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Oxford Online English, Weak Forms - How to Pronounce Weak Forms in English

Weak Forms - How to Pronounce Weak Forms in English

Hi I'm Oli.

Welcome to Oxford Online English.

In this lesson you can learn about weak forms in English.

Weak forms are a really important pronunciation point.

Learning about weak forms can help your speaking, of course, but if can also make a big difference

to your English listening.

Let's see how.

Listen to a sentence:

I gave her a box of chocolates for her birthday.

So, what are weak forms?

Some words have two possible pronunciations.

For example, think about the word for in this sentence.

If you just read the word by itself, you'll probably say /fɔː/.

However, in the sentence, its pronunciation is different.

It becomes /fə/.

So, the word for has a weak form.

Its pronunciation changes.

This isn't just because we're saying it very fast.

It has a different sound: /ə/ instead of /ɔː/.

Can you see any other weak forms in our sentence?

Her, a and of are also weak.

Try it!

Read the sentence.

Try to pronounce the weak forms:

I gave /hərə/ box /əv/chocolates /fəhə/ birthday.

So, do all words have weak forms?

No, there are many words which have weak forms, but not all words do.

In this lesson, you'll see which words have weak forms, when to use them, and how to pronounce

them correctly.

Words which have weak forms are often ‘grammar' words.

Words which carry the main meaning of a sentence don't usually have weak forms.

That means most nouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs don't have weak forms.

Prepositions like to, for, as, of or at have weak forms.

Pronouns like you, your, that or there can have weak forms.

Some conjunctions like and or but can also have weak forms.

Also, auxiliary verbs often have weak forms.

That means words like do, does, was, would, can, are, and so on.

Lots of information, I know!

Let's do some examples.

Look at a sentence:

Are you coming to the cinema with us tomorrow?

There are five weak forms in this sentence.

Can you find them? Listen one more time.

Are you coming to the cinema with us tomorrow?

Can you hear where the weak forms are?

The weak forms are:

Are, which is pronounced /ə/.

You, which becomes /jə/.

To, which is pronounced /tə/.

The.

The is almost always weak, but it is technically a weak form: /ðə/.

Finally, us is weak; it becomes /əs/.

So you can see that the weak forms are the auxiliary verb (are), the pronouns (you, us),

and the preposition (to).

Also, do you notice anything about the pronunciation of the weak forms?

In all of the weak forms, you can see this sound: /ə/.

This sound, the schwa, is common in weak forms.

Almost all weak forms have a schwa sound.

Let's do one more example, for practice.

Listen to another sentence:

What does he do at the weekends?

Can you hear the weak forms?

If not, can you guess which words are weak here? Listen one more time.

What does he do at the weekends?

Does is weak.

It's pronounced /dəz/.

At is also weak.

It becomes /ət/.

The is weak, as before: /ðə/.

So, here's a question: why is does weak but do is not?

It's because does is an auxiliary verb.

It's just there to make a question; it doesn't add any meaning to the sentence.

Do is the main verb.

It carries meaning.

Words which carry meaning have their full pronunciation, and won't be weak.

Again, you can see that all of the weak forms have the schwa sound: /ə/.

There are many more weak forms, but the number of words with weak forms is limited.

Depending on how you define ‘weak form', there are maybe 30-60 words which have weak

pronunciations.

For now, remember the general idea: ‘grammar' words like prepositions, pronouns and auxiliary

verbs often have weak forms.

Okay, so now you know a bit about weak forms, but when should you use them?

In an English sentence, some words are pronounced with more stress than others.

Generally, the words which carry the main meaning are stressed, while ‘grammar'

words like prepositions, pronouns and so on are not stressed.

Words which are not stressed can be weak forms.

For example:

How long have you been waiting here?

Can you hear which words are stressed?

The words how, long and waiting are stressed:

HOW LONG have you been WAITING here?

The unstressed words can be weak.

Have and you have weak forms.

They're pronounced together.

You say: /əvjə/.

Been and here aren't stressed, but these words don't have weak forms, so the pronunciation

stays the same.

Let's do one more example:

I could have done more if I'd had more time.

Which words are stressed here, and which words do you think are weak?

