Do NOT say the D in these 105 Common Words!

[@rachelsenglish]

Start Your Free Course Now! rachelsenglish.com/free ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

[@EmmanuelLubwey]

Hello Rachel

[@EmmanuelLubwey]

I need your Email please

[@anndeecosita3586]

As an American I don’t think I generally drop d as much as this video suggests. Especially not before ly. Might be an accent thing or my having an extensive career in broadcasting. I don’t say tens and tends or ten/tend the same way because they form somewhat differently (no dropped t in differently for me) in my mouth. My tip of my tongue goes up to the roof of my mouth behind my teeth to push a d when I say tends but I don’t do this in tens. Kind of like the video on mountain, fountain and such. I NEVER drop the t. Just wanting to let English learners know this is optional. By the way I don’t drop the first t in important. I don’t drop g in ing although this is common. People will understand you either way.

[@rachelsenglish]

Thanks for sharing Ann!

[@mikelarrieta1]

Yeah, you're absolutely right.

[@francissolum7192]

She meant that the ‘d’ is very subtle, almost erased sometimes.

[@comegowithme]

Agreed, this is definitely an accent type of thing, not how you would be taught proper English in a classroom setting using phonics etc. It probably depends on what part of the country/world you’re speaking English in. I’ve lived in quite a few parts but I speak clearly and enunciate the sounds properly as intended.

[@ventana100]

Thanks for sharing this! I found extremely helpful to read that it's possible to sound intelligible for a native speaker weather we drop the Ds and Ts or not, like on these cases. I was started worrying in putting effort on dropping these letters to don't sound awkward. The video is very useful but it's priceless to learn from contrasting comments like yours. Thanks a lot!

[@balbalbalbal6083]

You are THE master of your craft. Can't thank you enough Rachel. I am an Arab English teacher who graduated from public schools. Your videos and precious channel enabled me to be a confident teacher with an American accent.

[@snldev]

Let's be honest. This is the best American English channel of all time. Thank you

[@rachelsenglish]

Glad to hear that!

[@snldev]

@@rachelsenglish thanks for replying. I've been watching you on YT for almost 10 years. ☺

[@Quokka838]

For me you're the best American English teacher in phonetics I've ever found here in YT. You always put such great effords and generosity in your work. Love you! Greetings from Italy. 💚💙💜

[@rachelsenglish]

Hello there and thanks for watching!

[@chiarafloris1750]

@@rachelsenglish thanks Rachel .. you should make a video for Italians students one day

[@LumbridgeTeleport]

I’m from USA and I advice you not to follow this advice lol. You will sound weird as hell

[@maythettun9490]

Honestly, as a english learner, I understand everything she speaks. Her voice, pronunciation, intonation, word stress ...everything is clear and amazing.

[@philippegilson]

I agree with you. Rachel is a linguist. She doesn't teach slang. Peace.

[@Matthewshau]

so who anyone else teaches slang?

[@cowboybob7093]

@@philippegilson By dropping D like she suggests she makes them all sound like slang. I believe in the necessity of the evolution of language to make it survive, but this lesson lessens the distinction of the spoken word.

[@M1sterE321]

@@philippegilson She doesn't teach slang? The advice in this video sure comes close to slang.

[@pvandck]

@@philippegilson Linguist? 🤣

[@anguschiggins2161]

As a native speaker, I would encourage new speakers not to listen to any advice in this video. Granted D's get dropped from time to time but it is nowhere near as much as in this video. In some of the examples presented I was hearing the D quite clearly. Also English is not as smooth as she would have you believe. English is from the Germanic family tree and shares characteristics with languages in that tree, rough sounds and all. If you want a smooth sounding language I would suggest a Romance language such as French or Spanish.

[@izedaadezide1720]

Elle est très fière d'être américaine

[@Professional-workstation]

Angus, as an American who speaks fluent German and French, I have to disagree with you. But let me explain. Now at the begining she says "9 out of 10 times", so she is not making it a hard and fast rule even if 90% is essentially "all the time". Also, this feature of American English is in the context of normal conversation. If I speak normally, I drop the D in nearly every example, but if I speak in a conscious, deliberate way (like with non-native English speakers), then the D will sometimes be audible. Finally, she points out that the D is a stop-consonant. And while she says "drop the D", what physically happens is that we "swallow" the D. In other words, the D is there, but non-aspirated.... This is because the phonetic position at the end of the N consonant is the same as the starting position of the D.. So the D just gets swallowed. And while German has some rough, gutteral sounds (as does French), it also has linking (smoothing) between sounds.

