Pronunciation Practice
English Pronunciation Practice
Listen to your browser read aloud, then say it back. Practise tricky sound pairs, words grouped by sound and short sentences, changing the speed as you go.
The practice material and any sentences you type never leave your browser.
Listen and repeat
Phrase by phrase
Tap a phrase to hear just that part. Repeating a sentence in short pieces several times makes it much easier.
Listen and choose
One of the two words is played at random. Choose which one you heard.
Speaking check Optional
This feature needs an internet connection and a Chrome-based browser. Chrome's speech recognition sends the sound from your microphone to the browser maker's servers to turn it into text, so this part alone is processed outside your browser. If you do not use it, everything else still works as normal.
0/ 100
Word by word
This is a rough score from comparing the recognised text with the original. Results vary with background noise and your microphone, so a low score does not mean your pronunciation is wrong.
How to use
- 1
Choose what to practise
Choose Minimal pairs when two sounds get mixed up, Words by sound to focus on one sound, and Short sentences to learn sentences you will actually say. If you have your own sentences ready, paste them into Your own text.
- 2
Set the speed and voice
Choose from the English voices installed on your device and set the speed anywhere from 0.5× to 1.5×. At first, slowing down to about 0.8× makes each sound easier to hear.
- 3
Listen and repeat
Listen once with ‘Listen’, or several times with ‘Repeat’. For a long sentence, press ‘Play phrase by phrase’ to hear it a few words at a time, repeat each phrase, then join them together. With minimal pairs, ‘Listen and choose’ also trains your ear to tell the two sounds apart.
- 4
Try the speaking check if you like
In a Chrome-based browser with an internet connection, what you say into the microphone is turned into text and compared with the original. The score is only a guide, so it is more useful to look at which words did not come across than at the score itself.
Tips for practising
- Listen to the same item three times and repeat it three times. That works better than going through many items once each.
- With minimal pairs, learning to hear the difference comes first. A sound you cannot tell apart by ear is hard to produce with your mouth.
- Do not try to memorise a sentence in one go. Learn it phrase by phrase, then join the pieces together.
- Slow down to 0.7× and pronounce everything accurately, then raise the speed to 1.2× and repeat once more to get used to the speed of real conversation.
Frequently asked questions
There is no sound.
First check your device volume and silent mode. On iPhone and iPad, sound sometimes plays only after you have tapped the screen once, so try pressing ‘Preview voice’ first. If there is no English voice available at all, a notice appears on the screen. In that case, use an up-to-date version of Chrome, Edge or Safari, or add an English voice in your device settings.
Is the audio recorded by native speakers?
No. It is not a human recording but a synthetic voice installed on your device. It is good enough as a reference for pronunciation, but intonation and emotion may not sound natural. It helps to pick voices from different regions in the voice list, such as the US and the UK, and compare them.
Does it work without the internet?
Reading aloud is mostly processed on your device, so it works without a network. Some high-quality voices only play with an internet connection, though; if that happens, choose a different voice from the list. Only the speaking check (speech recognition) always needs an internet connection.
Why does the speaking check need the internet?
Because speech recognition in Chrome-based browsers works by sending the sound from your microphone to the browser maker's servers to turn it into text. That is why it does not work offline, and while you use this feature, the sound leaves your browser. Even if you do not use it, all of the listening and repeating practice still works.
How reliable is the score?
It is a rough guide that compares the recognised text with the original. Background noise, microphone quality and the limits of the recogniser can change the result a lot. Rather than the score itself, look at which words were recognised differently, and listen to just those words again.
What is a minimal pair?
A pair of words that differ in just one sound and are otherwise the same. Think of rice and lice, or bad and bed: one sound changes the meaning completely. Minimal pairs are the quickest way to train a distinction your first language may not make, so this tool includes 84 of them.
How are sentences split into phrases?
They are split into short chunks of a few words at commas, full stops, conjunctions and prepositions. It is not a grammatically perfect phrase analysis; the aim is lengths that are easy to repeat. You can tap each phrase to hear it on its own.
Can I practise with my own sentences?
Yes. Choose ‘Your own text’ and put one sentence on each line. Sentences you actually need to say, such as textbook sentences, a presentation script or interview answers, are split into phrases in the same way. You can practise up to 100 sentences at a time.
Are the sentences I type saved?
No. The practice material and the sentences you type are processed only inside your browser, are never sent to a server, and disappear when you close the page. However, when you use the speaking check, the sound from your microphone is sent to your browser's speech recognition server.