English Sounds - W [w] Consonant - How to make the W [w] Consonant

180,979 views ・ 2017-05-04

Rachel's English


Please double-click on the English subtitles below to play the video.

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In this American English pronunciation video, we're going to learn how to make the W sound.
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To make this sound, ww--, the lips form a tight circle. Ww--
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The back part of the tongue stretches up towards the soft palate.
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While the front part of the tongue lightly touches the back of the bottom front teeth.
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To give this sound the right quality, you have to close the vocal cords to get this sound: ww-- ww--
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Ww-- which we add to the sound ww--
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You release the vocal cords as you release the lips, coming out of the W sound. Ww--
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Let's look at the sound up close and in slow motion.
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With the tight circle for the lips, you can't see the tongue at all.
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But it lifts in the back. The word 'why'.
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A tight circle for the lips.
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The word 'west'.
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Again, a tight circle for the lips.
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The word 'unwind'. Here, the W is in the middle of the word.
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We still take the time to bring the lips into a tight circle.
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This sound is most common at the beginning of words.
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It doesn't occur at the end of any words, though the letter W does.
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The W consonant.
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Why
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01:45
West
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Unwind
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Example words. Repeat with me.
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Water. Ww-- Water.
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02:00
Welcome. Ww-- Welcome.
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Rework. Ww-- Rework.
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Away. Ww-- Away.
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Between. Ww-- Between.
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Will. Ww-- Will.
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This video is one of 36 in a new series, The Sounds of American English.
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Videos in this set will be released here on YouTube twice a month,
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first and third Thursdays, in 2016 and 2017.
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But the whole set can be all yours right now.
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The real value of these videos is watching them as a set, as a whole,
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to give your mind the time to take it all in and get the bigger picture.
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Most of the materials you'll find elsewhere just teach the sounds on their own in isolation.
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It's a mistake to learn them this way.
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We learn the sounds to speak words and sentences, not just sounds.
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Move closer to fluency in spoken English.
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Buy the video set today!
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Visit rachelsenglish.com/sounds
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Available as a DVD or digital download.
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