North American English Pronunciation -- dark /l/

In English there are two 'l' sounds. The first is pronounced with the tip of the tongue at the alveolar ridge. The second is in the back of the throat with the root of the tongue, close to the uvula area of the mouth. This second 'l' is called the "dark /l" and is the focus of this lesson. You'll probably notice that it sometimes sounds like the /o/ vowel sound. Be sure to contract the back of your throat, however, as you say it this way.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• accent reduction
• North American English
• English pronunciation
• speaking practice
• accent neutralization
• Compton PESL
• Judy Ravin
• American English
• dark l

[maidenslayer]

I hate North American English. I mean all the spelling is simplified and 'wrong'. Catalogue is spelt like this not 'catalog' like it is in the USA. Honour has a U not honor, colour has a U etc, etc. The United States in it's history, for some reason decided it was too hard to spell things in English the correct English way. Now because the USA has more power and cultural influence than Britain in the world today it means that they are teaching English to the world the American WRONG way!!!

[pronunciationmeg]

@maidenslayer Thank you for your feedback. My family is from London. If British English were the language I spoke I'd be teaching it. Likewise, if Indian English were the language I spoke I'd be teaching it. There is no world power issue as far as I see it nor right or wrong way to speak a language. If you want to learn a dialect, you learn it. Be sure to look at Truseneye92 and his video 24 English accents in which he shows exactly how hard it is to find the "right" English to speak.

[pronunciationmeg]

Thanks for your feedback. Much of Am. English comes from older forms of British English, not out of laziness. I like Brit. English. If it were the language I spoke I'd teach it. Likewise, if Indian English were the language I spoke I'd teach it. There isn't a power issue nor right or wrong way to speak a language. Many people want to learn dialects. Be sure to look at Truseneye92 and his video 24 English accents. With so many varieties of English, what is "right" is hard to defend.

[pronunciationmeg]

Thanks for your feedback. Much of Am. English comes from older forms of British English, not out of laziness. I like Brit. English. If it were the language I spoke I'd teach it. Likewise, if Indian English were the language I spoke I'd teach it. There isn't a power issue nor right or wrong way to speak a language. Many people want to learn dialects. Be sure to look at Truseneye92 and his video 24 English accents. With so many varieties of English, what is "right" is hard to defend.

[pronunciationmeg]

It doesn't matter. Just make sure you are working the root of the tongue at the start of the throat. Native speakers rarely do anything with the placement of the tongue for this sound. It's all about the root.

[bigrobsalsa1]

thanks so much!!! I need more practice!! My Pronunciation has been a long journey to try to fix and get better.

Thanks!

[oossgg]

The term "bowl" is misspelled as "bowel". Both contain dark /l/ sounds, but the meaning is clearly not what you intended. The dark /l/ sound might be the reason many people misspell "bowl".

[ninjakick1983]

I love your videos a lot, but you gotta make the sound clearer. You just gotta, because you're a great teacher.

[descontroladoxelrock]

@Rodasta why tawk and not talk?

[Rodasta]

I'm about to play "Columbo" on stage. Of course, I have to at least suggest Peter Falk. You've been a great help to me in capturing Falk's "L". BTW I'm a Yank in London. There's lots of good natured ribbing about American vs. British English. All British actors secretly want to tawk like Pacino, DeNiro and Pesce. Be well.

[nastbbb]

i like ur smile ....

and ur pronounciation is awesome...

good luck .

nasrat (nast_b@yahoo.com) likes u keep it up

[jesuisledoughboy]

@maidenslayer Actually, it was after the War of 1812 when the first american dictionaries were created, and spelling was not yet standardized in either country. There were prevalent spellings in England that are similar to the current standardized ones in England, but Webster felt that we should differentiate ourselves from England, and one way to do that would be to create a more simplified spelling, that more closely matches the way the words are pronounced.

[maidenslayer]

@pronunciationmeg - I wasn't having a go at you. But the whole American change to the English language. I am not so much talking about how to say things - accent. I am talking about how words have been changed in written form. My accent used to be a 'brummie' accent when I was in my childhood until I was 11 but since then I have lived in Cornwall so It is a Cornish accent but the way I pronounce words is how I learnt them in Birmingham. So my accent is probably a bit of a meld.