American Accent Decoded

Your first language

The American accent for Vietnamese speakers

Your English is already good. If Vietnamese is your first language, these are the American patterns worth your time first, and why.

Start with these patterns

Each Vietnamese word, little ones too, stands alone and is said in full, and tie can sound like die.

  1. A consonant joins the next word

    consonant + next vowel → joins

    The last consonant starts the next word: “pick up” becomes “pi-kup”.

    If you speak Vietnamese, this helps with end sounds like K, T and D. Each is easy to say when it starts the next word: “pi-kup”.

  2. T, P and K start with air

    start + T · P · K → with air

    Without the air, time can sound like dime.

    If you speak Vietnamese, start a T like your “th” in “thì”, with air. Without it, tie can sound like die.

  3. Little words are quick

    to · for · of → tuh · fer · uh

    In a sentence, at and from are quick too: “uht” and “fruhm”.

    If you speak Vietnamese, every word has its own tone and is said in full. In English, little words are quick.

Then, for clear pronunciation

Vietnamese words end in few sounds and add no endings, and thirteen or thirty can change a price.

  1. Finish the word, add no vowel

    last sound → said

    Without its T, note is no. With an added vowel, sport is support.

    If you speak Vietnamese, an S or Z at the end may disappear. Keep it: nose, not “no”.

  2. -ed has three sounds

    P · K · F · S · SH · CH + -ed → tother sounds + -ed → dT · D + -ed → id

    Look at the sound before it, not the letter: laugh ends in an F sound.

    If you speak Vietnamese, your words don’t change for the past. So -ed is easy to forget; keep it, to show it already happened.

  3. -s has three sounds

    P · T · K · F · TH + -s → sother sounds + -s → zS · Z · SH · CH · J + -s → iz

    Go by the sound, not the letter: place ends in an S sound.

    If you speak Vietnamese, your words don’t change for more than one. So the -s is easy to forget; keep it, because it means more than one.

  4. Thirteen or thirty?

    -teen → strong-ty → quick

    In -teen, the T is clear. In -ty, it often becomes a quick D, one fast touch.

    If you speak Vietnamese, start -teen like your “th” in “thì”, with air, and make it long: thirteen.

What you likely do already

Vietnamese gives you a head start on: T stops, with no air.

Another first language · All 69 patterns