:
1. Vowels sounds are considered A, E, I, O, U (And Y, As long as it doesn’t start the word)
Others are considered “consonants”
2. In a lot of words and sentences, Americans replace the letter T for a quick D (For a quicker, Smoother speech. This is often referred to as a Flap T) There are specific rules of when to do this. Let me be more specific about those:
A) When the T is between two unstressed vowels, Or between an R and a vowel. For example in the word “better you would pronounce it as “bedder. And “party should be pronounced as “pardy” (Remember, This is a quick D sound, And not a long one, So should be pronounced quickly)
This also depends on the next word in the sentence as well, For example in the sentence “you’ll regret it” the T in the word “regret” by itself is not between two vowels, But the next word in the sentence starts with a vowel, therefore you flap it (regred). Do keep in mind however that despite these rules, Some specific words are generally not flapped as they sound much worse that way (For example “dated”, This word is generally not flapped, As it just sounds ridicules as “daded”) B) In words that have GHT in em, You generally remove the GH part as it’s unvoiced and still apply the flap rule.
For example “daughter” would be pronounced as “dau-der” Remember, The next word in the sentence affects this too, A good example for this is the word “thought*”
if you remove the GH, You got a U before the T (which is a vowel), By itself you cannot flap it.
But in a sentence such as “I thought of it” you’d flap it.
C) Don’t ask me why, But in the words “turtle” and “title” Americans do flap it.
D) Despite it not being grammatically correct, It’s acceptable to replace T’s with D’s when speaking really fast.
This most often occurs with words that have TH in em (Such as “with” and “without”)
3. Reductions of personal pronouns. In a sentence, You can reduce the words her/him and remove the H component (As long as it doesn’t start the sentence) so for example “I told her” would be reduced to “I told er” (But this only applies in pronunciation, So if you have to write it down, You’d still leave the H in place)
Americans do this all the time!
4. Pronounce “cloths” as “cloze”, Months as “munce” and shirt as “shert” (with a strong emphasis on the SH part, Just refer to forvo for examples), Also, Pronounce “Women” as “Wimen” (Women refers to multiple woman, While Woman refers to a single one!)
5. In order to produce the TH sound in words such as think/thought, You should have your tongue slightly touching your upper teeth. 6. When giving someone your phone number, It’s completely acceptable (and popular) to replace 0 (zero) with an O (The letter O) when you pronounce it (I.E five five five, O, five nine)
7. Pronunciation of DR/TR/TU/DU
DR should be pronounced as JR (Drive = J’rive, Dream= J’ream, Drugs = J’rugs)
TR should be pronounced as CH (I.E “Tree” would be pronounced as “CH’ree” and “truck” as “CH’ruck”
TU should also be pronounced as CH (But only when it doesn’t start the word, Like in “Actually”)
DU should be pronounced as JEW (For example, “Education” should be pronounced as “Eh-Jew-Cation”
8. Reductions of commonly used words/sentences. In similar to T/D, Americans do this for a smoother speech. Let me list you some of those:
Original – Reduced
———————-
Attitude – Attiue (The T before the UDE is not flapped, As it’s a stressed vowel)
Plenty – Plenny
Twenty – Twenny
Twenties – Twennies
Interrupt – Innerupt
Interaction – Inneraction
Internet – Innernet
Interesting – Inneresting
Interested – Innerested
Interview – Innerview
Often – Ofen Credit Card – Credi Card
Trying to – Tryna Should of – Shouda
Could of – Coulda
Would of – Woulda
Wanted – Wanned
Wanting – Wanning
Want – Wann (This reduction should not be used at the start of a sentence, Or at the end of it, Only in the middle. For example “you gotta wann it more than anything” but not in “what do you want”)
Probably – Probly (Pronounced “pra-bly) or Prolly (Pronounced pra-ly) [First one is more popular]
Want to – Wanna
Sort of – Sorta Kind of – Kinda
All of these reductions (Apart from the last 3) should only be used in pronunciation and not in written form!
You don’t have to always reduce em, But the reduced form does sound better in some sentences.
But if you ask me, You should always reduce Probably/Twenty/Twenties/Wanted/Wanting/Often/Plenty/Interrupt/Interaction/Interview/Credit card because these words are almost always reduced by native American speakers.
Hope you learned a lot from all of this, And good luck!
Hi! ,
Need help, i will apply for a job in a call center. And basically my english need more polishing. Any sites or steps you recommend to improve my english?
Whatever you do, you’ll need a thick skin – I swear and abuse like crazy to call centre muppets!
Honestly – I’d rather shovel shiit then work in a call centre (actually, I DID make that choice around 9 years ago!).
Edit – bloody hell, – where are you from?
I don’t pronounce hardly ANY of those words the way you say they are..
