Common English Pronunciation Mistakes and How to Fix Them

You know the words. You understand the grammar. You can write perfectly correct English sentences. But the moment you speak, people ask you to repeat yourself. They look confused. Sometimes they even guess the wrong word entirely, and suddenly you’re talking about completely different things.

Welcome to the frustrating world of English pronunciation.

Here’s what makes it particularly maddening: English spelling and pronunciation have almost no consistent relationship. “Tough,” “though,” “through,” and “thought” all look similar but sound completely different. The letter combination “ough” has at least eight different pronunciations in English. How is anyone supposed to navigate this chaos?

Add to that the sounds that exist in English but not in your native language—sounds your mouth has literally never made before—and you’ve got a recipe for endless mispronunciation, even when you’re trying your hardest to get it right.

But here’s the encouraging truth: most pronunciation mistakes follow predictable patterns based on your native language. Spanish speakers struggle with different sounds than Japanese speakers. Arabic speakers face different challenges than French speakers. Once you identify your specific problem sounds and learn targeted techniques to fix them, your pronunciation can improve dramatically in just a few weeks.

You don’t need perfect, accent-free pronunciation to communicate effectively. You just need to be clear enough that people understand you without strain. And that’s absolutely achievable for every learner, regardless of your native language or how long you’ve been speaking English “incorrectly.”

Today, we’re tackling the most common English pronunciation mistakes, organized by language background. For each mistake, I’ll show you exactly where your mouth and tongue should be, give you practice techniques that actually work, and help you hear the difference between correct and incorrect pronunciation.

Let’s fix your pronunciation, one sound at a time.

Understanding Why Pronunciation Is So Hard

Before we dive into specific mistakes, let’s talk about why English pronunciation feels impossible.

Problem 1: English spelling is unreliable

Unlike Spanish or Italian, where letters almost always make the same sounds, English borrowed words from dozens of languages and kept their various spelling systems. That’s why “colonel” sounds like “kernel” and “yacht” sounds like “yot.”

Problem 2: Your mouth is trained for your native language

Since childhood, your mouth muscles have practiced making specific sounds in specific ways. English might require tongue positions or lip shapes you’ve never used before. It’s like learning a new physical skill—you need practice and muscle memory.

Problem 3: You can’t hear sounds that don’t exist in your language

If your native language doesn’t distinguish between “r” and “l,” your brain literally hears them as the same sound. You’re not being careless—your auditory system hasn’t been trained to notice the difference.

Problem 4: Stress and rhythm matter as much as individual sounds

English uses stress patterns and rhythm to convey meaning. Say “REcord” (noun) versus “reCORD” (verb)—same letters, different stress, different meaning. Many languages don’t use stress this way.

The good news? Once you understand your specific challenges, targeted practice can rewire both your ears and your mouth.

Common Mistakes by Language Background

For Spanish and Portuguese Speakers

Mistake 1: B and V Sound the Same

In Spanish, “b” and “v” are nearly identical sounds. In English, they’re completely different.

The difference:

• B: Press both lips together, then release with a burst of air
• V: Bite your bottom lip lightly with your top teeth, then push air through

Practice pairs:

• berry / very
• ban / van
• boat / vote
• best / vest

Technique: Put your finger on your lips. For “B,” both lips should touch your finger. For “V,” your bottom lip touches your top teeth, not your finger.

Mistake 2: Vowels Are Too Pure

Spanish has five clean vowel sounds. English has at least 14, including diphthongs (vowels that glide between two sounds).

Common problem: “ship” and “sheep” sound identical

The difference:

• Ship /ɪ/: Short, relaxed sound
• Sheep /i:/: Longer, tense sound, smile while saying it

Practice pairs:

• sit / seat
• fill / feel
• live / leave
• bit / beat

Technique: For short vowels, barely move your mouth. For long vowels, exaggerate the sound and hold it longer.

Mistake 3: Adding Extra Vowel Sounds

Spanish doesn’t allow consonant clusters at the beginning of words, so speakers add an “e” sound.

Wrong: “especial” instead of “special”
Wrong: “estudent” instead of “student”
Wrong: “espeak” instead of “speak”

Technique: Start the word directly with the consonant. Put your tongue or lips in position for the first consonant sound, then immediately say the word with no vowel before it.

