Challenging Sounds: P vs. B

For some English language learners, the “P” and “B” sounds are difficult to produce. Let’s take a look at the differences and do some practice!

B and P are both bilabial plosive sounds, which means they are made by putting your lips together, then force air out of your mouth and open your mouth.

The one important and only difference is that:

B is voiced
P is unvoiced

That means that when you make a B sound, you engage your vocal chords. How do you know if your vocal chords are engaged? You will hear your voice and you can also feel your vocal chords in your throat if you put your hand on your neck. B is a little less intense sounding than P, meaning that you don’t have to force the air out of your mouth as much.

When you make a P sound, you do not engage your vocal chords. There is no sound coming from your voice. The only sound that we should hear is from the release of air coming out of your mouth, through your lips. The air “explodes” out of your mouth.

Try these minimal pairs for practice:

• Bees / Peas
• Belize / please
• base / pace
• butter / putter
• buck / puck
• bye / pie

Practice saying these words and differentiating them. Try recording yourself and listening to your own voice.

Challenging Sounds: R vs. L

For some English learners, it is difficult to tell the difference between the “R” sound and the “L” sound in English. Unfortunately for those people, the sounds are important to differentiate. In some cases, mispronouncing the sounds can result in misunderstanding!

In many examples, R or L change the meaning of a word. For example: collect/correct. I’m sure you can understand when you see the whole phrase. For example, “I co**ect stamps.” or “Your answer is co**ect.” You can guess, and you’ll probably be right. The problem is, most people prefer to communicate clearly and concisely. If someone is busy, they may not feel they have the time or energy to figure out if you’re saying R or L. It can slow down communication. And in the world of business, time is money and many people are impatient.

The R and L sounds may be different in your first language than in English.

When you think of an English “R,” think of a pirate saying “Arrrrr!” Your mouth will form an “O” shape, your lips should stick out, and your tongue should be in the middle of your mouth, not touching any part of your mouth. It is softer than a Spanish “R,” which in English sounds more like a “D” sound.

When you think of an English “L,” think of a person singing “La, la la!” Your mouth will open, your lips do not stick out, and most importantly, your tongue should touch behind your top front teeth/gum area to produce the sound correctly. The “L” sound in English is sharper than the “L/ R” sound in Japanese or Chinese and results from placing your tongue behind your front teeth.

Try these minimal pairs for practice:

• Correct / Collect
• Red / Led
• Rice / Lice
• Rack / Lack
• Read / Lead
• Rate / Late

Keep going, I know you can do it with practice!

Volume and Voice Control

Here is a basic tip to improve your communication in English: Speak louder! A loud voice not only helps people to hear the words you’re saying, it also sends a message of confidence.

Sometimes when you learn a new language, you worry about making mistakes, so your voice is not confident. Don’t worry so much; it’s expected to make mistakes! Speak up! Your conversation partners will be able to hear you better, which is a requirement for understanding.

How can you speak louder without yelling or screaming? Let me tell you some tips I learned in an acting class in college that can help you with everyday communication - and will help if you are ever find yourself on a stage!

1. Use your diaphragm, the muscle below your ribcage, to breathe in deeply and force more air out from your lungs when you speak. More air = louder.
2. Look to the farthest point in the room, and imagine you are speaking to someone there. Make
   your voice travel to the farthest place in the room, or even better, make your voice travel to the
   room next door.
3. Open your mouth wider and keep your head up. Your mouth is like a megaphone, the thing police and cheerleaders like to use to make sure everyone hears them, so it needs to open wide so sound can be released.
4. Use your tongue, lips and teeth to enunciate, or clearly pronounce, each sound you are saying.
5. Make stressed syllables and stressed words even louder than the others.

Of course, you have to find a good volume – not too loud, not too quiet. Use your social intelligence to check other peoples’ reactions when you talk.

Try these speaking tips and your success with communication in English should increase. And as an added benefit, you will probably seem more confident and approachable. When you speak on the telephone or on a web-conference like Skype your volume is especially important

Extra Tip: It is a great idea to try recording yourself and listening to your actual voice and volume as others hear you. Use your computer or cell phone - it’s easy!