This document provides 3 keys to better listening comprehension: 1. Understand what makes native speakers hard to understand, such as similar vowels/diphthongs, shortened and linked sounds, contracted verbs/negatives, weak forms, and phonetic links. 2. Improve your pronunciation by being aware of common traps like the same spelling representing different sounds and identifying word stress. 3. Learn primarily with your ears rather than your eyes by focusing on listening rather than reading. This allows you to better comprehend native speech patterns.

1. Keys To Better Listening
Comprehension

2. 3 Keys To Better Listening
Comprehension
• Understand what makes natives speaker hard
to uderstand.
• Improve your pronounciation.
• Learn Primarily with your ears rather than
your eyes.

3. What Makes Natives Speaker Hard to
Understand ?
The great number of vowels and dhiptongs in english
some of them very similar to each other.
• Minimal pairs
Boat - Bought
Mad - Mud
Hurt - Heart
Men - Man
Than - Then
Bit - Bit
Live - leave

4. What Makes Natives Speaker Hard…
The way that native speaker shorten and link
sounds. Look at this sentence:
- How is it going ?
And the native speaker :
- How’z it going

5. What Makes Natives Speaker Hard…
• Speech Pattern I
Contracted Verbs and Negatives
You are familiar with these :
I’m
He’s
They’ll
We’ve
Won’t
Can’t
Examples :
O.K i’ll do it.
(No stress on i’ll : no particular emotion)
I will do it nothin can stop me
(Stress on Will : on determination)

6. What Makes Natives Speaker Hard…
• Speech Pattern 2
Weak Forms
Possesive Adjective
Preposition
Examples :
I can ski I kn ski
Let’s look at another examples
There’s my book
But in the sentences, it sound :
There’s m∂ book
It’s for you it’s f∂ you

7. What Makes Natives Speaker Hard…
• Speech Pattern 3
Phonetic Links
Examples :
He works an a engineer
In the connected speak:
He work sazanen gineer
She is interested in it.
She(y)isinterestedinit
They went to an amazing place
They wentto(w)anamazing place
He won’t to accep it from me
The connected speak you will hear,
He won’tacceptitfr∂mme

8. Improve your pronounciation
• Common Pronounciation Trap I :
Same Spelling = Same Sound
Examples:
‘ea’ = /i:/ (jean)
great
instead
hear
learn
instead
‘u’ = /u/ (put)
judge
furious

9. Improve your pronounciation
• Common Pronounciation Trap II :
Word Stress
which syllable is stressed ?
Develpoment or deVElopment or
deveLOPment or developMENT
You might expect the following words to be
pronounced similarly.
proPOSE and PURpose

10. Learn Primarily with your ears rather than
your eyes