For Chinese (Mandarin/Cantonese) Speakers

Mistake 1: TH Sounds Become S, T, or F

Chinese doesn’t have the “th” sounds, so speakers substitute similar sounds.

The two TH sounds:

Voiced TH (like in “this”):

• Put your tongue between your teeth
• Vibrate your vocal cords
• Push air through
• Practice: this, that, these, those, the

Voiceless TH (like in “think”):

• Same tongue position
• No vocal cord vibration
• Just air
• Practice: think, three, thank, Thursday, bath

Common mistakes:

• “think” → “sink” or “fink”
• “this” → “dis”
• “three” → “tree” or “free”

Technique: Exaggerate putting your tongue between your teeth. It should touch your bottom lip slightly. Practice in a mirror.

Mistake 2: L and R Confusion

This is the stereotype, but it’s real and based on actual phonetic differences.

The difference:

• L: Tongue tip touches the roof of your mouth behind your teeth
• R: Tongue doesn’t touch anything; it curves back slightly

Practice pairs:

• light / right
• load / road
• fly / fry
• collect / correct

Technique: For “L,” say “la la la” and notice your tongue tapping. For “R,” say “rrr” like a growl—your tongue shouldn’t touch the roof of your mouth.

Mistake 3: Final Consonants Disappear

Chinese syllables don’t end in many consonant sounds, so speakers drop final consonants in English words.

Common mistakes:

• “bed” sounds like “be”
• “cat” sounds like “ca”
• “dog” sounds like “daw”

Technique: Hold the final consonant sound longer than feels natural. Exaggerate it until it becomes habitual.

For Arabic Speakers

Mistake 1: P and B Sound the Same

Arabic doesn’t have a “p” sound, so speakers substitute “b.”

The difference:

• P: No vocal cord vibration (voiceless), explosive burst of air
• B: Vocal cords vibrate (voiced), softer burst

Practice pairs:

• pen / ben
• pie / buy
• park / bark
• rope / robe

Technique: Put your hand in front of your mouth. When you say “P,” you should feel a strong puff of air. “B” has less air. Also, “P” should feel like it has no voice behind it—just air.

Mistake 2: Short Vowel Sounds Are Difficult

Arabic has long and short vowels, but not the same ones as English.

Problem sounds:

• The short “i” in “bit” (often becomes “ee”)
• The short “e” in “bed” (often becomes “ay”)

Practice pairs:

• bit / beat
• sit / seat
• pen / pain
• bed / bade

Technique: For short vowels, keep your mouth barely open and relaxed. Don’t move your mouth much. The sound should feel quick and simple.

For Japanese and Korean Speakers

Mistake 1: L and R Confusion (Different from Chinese)

Japanese has one sound that’s between L and R. Korean has similar issues.

The difference (same as above but worth repeating):

• L: Tongue tip touches the ridge behind your top teeth
• R: Tongue doesn’t touch anything; it pulls back

Practice pairs:

• leader / reader
• light / right
• fly / fry
• late / rate

Mistake 2: F and H Confusion

The difference:

• F: Bottom lip touches top teeth lightly
• H: No contact; just air from the throat

Practice pairs:

• fan / han (doesn’t exist, but practice “han” anyway)
• feel / heal
• fast / (notice F requires lip-teeth contact)

Technique: For “F,” you should feel your lip and teeth touching. For “H,” nothing touches—it’s just a breath.

Mistake 3: Adding Extra Syllables

Japanese syllables always end in vowels (except “n”), so speakers add vowels to English words.

Common mistakes:

• “desk” → “desuku”
• “film” → “firumu”
• “milk” → “miruku”

Technique: Practice consonant clusters slowly, then speed up. Say “d-s-k” separately, then “dsk” as one sound.

For French Speakers

Mistake 1: TH Becomes Z or S

French doesn’t have TH sounds.

Common mistakes:

• “the” → “ze”
• “think” → “sink”
• “three” → “sree”

Fix: Same as for Chinese speakers above—tongue between teeth, practice in a mirror.

Mistake 2: H Is Silent

French doesn’t pronounce H at the beginning of words.

