This is the last part of this multi-part article. If you missed the last two articles, then go to part 1 and then part 2, and read them now. Don’t worry, this post will still be here once you’re done.

For the final part of this article series, we’re going to take up some more familiar issues. However, we’re going to discuss certain aspects of these issues that might be new to you.

Grammatical Errors

The funny thing about grammatical errors is that both native speakers and non-native speakers tend to make mistakes. Of course, they make different kinds of errors.

Continue Reading Below...

Native speakers often make mistakes based on how they think a particular word sounds and so, they end up substituting one word for another. For example, instead of:

Should have

Would have

Could have

Many native speakers use “of” instead of “have,” because they sound almost the same when spoken.

So we get:

Should of

Would of

Could of

Do you have any native speaker friends? Have you ever heard them say something similar and you thought “what were they thinking?” The simple answer is that they probably weren’t thinking while they were speaking at all.

As a native speaker of any language, you will naturally use the rhythm, intonation, and timing of your native tongue whenever you speak. This is exactly what leads to these types of grammatical mistakes made by native speakers.

Because a “should have” sounds so similar to a “should of,” many native speakers just use them interchangeably even though you, as a student of American English, can probably spot the mistake right away.

On the other hand, non-native speakers are prone to making mistakes in grammar that a native speaker would rarely, if ever, commit. Mistakes in subject-verb agreement are quite common among non-native speakers of English such as:

“There is too many books on the table.”

“I am an hero.”

“My pants is too big for me.”

Furthermore, some non-native speakers have trouble with distinguishing between different pronouns. Take the following examples:

”She is my father.”

“John went shopping with her mother.”

If you are non-native speaker, you might want to watch out for these kinds of mistakes and focus on these areas of your English usage in order to improve your over-all American Accent.

Muffled Speech

Many non-native speakers make the mistake of slurring or intentionally mumbling and even speeding up their speech when they are unsure as to how to pronounce a certain word or phrase. Often, this is done in the mistaken belief that by doing so, they will be able to somehow “mask” or “hide” their incomplete knowledge of American pronunciation.

The truth is that many Americans commit pronunciation mistakes all the time, but since English is their native language, very few of them resort to the slurred speech tactic as a means of masking their poor knowledge of pronunciation.

In fact, as a non-native speaker, there is really nothing wrong with making mistakes in pronunciation when you speak.

If you make a mistake and you are aware of it, simply correct yourself with “Oh, I meant to say,” or a similar phrase. Furthermore, if someone else corrects you on your pronunciation, you should gracefully thank them by saying, “thank you. I stand corrected.”

It’s really that simple – and there’s no shame at all in doing this.

Remember that you need to get over your fear of speaking English if you want to make progress.

Conclusion

Throughout this multi-part series, you’ve learned all about the six different factors that may inadvertently affect your American Accent and over-all English usage. By learning how to deal with these factors, you will be able to greatly improve your American Accent and bring yourself one step closer to speaking good, competent American English.

Author Bio: Sheri Summers is a long-time English and accent trainer.  She works with individuals around the world through private coaching programs and her online American Accent Course, to help them feel comfortable living, working and speaking in American English.  She can be reached at sheri@accentonspeaking.com.