What Are The Effects Of Mother Tongue Interference In English Language Pronunciation?

The variables in mother tongue that hinder effective communication in english are caused by differences in phonetics. Most languages, for instance, do not use, or pronounce, the combination in the same way as it is pronounced in the English language.

• The 'TH' Problem

This is one of the biggest problems for students of the English language. In most cases, the word the, for instance, will sound more like te, se or ze when pronounced by foreigners, because the actual sound simply is not used anywhere else.

The best way to learn this sound properly is to stand in front of a mirror, place the tongue lightly against the top teeth, so its edge just touches the top lip, then pulling it back sharply as the word the is pronounced. It sounds silly, but it works a treat.

• Phonetics

Basically, the interference of mother tongue in learning English is down to three basic concepts of phonetics. These concepts are the articulatory, acoustic and auditory phonetics.

• Articulatory Phonetics

This concept is all about how sounds are produced by the speaker. The production of speech sounds is dependent on the vocal tract and articulatory capabilities of the speaker.

In other words, how a speaker produces the sounds in his mother tongue will interfere with the way sounds are produced in English. Some languages, for instance, produce clicking sounds the rest of the world is almost incapable of producing.

• Acoustic and Auditory Phonetics

These are about the reception, perception and mechanism, such as pitch, harmonics and amplitude, of sounds. This is why it is important to hear the words, rather than trying to learn from written context only. Learners may wish to take a look at our article on how to study English well. Learning how to use the phonetic alphabet also helps.

Interference of mother tongue in english language.