Do you cringe at the sound of your voice? A lot of us do, and when speaking a second language like English, it could be for different reasons. But if you wish to speak English fluently, you have to become comfortable with your voice. In this episode I’ll talk about how your voice works, and why you shouldn’t change it to sound like someone else but find a place where your voice feels comfortable and sounds like YOU. Go here to watch the video version of the episode: https://theaccentsway.com/do-you-hate-your-voice/ Videos mentioned in this episode: “Breathing & Voice” an interview with Ori, a yoga and breathing therapist https://youtu.be/-7MF_gRyj1c How to Use Your Voice in ENGLISH to Sound Powerful and Confident https://youtu.be/_QcygiLnKPw Do you change your voice when you speak English? Here’s why (+ listen to my voice in Hebrew?) https://youtu.be/qFbjwopad7c  And if you’re interested in learning more about your voice and how to use it effectively, make sure you get on the waitlist to my new program, New Sound. We’re opening doors in October so the time is now. Click here for more details: https://hadarshemesh.com/newsound/

English words can be really confusing sometimes. In these how-to-pronounce episodes published on Fridays, I’ll help you with the pronunciation of confusing words and common names. This week we’re going to talk about the word ‘thanks’. Here’s a loose transcription of the word as explained in the episode: thanks: thanks [IPA: θæŋks] or theinks [IPA: θeɪŋks] If you want to improve your accent and understand spoken English better, download my free American Accent audio crash course: https://hadarshemesh.com/audio-accent-course/ You can also download an interactive list of 50 of the most mispronounced words in English and master the pronunciation of those tricky words: https://hadarshemesh.com/50-most-mispronounced-words/ Join our Facebook community to connect with non-native English learners from all over the world: https://hadarshemesh.com/influency-community/

In this week’s episode, I’ll be teaching you the difference between stressed and unstressed words and sharing clips from Frozen 2 to show you how the character animation helps convey those operative (stressed) words. Stressed words are usually longer, louder, and higher in pitch while unstressed words are softer, lower in pitch, we say them quickly, and we reduce vowels there. Just like animated Disney characters, good English speakers have body movement, gestures, and facial expressions that are aligned with the intonation, rhythm, and stress of the language. If you want to enjoy everything this episode has to offer, we recommend watching the video version so you can see the clips I mention: https://theaccentsway.com/learn-english-intonation-with-frozen More video episodes about intonation, rhythm, and stress: American INTONATION – What They Don’t Teach You in School https://youtu.be/FStyKn4V8cE How to practice intonation? | Bill Murray movie speech analysis https://youtu.be/4QKfGSUTS7E Are you struggling with understanding word stress? Watch this https://youtu.be/8XhV4oAuPcA How to find the stress in long words https://youtu.be/65wx9_zmuqQ How to sound like Reese Witherspoon https://youtu.be/pkVLwuPvIz8

English words can be really confusing sometimes. In these how-to-pronounce episodes published on Fridays, I’ll help you with the pronunciation of confusing words and common names. This week we’re going to talk about the function words ‘and’, ‘or’, ‘for’ and ‘of’. Here’s a loose transcription of the words as explained in the episode: and: and [IPA: ænd] or euhnd [IPA: eənd] or ‘n [IPA: ən] or: awr [IPA: ɔːr] or uhr [IPA: ər] or uh [IPA: ə] for: fawr [IPA: fɔːr] or f’r [IPA: fər] of: uhv [IPA: ʌv] or aav [IPA: ɑːv] or ‘v [IPA: əv], or even uh [IPA: ə] before a consonant Want to learn more about the schwa? Tune in to the previous episode #157 – Schwa – The BEST Vowel Sound in English: https://hadarshemesh.com/podcast/157/ If you want to improve your accent and understand spoken English better, download my free American Accent audio crash course: https://hadarshemesh.com/audio-accent-course/ You can also download an interactive list of 50 of the most mispronounced words in English and master the pronunciation of those tricky words: https://theaccentsway.com/mispro-signup/ Join our Facebook community to connect with non-native English learners from all over the world: https://hadarshemesh.com/influency-community/

