How to Pronounce a Foreign Language Correctly

JFK made somewhat of a fool of himself when he made his famous proclamation at the Berlin wall - in awful German. Keep reading to avoid making the same mistake.

Difficulty: Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Foreign Language Phrase Books
• Foreign Language Tape
• Foreign Language Textbooks
• Two-way Foreign Language Dictionaries
• Foreign Language Software
• Foreign Language Tutors

1. Try to forget your native language's sounds as best you can. What sounds like a "j" in a foreign language, for instance, is probably a little different; learn the new sound, not the familiar one.

2. Listen carefully to these new sounds. Repeat them as accurately as possible, again forgetting the sounds of your native language.

3. Get cassette tapes and listen to them frequently, repeating what you hear.

4. Watch movies and TV programs in the foreign language, repeating (silently, if necessary) as much as you can.

5. Visit a place where the language is spoken natively, if possible. Imitate the native speakers' pronunciation as closely as you can, intonation and all.

6. Find a tutor to help you with your pronunciation.

Tips & Warnings

• Ask your instructor to teach you tongue-twisters. These will train your mouth better than anything else.
• Focus on good pronunciation from the start, or you may build bad habits.

[asekhon]

on 10/11/2007 Let's set this Kennedy/Berlin thing straight: JFK said, "Ich bin ein Berliner,"--literally, "I am a Berliner." However, a resident of Berlin would have said, "Ich bin Berliner,"--literally, "I am Berliner." In English, it can be a toss-up whether or not to include the article ("I am American" and "I am an American" are both grammatically correct), but the language more often favors putting the article in ("I am a New Yorker" is correct, but "I am New Yorker" is not). In German, however, the article, "ein," is not necessary when talking about being a resident of a particular place (like Berlin). Not only is the article not necessary, it would actually be incorrect to include it in this context! The German word, "Berliner," when used to refer to a type of jelly doughnut made in Berlin (and NOT to a person of Berlin), DOES take the "ein" article. Kennedy was apparently unaware of this fact.

[DHarry]

on 4/4/2007 You can call Kennedy's blunder an urban legend, but they did laugh at him for the "Berliner" line. This wasn't because of the accent though, it was because while "Berliner" can technically mean "person from Berlin", its more common usage is as the name of a jelly doughnut. When he tried to identify with the people, he actually said "I am a jelly doughnut" - hence the laughter.

on 8/8/2006 I have heard so many people try to speak a foreign language with their own accent just because they are so worried they will get it wrong if they try! Trust me, you sound a lot sillier if you don't make any effort at all, than if you try and make a couple of mistakes!

on 3/30/2006 President Kennedy did not make a fool of himself. This is an urban legend about the "Berliner" line. In fact, he used the word correctly in context.

on 12/16/2005 It's generally agreed the best way to learn French is to listen to Chirac speak. Even if they don't agree with his policies, almost every French speaker agrees his accent is flawless and he speak very, very clearly.