Listen one more time.

I could have done more if I'd had more time.

The stressed words are done, more, had, more and time.

The weak forms are could and have.

Had is also weak in the contraction I'd; a contraction like I'd is really just a

weak form which is written.

So, could have is pronounced /kədəv/.

The other unstressed words, like if and I, don't have weak forms, so their pronunciation

doesn't change.

Okay, so now you know that weak forms are words with two possible pronunciations, and

you know when to use the weak pronunciation of a word.

But, if there are two possible pronunciations, what about the other one?

The opposite of a weak form is a strong form.

You know that weak forms depend on sentence stress.

However, sentence stress is not fixed.

Sentence stress depends on the situation, and the exact ideas you're trying to express.

Let's look at an example we saw before:

How long have you been waiting here?

We said that in this sentence, the stressed words would normally be how, long and waiting.

However, imagine you're talking to several people.

You ask the question to one person, but a different person answers.

You ask person A, but person B thinks you're talking to him, and he answers instead.

So, you ask the question again to person A. This time, it sounds different:

How long have YOU been waiting here?

Why does it sound different?

And what's the difference?

This time, you're emphasising the word you, because you want to make it clear who you're

talking to.

That means that you is pronounced with its full pronunciation: /jʊː/.

Let's do one more example.

We'll look at another sentence from before:

Are you coming to the cinema with us tomorrow?

Normally, the stressed words would be coming, cinema and tomorrow.

However, imagine that you thought your friend wasn't coming.

Someone had told you that she was busy, and couldn't come with you.

So now, when you ask the question, it sounds different:

ARE you coming to the cinema with us tomorrow?

This time, you emphasise the word are, because you thought your friend couldn't come, and

you're showing surprise.

So, if you want to emphasise a word, you should use the strong form.

Strong forms have the full pronunciation.

Emphasis depends on meaning, so the same word in the same sentence can be pronounced differently

in different situations.

There's one more rule: the last word of a sentence can never be weak.

For example:

What are you looking at?

The stressed words here are what and looking.

Are and you are weak; they're pronounced /əjə/.

At has a weak form, and it's not stressed in this sentence.

However, the last word of a sentence can't be weak.

That means at gets its full pronunciation, /æt/.

Now, hopefully you understand what weak forms are, when to use them, and when not to use

them.

So, let's do some practice!

First, look at three sentences:

Think about which words will be stressed, and which words will be weak forms.

Pause the video and think about it if you need more time.

Next, I'll read the sentences.

Listen for stressed words and weak forms.

Were your ideas right?

Does she really think she should do it?

What did you do to your hair?

What were you doing when she called you?

Let's look together.

Does she really think she should do it?

Here, really, think and do are stressed.

Does and should are weak.

Try saying the sentence with the stress and weak forms.

Repeat after me:

Does she really think she should do it?

Try once more, a little faster:

Does she really think she should do it?

How was that?

Can you pronounce the weak forms correctly?

One important point: weak forms are always connected to the words before and after.

So does needs to be joined to she: /dəsʃi/

Should needs to be pronounced together with she and do: /ʃiʃəd.dʊː/

Let's look at our next sentence:

What did you do to your hair?

Here, what, do and hair are stressed.

You, to and your are weak.

Try saying the sentence with the stress and weak forms.

Repeat after me:

What did you do to your hair?

Let's try again, at natural speed:

What did you do to your hair?

Okay, let's look at our last sentence:

What were you doing when she called you?

Here, what, doing and called are stressed.

Were and you are weak.

The you on the end is not stressed, but not weak, either, because it's the last word

of the sentence.

Try saying the sentence with the stress and weak forms.

Repeat after me:

What were you doing when she called you?

Let's try again, at natural speed:

What were you doing when she called you?

Remember, if you want more practice, you can review this section and try as many times

as you need to!

Okay, hopefully you've learned something new about weak forms and English pronunciation.

Check out our website for more free lessons like this:

Oxford Online English.com.

Thanks for watching, see you next time!

