Do you have difficulty pronouncing “walk” and “work?”
Is the pronunciation of the /th/ sound in “clothes” difficult for you?
Today, English expert Dave Nicholls joins Aubrey to share three of the most common pronunciation mistakes he hears.
He’ll share how to fix them so you can make sure your speech is always clear.
Who is Dave Nicholls?
Dave is an English teacher with 20 years of experience.
He spent the first eight years of his career teaching English in Moscow, Russia, before returning to the UK.
Since then, he has been creating English courses and providing conversation classes online.
You can find him at skype-lessons.com or on YouTube at the MrSkypelessons channel.
Your accent isn’t wrong
Dave and Aubrey make an important point about accents.
There is no right or wrong accent.
Whatever your accent in English, it makes you unique and special.
Your goal should not be to get rid of your accent but, rather, to speak clearly and be understood.
British or American English?
Your goal should not be to sound like a British or American English speaker.
What matters most is that your speech is clear and that the person you’re talking to understands you.
With that in mind, Aubrey asks Dave about the three most common pronunciation errors he hears.
#1: Walk vs. Work vs. Wok
These three words trip up a lot of learners, especially because in British English, they sound more similar than in American English.
Here’s the breakdown:
- Walk: to move on foot
Example:
He went for a walk in the park.
- Work: to go to your job or do manual labor
Example:
Yesterday he worked from 9:00 to 5:00.
- Wok: a deep frying pan used in Chinese cooking
Example:
My wife cooked stir-fry in a wok.
In American English, “walk” and “wok” sound identical, while “work” has a harder, tighter /r/ sound.
In British English, all three are slightly different, but much closer together.
The key tip here is context.
“I walk to the store” and “I go to work at noon” are usually understood with context clues.
#2: Clothes
The most common mistake is turning “clothes” into two syllables.
When this happens, speakers say “clothe-uz” or “clothe-us.”
This is incorrect because the word “clothes” is one syllable.
The reason learners make it two syllables is that the word requires a tricky mouth movement.
It requires you to go from the “th” sound (where your tongue sticks out between your teeth) directly into a “zz” sound.
This is quite a workout for your mouth.
Dave mentions to gently touch your teeth to your tongue to be able to get the right ‘th’ sound.
Every time you make a “th” sound, your tongue needs to stick out between your teeth.
Gently biting down helps you feel whether your tongue is in the right position.
Practice this until it becomes natural.
Also note that “clothes” and the verb “close” sound very similar but are not the same.
The difference is subtle; “clothes” has that tongue-between-the-teeth “th” sound, while “close” does not.
#3: Silent Letters
English has a lot of silent letters, and the letter B is one of the sneakiest.
There are two main situations where B is silent:
- When B comes after M:
bomb, comb, tomb, numb, limb, climb
When we say, “He was climbing the wall,” you should not hear the /b/ because it is silent.
- When B comes before T:
debt, doubt, subtle
These three words come up constantly in English.
How to learn silent letters
Dave’s advice is to memorize them so they become automatic.
A few exceptions exist where the /b/ is pronounced.
- bombastic
- subterranean
- subterfuge
However, often when a /b/ is in the middle of a word, it is silent.
How to Practice
Both Dave and Aubrey agree that repetition is everything.
Here are their top practice tips:
- Drill specific words out loud, again and again, until the correct pronunciation feels natural.
- Record yourself speaking and listen back to catch errors you might not notice in the moment.
- Watch pronunciation videos, especially for sounds like the /th/, where seeing the mouth movement makes a big difference.
- Listen to audiobooks while following along with the text so you connect how words look with how they actually sound.
Takeaway
Your pronunciation doesn’t have to be perfect, but being aware of common mistakes puts you ahead of the game.
Practicing these will make your speech noticeably clearer.
Keep “walk” and “work” distinct, say “clothes” as one syllable, and remember that the /b/ in “debt” and “doubt” is completely silent.
These are small fixes that make a big difference in how clearly you communicate.
Check out Dave’s YouTube channel MrSkypelessons for more pronunciation tips, and be sure to watch this episode on YouTube to see the mouth movements in action.
What pronunciation mistake have you been working on lately?
We’d love to hear from you in the comments below.
