Speaking pronunciation: five self-checks · ⁨口语发音：五项自我检查⁩

Make yesterday audible in a short sentence

• Compare a recording of “I walk to class” with “I walked to class”. The ending may carry the timeline; a correct written answer does not show whether a listener heard it.

• Speaking is marked on four criteria, and Pronunciation is one of them — a full quarter. You can prepare for it with specific, audible practice instead of trying to imitate a particular accent.

• A British or American accent is not required. What matters is whether the listener can understand you without excessive effort. Speech patterns differ among learners, including speakers of different Chinese varieties. Use the five checks below to find your priorities; they are not a complete list or a diagnosis.

A dictionary can show stress marks; it cannot lift your tongue for you.

1. Check final consonants

• Some English final consonants and clusters may be unfamiliar if your other languages do not use them. Test what your recording actually contains. Compare desk / des and helped / help. If your recording makes a pair sound alike, practise the contrast in a sentence.
• Final sounds can carry important word and grammar information. Whether this is your main priority depends on what listeners actually hear. Practice: say cat, cats, cap, caps, cast, casts slowly, then put a chosen contrast in a short sentence. Final stops need not have a strong audible release in every context; aim for recognisable words without adding a vowel or forcing unnatural separation.

2. The -ed and -s endings are grammar too

• If an ending cannot be heard, the listener may miss tense or number. Examiners assess your whole performance across the criteria; there is no automatic double penalty for one sound.
• -ed has three sounds: walked is /t/, needed is /ɪd/, lived is /d/. For regular past forms, /t/ and /d/ at the end of the base take /ɪd/; other voiceless sounds take /t/ and other voiced sounds take /d/. The base’s final sound matters, not its last written letter. -s has three sounds too: cats /s/, dogs /z/, buses /ɪz/. Say the pairs: walk / walked, live / lived, need / needed, cat / cats, dog / dogs.

3. Compare contrasts in your own speech

• /θ/ and /ð/ — think, this. If you merge them with another sound, try placing the tongue tip lightly between the teeth and compare recordings. /v/ and /w/ — if very and wary sound too similar in your recording, practise /v/ with the top teeth lightly touching the lower lip.
• /l/, /n/ and /r/ at the start of a word — light / night, read / lead. /i:/ and /ɪ/ — sheep / ship, feel / fill. This contrast involves vowel quality as well as duration; check reliable audio rather than only shortening a long vowel. Pick one or two contrasts that a listener actually finds unclear, then return to the others later.

4. Word stress can affect recognition

• Many multisyllabic English words have a main stressed syllable. Placing it differently can make a word harder to recognise even when its sounds are accurate. phoTOgraphy / PHOtograph / photoGRAPHic. eCONomy / ecoNOMic. DEvelop — no, deVELop.
• Stress can move when a suffix is added, so check related words separately. When you learn a long word, learn where the stress goes. The IPA line under every word in this site's vocabulary lists marks it with ˈ.

5. Sentence stress and intonation

• English often gives prominence to meaning-bearing words such as nouns, main verbs and adjectives; smaller words may be quieter. Try I'd LIKE to GO to the LIbrary. Prominence can help listeners follow your intended focus; do not assume every sentence needs the same stress pattern.
• Practise a rising tone before the end of a list and a falling tone on the final item. Many statements fall; yes/no questions often rise, while other questions may fall. Record yourself for two minutes and listen back for one feature at a time. If you cannot hear the difference, ask a teacher or partner.

An ending can carry the timeline

Format and assessment checked on 2 October 2026: official IELTS Speaking guide. Sound practice: British Council Sounds Right. Text examples teach intended forms, not your actual delivery.