Enunciation

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Enunciation

Enunciation is the act of speaking clearly, ensuring your audience hears each syllable and vowel. To enunciate, try to "bite off" each word in a manner that is more polished and practiced than your everyday speech. You don't want to sound robotic or unnatural, but you do want to speak crisply and clearly.

To enunciate more clearly, try the following:

 Slow down. If you rush you tend to push your words sounds together.

 Speak up. If you speak at a slightly higher volume than your everyday voice, you will naturally enunciate more.

 Show your teeth. Watch yourself in a mirror as you speak. Can you see your teeth? If not, you may be mumbling. Keep trying this until you can see your teeth as you speak.

 Be aware of the beginning and end of sentences. We all tend to "fade out" or "swallow" the ends of sentences. Listen carefully to your own speeches, and you'll probably discover this tendency

 Practice reading something aloud as you open your mouth very wide and pronounce each syllable separately. Try recording yourself saying, “Enunciate. Articulate. Exaggerate” or try “The lips, the teeth, the tip of the tongue.” How did you do? The more you open your mouth the easier it will be.

 Daily practice with tongue twisters can also help improve your enunciation. My favorite and most difficult for me is, “Rubber baby buggy bumpers.” I make it a contest to see how fast I can say it but still speak clearly and with good enunciation.

 Another good exercise is to read aloud –again, record yourself. But this time ask someone you trust to evaluate your how clearly you speak. Remember to ask those around you let you know when you slip. It turns out that many people tend to mumble on the same words and by having others bring it to your attention you will become more self-aware.

 Remember that the engine of our voice is our breathing. It always helps to learn how to breath properly (you’ll receive more information on this later)

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