```html English pronunciation practice for Japanese speakers

English pronunciation practice for Japanese speakers

Correction of common pronunciation problems for learners with Japanese as their first language

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Japanese language backgrounds

32 common English pronunciation problems

1. /ɪ/ as in "sit"

Fix problem Relax the mouth and keep sound short.
English sound /ɪ/ — "sit"
Common error /i:/ — "seat"
Practice materials
Minimal Pairs /ɪ/ or /i:/ practice

2. /æ/ as in "man"

Fix problem Move tongue to a lower front position.
English sound /æ/ — "man"
Common error /e/ — "men"
Practice materials
Minimal Pairs /e/ or /æ/ practice

3. /ʌ/ as in "cup"

Fix problem Tongue more central. Lips relaxed.
English sound /ʌ/ — "cup"
Common error /æ/ — "cap"
Practice materials
Minimal Pairs /æ/ or /ʌ/ practice

4. /ʌ/ as in "cup"

Fix problem Tongue low central. Lips relaxed.
English sound /ʌ/ — "cup"
Practice materials
Minimal Pairs /æ/ or /ʌ/ practice
Minimal Pairs /ʌ/ or /ɜ:/ practice

5. /ʊ/ as in "full"

Fix problem Back of tongue high. Lips rounded but relaxed. Short.
English sound /ʊ/ — "full"
Common error /u:/ — "fool"
Practice materials
Minimal Pairs /ʊ/ or /u:/ practice

6. /ə/ — weak endings

Fix problem Weak endings: e.g. "London" "England"
English sound /ə/ — "the" (schwa)
Practice materials
Practise the neutral vowel /ə/ using spoken dialogues

7. /u:/ as in "fool"

Fix problem Back of tongue high. Lips rounded but relaxed. Short.
English sound /u:/ — "fool"
Common error /ʊ/ — "full"
Practice materials
Minimal Pairs /ʊ/ or /u:/ practice

8. /ɜ:/ as in "bird"

Fix problem Fix tongue in central position. Long.
English sound /ɜ:/ — "bird"
Practice materials
Minimal Pairs /e/ or /ɜ:/ practice
Minimal Pairs /ʌ/ or /ɜ:/ practice
Minimal Pairs /ɔ:/ or /ɜ:/ practice

9. /eɪ/ as in "late"

Fix problem Tongue moves from front centre to front high.
English sound /eɪ/ — "late"
Common error /e/ — "let"

10. /aɪə/ as in "fire"

Fix problem Tongue low front to high front to centre.
English sound /aɪə/=/aɪ/+/ə/ — "fire"

11. /əʊ/ as in "note"

Fix problem Tongue central. Then tightly round lips.
English sound /əʊ/ — "note"
Common error /ɒ/ — "not"

12. /əʊ/ as in "bone"

Fix problem Tongue central. Then tightly round lips.
English sound /əʊ/ — "bone"
Common error /ɔ:/ — "born"

13. /aʊə/ as in "flour"

Fix problem Tongue low front. Then round & unround lips.