Common mistakes:

• “house” sounds like “ouse”
• “happy” sounds like “appy”
• “hotel” sounds like “otel”

Technique: Breathe out slightly when starting words with H. Put your hand in front of your mouth—you should feel warm air when you say “H.”

Mistake 3: R Sound Is Guttural

French R is pronounced in the throat. English R is not.

English R: Tongue pulls back but doesn’t touch anything. Lips might round slightly.

Practice words: red, right, car, more, really

Technique: Practice the “American R” by saying “errr” while pulling your tongue back. Your tongue tip should not touch the roof of your mouth.

For Russian Speakers

Mistake 1: W and V Sound the Same

Russian doesn’t have the “W” sound.

The difference:

• W: Round your lips like you’re going to whistle, no teeth involved
• V: Bottom lip touches top teeth

Practice pairs:

• west / vest
• wine / vine
• worse / verse
• whale / veil

Technique: For W, your lips should form a small circle. Neither lip touches your teeth.

Mistake 2: TH Becomes S, Z, T, or D

Russian doesn’t have TH sounds either.

Fix: Same technique as above—tongue between teeth, practice both voiced and voiceless versions.

Universal Pronunciation Mistakes (All Language Backgrounds)

Mistake 1: Wrong Word Stress

English uses stress to distinguish meaning. Put the stress on the wrong syllable and you’ve said a different word.

Examples:

• REcord (noun: a music album) vs. reCORD (verb: to capture audio)
• PREsent (noun: a gift) vs. preSENT (verb: to show)
• CONtent (noun: what’s inside) vs. conTENT (adjective: satisfied)

Common mistakes:

• “hoTEL” instead of “HOtel”
• “deVELOP” instead of “deVELop”
• “phoTOGRAPH” instead of “PHOtograph”

How to fix: When learning a new word, learn its stress pattern immediately. Mark it in your notebook. Use online dictionaries that show stress (usually with bold or a mark: ‘).

Mistake 2: Silent Letters

English is full of letters that aren’t pronounced.

Common silent letters:

• K in: knife, knee, know, knight
• W in: write, wrong, wrap, answer
• B in: climb, doubt, lamb, thumb
• L in: walk, talk, calm, salmon
• GH in: right, night, daughter, through

How to fix: You just have to memorize these. There’s no consistent rule. Read aloud frequently to internalize which letters are silent in which words.

Mistake 3: -ED Endings

The past tense “-ed” has three different pronunciations, and learners often use the wrong one.

Three pronunciations:

/t/ sound (voiceless) after voiceless consonants:

• walked = walkt
• stopped = stopt
• laughed = laught

/d/ sound (voiced) after voiced consonants and vowels:

• played = playd
• grabbed = grabd
• loved = lovd

/ɪd/ sound (extra syllable) after T or D:

• wanted = wantid
• needed = needid
• decided = decidid

How to fix: Practice words in groups based on their pronunciation. Notice the pattern: the “-ed” pronunciation matches the sound before it.

Mistake 4: Weak vs. Strong Forms

Common words are pronounced differently in normal speech than in isolation.

Examples:

• “and” usually sounds like “n” or “nd” (not “and”)
• “to” usually sounds like “tuh” (not “too”)
• “can” usually sounds like “cun” (not “can”)
• “for” usually sounds like “fr” or “fer” (not “for”)

Sentence: “I want to go to the store and buy some bread.”

How it’s actually said: “I wanna go tuh thuh store nd buy sm bread.”

How to fix: Listen to native speakers carefully. Notice that function words (articles, prepositions, conjunctions) are often reduced and unstressed.

The Most Effective Practice Techniques

Reading about pronunciation doesn’t fix it. You need targeted practice. Here’s what actually works:

Technique 1: Minimal Pairs Practice

Minimal pairs are words that differ by only one sound. Practicing them trains your ear and mouth simultaneously.

Daily practice: Spend 5 minutes saying minimal pairs out loud, alternating between them.

Examples:

• ship / sheep
• bad / bed
• thin / tin
• rice / lice
• very / berry

Resource: Search “minimal pairs + [your problem sound]” on YouTube for pronunciation videos.

Technique 2: Recording and Comparing

Steps:

1. Find a short clip (30 seconds) of clear English speech
2. Listen and repeat several times
3. Record yourself saying the same thing
4. Listen to both versions back-to-back
5. Identify the biggest differences
6. Practice those specific sounds
7. Record again

This technique makes pronunciation mistakes obvious and measurable.