[@bobporch]

Yo! Dey don't talk like dat in Philly.

[@bobporch]

Duh!

[@bobporch]

@@Professional-workstation I speak Brooklyneese an I disagree. Youse ony tink German har-duh.

[@luissarmiento1479]

English is not my first language and I don't understand English well when I try to talk to an American. Now I'm improving my listening for Rachel, thanks Rachel. You have helped me so much. Keep on.

[@RodrigoMartins-dj8nu]

But the d is pronounced. It's not strong, but there's clearly a movement of the tip of the tongue to the palate

[@MarcusDCarvalho]

Exactly you pronounce it for yourself otherwise it doesn’t sound right

[@SurfistaEletrico]

@@MarcusDCarvalho Untrue for find, found, friend... Also, English varies across the USA, and from there to the UK, Australia, New Zeland etc.

[@SurfistaEletrico]

Yes. And it is not really "silent" like the B in "debt". There is a faint sound indeed.

[@Conservative007]

Nope, it's not. There's no sound of the D

[@sergionascimentobordalo202]

@@Conservative007 You gotta be kidding...

[@no89lan3]

To those native speakers saying they don’t do this. Look at the examples provided, they do exactly what Rachel is teaching and I personally have been doing this without realizing because that’s how it sounds for someone learning.

[@pvandck]

I don't really think you should be telling native speakers what they do and don't do with regard to pronunciation. I'm mother tongue English, and I don't drop my consonants like in the video. I also happen to teach English pronunciation as a specific subject to foreign students in Italy. Pronunciation is a complicated, subtle activity and most of what's set out in this video is quite wrong.

[@KenFullman]

Only if you're American

[@annelarrybrunelle3570]

As an American native speaker (midwest transplant to Texas) of 70+ years, I assure you that I was taught to (and still do) pronounce my terminal consonants. And I would encourage a non-native speaker to do the same. There is a difference between "smooth" and "sloppy". Indeed, singers, especially those who wish their words to be understood, will usese care to enunciate terminal consonants clearly, even if softly. There actually is reason to put an almost indiscernible space between, for example, the words "had done" - two distinct "d" sounds very close together. And I also report that when speaking to anyone with even a mild hearing impairment, and especially on the phone, dictionary pronunciation, with clarity and distinction, is preferred.

[@dingman10able]

As a Midwest Great Lakes American I absolutely agree with you!!!

[@dingman10able]

As a Midwest Great Lakes American I absolutely agree with you!!!

[@dingman10able]

As a Midwest Great Lakes American I absolutely agree with you!!!

[@dingman10able]

As a Midwest Great Lakes American I absolutely agree with you!!!

[@dingman10able]

As a Midwest Great Lakes American I absolutely agree with you!!!

[@sazji]

A lot of this stuff is very regional. I grew up in eastern Iowa, where we do pronounce some things not pronounced in many another areas. (Like the H in “where, why, etc.) I would drop (or at least greatly reduce) the D in “friendship”, but not in “friend was” or “friendly,” “bindweed,” “sound wave.” But in “grandkids” I do, unless I’m reading very carefully. What’s going on? There’s more going on here than just “another consonant.” The type of consonant following the D is important. In “friendship” the D is followed by a continuant alveolar fricative; D is articulated in the same place as the D, so it is harder to articulate it fully and we tend to blend them. In “grandchildren,” the “ch” is a stop, so it’s easier to pronounce. The stress pattern there also encourages it. In “grandkids,” there’s something more going on. The K in “kids” is velar, and it’s more work to move straight from an alveolar to a velar consonant. So the tendency is for the D to be dropped in favor of ŋk (ngk). We don’t say “grankids,” we say “graŋkids.”

[@davidlamb7524]

You nailed it. That is the problem with American English. There is no standard, only different dialects. There is a standard English called 'RP' which is mostly spoken in England. It is the form of the language most widely admired around the world. For examples listen to David Attenborough, Stephen Fry and Richard Dawkins for good examples. I'm not a supporter of his politics but the new UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak also speaks RP beautifully. If students understood the high status, clarity etc of RP they would realise that it will actually stand them in better stead in the USA itself than any US accent. However they will still need to at least understand the local accent and dialect wherever they are. For that this video could be useful.

