Voice Speech

and
Communication

Objective
This module is designed to
help you learn and understand
the importance of
communication, how much to
develop and enhance your
skills in speech communication
and how it can work for you.

Good Communication Skills

Good Communication
Skills help you express
your ideas clearly, learn
from other peoples ideas
and resolve any conflicts.

Principles of Speech
Stress/Emphasis
Rhythm
Intonation
Blending
Pausing
Phrasing

Stress
-

is the relative emphasis

that may be given to
certain syllables in a word

Rhyth
m-

is the arrangement of
spoken words alternating
stressed and unstressed
elements

Intonatio
n-

Blending-

refers to the music of a

certain language; this
basically means how a
persons voice falls and
rises when reciting words,
sentences, paragraphs, etc
blending sounds to make
a word.

Pausing -

a temporary stop or rest,

esp in speech.

Phrasing
-

breaking or dividing an
utterance into breath
units or thought groups

Aspects of the Telephone

Voice
Volume

Pitch

Loudness
Highness
or softness
or lowness
of the
of the
voice
voice

Tempo

Quality

Speed of
the
delivery

Distinction
of a
speakers
voice

ACCENT
A distinctive manner of
expression.

An individuals distinctive or characteristic

inflection, tone or choice of words.

A way of speaking typical of a

particular group of people
residing in a specific region.

Co
m
po
s
n

en
t

ACCENT
PRONUNCIATION - A

way of pronouncing words with

articulation and proper sound

INTONATION-

Music of
speech, the rising and
falling

LIAISON- Connection

and reduction of words

Pronunciatio
n

American A

eh

To pronounce it,
drop your jaw
down as if you
were going to say
[]; then from
that position, try
to say eh.


ctually

nimals

bnd

dvil

dmp

dncer

nswer

lmp

trnsfor
m

nger

cmp

ft

cptain
mam

bckgro
und
lck


pple

csh

dddy

txi

drg

thnk

lmb

cb

hd

blnk

lugh

fx

Snta
na
ntonio

Scrame
nto
Clifornia

Please try not to nswer bck

t your father.
Due to lck of fund, Jck
finnced the team.
He sked me to go gther
some pples for dessert.
Submit to me your report s
soon s possible.

To
pronounce
it, drop
your jaw
down.


fther

shrk

frm

crpet

cncer
t

ffice

hrd

frm

lbby

strt

cpper


Lt/lot
ywn
Jhn/
John
Bnd/
bond

Bttom/
bottom

dd/
odd

Pt/
pot

Mp/
mop

clm

Tlk/
talk

wnt

knb/
knob

+
Strt mtching the crpet design.
The shrk carefully swm away from the
fishermn.
The fficer in chrge met with the
employees fther.
The bnd strted prcticing for the
cncert.

The schwa sounds

like uh. It is
pronounced with
the mouth and
tongue in a very
relaxed position

Schwa: is a neutral sound, (no

distinctive characteristics), but it is
the most common sound in the
English language. To make the uh
sound, put your hand on your
diaphragm and push until a grunt
escapes. Don't move your jaw,
tongue or lips, just allow the sound to
flow past your vocal cords. It should
sound like uh, not ah.

SCHWA SOUND

merica/
america

fficial/
official

focs/
focus

nderstoo
d/
understoo
d

ccasion/
occasion

ppose/
oppose

nderstan
d/
understan
d

cornatio
n/
coronation

mazing/
amazing


Bcks/buc
ks

fn/fun

ht/hut

gn/gun

fss/fuss

sht/shut

ct/cut

cp/cup

tck/tuck

Once you master the two sounds [] and uh, you will
have an easier time pronouncing 'can' and 'cant.

:
Spelling

Pronunciation

I can do it.

I k'n do it.

I can't do it.

I kn(t) do it.

I can do it.

I kn do it.

I can't do it.

I knt do it.