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Weak Forms - How to Pronounce Weak Forms in English Schwache Formen - Wie man schwache Formen im Englischen ausspricht Weak Forms - How to Pronounce Weak Forms in English Weak Forms - Cómo pronunciar Weak Forms en Inglés Formes faibles - Comment prononcer les formes faibles en anglais Forme deboli - Come pronunciare le forme deboli in inglese 弱い形 - 弱い形の英語の発音 약한 형태 - 약한 형태를 영어로 발음하는 방법 Zwakke vormen - Hoe spreek je zwakke vormen in het Engels uit? Słabe formy - Jak wymawiać słabe formy w języku angielskim? Weak Forms - Como pronunciar Weak Forms em inglês Слабые формы - Как произносить слабые формы в английском языке Zayıf Formlar - İngilizcede Zayıf Formlar Nasıl Telaffuz Edilir Слабкі форми - як вимовляти слабкі форми англійською мовою 弱形式 - 如何用英语发音弱形式 弱形式 - 如何用英語發音弱形式

Hi I'm Oli. Hola, soy Oli. Merhaba, ben Oli.

Welcome to Oxford Online English. Bienvenido a Oxford Online English. Oxford Online English'e hoş geldiniz.

In this lesson you can learn about weak forms in English. In dieser Lektion kannst du etwas über schwache Formen auf Englisch lernen. En esta lección aprenderás las formas débiles en inglés. Bu derste İngilizcede zayıf formlar hakkında bilgi edinebilirsiniz.

Weak forms are a really important pronunciation point. Schwache Formen sind ein wirklich wichtiger Aussprachepunkt. Las formas débiles son un punto de pronunciación realmente importante. Zayıf formlar gerçekten önemli bir telaffuz noktasıdır.

Learning about weak forms can help your speaking, of course, but if can also make a big difference Aprender las formas débiles puede ayudarte a hablar, por supuesto, pero también puede marcar una gran diferencia. Zayıf formlar hakkında bilgi edinmek elbette konuşmanıza yardımcı olabilir, ancak aynı zamanda büyük bir fark yaratabilir

to your English listening. a tu comprensión oral de inglés. İngilizce dinlemenize.

Let's see how. Veamos cómo. Nasıl olduğunu görelim.

Listen to a sentence: Escucha una frase:

I gave her a box of chocolates for her birthday. Le regalé una caja de bombones por su cumpleaños. Doğum günü için ona bir kutu çikolata verdim.

So, what are weak forms? ¿Qué son las formas débiles? Peki, zayıf formlar nelerdir?

Some words have two possible pronunciations. Algunas palabras tienen dos pronunciaciones posibles. Bazı kelimelerin iki olası telaffuzu vardır.

For example, think about the word for in this sentence. Por ejemplo, piensa en la palabra para en esta frase. Örneğin, bu cümledeki for kelimesini düşünün.

If you just read the word by itself, you'll probably say /fɔː/. Si solo lees la palabra sola, probablemente dirás /fɔː/. Eğer kelimeyi tek başına okursanız, muhtemelen /fɔː/ diyeceksiniz.

However, in the sentence, its pronunciation is different. Sin embargo, en la frase, su pronunciación es diferente. Ancak cümle içinde telaffuzu farklıdır.

It becomes /fə/. Se convierte en /fə/.

So, the word for has a weak form. Por lo tanto, la palabra for tiene una forma débil. Dolayısıyla, for kelimesinin zayıf bir formu vardır.

Its pronunciation changes. Su pronunciación cambia. Telaffuzu değişir.

This isn't just because we're saying it very fast. No es sólo porque lo digamos muy rápido. Bu sadece çok hızlı söylediğimiz için değil.

It has a different sound: /ə/ instead of /ɔː/. Tiene un sonido diferente: /ə/ en lugar de /ɔː/. Farklı bir sesi vardır: /ɔː/ yerine /ə/.

Can you see any other weak forms in our sentence? ¿Ves alguna otra forma débil en nuestra frase?

Her, a and of are also weak. Her, a y of también son débiles.

Try it! ¡Inténtalo!

Read the sentence. Lee la frase.

Try to pronounce the weak forms: Intenta pronunciar las formas débiles:

I gave /hərə/ box /əv/chocolates /fəhə/ birthday. Regalé /hərə/ caja /əv/ bombones /fəhə/ cumpleaños.

