Shadowing Practice: MASTER English Pronunciation | DIFFICULT SOUNDS (TH, B, P, CH, SH) - Learn English Speaking with Video

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Hello and my name is James.
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Welcome to Easy English with James.
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And today I want to talk to you a little bit about pronunciation.
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Now, pronunciation is one of the things that most people find most difficult when studying English.
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Everyone wants to sound like a native speaker.
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And there are some hiccups, some problems along the way.
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There are some sounds that most people find very difficult and today we're going to look at them sounds.
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Our first sound today is the th sound.
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Now this sound can be split into two different types.
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The first is a voiced sound.
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This is the sound that you hear when people say words like the or those, these.
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And it's caused by vibrating your tongue.
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If you imagine a mobile phone, when it's ringing it vibrates.
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If you put your tongue out of your mouth just in between your teeth
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and you vibrate your tongue as you make the sound th, th, th.
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This is the sound that you want to make when you produce the th voiced sound.
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This, that, these, those, them and their.
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The other th sound is a voiceless sound.
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This is what we say when you hear words like theatre,
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theatre or thank you or Thursday
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or even the popular superhero character Thor okay this sound is
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a little bit different what we do is we do the
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same thing we put the tongue out of the mouth
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but this time we blow air in between the tongue and the top of our mouth like this
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okay so every time somebody says thank you
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or Thursday what they're doing is blowing
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that air out of their mouth this is one of the most important sounds
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and if you get this right I promise you people will think
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that your ability to to pronounce English is really on quite
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a high level the next sound actually this is more like two sounds
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but they're often confused with each other the first is the CH sound as as in chat
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or chips or change and the second is the sh sound as in shoot or ship or shine
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now the mouth is in the same position okay like so sh but for the sh sound that's this one
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The SH sound we control it by continually making the sound for a little bit longer.
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Like so.
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The CH sound right here we make by making a strong blast of sound.
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Like so.
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CH CH CH.
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You might have heard a common tongue twister with this one.
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For the SH sound we have tongue twisters like she sells sea shells by the seashore.
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For the CH you might have a tongue twister like how much wood could a woodchuck chuck
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if a woodchuck could chuck wood.
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Practice both of these and
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if you can master these two sounds again it will really help you to produce a natural sounding voice
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when you're speaking and communicating in English.
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The next two sounds.
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Very very similar problem.
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We have the P sound as in pot or pig
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or pepper and the bee sound as in baby bad bigger these two sounds also can be called voiced
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and unvoiced or voiceless
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and a lot of people have problems with these two sounds
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it's quite hard for a non-native native speaker to hear the difference.
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But it's very important to know the difference between the two.
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The first sound, our p sound, comes from down in your belly
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and it's produced by blasting air out of the mouth as you put your mouth into this position.
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Pot, pig, pepper, police
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but the b sound there is none of this blasting feeling
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for the b sound it's simply a vibration somewhere down here again like
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so big better bellow bad and you can hear the difference between
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that sound okay if you practice these two sounds you'll find
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that your ability to hear the difference when people are speaking to you improves as you practice.
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So it's a good idea to repeat these sounds as often as possible.
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Okay, thanks for joining us today.
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If you liked this video, please hit like and subscribe for more content like this in the future.
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Okay?
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See you again for the next video.

Why practice speaking with this video?

Improving your English pronunciation is essential if you want to communicate effectively and sound like a native speaker. The video "MASTER English Pronunciation | DIFFICULT SOUNDS (TH, B, P, CH, SH)" offers targeted exercises that can significantly enhance your speaking skills. By focusing on challenging sounds such as th, ch, and sh, you can correct common pronunciation errors that hinder clear communication. Utilizing the shadow speech technique demonstrated in the video, learners can replicate sounds and intonations effectively, reinforcing their speaking abilities. As you learn English with YouTube, take advantage of these practical exercises to build confidence in your pronunciation.

Grammar & Expressions in Context

Throughout the video, several key structures and phrases are used that can help learners understand the context of pronunciation better:

  • “This is the sound that you want to make” - This phrase encourages learners to focus on the correct mouth and tongue positions, making it clear what is expected.
  • “You might have heard a common tongue twister” - The use of tongue twisters emphasizes practice techniques that boost fluency, making learning more engaging and fun.
  • “If you get this right” - This phrase motivates learners by showing the importance of mastering certain sounds for achieving a natural-sounding voice.

These expressions can serve as a guide as you practice speaking and embrace the shadowing technique. Employing such structures in your practice can lead to a deeper understanding of the sounds you produce and improve both your listening and speaking skills.

Common Pronunciation Traps

In this video, several words may pose challenges for learners:

  • TH sounds - Many learners struggle with the voiced th (as in "the") and voiceless th (as in "thank"). Practicing these sounds can drastically enhance your clarity.
  • CH and SH sounds - Confusing these sounds is common. The distinct pronunciation of ch (as in "chat") versus sh (as in "ship") requires attention to detail and practice through the shadowing app for best results.
  • P and B sounds - These voiced and voiceless pairs can lead to miscommunication if not articulated clearly. Mastering their differences through shadow speak allows for improvement in linkages and syllable stress during speech.

Putting focused effort on these tricky pronunciations will not only prepare you for real-life conversations but also enhance your listening skills, enabling you to understand native speakers better. By embracing these practices, you’re on a path to mastering English pronunciation.

What is the Shadowing Technique?

Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.