Attitude – Attiue
Plenty – Plenny Twenty – Twenny Twenties – Twennies Interrupt – Innerupt Interaction – Inneraction Internet – Innernet Interesting – Inneresting Interested – Innerested Interview – Innerview Often – Ofen
?????? – nope, none of those – I say the damn “T”s! In-ter-net.
For example in the word “better you would pronounce it as “bedder. And “party should be pronounced as “pardy” – DEAR GODDESS!!
Oh – you DID say “Americans replace the letter T for a quick D” – I missed that on first read.
That explains a LOT..
*walks away muttering about butchered languages*
Just a few more things I forgot to mention, In the words climb/dumb/bomb the final B is silent (You don’t pronounce it!) and mountain should be pronounced as mounten. Also, While you replace DR with JR in most words, You don’t do it with the name “Sandra”, And it’s also not popular to do it with the word “Address” (But some people do), And in words that ends with TTEN/TTON (Such as button/written) you do pronounce the O (E) part of it (In the The American Accent Course I’ve linked you to above, The teacher claims that you shouldn’t pronounce the O/E parts in such words, But I’ve personally never heard anyone doing this so I think she’s mistaken, And it also sounds ridicules if you say butt and then take a long break for the N)
Edit: Also, The L in the words “almost” and “alright” is silent (You pronounce these as aw-most and aw-right) And “girl” is pronounced as “gurl” (with a fairly long R sound)
Honestly - I'd rather shovel shiit then work in a call centre (actually, I DID make that choice around 9 years ago!).
Sounds quite interesting!
What kinda sh*t are we talking about here? Dog/Cow/Horse? And how did it smell like? Do tell! bloody hell, - where are you from?
I’m from K-Pax! (If you ever saw the movie, You’d get the joke)
I’m actually not from an English speaking country (But you would’ve never guessed I’m sure!)
I did study English in school, But the teaching level was crap (or rubbish if you prefer calling it that way)
I’ve learned most of my vocabulary/pronunciation from watching TV shows (Mainly American ones) with subtitles.
Also from listening to music & youtubers. I’ve also used some of the resources I’ve mentioned above to improve it further, As well as been to the US/Uk on a number of occasions. ?????? - nope, none of those - I say the damn "T"s! In-ter-net.
Well, Americans value quick speech, Which is why they’ve made their own set of rules and reductions in order to achieve it. They just don’t like getting stuck in a sentence, Or put too much effort in pronouncing it. Some more examples:
did you – did’j you
what you do – what’j you do
would you – would’j you
what you want – what’ch you want
If you were to pronounce it without the J/CH parts, You’d have to pronounce each word in separate.
But the J/CH parts allows you to link em together for a smoother speech (You can pronounce “did’j you” in one go, but without the J, You’d have to literally pronounce it one word after the other!)
While I’m at it, I’d like to point out that Americans pronounce “literally” as lidder-ah-lee (Or just lidderly in quick speech) while Brits pronounce it as lee-cher-ah-lee/lee-cher-lee (But I’m sure you already know that!)
Wow, I could have been one heck of an English teacher
Honestly - I'd rather shovel shiit then work in a call centre (actually, I DID make that choice around 9 years ago!).
Sounds quite interesting!
What kinda sh*t are we talking about here? Dog/Cow/Horse? And how did it smell like? Do tell!
Human…
I used to pump out those damn portable toilets on building sites – and a really sad little job it was too; in Australia, summertime was 40-45C outside and, I swear, 50 inside the dunny!
bloody hell, - where are you from?
I'm from K-Pax! (If you ever saw the movie, You'd get the joke)
Yes – saw it and get it – good movie!
If you were to pronounce it without the J/CH parts, You'd have to pronounce each word in separate.
But the J/CH parts allows you to link em together for a smoother speech (You can pronounce "did'j you" in one go, but without the J, You'd have to literally pronounce it one word after the other!)
While I'm at it, I'd like to point out that Americans pronounce "literally" as lidder-ah-lee (Or just lidderly in quick speech) while Brits pronounce it as lee-cher-ah-lee/lee-cher-lee (But I'm sure you already know that!)
Wow, I could have been one heck of an English teacher :roll:
True, but Ebonics came from America too, and they say “baby momma” (without any plurals or ownerships noted).. so while it might be reasonable to speed up a sentence, reasonable doesn’t make it good..
I sometimes say “twenny” (i was in oz for a while, and they copy a lot of American speaking faults), but i’m trying to train it out of me.
Celia Pacquola (Aussie comedian): “A wristy is a hand-job.. but “hand-job” sound too much like WORK, you’ll never get one from a Kiwi. But they’ll give you a wristy any day…
LOL – there’s something to be said for the evolution of languages and words.. “wristy” indeed!!
