Fluency and pronunciation
Speaking in chunks, stressing the right words, and sounding clear.
15 minutes · A free lesson from Speaking
Fluency is not speed. It is speaking at length without long, frequent pauses to search for words — and you build it by learning language in chunks (whole phrases) rather than single words: as far as I'm concerned, it's not really my cup of tea, to be honest.
Pronunciation is judged on how easy you are to understand. Three features matter most:
- Word stress — deVELopment, phoTOgraphy, ecoNOMic. Stress on the wrong syllable can make a word unrecognisable.
- Sentence stress — stress the words that carry meaning: "I really wanted to study abroad."
- Intonation — your voice falls at the end of a statement and rises in a yes/no question.
Say it out loud (20 seconds): Read this aloud, stressing the words in capitals: "I'd LIKE to STUDY enGINeering, because I've ALways been INterested in how things WORK."
Quick check: Where is the stress in "photography"?
- PHO-to-gra-phy
- pho-TO-gra-phy
- pho-to-GRA-phy
Show the answer
B: pho-TO-gra-phy — pho-TOG-ra-phy: the second syllable. Compare PHO-to-graph and pho-to-GRAPH-ic — the stress moves.
Lesson quiz
Check what you have learned. Choose an answer to see whether it is right, and why.
Quick check: What is fluency?
- Speaking as fast as you can
- Using only rare words
- Speaking at length without long, frequent pauses
Show the answer
C: Speaking at length without long, frequent pauses — Fluency is not speed. Learning phrases as whole chunks helps.
Quick check: Where is the stress in “development”?
- de-VEL-op-ment
- DE-vel-op-ment
- de-vel-op-MENT
Show the answer
A: de-VEL-op-ment — deVELopment: the second syllable.
Quick check: What does your voice usually do at the end of a yes/no question?
- It falls
- It rises
- It stays flat
Show the answer
B: It rises — It falls at the end of a statement and rises in a yes/no question.
Quick check: Which habit improves fluency and pronunciation fastest?
- Recording yourself and listening back
- Reading grammar books
- Practising only in your head
Show the answer
A: Recording yourself and listening back — Listen for where you paused, and which words a listener would miss.