Technique 3: Shadowing

As you listen to English audio, speak along simultaneously, trying to match the speaker’s exact pronunciation, rhythm, and intonation.

Best sources:

• Podcasts at normal speed
• YouTube videos with clear speakers
• Audiobooks

Practice: 10-15 minutes daily

Technique 4: Tongue Twisters

Tongue twisters force your mouth to practice difficult sound combinations.

For TH sounds:

• The thirty-three thieves thought they thrilled the throne Thursday.
• This, that, these, those.

For R and L:

• Really leery, rarely Larry.
• Red lorry, yellow lorry.

For S and SH:

• She sells seashells by the seashore.

Practice: Start slowly, focusing on accuracy. Speed comes later.

Technique 5: Mouth Position Training

Use a mirror to check your mouth position while practicing problem sounds.

What to check:

• Tongue position
• Lip shape
• Jaw openness
• Teeth contact (or lack of it)

Online Tools and Resources

Pronunciation dictionaries:

• YouGlish.com: Search any word and see video clips of native speakers saying it
• Forvo.com: Native speaker pronunciations from around the world
• Cambridge Dictionary: Has audio pronunciations (click the speaker icon)

Practice apps:

• ELSA Speak: AI-powered pronunciation feedback
• Sounds: The Pronunciation App: Focused on individual sounds

YouTube channels:

• Rachel’s English
• Pronunciation with Emma
• BBC Learning English

Realistic Expectations

Let’s be honest about what’s achievable:

You can achieve:

• Clear, easily understood pronunciation
• Confidence speaking without constantly worrying about mistakes
• The ability to pronounce most sounds correctly most of the time
• Natural stress and rhythm patterns

You probably won’t achieve (and don’t need to):

• Complete elimination of your accent
• Perfect pronunciation of every single word
• Sounding exactly like a native speaker

The goal: Communication, not perfection. Many successful English speakers have accents. What matters is being clear and confident.

Your 30-Day Pronunciation Improvement Plan

Week 1: Identify your top 3 problem sounds using the language-specific sections above. Practice minimal pairs for those sounds 10 minutes daily.

Week 2: Add shadowing practice (10 minutes daily). Record yourself weekly to track progress.

Week 3: Focus on word stress and rhythm. Practice common stress patterns in 2-syllable and 3-syllable words.

Week 4: Integrate everything. Have short conversations (even with yourself) focusing on your problem sounds while maintaining natural stress and rhythm.

Daily total: 15-20 minutes of focused practice

With consistent practice, you’ll notice significant improvement in clarity and confidence within one month.

Final Thoughts

Pronunciation mistakes aren’t permanent. They’re just habits—and habits can be changed with deliberate practice.

The key is identifying your specific problem areas based on your native language, understanding what your mouth should be doing differently, and practicing those specific sounds daily with immediate feedback.

You don’t need to lose your accent entirely. You just need to be clear. And clarity comes from focusing on the sounds that actually cause confusion, not trying to perfect every tiny detail.

Start with your biggest problem sound today. Practice it for just 10 minutes. Check your progress in a week. You’ll be surprised how much improvement is possible when you practice the right things the right way.

Your pronunciation is not fixed. It’s a skill you can improve, one sound at a time.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will I ever sound like a native speaker?

Possibly, but it’s not necessary for effective communication. Many highly successful English speakers have noticeable accents. Focus on clarity, not perfection.

How long does it take to fix pronunciation mistakes?

For individual sounds, 2-4 weeks of daily practice usually produces noticeable improvement. Complete pronunciation transformation takes months to years, but functional clarity comes much faster.

Should I practice British or American pronunciation?

Choose whichever you’re more exposed to or prefer. The differences aren’t huge, and being consistent matters more than which variety you choose.

Can I improve pronunciation without a teacher?

Yes, using recording apps, minimal pairs practice, and shadowing techniques. A teacher accelerates progress but isn’t essential.

What if people still don’t understand me after practicing?

Some sounds take longer than others. Focus on the sounds that cause the most confusion first. Also work on speaking more slowly and clearly—speed often masks pronunciation problems.