I used to pump out those damn portable toilets on building sites - and a really sad little job it was too;
Sounds nasty, Hope you didn’t catch an infection!
Some more UK vs US differences (Toilet>Bathroom and also Restroom if it doesn’t actually contain a bathtub/shower in it) STI (Sexually Transmitted Infection)>STD (Sexually Transmitted Disease)
Thought it’d be quite amusing in this context.
so while it might be reasonable to speed up a sentence, reasonable doesn't make it good..
Well, It’s a pretty standard thing in the US and Canada (Which follows the same pronunciation rules)
No one would look at you funny if you do it there (As they do it on a regular basis), But I get why this may sound strange to you as it’s not a common practice in your country. I sometimes say "twenny" (i was in oz for a while, and they copy a lot of American speaking faults), but i'm trying to train it out of me.
Good idea, You wouldn’t wanna be mistaken for a foreigner in your own country! (That would be hilarious I bet!)
Uses more slang than I do… like a real cockney… lol
Thank you, this all will be a great help!
Edit - bloody hell, - where are you from?
I don't pronounce hardly ANY of those words the way you say they are..
Attitude - Attiue
Plenty - Plenny Twenty - Twenny Twenties - Twennies Interrupt - Innerupt Interaction - Inneraction Internet - Innernet Interesting - Inneresting Interested - Innerested Interview - Innerview Often - Ofen
?????? - nope, none of those - I say the damn "T"s! In-ter-net.
For example in the word "better you would pronounce it as "bedder. And "party should be pronounced as "pardy" - DEAR GODDESS!!
Oh - you DID say "Americans replace the letter T for a quick D" - I missed that on first read.
That explains a LOT..
*walks away muttering about butchered languages*
Edit: Also, The L in the words "almost" and "alright" is silent (You pronounce these as aw-most and aw-right) did you - did'j you what you do - what'j you do would you - would'j you what you want - what'ch you want
I may be an old f*** but wow, talk about butchered language, even for American
Speak English like this and you will sound like a teenage kid or an uneducated yokel. Trust me, people expect call center support to speak English poorly. Its become a painful inevitability in this age of globalized outsourcing.
Don’t get caught up and confused by pronunciations. Focus on learning and knowing the correct words and phrases, not trying to pronounce things with an “American” accent.
I may be an old f*** but wow, talk about butchered language, even for American
Speak English like this and you will sound like a teenage kid or an uneducated yokel.
Try telling that to 318 million Americans and 35 million Canadians!
Trust me, people expect call center support to speak English poorly
Still, There’s nothing wrong with exceeding someone’s expectations!
If you’re gonna learn something new, Why not do your best?
If you’re gonna get into it with an attitude of “I’m gonna suck at it” then there’s no point.
Now just check ‘ere …This is your basic call center vocabulary Mujibar was trying to get a job in India.
The Person Manager said, "Mujibar, you have passed all the tests except one. Unless you pass it you cannot qualify for this job."
Mujibar said, "I am ready."
The Manager said, "Make a sentence using the words Yellow, Pink and Green."
Mujibar thought for a few minutes and said, "Mister Manager, I am ready."
The Manager said, "Go ahead."
Mujibar said, "The telephone goes green, green, green, and I pink it up, and say, 'Yellow, this is Mujibar.'"
Mujibar now works as a technician at a call center for computer problems. No doubt you have spoken to him.
Anyhow matey, just concentrate on the English, you can leave the Polish till later.. I guess your aim is to speak understandably to the people in the Country you are speaking to.
Hey, have you struck the latest ? ..They ring you up to sell you something and then put you on hold until they are ready
I used to pump out those damn portable toilets on building sites - and a really sad little job it was too;
Sounds nasty, Hope you didn't catch an infection!
Quite the opposite – I had an absolute biitching immune system! – even cuts and scrapes healed up almost overnight (like my body was saying “Oh crap, lets seal this cut up before “Oh crap” get into it!!”
I sometimes say "twenny" (i was in oz for a while, and they copy a lot of American speaking faults), but i'm trying to train it out of me.
Good idea, You wouldn't wanna be mistaken for a foreigner in your own country! (That would be hilarious I bet!)
This will amuse you – I’m up north, UK. When I go into Newcastle, I often have to ask shop people to repeat themselves, it IS like a foreign land!! Hahaha!!
Still, There's nothing wrong with exceeding someone's expectations!
If you're gonna learn something new, Why not do your best?
If you're gonna get into it with an attitude of "I'm gonna suck at it" then there's no point.
Oh – just IMAGINE the fun you could have – everyone expects a call centre to butcher the language.. and then he comes out with:
“Oh, I say, Sir – might I interest you in our spiffing new product?”
“What-ho!”
ROFL!!!