THE TAN MAN

A fashionably tan man sat casually at the
bat stand, lashing a handful of practice
bats. The manager a crabby old bag of
bones, passed by and laughed. Youre
about average Jack Cant you lash faster
than that? Jack had had enough, so he
clambered to his feet and lashed bats
faster than any man had ever lashed bats.
As a matter of fact, he lashed bats so fast
that he seemed to dance. The manager
was aghast. Jack youre a master bat
lasher! he gasped Satisfied at last, jack
sat back and never lashed another bat.

 LONG a SOUND
mke

grteful

tke

snil

gent

che

pin

explin

pe

rindee
r/
reindee
r

 LONG a SOUND

int

rin

chn
ge

cne

mid

lne

nme

vgu
e

gin

Vowels

e Sound
egg
red
bed
friend
head
blend
den

men
rent
sent
beg
leg
pen
wren

Long e Sound
Cheese street speak
each
convenience
meek
meet please seek
feature
leak
leave feet
cheap
scream
dream
teach peace
green
creek
see
beach
reach

three
easy

Short I Sound

it
bit
sit
list
hill

till
ship
lick
will
lip
dick
fit hip
chip
did
tip
mist
sick win
bitch

includes display
picture
discover
impart
switch music
international

I
beat
cheek
peak
bead
read
deed
lead
seed
feel
seat
Leen

e
bit

bet

chick
check
pick
peck
bid
bed
rid
red
did
dead
lid
led
Sid
said
fill
fell
sit
set
Lyn
Len

Sentence Exercise

1. Drink the milk before it gets spilled.

2. She took the business trip this spring..
3. They had fish and potato chips for
dinner and chocolate candy for dessert.
4. After six hits and all bases filled, the
pitcher quit.
5. English literature is an interesting facet
of British history.
6. His sister was sick in bed all through
Christmas with a debilitating disease.

Phrase Comparison

Green hills
busy leader
eager lips
sing sleepily
weak link
swift eagle
Breeze whispers
timid and weak
seems a sin
mountain stream
Breathe quickly
quick reading
Steep hill
glistening leaves
Eat it
sit on the seat
Sweet sixteen
meeting in the evening
Steel mill
wind beneath my wings
Reach it
speaking and reading

Sentence Exercise:

1. I will take a dip on the deep pool.

2. He seeks the doctor for his sick
child.
3. I will leave you to live as you wish.
4. He buried his pick on the peak.
5. He saw the sheep loaded on the
ship.

/ o / SHORT o SOUND
go
mold low phone
so
cold
grow hotel
no
hold
own
goat
old Rome home Joan
sold
gold
motel loan
motor known note
show
token zone
almost poker
both post
boulder open

/ / LONG o SOUND

Loot
noon food
mood
school cool
brood tooth rude
June
wound tomb
womb
spoon
moon
fruit

through conclude
remove youth route
couturier screw

boon
soup
truth
juice

intrude
boomerang

/ / LONG u SOUND
Bt /
boot

yo
salte
gse /
goose

snil
costm
e

Sentence Exercise

1. Junior brought food for the moose in the zoo.

2. The crooner who can also sing blues is truly
versatile.
3. No prudent man will approve of rule by
force.
4. Fools alone will buy such crude tools as
souvenirs.
5. Be sure to keep the right roofing to keep
those rooms cool.
6. Two groups of unruly boys help to move the
looms out.
7. Where did you lose your blue shoes?

Sentence Comparison

1. Pull out of weeds near the pool.

2. This book is full of foolish ideas.
3. The cook took care to cool the
soup.
4. He will look for the buried loot.
5. The boy stood on the stool.

Phrase Comparison
blue book
cool nook
loose woman
true bulletin
cruel bullet
crude bulwark
brutal ritual

full moon
good food
foot loose
cooked soup
wooden stool
impetuous fool
residual tooth

Booker Woolseys Cookbook

Booker Woolsey was a good cook.

One day, he took a good look at his
full schedule and decided that he
could write a good cookbook. He
knew that he could, and thought that
he should, but he wasnt sure that he
ever would. Once he had made up
his mind, he stood up, pulled up a
table, took a cushion, and put it on a
bushel basket of sugar in the kitchen
nook. He shook out his writing hand
and put his mind to creating a good,
good cookbook.

