Good pronunciation is very important for good spoken communication. However you do not have to speak like a native English speaker to have good pronunciation.

There are many different natural varieties of English pronunciation in Britain and around the world. The activities and resources in this part of the site are designed to give an introduction to certain features of standard British English pronunciation, which is sometimes called Received Pronunciation (RP).

There are interactive and downloadable activities and materials which can be used for self-study or for teachers with lower-intermediate students.

Resources
Background information and other general resources on the topic of pronunciation.

The sounds of English
There is a system for writing the sounds of English. If you know this system it makes it much easier to work out the pronunciation of any English word. You don't even need a teacher, just a learner's dictionary.

Radio Programmes
Three radio programmes on the topic pronunciation. The programmes feature Alan Stanton, materials writer and pronunciation expert. You can download the full programmes along with the script and audio examples.

Similar sounds
There are some vowel sounds in English which are very similar. It's easy to get them wrong as those different sounds might not appear in your language. For example, Spanish speakers may find it very difficult to hear the difference between the words 'ship' and 'sheep'.

Each of the five units gives practice in some of these similar sounds. You can listen to examples and then you have the chance to test how good your hearing is in interactive exercises.

Unit 1: Key and Pin

Unit 2: Book and Do

Unit 3: Door and Coat

Unit 4: Egg, Cat and Cup

Unit 5: Sock and Coat

Building knowledge
In these units we give more information about different elements of English pronunciation. There are also interactive and downloadable exercises to help you build your understanding of pronunciation.

Sounds and spelling

Schwa

Connected speech