Episodio 359
Escucha el episodio
Escucha una vez para captar la idea principal. Después usa la transcripción y repite en voz alta las frases útiles.
Descarga y estudia
Recursos del episodio
Descarga un archivo o continúa con la transcripción.
Orden recomendado: escucha una vez, lee mientras escuchas y vuelve a escuchar sin el texto.
Lección completa
Lee la transcripción
Sigue el texto mientras escuchas y después repite en voz alta las frases útiles.
Hi! I’m Georgiana, and I’m back with a new episode of the Speak English Now podcast—the podcast that helps you speak English fluently, with no grammar and no textbooks.
This is the first episode in a special pronunciation series. We’ll do four episodes in a row, each one focused on different sounds.
In this first episode, we’ll work on R and L.
Next time, we’ll practice the TH sound.
Then, we’ll look at V and B.
And finally, we’ll practice SH and CH.
So, step by step, you’ll train your pronunciation with word pairs, tongue twisters, and fun mini-stories.
Ok, let's start!
Why are R and L sounds tricky?
In some languages, the “R” and “L” sounds are very similar, but in English they’re different—and they change the meaning of words.
For example: rice and lice, light and right, glass and grass.
First, you’ll practice with word pairs and tongue twisters. Then we’ll do a mini-story to help you speak more automatically.
Quick Word-Pair Drills (listen & repeat)
light – right
glass – grass
collect – correct
fly – fry
play – pray
long – wrong
clue – crew
climb – crime
alive – arrive
belly – berry
Word Pair Practice in Sentences
Let’s practice some simple examples. Listen carefully and repeat after me.
light – right
I see you in the right light.
glass – grass
There is a glass on the grass.
collect – correct
Please collect the correct paper.
fly – fry
The fly landed on the fry.
play – pray
The children play, and the parents pray.
long – wrong
The long answer is not wrong.
clue – crew
The crew found a clue.
climb – crime
He wants to climb, not commit a crime.
alive – arrive
We were alive to see the train arrive.
belly – berry
He has a berry in his belly.
Tongue Twister Practice
Listen and repeat.
Red lorry, yellow lorry.
Larry likes red lollipops.
Lions like to roar loudly.
Lily really likes lemons.
Lucky rabbits like to run rapidly.
Coach your mouth: exaggerate the R and L the first few times. Record yourself once at slow speed and once at fast speed to compare.
Now, let’s practice.
¿Quieres seguir practicando inglés? Continúa con un curso de audio completo.
MEJORA TU INGLÉS HABLADO
Mini-Story: practica hablando
Responde a las preguntas en voz alta con respuestas breves y rápidas. Repite la Mini-Story varias veces para mejorar tu expresión y comprensión en inglés.
Tom went to a restaurant because he was hungry and wanted rice.
Who went to a restaurant? A dog?
No, no. Not a dog. Tom. Tom went to a restaurant. Tom is a man, not a dog.
Why did Tom go to the restaurant? Did he want to work there?
No. He didn’t want to work at the restaurant. He went there because he was hungry.
What food did Tom want? Lice?
No, no. He didn’t want lice. Lice isn’t something you eat. He wanted rice.
Tom looked at the menu and practiced the word “rice”, but he still felt nervous.
Did Tom feel relaxed or nervous?
Nervous. He felt nervous.
What word did he practice?
“Rice.” He practiced the word “rice.”
When the waiter arrived, Tom tried to order, but he pronounced “rice” incorrectly. He said “lice.”
Did Tom pronounce “rice” correctly?
No. He didn’t pronounce it correctly.
What did he say instead of rice?
“Lice.” He said “lice” instead of “rice”.
Was the mistake with the R sound or the L sound?
The R sound. He confused R and L.
The waiter looked confused and a bit alarmed because he heard “lice.”
Did the waiter understand Tom?
No. He didn’t understand Tom.
How did the waiter feel—confused or confident?
Confused. He felt confused.
What word did the waiter hear, rice or lice?
Lice. He heard “lice.”
Tom realized the problem and decided to speak more slowly. He smiled and said, “I want rice, not lice.”
Did Tom cry?
No, no. He didn’t cry. In fact, Tom smiled.
Did he speak quickly or slowly?
Slowly. He spoke slowly.
What did he say he wanted?
Rice. He wanted rice, not lice.
To be extra clear, Tom pointed to the word “rice” on the menu and repeated, “Rice, please.”
Did Tom point to the menu or to the door?
The menu. He pointed to the menu.
What word did he point to?
“Rice.” He pointed to “rice.”
Did Tom repeat the word or stay silent?
He repeated it. He repeated the word.
The waiter finally understood and smiled. He said, “Ah! Rice!” Then he brought Tom a big bowl of rice.
Did the waiter finally understand Tom?
Yes. He finally understood.
What did the waiter bring—bread or rice?
Not bread. Rice. He brought rice.
Was it a small bowl or a big bowl?
A big bowl. He brought a big bowl of rice.
Tom tasted the rice and relaxed. Then he ordered lemon tea to relax a little more.
What drink did Tom order—coffee or lemon tea?
Lemon tea. He ordered lemon tea.
Did he want to relax or to run?
To relax. He wanted to relax.
Tom laughed about the mistake and practiced one more time: “rice, rice, rice.” The waiter laughed too and said, “No lice—only rice!”
Did Tom cry?
No, no. He didn’t cry, he laughed. He laughed about the mistake.
Who else laughed—another customer or the waiter?
The waiter. The waiter laughed too.
Thanks for listening, and I’ll see you in the next episode.
Repaso
Vocabulario
Repasa las palabras y expresiones más útiles antes de volver a escuchar.
minimal pair
dos palabras que se diferencian únicamente por un sonido.
tongue twister
una frase diseñada para ser difícil de pronunciar rápidamente.
rice / lice
un par de palabras utilizado para contrastar los sonidos R y L.
light / right
un par de palabras utilizado para contrastar los sonidos L y R.
pronunciation
la manera en que se pronuncia una palabra o un sonido.
articulate
producir los sonidos del habla con claridad.
repeat after me
escuchar y repetir en voz alta las mismas palabras.
sound contrast
la diferencia entre dos sonidos del habla.
¿Quieres seguir practicando inglés? Continúa con un curso de audio completo.