/au/ sound
Plow
thou
howl
ounce
vow
pouch
shout
sour
voucher
mountain fountain compound
discount aloud
amount
cloud
stout
thousand
town
power
pound
mouth
round
download
house
south
sound
found
couch
cowboy

A Lot Long Hot Walks in the Garden

John was not sorry when the boss called
off the walks in the garden. Obviously,
to him it was awfully hot, and the walks
were far too long. He had not thought
that walking would have caught on the
way it did, and he fought the policy from
the onset. At first, he thought he could
talk it over at the law office and have it
quashed, but a small obstacle halted
that thought. The top lawyer always
bought coffee at the shop across the
lawn and they didnt want to stop on
Johns account. Johns problem was not
office politics, but office policy.
He
resolved the problem by bombing the
garden.

SENTENCE EXERCISE:
1.
2.
3.
4.

5.

I mistook the butcher for the cook.

The good-looking woman bought
herself a bouquet of roses.
He stood on the cushion to get the
better look.
Next time, will you try to add more
sugar to your cookies and
pudding?
As she pushed the bushes aside,
he noticed the crooks footprints.

6. An injury sustained during the

ambush this July kept him in bed.
7. The courier delivered the
bulletin reporting the gold bullion
theft.
8. The wooden pulley shook under
the strain of his steady pull.
9. The full influence of public
opinion should be utilized against
our bullies and vandals
10. The bullets impact was
cushioned by the book in his
woolen jacket.

Sentence Exercise

1. Please keep the fields clean.

2. The evening breeze induced her deep sleep.
3. The team was eager to repeat its recent
victory.
4. Breathe deeply before you read the speech.
5. I believe the machine needs immediate
attention.
6. He impressed the people by his unique appeal.
7. Each childs meal consists of meat and greenleafy vegetables.
8. The fleet-footed athlete received three medals
for his feat.
9. I agree the frequent practice is the only
guarantee for the
effective speech.
10. Leaders of nations who disagree should meet
to plan the peace.

American T

American T
Depends on the position of the T in a word
or phrase:
RULE:
1. T is T at the beginning of the word.
Ted
two
ten
took
tin
table
tan
turn tomb tomorrow
today
t-shirt
ex: Ted took ten tomatoes.

2. T is T when its stressed.

Italian
content
opportunity
potato
hotel
motel
stallion
guitar
attack
couturier platoon
petite
quotation
3. T is T when its with st, ts, tr, ct, lt or
ft
fifty contrast contract contest
fifteen distilled content Kentucky

4. T is a soft D sound when its at the

middle of the word or phrase unstressed
data computer bottle butter bit of
ought to sit on letter writer water
getting Betty Patty meeting
photos heater
pretty beautifulbattery later
latter littletitle better
Water, daughter, bought a, caught a, lot
of,
got a, later, meeting, better

Betty bought a bit of better butter. But said

she, this butters bitter.. If I put it in my batter
itll make my butter bitter.. But a bit of better
butter will make it better than the bitter
butter.. So, she bought a bit of better butter
and put it in her batter.. And her butter was
not bitter..

Betty bought a better bitter

beater

butter batter

5. T is held when its at the end of the

word.
right
hot
not
that
hut
hat
Pat
late
fat
goat hit
put
hurt
set
paint sit
dirt
note
fit
lot
light
suit
point tight

Sentence Exercise:
1 She hit the hot hut with her hat.
2. We went to that net site to get what
we need.
3. Pat was quite right, wasnt she?
4. Please wait for me at the gate.
5. What! Put my hat back!

6. Silent T t and n are so close to the

mouth that they can simply
disappear.
interview interface
internet
interstate interrupt
interfere
interactive international advantage
percentage twenty
printing
printout
printer
winter

Sentence Exercise:
1.He had a great interview.
2.Try to enter the information.
3. Turn the printer on.
4. Finish the printing.
5. Shes at the international center.
6. Its twenty degrees in Toronto.
7. She invented it in Santa Monica.
8. He cant even do it.
9. Whats the point of it?
10. Shes the intercontinental
representative.

