The Secrets of Natural Connected Speech
CEFR Level B2Lesson Goals
In this lesson, you will learn to recognize and understand three key features of fluent speech that make English sound fast and natural: assimilation, elision, and intrusion.
Why Does English Sound So Fast?
Have you ever felt that native speakers talk too quickly? It's often because they use "shortcuts" in their speech. These are not lazy habits; they are natural rules that help the speaker's mouth move from one sound to the next more easily. Let's explore three of these "secret rules."
1. Assimilation (Sounds Change)
Assimilation is when a sound changes to become more like the sound that follows it. This happens to make the transition between words smoother.
Written Form: "good girl"
Spoken Form: "goog girl"
The /d/ sound in "good" changes to a /g/ sound to prepare for the /g/ in "girl."
Written Form: "ten boys"
Spoken Form: "tem boys"
The /n/ sound (made with the tongue) changes to /m/ (made with the lips) to prepare for the /b/ in "boys."
2. Elision (Sounds Disappear)
Elision is the disappearance of a sound, usually a /t/ or /d/, when it's between two other consonants. This avoids a difficult "traffic jam" of sounds.
Written Form: "next door"
Spoken Form: "nex' door"
The /t/ sound is difficult to pronounce between /ks/ and /d/, so it is often dropped.
3. Intrusion (Sounds Are Added)
Intrusion is when a small sound is added between two words to link them. This usually happens when one word ends with a vowel and the next word begins with a vowel.
Written Form: "go on"
Spoken Form: "go-w-on"
A small /w/ sound is added to smoothly connect the two vowel sounds.
Written Form: "I agree"
Spoken Form: "I-y-agree"
A small /y/ sound is added to link the vowels.
Key Tip: Recognize, Don't Imitate (Yet!)
This is very important for B2 learners. Your main goal right now is to recognize these features to improve your listening comprehension. You need to know that "nex' door" means "next door."
Do not try too hard to produce these sounds yourself yet. These features happen naturally with fluency. If you force them, your speech might sound unnatural. Focus on listening first. Your production of these sounds will improve over time as you become more fluent.
Practice: Identify the Feature
Listen to the phrases in the audio player, spoken at natural speed. Which feature of connected speech do you hear?
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Listen to Audio 1 ("good boy"):
Which feature is it?
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Listen to Audio 2 ("must go"):
Which feature is it?
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Listen to Audio 3 ("do it"):
Which feature is it?
Show Answers
Answers: 1-a (Assimilation: the /d/ in 'good' changes to /b/). 2-b (Elision: the /t/ in 'must' disappears). 3-c (Intrusion: a /w/ sound is added between 'do' and 'it').
Vocabulary
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Assimilation (noun) [សហលក្ខណៈ]
When a speech sound changes to become more like a neighboring sound.
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Elision (noun) [ការលុបសំឡេង]
The omission or disappearance of a sound in speech (e.g., "don't know" becomes "dunno").
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Intrusion (noun) [ការបន្ថែមសំឡេង]
The insertion of an extra sound between words to link them smoothly.
Your Mission
Time to apply what you've learned to your own practice.
- Active Listening Practice: Find a short, fast-paced scene from an English TV show or movie on YouTube. Listen to it three times. The first time, just watch. The second time, listen for an example of elision (a missing /t/ or /d/). The third time, listen for intrusion (an added /w/ or /y/).
- Self-Correction Awareness: Record yourself speaking for one minute about your day. Listen back. You don't need to change anything, but just notice: do you naturally use any of these features already?