Connected Speech

In connected speech, the word "and" is often reduced to [ǝn], or even just the single consonant sound [n].

When a word ends in /i:/ or a diphthong ending in /ɪ/ (/ey/, /aɪ/, or /ɔɪ/), and the next word begins with a vowel sound, we often hear a glide ( [j] as in 'yard' and 'yellow') between the words as they flow together smoothly.

Listen for this glide [j] after words like 'city,' 'rely,' 'early,' 'me,' and 'my.' Repeat after the speakers, letting the words flow smoothly in "rely on," "day of," "the only," "early age," "city of," and "my ultimate." You'll hear each example three times.

The sound of 'th' as in that, this, the ([ð] in the international phonetic alphabet), is not found in many languages, and some learners find it difficult.

But if you've struggled with this sound, here's some good news: native speakers don't always pronounce it clearly, either – sometimes we leave it out completely!

And knowing when we don't pronounce it clearly will help you understand better when people speak quickly.

It has to do with this special combination: when one words ends in the sound 'n,' and the next word begins with 'th' as in that, this, the. You'll see this sequence all the time in phrases like "in the," "on this," "been there, done that," "when they," and so on.)

In quick, everyday speech, these will be pronounced without a clear 'th.'

In these clips you'll hear each example twice in isolation, and then in context:

You may be wondering: if the 'th' in "in the" drops out, how do we know the person isn't saying "in a"?

Great question!

There's a small difference that most native speakers don't think about. Read (and listen!) on for the full story.

Sounds like p, b, t, d, k, and g are called "stops" because the flow of air is stopped, and then released.

When one word ends in a stop, and the next word begins with a consonant, the final stop is often not released.

Listen to how the final -t sound in these phrases is not heard clearly:

The /t/ in "first five" and "it would" are not pronounced in these examples: listen first in isolation, then in context.

In some cases, this means that the past tense verb ending -ed/-d is not heard. Listen carefully to the first example in each pair: it may not even sound like a past tense! Then listen to the example in context.

There are times when it may be hard to decide whether you've heard "have" or "of." Visit this page for an interactive video, then try a mini-dictation challenge.

Sometimes it may be hard to know whether you've heard "can" or "can't" ... but the difference can be very important!

Visit this page for a video with tips on how we really pronounce "can" and "can't" in North America, then try a mini-dictation challenge.