7. T is held when it is followed by n and

its not really t at all.
written kitten forgotten certain curtain
mitten
Martin mutant mountain fountain
button bitten
cotton BritainLatin
Manhattan, NY Stoughton, MA
Taunton, Boonton, NJ
Trenton, NJ
Baton Rouge, LA
Note:T and N are so close in the mouth that the
[t] can disappear.

Written, certain, forgotten,

sentence:

He's forgotten the carton

of satin mittens.
She's certain that he has
written it.
Martin has gotten a kitten.

Sentence Exercise
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.

Hes forgotten the carton of satin mittens.

Shes certain that she has written it.
The cotton curtain is not on the fountain.
The hikers went to the mountain.
Martin has gotten a kitten.
Student study Latin in Britain.
He has not forgotten what was written about the
mutant on the mountain.
Hes not certain that he has gotten from the
fountain.
You need to put an orange cotton curtain on the
window.
The child was not beaten because he had not bitten
the button.
I saw a mutant eating a cotton beside the fountain
in Britain.

American L

American L

The American L has two different pronunciations in

In the beginning or middle of a word, the

tongue tip touches just behind the teeth
on those hard ridges. In this position, the L
shouldn't give you much trouble. The
difficulty begins when the L is at the end of
a word. Because the letter L has a shorter,
sharper pronunciation in other languages,
this will carry over into English, where the
whole word will just sound too short.

At the end of a word, the L is

especially noticeable if it is either
missing or too short . You need to
put a little schwa sound before the
final L. If you want to say the word
ball, [bl], it will sound too short if
you don't say [b-uhl].

American R

American R
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.

earn art air

Hurl heart
pert part
First far
Firm farm
Murky
mar
Spur spar
Sure sharp
Churn
char
Girl guard
Cur car
Turtle tar
stir star
Burn barn

or

ear
hair
horse
hear
pair
pour
pear
fair
four
fear
fairy
form
fierce
mare
more
mere
spare
sport
spear
share
shore
shear
chair
chore
cheer
scared gored
gear
care
core
kir
tear
tore
tear
stair
store
steer
bear
bore
beer

The Mirror Store

The Hurly Burly Mirror store at Vermont
and Beverly featured hundreds of first rate
mirror. There were several mirror on the chest
drawers and the largest one was turned
toward the door in order to make the room
look bigger. One of the girls who worked there
was concerned that a bird might get hurt by
hurtling into its own reflection . She learned
by trial and error how to preserve both the
mirror and the birds. Her earnings were
proportionately increased at the mirror store
to reflect her contribution to the greater good.

Th

HARD th SOUND
the then
than
their thus
this
these
there thereby
therein
bother
leather feather
gather
weather bathing
whether farthest
brethren
heathen worthy
withering blithe
seethe scathe although
that mother

3 333 333.33 throng

of thermometers

The Throng of Thermometers

The throng of thermometers from the Thuringian
Thermometers Folks arrived on Thursday. There were
a thousand thirty-three thick thermometers, though,
instead of a thousand thirty-six thin thermometers,
which was three thermometers fewer than the
thousand thirty-three we were expecting, not to
mention that they were thick ones rather than thin
ones. We thoroughly thought that we had ordered a
thousand thirty-six, not a thousand thirty-three,
thermometers,
and
asked
the
Thuringian
Thermometer Folks to reship the thermometers;
thin, not thick. They apologized for sending only a
thousand thirty-three thermometers rather than a
thousand thirty-six and promised to replace the thick
thermometers with thin thermometers.