You wanted it, you got it! In this episode I’ll talk about the schwa vowel sound. Understanding it will help you sound more natural and effortless, and will help you pronounce words clearly. You’ll learn why the schwa is so important, and what makes it hard to understand. But fear not – you’ll find answers in this episode and learn how to identify and practice it in words and sentences. Are you ready? What’s your favorite word with the Schwa sound? Put it in the comments! The Schwa episode (long lesson): How One TINY Sound Can Make a HUGE Difference https://hadarshemesh.com/podcast/09/ Link to the videos about syllables and primary stress: Are you struggling with understanding word stress? Watch this https://youtu.be/8XhV4oAuPcA How to find the stress in long words https://youtu.be/65wx9_zmuqQ Visit my website: https://hadarshemesh.com/ Say hi on INSTAGRAM: https://bit.ly/2M4Tg2R

English words can be really confusing sometimes. In these how-to-pronounce episodes published on Fridays, I’ll help you with the pronunciation of confusing words and common names. This week we’re going to talk about the word ‘clothes’. Here’s a loose transcription of the words as explained in the episode: clothes: klow-thz [IPA: kloʊðz] or klowz [IPA: kloʊz] close (verb): klowz [IPA: kloʊz] close (adjective/adverb): klows [IPA: kloʊs] If you want to improve your accent and understand spoken English better, download my free American Accent audio crash course: https://hadarshemesh.com/audio-accent-course/ You can also download an interactive list of 50 of the most mispronounced words in English and master the pronunciation of those tricky words: https://hadarshemesh.com/50-most-mispronounced-words/ Join our Facebook community to connect with non-native English learners from all over the world: https://hadarshemesh.com/influency-community/

English words can be really confusing sometimes. In these how-to-pronounce episodes published on Fridays, I’ll help you with the pronunciation of confusing words and common names. This week we’re going to talk about the word ‘strategy’. Here’s a loose transcription of the word as explained in the episode: strategy: stra-duh-djee [IPA: strætədʒi] If you want to improve your accent and understand spoken English better, download my free American Accent audio crash course: https://hadarshemesh.com/audio-accent-course/ You can also download an interactive list of 50 of the most mispronounced words in English and master the pronunciation of those tricky words: https://hadarshemesh.com/50-most-mispronounced-words/ Join our Facebook community to connect with non-native English learners from all over the world: https://hadarshemesh.com/influency-community/

Is receiving compliments about your English HARD or EASY for you? Do you feel good and respond with a THANK YOU? Or do you start explaining (or thinking) why you’re not really worthy of those compliments? If that’s the case, today’s episode is really for you. I’ll talk about why taking compliments can be so hard, and why we need to start celebrating small achievements to feel better about English. Mentioned in the episode: Why do I feel like a fraud every time I speak English? | The Impostor Syndrome https://hadarshemesh.com/podcast/11/ If you want to improve your accent and understand spoken English better, download my free American Accent audio crash course: https://hadarshemesh.com/audio-accent-course/ You can also download an interactive list of 50 of the most mispronounced words in English and master the pronunciation of those tricky words: https://theaccentsway.com/mispro-signup/ Join our Facebook community to connect with non-native English learners from all over the world: https://hadarshemesh.com/influency-community/

English words can be really confusing sometimes. In these how-to-pronounce episodes published on Fridays, I’ll help you with the pronunciation of confusing words and common names. This week we’re going to talk about the tricky pair -‘thirty’ and ‘thirteen’. Here’s a loose transcription of the words as explained in the episode: thirty: th’r-di [IPA: θɜːrti] - stress on the first syllable thirteen: th’r-teen [IPA: θɜːrti:n] - stress on the last syllable If you want to improve your accent and understand spoken English better, download my free American Accent audio crash course: https://theaccentsway.com/audio-accent-course/ You can also download an interactive list of 50 of the most mispronounced words in English and master the pronunciation of those tricky words: https://hadarshemesh.com/50-most-mispronounced-words/ Join our Facebook community to connect with non-native English learners from all over the world: https://theaccentsway.com/influency-community/

In this episode I’m talking about one of the best tools for improving our fluency and communication in general in English: making a video of yourself speaking in English. You’ll get some great tips that will make you a confident and present English speaker. To watch the video and take a behind-the-scenes tour in my studio go here: https://theaccentsway.com/making-videos/ Join my FREE community where we practice with videos https://hadarshemesh.com/influency-community/ Beyond – my incredible English practice community: https://hadarshemesh.com/join-beyond/ More videos to boost your Fluency: Fluency YouTube Playlist https://bit.ly/3mieexT