Received Pronunciation vs General British.
Received Pronunciation vs General British [ssba] An English teacher recently wrote to us probing on why we are using the term ‘GB English’ (GB) instead of ‘Received Pronunciation’ (RP), commenting that if the [...]
The Mayors’ Accents
What do London's mayors sound like? [ssba] London has a new mayor - Sadiq Kahn, following on from Boris Johnson and Ken Livingstone. A lot has been written of all three mens' [...]
A London Accent
What's in a London accent? [ssba] London is one of the most cosmopolitan cities in the world. But what does a London accent sound like? Whether you call it 'Cockney', 'Estuary', 'Mockney' (if [...]
RIP Prints – The Unlikely Homophone
RIP Prints: the unlikely homophone. Yesterday saw the announcement of Prints’s death. An artist whose work spanned many genres and was loved the world over. He probably won’t be remembered for his [...]
Cockney Rhyming Slang
Cockney Rhyming Slang Going out for a Ruby Murray this evening? Or perhaps you'll stay in with the trouble and strife because you've got no bees and honey? We're talking cockney [...]
10 Strange British Place Names
10 Strange British Place Names Visiting Britain this year? You may come across some place names and wonder how on earth they are pronounced. Let's see if we can help, here [...]
Speech Idioms
Speech Idioms [ssba] We're talking shop this month at Pronunciation Studio. That's right - idioms about speaking. Here are 10 really useful ones that are used to describe speech. I'll stop [...]
10 English Pronunciation Errors by German Speakers
10 English Pronunciation Errors by German Speakers If your mother tongue is German, you may find certain sounds in English more difficult than others. Here we present to you some of [...]
English Exclamations!
English Exclamations! Some things we say aren't really words, they are more like cries to show a reaction or emotion. Every language uses different exclamations, so, erm, without further delay, here [...]
Intonation, innit?
Intonation, ↘innit? Intonation is all about the way we say something, rather than the words we actually say. Every language has a different melody and structure, so what's unique about English? Here [...]
Why is English Spelling So Strange?
Why is English Spelling So Strange? Why do we say ‘dear’ /dɪə/ but then we say ‘pear’ /peə/? Why is /u:/ spelt as ‘few’ but also ‘boot’ and why don't our [...]
Upspeak
Upspeak - the unstoppable rise of rising intonation. You may have noticed that some English speakers use a rising tone on a statement. It almost sounds like a question? This is commonly [...]
OK
How to pronounce 'OK' O.K. okay, ok. Overused by many speakers and meaning anything from “yes” to “average”, “listen” to “really?”. It all depends on when you say it and how [...]
Thai Speakers’ English Pronunciation Errors
10 English Pronunciation Errors by Thai Speakers [ssba] If your mother tongue is Thai, you may find certain sounds in English more difficult than others. Here we present to you [...]
2015 Best Bits
10 best bits from the blog - 2015 2015 was our busiest year yet on the blog. We tackled difficult spellings, confusing words, 'hello' and... the Queen. Here are the 10 [...]