[@adolforodolfo6929]

@@davidlamb7524 Hardly anyone here in England speaks RP these days, not even on the BBC. Most English people, regardless of class, now speak with what is basically a regional accent.

[@davidlamb7524]

@@adolforodolfo6929 That's a shame - but RP is still the only standard.

[@stephaniel.3812]

Iowa here, too! How did I get to this video, anyway?! I honestly said all of these words outloud just now and I drop most of the D's..... and most are barely pronunciated .... example -----> "Grandkid" is/was "Grnkid" and my "I" in kid was pretty weak. Sigh.

[@MrGregHiller]

Thanks a lot for your very detailed explanation and reply.

[@joelmasamba6762]

Oh my gosh!!! You're our savior about English my amazing teacher keep up the good work I've been learning more from you!!!!

[@rachelsenglish]

I appreciate it @joelmasamba6762!

[@blotski]

This is fascinating. I'm English. I've been saying 'friendship' again and again to try to work out what I (or even we) do as opposed to the Americans. I think I pronounce it 'fren-chip'. So the -d becomes devoiced into a 't' as it meets the voiceless 'sh' and joins with it to become -tsh or rather -ch. It might just be me or a regional accent. I am from the north.

[@panpiper]

I am a native english speaker, and unless I am drunk, I do not drop these consonants.

[@ahmednur1405]

🤣🤣

[@jabato9779]

Thanks, I am not a native English speaker and this got I me wondering.

[@JaneAlison008]

Thanks man as I was so confused and almost started to question my knowledge.

[@shane4464]

This X1000

[@Thyme2sea]

Thank you Peter, what a relief! I’m a native Portuguese speaker, so I’m never completely sure of what to think about certain situations.

[@itismesiaaa9396]

Watching your videos is a part of my morning routine ❤ I love you from Syria 🇸🇾

[@mohammedalamri3410]

Thank you very much, Mrs. Richelle, for what you do for us.

[@rachelsenglish]

My pleasure Mohammed!

[@LearnAcademicEnglish]

This is an excellent overview of common, normal, and totally acceptable reductions that occur in spoken English. Native speakers don't think about them, but when we speak, we have all kinds of reductions that allow words to come out more smoothly. All languages do this; it's a linguistic phenomenon of preferring what is more efficient (i.e. what requires less effort).

[@rachelsenglish]

Thanks for sharing!

[@CFWhitman]

A lot of these words have the 'd' not totally dropped, though not exactly emphasized. It's subtle, but it's there (exception: in the 'nds' example, it's difficult to really catch any difference, since the 's' sounds like 'z', which makes the slight 'd' and no 'd' virtually indistinguishable). Though if you listen to the examples, some of the people do drop it completely while others just barely say it. In the word 'second,' the 'd' is most often pronounced more as a 't', so you're certainly not going to hear it distinctly in the phrase 'second time.' On the other hand, an 'nt' sound is often pronounced in America with the 't' consonant being mostly a matter of the the sound being cut off for a split second. It's almost like a certain UK accent, but less pronounced. Again, its presence is subtle, but not altogether missing. I freely admit, though, to a non-native speaker the difference between the subtle 'd' and no 'd' at all might well be impossible to distinguish.

[@AaaBbb-ok9ci]

Good job Whitman

[@cowboybob7093]

D and T are hard sounds, as in not soft sounds. To speak them requires a miniscule tongue motion. To leave them out requires the muscles in the throat, neck, skull and the diaphragm to constrict in unison and halt the flow of air completely. Using a D or a T properly requires much less effort, and sounds much better than leaving them out. (ed: This reply supports CFWhitman's opinion)

[@SrtaLJCarneiro]

As a non native speaker I can hear the subtle D well enough. If the person can’t then this person just needs more listening practice.

[@soritessoreites1207]

​@@SrtaLJCarneiro Señorita, Find a nice strong D, let me think, "Day, dee, die, doe, dew" First thing in the morning and a few times whenever you think of it And every time you say "doe" think of "dough" (look it up!)

