About the audio
All the audio on this page comes from the American English voice of your device (text-to-speech). There are no audio files, so every example, line and exercise can play.
- Listen as many times as you want. Play one example, one line of the dialogue, or the full dialogue.
- See what is playing. The button that is playing turns coral with moving bars, and the line is highlighted. Tap it again to stop.
- Change the speed. Use Slow to follow the marks and Normal for shadowing.
- One voice for each character. Laura has a female voice and Marco has a male voice. If your device has no male English voice, Marco uses the same voice with a lower pitch.
- Intonation and linking. The browser voice is a guide. Sometimes it rises, falls or links words less than a real person. If you are not sure, follow the arrows and marks on the page.
Works best in Chrome, Edge or Safari. The voice can be different on each device. No sound? Check the volume and the silent mode of your phone.
Start here: how to study this partAbout 60 minutes in total
Goal:By the end of this part you will say little words quickly and softly, stress the new information in answers, pause in the right places and use everyday melodies.
- Do Part 1 first. This part uses the marks you learned there.
- Go in order, from the first section to the last. In each section: read, play the examples (the round play buttons), and then do the practice.
- For every example, follow four steps: listen, notice, repeat out loud, and listen again to compare.
- Use Slow mode to follow the marks, and Normal mode when you repeat or do shadowing.
- Finish with the dialogue, the final quiz and Say it, which uses your microphone.
Tip:Two or three short sessions work better than one long one. You can repeat any activity as many times as you want, and nothing is graded.
If it does not work:No sound? Check the volume and the silent mode of your phone. No microphone? Tap Allow when the browser asks, or try Chrome.
Weak forms: strong or weak?
Many function words have two pronunciations. Most of the time we use the weak form, with a short /ə/ sound. We use the strong form only in special cases.
Use the strong form when the word is at the end of a sentence, in short answers, or when you stress it on purpose.
How to do this activityAbout 4 minutes
Goal:Decide if the word in color is weak or strong.
- Look at the word in color.
- Tap the audio. Is the word quick and soft with a short /ə/ sound (weak), or long and clear (strong)?
- Choose weak or strong.
- Read the explanation. It tells you why.
Tip:Most of the time, function words are weak. They are strong at the end of a sentence, in short answers, and when someone stresses them on purpose.
Practice 1
Listen to each sentence. Is the word in color weak or strong?
Catch the little words
Weak function words are fast and soft, so they are hard to hear. Train your ear: listen and write the little words that are missing.
How to do this activityAbout 8 minutes
Goal:Listen and complete the missing words.
- Tap the play button next to a line and listen. You can listen as many times as you want.
- Tap a word in the vocabulary box. You hear the word and it goes into the next empty blank. You can also type the word.
- The box has more words than blanks, so you can use a word again if you need it.
- Tap Check to see which blanks are correct. Fix the others and check again.
- Stuck? Tap Show solution and read the answers. Then tap Try again and do it without help.
Tip:The missing words are little function words. They are quick and soft, so listen carefully and also think about the grammar.
Listen and fill in the blanks
Play each sentence and fill in the missing words. Tap a word in the box to hear it and put it in the blank, or type it. You can use a word more than once.
Vocabulary box
Function words. Tap a word to hear it and put it in a blank. Some are extra.
Stress in answers
When you answer a question or correct someone, the main stress goes on the new or different information, not on the last word.
How to do this activityAbout 4 minutes
Goal:Find the new information in the answer.
- Tap the audio to hear the question and the answer.
- Think: what is the question asking about? The answer to that is the new information.
- Tap the word in the answer that carries it. That word has the main stress.
- Read the explanation after each answer.
Tip:In a correction, such as No, I said Thursday, the stress goes on the word that fixes the mistake.
Practice 2
Listen to the question and the answer. Tap the word in the answer with the main stress.
Mark the pauses
Long sentences need thought groups. A good pause helps the listener, and it gives you time to breathe and think.
Pause after a long subject, after an if or when clause, before and or but with a new idea, and around extra information.
How to do this activityAbout 5 minutes
Goal:Mark where the speaker pauses.
- Read the sentence and listen to it.
- Tap the space between two words to add a pause mark. Tap again to remove it.
- Each sentence has one or two pauses. Do not add more.
- Tap Check. Then listen again and compare your pauses with the correct ones.
Tip:Pause between ideas, not in the middle of one: before a new idea, after an item of a list, and around extra information.
Practice 3
Tap the space between two words to add a pause. Tap again to remove it. Each sentence has one or two pauses. Then tap Check.
Find the links
The most common link is consonant + vowel: when a word ends in a consonant sound and the next word starts with a vowel sound, the consonant moves to the next word.
How to do this activityAbout 5 minutes
Goal:Find where a consonant links to the next vowel.
