This is probably a video I should have made ages ago because you guys have been asking
for it for so so long. So today, we're going to look at five ways to sound more British.
Hey guys welcome, if you haven't met me before my name is Tom and I teach fresh modern British
English so you guys can take your English to the next level and achieve your life goals
whatever they are. Now today we're looking at five ways to sound more British. So I've
picked out five features of British English that differentiate it from American English.
Now of course there are many variations of British English, there are lots of different
accents. So I'm going to teach you with my accent which is a London accent, it's a southern
English accent but I will be referencing other accents in Britain. So I'm going to be contrasting
all these features of British English with American English examples so that you can
see the difference. Alright so if you are ready, let's get in to number one. Alright
our feature is the vowel sound /a/. In my accent I would say /a/ but in American English
they would say /a/. Now let's take the word banana, as you can hear I'm saying the second
vowel there /a/ banana. In American English that's banana. So they are using the /a/ sound
Now there is a split in British English as well. So in Britain a lot of the accents further
north in England and Scotland are going to have the /a/ sound whereas in the south, in
London and those kind of areas around London, it's going to be the /a/ sound. Ok, so I'm
going to choose a few words and I'm going to say it in a southern British English accent
and then I'm going to do it in an American accent to give you that contrast. So banana.
Bath. Laugh. Example. The Sahara. Don't get me wrong guys my American accent isn't perfect
alright! I know that it's not quite right. I'm giving you an approximation of what it
sounds like, ok? So yeah forgive me America for my slightly poor pronunciation. But yeah
if we take a word like 'bath' for example. In southern England yeah you are going to
hear bath but in northern England it'll be bath. So again you are getting that /a/ sound.
So there is a split in Britain as well as different countries so yeah so if you are
looking at British English you have to be aware of which accent you want to learn and
therefore which sound you are going to use in that vowel. Are you going to use the /a/
or the /a/? It's up to you, whichever one you want.
Now number two, we're still on the vowel sounds but we've swapped the vowel sounds round.
So in British English I'm saying /a/ and in American English I'm saying /a/. So let's
take the word pasta. In British English we're going to say pasta with the /a/ sound there.
But in American English that /a/ is actually an /a/ so it's pasta. Now we find this pattern
with all anglicised versions of foreign words or loan words. So pasta is obviously an Italian
word. It's been brought over to British English, we're going to say pasta but in American English
pasta. Take the famous painter Picasso. It's a foreign name, ok. Brought into British English
we're saying Picasso but in American English Picasso. So it's the /a/ sound there. Lasagna,
ok another Italian word. Lasagna in British English but in American English lasagna. Now
there is one sound that really defines what British English is about and that's the /t/.
Now let's take the name Harry Potter. Everybody knows Harry Potter, right? Now the /t/ there
Potter. I'm saying it with the clear /t/. We also have the glottal T in British English.
That's where we glide over the /t/ sound. It disappears. So instead of saying Harry
Potter, it's Harry Potter. Ok, so yeah it's called a glottal T. It's a feature in quite
a few accents in British English. So it's either Potter or Potter. In American English
they use the flap T which again glides over that sound. It sounds like a /d/. So instead
of saying Harry Potter, it's Harry Potter. Ok, I know that wasn't perfect America but
hey come on, I'm trying here. Now Potter, it's a glide, it's a soft glide over that
/t/ sound. So we have had three sounds there. Potter. Same applies to the word water. Water
pronouncing the t, with the glottal T it's water. And in American English water. Again
that flap T gliding over that sound. Daughter. With the glottal T daughter and with the American
English daughter. Butter. Hmmm are you starting to get it now? Are you starting to feel those
different sounds?
Aright! Next one.
Feature number four is the schwa sound. This is the most common sound in British English.
The eh sound. I've done a video all about the schwa , if you want to go check it out
I'll link it right up there. So we fin the schwa sound commonly when the word ends in
/r/ so for example better. The eh there, better. With that glottal T better but I'll use it
with the /t/ so better. Now in American English what they do is they really pronounce that
/r/ so it's not better, it's better and you've got that /r/ the /r/ sound at the end. So
in British English we say better, in American English better. Take the word bigger. In British
English bigger, in American English bigger. Alright so those are four really interesting
pronunciation features of British English. Now one that people often forget about is
word stress. Now word stress is a real feature of British English and contrasting it with
other types of English particularly with American English. So if we take the word Adult. In
British English we are stressing it on the first syllable Adult but in American English
they are shifting that stress to the second syllable, adult. So it's adult in British
English, adult in American English. There are a few examples of this. If you look at
the noun for address, like the residential address. In British English it's address,
so the second syllable is getting the stress but in American English address it's going
on the first syllable. There are lots of different examples. One that i want to look at particularly
is French words that have come into English. So take for example buffet. In British English
buffet, we are pronouncing it as we want buffet. The stress goes on the first syllable buffet.
But in American English they are keeping the same stress as the original French word so
it's buffet. Stress on the last syllable. The same with gourmet. Gourmet in British
English the stress is on the first syllable, in American English it's going on the last
syllable gourmet. Massage. So you can see the pattern here. So if you want
to sound more British in your pronunciation think about the word stress. Think about how
you are stressing each word, that will indicate what type of English you are speaking. Alright
that's five features of British English contrasted with American English. Now if you have enjoyed
that video please give it a big thumbs up and let me know if you would like another
video because there are so many other features of British English. I could talk about it
all day. So if you would like another one, let me know in the comments below. I could
do a part two, I'd be happy to so let me know. If you do want to dive a little bit deeper
into the different pronunciation of words and particularly word stress, then I have
done a video all about that. So check it, I'll just link it right above. If you have
enjoyed this video I'm sure you'll enjoy that one as well.
Eat Sleep Dreamers check it out, I've just got my very own Eat Sleep Dream t-shirt. How
cool is that? It was designed by a very good friend of mine and superb British artist called
Rob Lee. I'm super excited, it fits perfectly. I'm loving it, I'm absolutely loving it. I'll
put a link in the description below so you can go and check him out. His work is amazing.
Anyway he designed it for me and I got it printed. It's really comfy. So cool! Anyway
guys, thank you so much for hanging out with me. This is Tom, the Chief Dreamer, saying
goodbye.