Category: Pronunciation

1. clay
2. racket
3. forehand
4. ace
5. fault
6. umpire
7. deuce
8. advantage
9. tie-break
10. tournament

Back to the exercise

1. purr
2. paws
3. fur
4. whiskers
5. hiss
6. clothes
7. scratch
8. tiger
9. cheetah
10. leopard

More Improve Your Accent! exercises

A.

1. circus
2. circle
3. circuit
4. service
5. sermon
6. certain
7. surgery
8. surprise

B.

1. My friends organised a surprise party for my eighteenth birthday.
2. If your knee doesn’t heal properly you may need surgery.
3. Monaco is one of the most famous Grand Prix circuits.
4. Scotland has banned the use of wild animals in circuses.
5. “Are you sure you want to stay?” – “Yes, I’m certain.”
6. Hurry up! If we’re late getting home, Dad’s going to give us another of his sermons.
7. We got lost and ended up driving round in circles.
8. Make sure the hotel has a pool and room service.

It can really help your pronunciation if you know the phonetic symbols and the sounds they represent. You don’t need to worry about learning to write them just to recognise them. Do my quickie Improve Your Accent exercises and you’ll pick them up in no time, plus you’ll improve your pronunciation and your listening skills too.

A.  Can you decipher these 8 words?

B. Fill the gaps with the words from exercise A.

1. My friends organised a _____ party for my eighteenth birthday.
2. If your knee doesn’t heal properly you may need _____.
3. Monaco is one of the most famous Grand Prix _____s.
4. Scotland has banned the use of wild animals in _____es.
5. “Are you sure you want to stay?” – “Yes, I’m _____.”
6. Hurry up! If we’re late getting home, Dad’s going to give us another of his _____s.
7. We got lost and ended up driving round in _____s.
8. Make sure the hotel has a pool and room _____.

Answers ➡️

It can really help your pronunciation if you know the phonetic symbols and the sounds they represent. You don’t need to worry about learning to write them just to recognise them. Do my quickie Improve Your Accent exercises and you’ll pick them up in no time, plus you’ll improve your pronunciation and your listening skills too.

A. Can you ‘decipher’ these 7 words?

B. Now take those words and complete the sentences. 

1. You could fly from Barcelona to Ibiza but you could also take the _____.
2. Thanks to the lovely shop window display we attracted lots more _____s to the shop.
3. They always make their own Carnival _____s.
4. The hotel was stunning. It looked like a _____tale castle.
5. When I switched on my phone again I had over a hundred WhatsApp _____s.
6. You’re very tense. Let me _____ your shoulders.
7. It’s a _____ in Japan to take off your shoes before entering somebody’s home.

Answers ➡️

Image: Little Fairy Girl By Janny Sandholm [Public Domain], via Wikimedia Commons

1. career
2. salary
3. personnel
4. vacancy
5. qualifications
6. course
7. promotion
8. employer