- Read the sentence and listen to it.
- Find a word that ends in a consonant sound, followed by a word that starts with a vowel sound.
- Tap the space between those two words to mark the link.
- Tap Check, listen, and read the explanation: the consonant moves to the next word.
Tip:Listen for the sound, not the spelling. An apple sounds like a-napple.
Practice 4
Tap the space between two words where there is a consonant + vowel link. Then tap Check and listen.
Intonation in real life
Some everyday patterns have their own tune. Learn these four.
Choice questions
The voice rises on the first option and falls on the last one.
Tag questions
If you are sure and expect the other person to agree, the voice falls. If you really do not know, it rises.
Asking someone to repeat
A single word like Sorry? or Really? rises when you ask for more.
Polite requests
Requests with Could you or Can you usually rise, and that makes them sound friendly.
How to do this activityAbout 4 minutes
Goal:Decide if the voice falls or rises at the end, according to the situation.
- Read the situation first. It tells you what the speaker wants.
- Tap the audio and listen to the end of the sentence.
- Choose if the voice falls or rises.
- Read the explanation, and then say the sentence out loud with the same melody.
Tip:Choice questions rise and then fall. Tag questions fall when you are sure and rise when you really do not know. Polite requests usually rise.
Practice 5
Read the situation, listen, and decide: does the voice fall or rise at the end?
Dialogue: the next morning
Marco finished the numbers, and Laura wants to talk before the client meeting. Listen with the marks, repeat each line, and then hide the marks.
How to do this activityAbout 15 minutes
Goal:Practice everything together with a real conversation.
- Choose Slow mode. Tap Listen to the dialogue and follow the marks with your eyes.
- Play one line at a time and repeat it out loud. Copy the stress, the pauses and the melody.
- Repeat each line three times. If you can, record yourself on your phone and compare your voice with the model.
- Tap Hide marks and read the dialogue again. Try to remember where the stress, the pauses and the links are.
- Change to Normal mode and do shadowing: speak at the same time as the audio, a tiny bit behind it.
Tip:Shadowing is hard at first. Start with one line, then two, and then the full dialogue. It gets easier day by day.
How to do this activityAbout 8 minutes
Goal:Create your own sentences and hear them with the right rhythm.
- Read each sentence and look at the blank.
- Choose an option from the vocabulary ideas, or type your own words.
- Tap Check to be sure that every blank is complete.
- Tap Listen to my version to hear your complete sentences.
- Repeat each sentence three times. Stress the content words and let your voice fall at the end of each statement.
Tip:Use real information about your life and your work. You will remember it better, and your sentences will sound more natural.
Personalize
Complete the sentences about your work. Choose an option from the box or write your own.
Vocabulary ideas
Choose one option for each blank, or write your own.
Final quiz
Ten questions to review Part 2. Listen to each one before you answer.
How to do this activityAbout 10 minutes
Goal:Check what you learned in this part.
- Tap the audio button and listen to the question or the sentence.
- Choose your answer. The bar at the top shows your progress.
- You see the explanation right away. Read it before you go to the next question.
- At the end you see your result and what to do next.
Tip:A good goal is 70% or more. If you get less, go back to the sections you missed, listen in Slow mode, and take the quiz again. It is normal to repeat it.
How much did you learn?
Tap the audio button, listen and choose your answer. You will see the explanation right away.
How to do this activityAbout 10 minutes
Goal:Say the items out loud and let the app check your pronunciation.
- Tap the play button to hear the model. Listen to the stress, the rhythm and the sounds.
- Tap Say it. The first time, your browser asks for permission to use the microphone. Tap Allow.
- Wait for Listening and say the whole item at normal speed, like the model.
- The app shows the words it heard well and marks in red the words it did not hear clearly.
- Listen to the model again and try again until you are happy with it.
Tip:Use a quiet place and speak clearly. Nothing is recorded or saved. On a computer with Chrome or Edge you also see an analysis of your melody and rhythm.
If it does not work:If you see We did not hear anything, tap Say it and try again. If the microphone is blocked, allow it in the browser settings or use Chrome or Edge.
Consolidation: read and pronounce
Consolidate what you practiced. Listen to the model, tap Say it and say each item out loud. The app checks your pronunciation and marks any word it did not hear clearly. If it hears a homophone, like son for sun, it counts as correct, because both words sound the same.
LEVEL 1 · THE MUSIC OF ENGLISH · MINI COURSE
Rhythm and melody
Content words, stress, thought groups, intonation and linking.
ReviewPART 2More practice
Weak forms, little words, stress in answers, pauses and real-life intonation.
You are herePART 3The sounds of English
Vowels, diphthongs, consonants, word stress, and prolong, stress, connect.
Next partPART 4Sound games
Sound order, Click & Say, memory games and the minimal pairs lab.
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