So, do all words have weak forms? Entonces, ¿todas las palabras tienen formas débiles?

No, there are many words which have weak forms, but not all words do. No, hay muchas palabras que tienen formas débiles, pero no todas las palabras las tienen.

In this lesson, you'll see which words have weak forms, when to use them, and how to pronounce

them correctly. correctamente.

Words which have weak forms are often ‘grammar' words. ||||||常常|| Las palabras que tienen formas débiles suelen ser palabras "gramaticales".

Words which carry the main meaning of a sentence don't usually have weak forms. Las palabras que llevan el significado principal de una frase no suelen tener formas débiles.

That means most nouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs don't have weak forms. Eso significa que la mayoría de los sustantivos, verbos, adjetivos y adverbios no tienen formas débiles.

Prepositions like to, for, as, of or at have weak forms. Las preposiciones como to, for, as, of o at tienen formas débiles.

Pronouns like you, your, that or there can have weak forms. Los pronombres como tú, tu, eso o ahí pueden tener formas débiles.

Some conjunctions like and or but can also have weak forms. |连词||||||||| |Konjunktionen||||||||| Algunas conjunciones como y o pero también pueden tener formas débiles.

Also, auxiliary verbs often have weak forms. Además, los verbos auxiliares suelen tener formas débiles.

That means words like do, does, was, would, can, are, and so on. Es decir, palabras como do, does, was, would, can, are, etc.

Lots of information, I know! Mucha información, lo sé.

Let's do some examples. Pongamos algunos ejemplos.

Look at a sentence: Mira una frase:

Are you coming to the cinema with us tomorrow? ¿Vienes al cine con nosotros mañana?

There are five weak forms in this sentence. Hay cinco formas débiles en esta frase.

Can you find them? Listen one more time. ¿Puedes encontrarlos? Escucha una vez más.

Are you coming to the cinema with us tomorrow? ¿Vienes al cine con nosotros mañana?

Can you hear where the weak forms are? ¿Oyes dónde están las formas débiles?

The weak forms are: Las formas débiles son:

Are, which is pronounced /ə/. Are, que se pronuncia /ə/.

You, which becomes /jə/. Tú, que se convierte en /jə/.

To, which is pronounced /tə/. To, que se pronuncia /tə/.

The. El.

The is almost always weak, but it is technically a weak form: /ðə/. La es casi siempre débil, pero técnicamente es una forma débil: /ðə/.

Finally, us is weak; it becomes /əs/. Por último, us es débil; se convierte en /əs/.

So you can see that the weak forms are the auxiliary verb (are), the pronouns (you, us), Así que puedes ver que las formas débiles son el verbo auxiliar (are), los pronombres (you, us),

and the preposition (to). y la preposición (to).

Also, do you notice anything about the pronunciation of the weak forms? Además, ¿notas algo en la pronunciación de las formas débiles?

In all of the weak forms, you can see this sound: /ə/. En todas las formas débiles, puedes ver este sonido: /ə/.

This sound, the schwa, is common in weak forms. Este sonido, la schwa, es común en las formas débiles.

Almost all weak forms have a schwa sound. Casi todas las formas débiles tienen un sonido schwa.

Let's do one more example, for practice. Hagamos un ejemplo más, para practicar.

Listen to another sentence: Escucha otra frase:

What does he do at the weekends? ¿Qué hace los fines de semana?

Can you hear the weak forms? ¿Oyes las formas débiles?

If not, can you guess which words are weak here? Listen one more time. Si no, ¿puedes adivinar qué palabras son débiles aquí? Escucha una vez más.

What does he do at the weekends? ¿Qué hace los fines de semana?

Does is weak. Es débil.

It's pronounced /dəz/. Se pronuncia /dəz/.

At is also weak. At también es débil.

It becomes /ət/. Se convierte en /ət/.

The is weak, as before: /ðə/. El es débil, como antes: /ðə/.

So, here's a question: why is does weak but do is not? He aquí una pregunta: ¿por qué does es débil y do no?

It's because does is an auxiliary verb. Es porque does es un verbo auxiliar.