TH = Tee Aitch

The most common word in the

English language is THE, so after the
schwa, [th] would be the sound you
would hear most often, which is why
it is so important to master it.
Besides 'the,' there are several other
very common words that start with a
voiced [th]:

There are several other very common

words that start with a voiced [th]:
This
those
They
them
Their
there
That
that
then

Soft th sound
Throw

depth
faith
thrust
twelfth
truths throne
fifth
oaths
thrift
ninth
thwart threat
tenth
bathed
thrill
myth
clothed throb
death
method
throng
thousand
three

D vs hard TH

D VS HARD TH
den
then
breed
breathe
Dense thence
read
wreathe
Die
thy
seed seathe
Dine
thine
sued soothe
Dough though
lied
lithe
Ladderlather
ride
writhe
Breeding breathing
Udder other
Sudden southern
Loading loathing

P and F

P and F CONSONANTS SOUND

Pea
peel
pierce
pad
pare
past
pork
par

fee
feel
fierce
fad
fare
fast
fork
far

file
pile
pine
fine
paid
fade
pail
fail
pain
feign
ply
fly
pry
fry
pray fray

P and F PHRASES

Pat the fat one please forget

Pair for the fair peel at first
Please kill fleas plural form
Pus caused fuss political figure
Put your foot peace fund
Pour for four passing fancy
Punning is fun
fountain pen
Fill with pills first person
Fool in the pool fear of pain
Found a pound fourth part

B and V

B and V CONSONANTS SOUND

Beer
bent
best
bale
bile
bow
verb
Bet

veer
vent
vest
vale
vile
vow
verve
vet

B and V PHRASES
A bit vain
because you vowed
both versatile
very big voice
Bridal vain
business venture
vertical bar
virtually blind
back view
veiled barb
bank vault
basically vicious
behave bravely
verbose not verbal

T + Y = CH

T + Y = CH
Whats your name?
Cant you do it?
Dont you like it?
Wouldnt you?
Havent you?
Ill let you know.
Can I get you a drink?
We thought you werent coming.
Ill bet you ten bucks he forgot.
Is that your final answer?

Sentence
Exercise

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.

I bought a sandwich.
I said I bought a sandwich.
I said I think I bought a sandwich.
I said I really think I bought a sandwich.
I said I really think I bought a chicken
sandwich.
I said I really think I bought a chicken
salad sandwich.
I said I really think I bought a half a
chicken salad sandwich.
I said I really think I bought a half a
chicken salad sandwich this afternoon.
I actually said I really think I bought a
half a chicken salad sandwich this
afternoon.

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

6.

7.

I did it.
I did it again.
I already did it again.
I think I already did it again.
I said I think I already did it
again.
I said I think I already did it again
yesterday.
I said I think I already did it again
the day before yesterday.

1.
2.
3.
4.

5.

6.

I want a ball.
I want a large ball.
I want a large, red ball.
I want a large, red, bouncy
ball.
I want a large, red, bouncy,
rubber ball.
I want a large, red, bouncy,
rubber basketball.

1.
2.
3.

4.

5.

I want a raise.
I want a big raise.
I want a big impressive
raise.
I want a big impressive,
annual raise.
I want a big impressive,
annual cost of living raise.

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.

Hes a nice guy.

Hes an American guy from San Francisco.
The cheerleader needs a paper clip for the final
report.
The law student took an English test in a foreign
country.
The policeman saw a red car on the freeway.
My old dog has long ears and flea problem.
The new teacher broke his coffee cup on the first
day,
His best friend has a broken cup in his other office.
9. Lets play football on the weekend in New York.
I have a headache from the heat wave in South
Carolina.

Hello, my name is ________. Im taking

American Accent Training. Theres a lot to
learn, but I hope to make it as enjoyable
as possible. I should pick up on the
American intonation pattern pretty
easily, although the only way to get it is
to practice all the time. I use the ups
and downs, or peaks and valleys
intonation more than I used to. Ive been
paying attention to pitch too. Its like
walking down a staircase . Ive been
talking to Americans lately and they tell
me that Im easier to understand.
Anyway I could go on and on, but the
important thing is to listen well and
sound good. Well, what do you think? Do

TIPS:

Set your goals and prioritize

Practice faithfully
Focus on good listening
Relax
Record your own speech
Take every opportunity to converse in
English
Facial expression and gesture
Train your muscles for speech
Be aware of your voice
Incorporate new sounds gradually in your
conversational speech

Phonetics

A phonetic alphabet is a list of words used

to identify letters in a message
transmitted by radio or telephone. Spoken
words from an approved list are
substituted for letters. For example, the
word "Army" would be "Alfa Romeo Mike
Yankee" when spelled in the phonetic
alphabet. This practice helps to prevent
confusion between similar sounding letters
to clarify communications that may be
garbled during transmission.

