Start with one recording
Record one sentence at your normal speaking speed before you practise. Keep that recording. Listen to the sound example for your chosen group, repeat the sentence, and compare the same part of each take. A phone voice recorder is enough for this exercise.
British English includes many accents. The target here is RP, not a claim that every British person uses these sounds. You can work on a particular feature while keeping the rest of your voice.
1–3: R before a consonant, a pause and a vowel
For the RP reference, compare car park with car engine. The R is normally absent before the consonant in park but can link into the vowel in engine. Listen to the following sound; deleting every written R would also remove the R you need in red.
Use the examples below to ask one concrete question: did I change the R when the next sound changed? Keep the sentence moving rather than inserting a separate pause after every word.
Try it aloud
- 1. Leave the car near the park.
- 2. The car engine is already warm.
- 3. Our teacher is here after four.
Listen once, repeat the word, then use it in a sentence. Practise the dropped r.
4–6: a clear T in short everyday phrases
A clear tongue-tip T is a useful starting point for careful pronunciation. Try the middle of water and better, then listen at normal speed. The model sound below gives you a reference for this exercise.
A glottal T is also used in British speech in some contexts. Do not label every glottal stop a mistake, or force a large burst of air onto every T. The aim is to hear and practise a choice, not to pronounce every letter identically.
Try it aloud
- 4. Could I have a little water?
- 5. This letter is better than the last.
- 6. Put the bottle on the table.
Listen once, repeat the word, then use it in a sentence. Practise the crisp t.
7–9: keep BATH separate from TRAP
The RP model uses the long vowel of father in bath. It does not use that vowel for every written A: cat and hat belong to a different vowel group. The contrast in the second sentence is more useful than simply making every vowel longer.
Many northern English speakers use a short vowel in bath. That is another British pronunciation, not a failure to speak English. Choose the model that matches your own practice goal.
Try it aloud
- 7. I had a bath after the class.
- 8. The cat sat beside the bath.
- 9. We walked past the grass on the path.
Listen once, repeat the word, then use it in a sentence. Practise the long bath.
10–12: say what you mean
Emphasis changes with the message. In sentence ten, emphasise blue to correct the colour, then wanted to explain that you did not actually buy it. The words stay the same while the listener receives a different clue.
For the question, imagine you are asking someone to confirm an arrangement. For the final sentence, decide whether Monday or Friday is the information your listener needs. There is no single tune that fits every context.
Try it aloud
- 10. I wanted the blue one.
- 11. Are you coming on Tuesday?
- 12. We can meet on Monday, but not on Friday.
Listen once, repeat the word, then use it in a sentence. Practise the melody.
A five-minute practice session
Spend the first minute choosing a sentence and saving your starting take. Use the next two minutes to listen and repeat. In minute four, compare the chosen sound in your two recordings. Finish by answering a question without reading the sentence.
Write one observation, such as “I kept the R in car engine” or “I emphasised the colour”. If you cannot hear a difference, shorten the task to the relevant word pair or ask a teacher for feedback. A higher automated score alone does not tell you what changed.
Try it aloud
- Choose one sentence and one listening question.
- Record, listen to the reference, then record again.
- Use the same feature in a sentence you make up yourself.
Questions about this practice
Should I practise all 12 sentences every day?
No. Start with one group and a feature you can hear. Move on when you can use it in your own sentence, rather than when you have read the whole list.
Are these sentences recordings from the app?
The sentences are original written exercises. The audio players provide related sound examples, not a recording of every sentence.
Keep practising
References and listening
Written by BritSpeech. Practice routines are suggestions, not guaranteed learning outcomes. Where included, our audio examples use the app’s generated British voice.