It's just there to make a question; it doesn't add any meaning to the sentence. Sólo está ahí para hacer una pregunta; no añade ningún significado a la frase.

Do is the main verb. Do es el verbo principal.

It carries meaning. Tiene un significado.

Words which carry meaning have their full pronunciation, and won't be weak. Las palabras con significado tienen su pronunciación completa, y no serán débiles.

Again, you can see that all of the weak forms have the schwa sound: /ə/. De nuevo, puedes ver que todas las formas débiles tienen el sonido schwa: /ə/.

There are many more weak forms, but the number of words with weak forms is limited. Hay muchas más formas débiles, pero el número de palabras con formas débiles es limitado.

Depending on how you define ‘weak form', there are maybe 30-60 words which have weak Dependiendo de cómo se defina "forma débil", hay entre 30 y 60 palabras que tienen una forma débil.

pronunciations. pronunciaciones.

For now, remember the general idea: ‘grammar' words like prepositions, pronouns and auxiliary De momento, recuerda la idea general: palabras "gramaticales" como preposiciones, pronombres y auxiliares.

verbs often have weak forms. Los verbos suelen tener formas débiles.

Okay, so now you know a bit about weak forms, but when should you use them? Bien, ahora ya sabe algo sobre las formas débiles, pero ¿cuándo debe utilizarlas?

In an English sentence, some words are pronounced with more stress than others. En una frase inglesa, algunas palabras se pronuncian con más acento que otras.

Generally, the words which carry the main meaning are stressed, while ‘grammar' En general, se acentúan las palabras portadoras del significado principal, mientras que la "gramática

words like prepositions, pronouns and so on are not stressed. palabras como preposiciones, pronombres, etc., no se acentúan.

Words which are not stressed can be weak forms. Las palabras no acentuadas pueden ser formas débiles.

For example: Por ejemplo:

How long have you been waiting here? ¿Cuánto tiempo llevas esperando aquí?

Can you hear which words are stressed? ¿Puedes oír qué palabras están acentuadas?

The words how, long and waiting are stressed: Se acentúan las palabras cómo, largo y esperando:

HOW LONG have you been WAITING here? ¿CUÁNTO TIEMPO llevas ESPERANDO aquí?

The unstressed words can be weak. Las palabras no acentuadas pueden ser débiles.

Have and you have weak forms. Tener y tienes formas débiles.

They're pronounced together. Se pronuncian juntos.

You say: /əvjə/. Usted dice: /əvjə/.

Been and here aren't stressed, but these words don't have weak forms, so the pronunciation Been y here no están acentuadas, pero estas palabras no tienen formas débiles, por lo que la pronunciación

stays the same. permanece igual.

Let's do one more example: Pongamos otro ejemplo:

I could have done more if I'd had more time. Podría haber hecho más si hubiera tenido más tiempo.

Which words are stressed here, and which words do you think are weak? ¿Qué palabras están acentuadas aquí y cuáles te parecen débiles?

Listen one more time. Escucha una vez más.

I could have done more if I'd had more time. Podría haber hecho más si hubiera tenido más tiempo.

The stressed words are done, more, had, more and time. Las palabras acentuadas son done, more, had, more y time.

The weak forms are could and have. Las formas débiles son could y have.

Had is also weak in the contraction I'd; a contraction like I'd is really just a ||||||Kontraktion||||||||| Had también es débil en la contracción I'd; una contracción como I'd es en realidad sólo un

weak form which is written. forma débil que se escribe.

So, could have is pronounced /kədəv/. Así, could have se pronuncia /kədəv/.

The other unstressed words, like if and I, don't have weak forms, so their pronunciation Las otras palabras no acentuadas, como if y I, no tienen formas débiles, por lo que su pronunciación

doesn't change. no cambia.

Okay, so now you know that weak forms are words with two possible pronunciations, and Bien, ahora ya sabes que las formas débiles son palabras con dos pronunciaciones posibles, y

you know when to use the weak pronunciation of a word. sabes cuándo utilizar la pronunciación débil de una palabra.

But, if there are two possible pronunciations, what about the other one? Pero, si hay dos pronunciaciones posibles, ¿qué pasa con la otra?