Pronunciation and
Syllable Stress

GUIDELINES

1.The longest vowel sound is generally the stressed

syllable
2. In the words ending with tion we stress the
syllable before tion. E.g. Termination, Animation,
Meditation, Education.
3. In the words ending with logy, the syllable before
logy is stressed e.g. Terminology, Biology, Theology,
Eulogy.

Pronunciation and
Syllable Stress

GUIDELINES

4. In words ending with ity the syllable before ity is

stressed. E.g. Compatibility, Comfortability, Stability.
5. In the words ending with ics the syllable before ics
is stressed. E.g. Acrobatics.
6. In the words ending with tory, the syllable stress
is tory but be careful of the rule breakers. Eg.
Laboratory, Mandatory, Territory.

Pronunciation and
Syllable Stress

GUIDELINES

7. All words ending with en /on etc will be pronounced

without the vowel sound preceding n. eg garden- gardn,
pardon-pardn.

8. All words ending with ent / ant should be

pronounced by replacing with small u sound.
Recruitment Recruit-mnt, Department Depart-mnt,
a-GREE-mnt, GOVE-mnt(Government),SEN-ti-mnt

Pronunciation and
Syllable Stress

GUIDELINES

9. Words that end in age are pronounced: ij

(not-age) eg.
Average (AV-rij) Garbage (GAR-bij)
Bandage (BAND-ij) Manage (MAN-ij)
Cabbage ( CAB-ij) Package (PACK-ij)
Cottage (COT-ij) Language (LANG-wij)

Intonation

Intonation

Intonation is the variation

in pitch while speaking not on a word-level but on
a statement-level.

By learning how native speakers

use varying intonations, we can
accurately understand what
people try to communicate with
us. As we listen closely to the
melody of their speech, we can
figure out their feelings, sense
their moods and attitudes, and
recognize questions,
commands/requests and offers,
ergo, properly respond to them.

Rising Intonation
When American English speakers ask
questions that can be answered with
a yes or no the pitch rises as
their voices go up at the end of the
question.
For example:
Are you going to school?
Do you like to eat French FRIES?

Statements intended to
encourage
That's a remarkable thought.
You're doing a great job!

Tag questions when the

speaker is not sure that what
he says is correct
You're sure, aren't you?
You've checked it, haven't you?

Sentences ending with 'please';

for 'goodbye'; for 'thank you'
when used to show gratitude for
a simple matter (passing the dish,
etc.)
A cup of tea, please?
Would you pass me that pen, please?
Questions beginning with
question words when the
speaker wishes to show special
interest
Where do you live?

Falling Intonation
Alternately when American English
speakers ask questions beginning
with who, where, why, when and how
the pitch lowers as their voices fall at
the end of the question.
For example: Where is your
Homework? or
When are they coming Over?

Short, complete sentences

It's so near./It's very far.
In tag questions when the speaker
is sure that what he says is right
It's a tough day, isn't it?/ It's a
wonderful weather, isn't it?
For commands and exclamations
Leave me alone./Give me my keys.

SENTENCE EXERCISE
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.

Do you want a pot of hot chocolate for your

cough?
Shopping around this block is not a problem.
The yacht docked on the rocky island near the
doctors cottage.
The college faculty acknowledges him an authority
of foreign policy.
A young democracy like ours has to solve
economic problems such as poverty.
The market is far from the park
He crossed the dark yard as calmly as he could.
The department will start to work on the chart this
March.
Cigar smoking may be harmful for her fathers
heart condition.

SENTENCE COMPARISON
1. The colored blocks are in the black
box.
2. His sock are in the laundry sack.
3. Hats keep away from the hot sun.
4. The match is scheduled for March.
5. Can the cat pull this cart?
6. He did his pack in the park.