IELTS Speaking Test can be a tough nut to crack if your pronunciation is not correct. For non-native English speakers, certain words can be difficult to pronounce correctly. Many people in Pakistan pronounce bread as braid, chewing gum as cheeingum, water as waater.
IELTS preparation tips pronunciation
You can be in any part of the world if you are a non-native English speaker, pronunciation is a difficult skill to acquire and most of the times we overlook the need to learn the correct pronunciation skills. As a non-native English speaker, you will have a unique way/twang to pronounce certain words. On top of this, if you are appearing for IELTS Speaking Test, you will have difficulty in scoring higher, OR if you are facing issues in the way you pronounce words, don't worry. By following the below-given tips you can easily improve your pronunciation skills.
1. Speak! Don't be shy!
If you want to improve your pronunciation, do not shy away from speaking whenever you get a chance to. Some people are introverts and might feel have some inhibitions while speaking in public, so start speaking with a close friend or a family member. It is always better to get a professional trainer for practice.
2. Record yourself
Getting feedback is always helpful, but you are your best critic. Listen to an English sentence spoken by a native speaker and then record your voice while speaking the same sentence. You will be able to note the difference in your pronunciation.
3. Imitate native speakers
Human beings learn primarily by imitating. Listen as much as you can to native English language speakers. You will learn to speak at a relaxed pace and observe how to intonate while pronunciation. Make a habit of listening to only English content, like English movies, English news, English music etc. Last but not least, make use of online dictionaries to check the word meaning and pronunciation of some difficult words in the English language.
4. Learn and speak slowly
If you think that by speaking fast will make you a better English speaker, then you are wrong. It is not speaking fast but, speaking clearly and slowly reflects thought and confidence in your speech. If you need to think, slow down and give yourself a moment to think and restructure & rephrase your sentences.
5. Break down the words
Practice breaking down certain words while speaking. This will reflect confidence and the examiner will be impressed by knowing that you really know what you're saying.
6. Focus on words that seem similar
Focus on certain words like way - weigh, wait-weight, address - address, read and read. The words sound similar but have a different meaning when used in a sentence. You should group such words so that you know the difference of where to stress and not stress for it to make sense to the listener.
7. Practice by forming sentences
Pronunciation focuses on imparting important information through a sentence. This means that focusing on the right word in a sentence is also important.
For example - "I particularly like reading books on ancient world history."
8. Join language practice community
Free4talk.com - One of the famous free online language practice community platform, where anyone joined the group for practice, improve, learn and maintain English language speaking and listing skills.
These are some of the many ways in which you can improve your pronunciation for the IELTS Speaking Test. Keep practising and enjoy the journey!