The opposite of a weak form is a strong form. Lo contrario de una forma débil es una forma fuerte.

You know that weak forms depend on sentence stress. Ya sabes que las formas débiles dependen del acento de la frase.

However, sentence stress is not fixed. Sin embargo, el acento de las frases no es fijo.

Sentence stress depends on the situation, and the exact ideas you're trying to express. El acento de las frases depende de la situación y de las ideas exactas que intentes expresar.

Let's look at an example we saw before: Veamos un ejemplo que vimos antes:

How long have you been waiting here? ¿Cuánto tiempo llevas esperando aquí?

We said that in this sentence, the stressed words would normally be how, long and waiting. Hemos dicho que en esta frase, las palabras acentuadas normalmente serían cómo, largo y esperando.

However, imagine you're talking to several people. Sin embargo, imagina que hablas con varias personas.

You ask the question to one person, but a different person answers. Haces la pregunta a una persona, pero responde otra distinta.

You ask person A, but person B thinks you're talking to him, and he answers instead. Le preguntas a la persona A, pero la persona B cree que le estás hablando a él y responde en su lugar.

So, you ask the question again to person A. This time, it sounds different: Así que vuelves a hacer la pregunta a la persona A. Esta vez, suena diferente:

How long have YOU been waiting here? ¿Cuánto tiempo llevas esperando aquí?

Why does it sound different? ¿Por qué suena diferente?

And what's the difference? ¿Y cuál es la diferencia?

This time, you're emphasising the word you, because you want to make it clear who you're Esta vez haces hincapié en la palabra "tú", porque quieres dejar claro quién eres.

talking to. hablando con.

That means that you is pronounced with its full pronunciation: /jʊː/. Eso significa que tú se pronuncia con su pronunciación completa: /jʊː/.

Let's do one more example. Pongamos otro ejemplo.

We'll look at another sentence from before: Vamos a ver otra frase de antes:

Are you coming to the cinema with us tomorrow? ¿Vienes al cine con nosotros mañana?

Normally, the stressed words would be coming, cinema and tomorrow. Normalmente, las palabras acentuadas serían venir, cine y mañana.

However, imagine that you thought your friend wasn't coming. Sin embargo, imagina que crees que tu amigo no va a venir.

Someone had told you that she was busy, and couldn't come with you. Alguien te había dicho que estaba ocupada y no podía acompañarte.

So now, when you ask the question, it sounds different: Así que ahora, cuando haces la pregunta, suena diferente:

ARE you coming to the cinema with us tomorrow? ¿Vendrás mañana al cine con nosotros?

This time, you emphasise the word are, because you thought your friend couldn't come, and Esta vez, enfatizas la palabra son, porque pensabas que tu amigo no podría venir, y

you're showing surprise. estás mostrando sorpresa.

So, if you want to emphasise a word, you should use the strong form. Por lo tanto, si quieres enfatizar una palabra, debes utilizar la forma fuerte.

Strong forms have the full pronunciation. Las formas fuertes tienen la pronunciación completa.

Emphasis depends on meaning, so the same word in the same sentence can be pronounced differently El énfasis depende del significado, por lo que la misma palabra en la misma frase puede pronunciarse de forma diferente

in different situations. en diferentes situaciones.

There's one more rule: the last word of a sentence can never be weak. Hay una regla más: la última palabra de una frase nunca puede ser débil.

For example: Por ejemplo:

What are you looking at? Wo schaust du hin? ¿Qué estás mirando?

The stressed words here are what and looking. Las palabras acentuadas aquí son qué y mirando.

Are and you are weak; they're pronounced /əjə/. Are y you son débiles; se pronuncian /əjə/.

At has a weak form, and it's not stressed in this sentence. At tiene una forma débil, y no está acentuada en esta frase.

However, the last word of a sentence can't be weak. Sin embargo, la última palabra de una frase no puede ser débil.

That means at gets its full pronunciation, /æt/. Das bedeutet, dass at seine volle Aussprache erhält, /æt/. Eso significa que at recibe su pronunciación completa, /æt/.

Now, hopefully you understand what weak forms are, when to use them, and when not to use Ahora ya sabes qué son las formas débiles, cuándo utilizarlas y cuándo no.

them. ellos.

