NTH Cluster Practice Tip American English Pronunciation
Hi, I’m Tom Kelley, a Rachel’s English teacher.
And today’s Practice Tip deals with that challenging
NTH cluster.
When I’m working with my students in my private
lessons, I’m always really excited when this
topic comes up because it’s something that
can really make this cluster a lot easier
for people. And when they learn it, it’s really
exciting. So, when you have the N come before
a TH, for instance, in the word ‘month’, month,
it can be challenging to make that N the way
we normally make the N, with the tongue tip
up to the gum ridge, nn, and then slide it
down the teeth to the TH. TH, nnth, nnth.
So instead, what most native speakers will
do, is they’ll make the N with the tongue
tip out between the teeth. Nn, nn. What’s
happening there is just behind the tip of
my tongue is raising to the gum ridge for
the N, and my tongue tip is already prepared
for that TH sound. Nth, nth, nth. So, month,
month, becomes much easier.
Practice with me: month, month
tenth, tenth
nineteenth, nineteenth
And you can practice with a whole lot more
words as well. I’ll put a list down in the
description below of other words you can use
for your practice.
That’s all for today’s practice tip. You can
learn more about taking private lessons with
me here. I also offer pronunciation evaluations,
where I help you identify and focus on your
specific pronunciation challenges.
Keep practicing, have fun, and thanks for
watching Rachel’s English.