Pete Smissen

Now, pronunciation is one of those things that a lot of learners either ignore or don't really know how to improve.

You might feel like, I know what I want to say, but people don't always understand me.

Or maybe I don't sound natural.

And the problem is most learners don't know which sounds they're getting wrong and how to actually fix them.

And again, this is where AI can help you massively.

You can use it as a pronunciation coach.

So, what do you actually do?

You can ask it for very specific practice.

For example, give me minimal pairs for the vowels i and e in Australian English.

And in that prompt, I should add, you can see the IPA symbols for those vowel sounds.

That's what's key, using the right symbols and saying Australian English.

Or you could say something like, give me 10 sentences to practice the vowel a. Again, the IPA symbols are there in the prompt.

And what you'll get is targeted practice for the exact sounds you need to work on.

Now, here's how to actually use this.

Don't just read the sentences once.

You want to repeat them multiple times, say them slowly, then naturally, record yourself and compare.

This is where the improvement happens.

You hear the difference, you adjust, you improve.

And this is where you've got a huge advantage with Aussie English, because you can focus on Australian vowel sounds, connected speech, reduction, all the things that make your English sound more natural.

You can even ask things like, give me sentences with connected speech in Australian English.