So, let's do some practice! Así que, ¡a practicar!

First, look at three sentences: Primero, fíjate en tres frases:

Think about which words will be stressed, and which words will be weak forms. Piensa qué palabras irán acentuadas y cuáles serán formas débiles.

Pause the video and think about it if you need more time. Pausa el vídeo y piénsatelo si necesitas más tiempo.

Next, I'll read the sentences. A continuación, leeré las frases.

Listen for stressed words and weak forms. Preste atención a las palabras acentuadas y a las formas débiles.

Were your ideas right? ¿Eran correctas sus ideas?

Does she really think she should do it? ¿De verdad cree que debería hacerlo?

What did you do to your hair? ¿Qué te has hecho en el pelo?

What were you doing when she called you? ¿Qué estabas haciendo cuando te llamó?

Let's look together. Miremos juntos.

Does she really think she should do it? ¿De verdad cree que debería hacerlo?

Here, really, think and do are stressed. Aquí, realmente, pensar y hacer se acentúan.

Does and should are weak. Does y should son débiles.

Try saying the sentence with the stress and weak forms. Intenta decir la frase con las formas acentuadas y débiles.

Repeat after me: Repite conmigo:

Does she really think she should do it? ¿De verdad cree que debería hacerlo?

Try once more, a little faster: Inténtalo una vez más, un poco más rápido:

Does she really think she should do it? ¿De verdad cree que debería hacerlo?

How was that? ¿Cómo fue eso?

Can you pronounce the weak forms correctly? ¿Puede pronunciar correctamente las formas débiles?

One important point: weak forms are always connected to the words before and after. Un punto importante: las formas débiles siempre van unidas a las palabras anteriores y posteriores.

So does needs to be joined to she: /dəsʃi/ Así que necesita ser unido a ella: /dəsʃi/

Should needs to be pronounced together with she and do: /ʃiʃəd.dʊː/ Should debe pronunciarse junto con she y do: /ʃiʃəd.dʊː/

Let's look at our next sentence: Veamos la siguiente frase:

What did you do to your hair? ¿Qué te has hecho en el pelo?

Here, what, do and hair are stressed. Aquí se hace hincapié en el qué, el hacer y el pelo.

You, to and your are weak. Tú, a y tu son débiles.

Try saying the sentence with the stress and weak forms. Intenta decir la frase con las formas acentuadas y débiles.

Repeat after me: Repite conmigo:

What did you do to your hair? ¿Qué te has hecho en el pelo?

Let's try again, at natural speed: Intentémoslo de nuevo, a velocidad natural:

What did you do to your hair? ¿Qué te has hecho en el pelo?

Okay, let's look at our last sentence: Bien, veamos nuestra última frase:

What were you doing when she called you? ¿Qué estabas haciendo cuando te llamó?

Here, what, doing and called are stressed. Aquí se hace hincapié en el qué, el hacer y el llamado.

Were and you are weak. Fueron y son débiles.

The you on the end is not stressed, but not weak, either, because it's the last word El tú del final no está acentuado, pero tampoco es débil, porque es la última palabra

of the sentence. de la sentencia.

Try saying the sentence with the stress and weak forms. Intenta decir la frase con las formas acentuadas y débiles.

Repeat after me: Repite conmigo:

What were you doing when she called you? ¿Qué estabas haciendo cuando te llamó?

Let's try again, at natural speed: Intentémoslo de nuevo, a velocidad natural:

What were you doing when she called you? ¿Qué estabas haciendo cuando te llamó?

Remember, if you want more practice, you can review this section and try as many times Recuerda, si quieres practicar más, puedes repasar esta sección e intentarlo tantas veces

as you need to! como necesites

Okay, hopefully you've learned something new about weak forms and English pronunciation. Bien, espero que hayas aprendido algo nuevo sobre las formas débiles y la pronunciación inglesa.

Check out our website for more free lessons like this: Visita nuestro sitio web para ver más lecciones gratuitas como ésta:

Oxford Online English.com. Oxford Online English.com.

Thanks for watching, see you next time! Gracias por vernos, ¡hasta la próxima!