Do you know this pronunciation hack? (Learn it in under 5 min.)

Hey everyone, it's Hadar.

Today I have a short and sweet episode for you on how to simplify

the pronunciation of words.

And more specifically, I'm going to teach you about syllable deletion

where you can just eliminate an entire syllable in a word.

But before that, if you are new to my channel, then welcome.

My name is Hadar, I'm a non-native speaker of English.

And I am here to help you speak with clarity, with

confidence, and with freedom.

I have a ton of resources for you to download for free on my website,

so check it out at hadarshemesh.com.

You can also follow me on social media for valuable daily content.

All right, so here's the thing.

Sometimes, especially in words with three or more syllables, where

there is a syllable – a syllable is the smallest unit in a word.

With a schwa – a schwa is a reduced vowel, that means that

that syllable is a weak stress.

And I'm going to link to all the videos that talk about

that, it's super interesting.

And if you don't know what a schwa is, make sure you watch those videos.

So when you have a syllable with a schwa, it could possibly be deleted.

The more popular the word is, the more likely for that syllable to be deleted.

Now, it's not a must, it doesn't happen with every syllable that has a schwa

in longer words, but there is a pattern that I'd like to teach you today.

When you have a word with three syllables, and the middle syllable is a schwa – a

neutral sound, the 'uh' sound – it is very common for that syllable to be eliminated.

And then the two other syllables comprise the word.

For example, we have the word 'camera'.

'camera' has three syllables, technically.

The first syllable is the primary stress - 'kam'.

Then we have a schwa, and then we have another schwa - 'ruh'.

'kam-uh-ruh'.

However, the middle syllable is often deleted.

And then we reduce it to just 'kam-ruh'.

Another example.

The word 'favorite'.

'fei-vuh-r't'.

The primary stress is on the first syllable - 'fei'.

Then we have a schwa - 'vuh-r't', 2 schwas.

But in this case as well, the middle syllable - eliminated: 'feiv-r't'.

Again, not a must, you can totally say 'fei-vuh-r't' and it's going to be legit.

But if you listen to people say it, you'll notice that people usually

pronounce it in two syllables rather than three - 'feiv-r't'.

Another example: chocolate - 'chaa-kuh-l't'.

In this case, eliminate the middle syllable - the schwa,

and then you get 'chaak-l't'.

Another example: restaurant - 'res-tuh-raant'.

'res' - the primary stress, 'tuh' - a schwa, a weak stress,

and then 'raant' - a secondary stress, we have a pure vowel here.

'res-tuh-raant'.

The middle syllable can be eliminated.

'res-traant'.

Let's look at a few more examples and practice them together.

'nach-r'l' instead of 'na-chuh-ral'.

'ev-ree' instead of 'e-veh-ree'.

'dif-r'nt, instead of 'di-fuh-r'nt'.

'fam-lee' Instead of 'fa-muh-lee'.

'des-pr't' instead of 'des-puh-r't'.

'aap-ruh' instead of 'aa-puh-ruh'.

'kath-lik' Instead of 'ka-thuh-lik'.

Reducing three syllables into two makes it easier to pronounce

the word for most people.

And this is why I highly recommend for you to actually put it into

practice and to practice pronouncing these words with two syllables.

Now, again, it is totally fine to pronounce the middle syllable - the schwa.

But since sometimes the schwa is mispronounced by speakers of

English as a second language, then it might just jeopardize the

clarity of the word, and this is why eliminate that middle syllable.

I have prepared for you a PDF with these words and a few sentences for

you to practice, so you can download it for free by clicking the link below.

I hope this was helpful.

Thank you so much for being here and practicing here with me.

For more resources, check out my website at hadarshemesh.com.

And of course, consider subscribing to my channel.

Have a beautiful, beautiful rest of the day.

And I'll see you next week in the next video.