| American Sound | Spelling |
| Jeet? No, joo? | Did you eat? No, did you? |
| Kwee geddit? | Can we get it? |
| Sko! | Let's go! |
| Jläik smore? | Would you like some more? |
| I shüda tol joo. | I should have told you. |
| Ledder gedda bedder wädr heedr. | Let her get a better water heater. |
| How to wreck a nice beach. | How to recognize speech. |
| Hole däna sek'nt! | Hold on a second! |
| Hæoja ly kuh liddul more? | How would you like a little more? |
| They doe neev'n lye kit. | They don't even like it. |
| Doe neeven thing ka bow dit! | Don't even thing about it! |
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There are four main points where liaisons happen: Consonant & Vowel Consonant & Consonant
Vowel & Vowel
T, D, S, or Z & the Y sound
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In American English, words are not pronounced one by one. Usually, the end of one word attaches to the beginning of the next word. This is also true for initials, numbers, and spelling. Part of the glue that connects sentences is an underlying hum or drone that only breaks when you come to a period, and sometimes not even then. You have this underlying hum in your own language and it helps a great deal toward making you sound like a native speaker.
Once you have a strong intonation, you need to connect all those stairsteps together so that each sentence sounds like one long word.
The last two sentences above should be pronounced exactly the same, no matter how they are written. It is the sound that is important, not the spelling. |
| Consonant & Vowel |
Words are connected when a words ends in a consonant sound and the next word starts with avowel sound, including the semivowels W, Y and R. (You can check out the individual sounds as well.
You also use liaisons in spelling and numbers.
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| Cons onant & Consonant | Words are connected when a word ends in a consonant sound and the next word starts with a consonant that is in a similar position.
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| Vowel & Vowel | When a word ending in a vowel sound is next to one beginning with a vowel sound, they are connected with a glide between the two vowels.
A glide is either a slight y sound or a slight w sound. How do you know which one to use? This will take care of itself--the position your lips are in will dictate either y or w.
For example, if a word ends in o, your lips are going to be in the forward position, so a w quite naturally leads into the next vowel sound: Go(w)away. After a long e sound, you lips will be pulled back far enough to create a y glide or liaison: I(y)also need the(y)other one. Don't force this sound too much, though. It's not a strong pushing sound.
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| T, D, S, or Z & the Y sound |
When the letter or sound of T, D, S or Z is followed by a word that starts with Y, or its sound, both sounds are connected. These letters and sounds connect not only with Y, but they do so as well with the initial unwritten y sound of syllables and words. They form a combination that changes the pronunciation.
D + Y = J
S + Y = SH
Z + Y = ZH
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