Hey there! Itβs Michael here - and welcome back to Speak Naturally in a Minute from Happy English. Iβm here every Sunday with a quick one-point lesson to help you improve your pronunciation, rhythm, and intonation.
And if you want to watch this lesson, just look for Happy English Michael on YouTube.
In fact, the idea for todayβs lesson came from a listenerβs question on YouTube. Itβs all about reductions. In language learning, reduction means shortening or softening sounds when we speak quickly - itβs what makes English sound smooth and natural. One really common example is when we say the phrase βIβm trying to.β It usually sounds like, βIβm tryinβ uh.β βIβm tryinβ uh.β
There are three things happening here. First, Iβm is pronounced as Ahm. Then, we drop the g of trying, so it sounds like try-in, and third we drop the T in the word TO and pronounce it as uh. Ahm try-in-uh. Here are some examples in context:
- βIβm tryinβ uh finish this report.β
- βIβm tryinβ uh get up earlier.β
- And these days, βIβm tryinβ uh learn Japanese.β
Itβs quick, relaxed, and totally natural - especially in everyday conversation and songs. Youβll hear this kind of reduction all the time in American English, like what we studied last Sunday: Lemme, gimme, and gemme. So next time you say Iβm trying to, relax your mouth and let it flow: βIβm tryinβ uh.β Thatβs the rhythm of real American English.
Hey, thanks for listening! And remember to follow and subscribe so you wonβt miss the next Happy English Podcast and next weekβs Sunday Speak. Until next time, keep learning and keep it cool.
Watch the video version of this Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@HappyEnglishNY/podcasts
Build Vocabulary With My Free Vocabulary Workshop: https://learn.myhappyenglish.com/vocabulary-workshop-signup
The Happy English Podcast
Helping people speak English better since 2014
Over 1,000 episodes β’ 8 million downloads
π Get free weekly English lessons plus instant access to my FREE Vocabulary Workshop.:
https://learn.myhappyenglish.com/free-english-lessonsπ₯ Watch video versions of the Happy English Podcast on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@HappyEnglishNY/podcastsπ Learn more about my English lessons and courses
https://www.myhappyenglish.com