[@CurtJunya]

I’m from the rural south. She’s right. I’m a native English speaker, it’s cool seeing how much I don’t realize about English.

[@rachelsenglish]

Hello there and thanks for watching @CurtJunya!

[@cowboybob7093]

Do NOT drop those `Ds` - 0:02 - "smoothness" - Dropping the D makes a hard halt, not smooth - What most people do is combine the D and the next word - Like "I found out" sounds more like "I foun dout" than "I foun out"

[@atstrollz6875]

And how does "I foun dout" differ from "I foun(d) doubt"?

[@cowboybob7093]

@@atstrollz6875 *_Context_*

[@atstrollz6875]

@@cowboybob7093 good point and I guess "I found doubt" is not very common to use. But I'm still wondering, if it sounds the same, or does it slightly differ?

[@cowboybob7093]

@@atstrollz6875 I've got a decent ear, they sound the same. IMO the language is richer with the 'd' sound.

[@prim16]

Great analysis. I said "I found out" several times out loud, and it definitely sounds like "I found doubt". We probably just carry over the consonant to the onset of the following syllable because it's easier to say... and we don't really have hard glottal stops before vowels like in German.

[@nmarks]

This channel is an affront to the English language.

[@alexis.d.santos]

I feel like the "d" is not really dropped in most of those examples. At least in the real word. Most of the time, the "d" gets rather engulfed, but it's still there even if barely hearable and subtle. Nevertheless is seams like a good tip for those people that want to speed up their language flow and don't have the time to practice this rather subtle d sound.

[@Miblive]

I was just going to say that. I don´t drop the d when saying the word friendly.

[@ingleland1870]

I am a native speaker. I do not drop this either. I think dropping the “d” on this may be a local or regional speech pattern. When I speak I would say it is a soft “d” for most of these, and leaving it out would make it sound strange.

[@hydrolito]

I heard the d in a lot of these also I don't know how she missed it.

[@Conservative007]

Actually, it is. If you are an American, just pay attention when you're talking to someone and you'll realize the d is dropped in every example she gave.

[@Conservative007]

@@Miblive that's because you're not an American

[@apdorafa-rafaelalmeida7159]

Rachel is soo good. I grew up in Canada and now live in Brazil teaching English to Brazilians. I always get good ideas out of her videos. Just one thing about the word friend...I guess I never pronounce the "d".

[@Angusmum]

Rachel is soooo NOT good. She repeatedly mispronounces.. She doesn’t “smooth out” ( as she says) English. She mispronounces English. She does not speak English. Full Stop. The trouble is that she talks authoritatively to the UK as if this is how we should speak. If she wants Americans and Canadians to speak as she advises then why does she say that they already pronounce words that particular way? If she continues to pronounce words this way then don’t be surprised if they lose the skill of spelling those words correctly.

[@TheNab2323]

No way..hope you’re not teaching what was shown in this video Absolute 💩

[@jonmc6573]

The n Canada the d is very clearly pronounced and almost emphasized

[@maxwellcardoso5005]

OMG! You just blew my mind. I have been living in America for almost 2 years and I haven't noticed this pattern. Your work is brilliant. Thank you so much!

[@rachelsenglish]

I appreciate it @maxwellcardoso5005!

[@sharfazhameed6382]

Rachel you are doing a great job, don't pull back from your valuable lessons because of haters. We need your lessons

[@rachelsenglish]

Will do, thank you @sharfazhameed6382!

[@youby88]

It used to be difficult for me to understand what make it so hard to understand how native Americans sound differently than us non native speakers until I discovered your channel. So far,I can truly say thank to I have a higher level in term of speaking and listening.

[@rachelsenglish]

Glad to hear that Youbens! Thanks for watching.

[@5stardave]

Native born Americans speak different from each other. There are 50 states in the USA, all with regional preferences. Southern Californians are known to pronounce words differently than northern Californians. Some remove the "D" while others cannot. Some add an "R" in the word wash. Some Americans think other Americans are speaking a complete different language, while others have no problem instantly deciphering what was said.

[@richardphillipslivemusic]

I hold a profound appreciation for American English, and I am absolutely enthralled by the way Rachel articulates her explanations!

[@rachelsenglish]

Thank you @richardphillipslivemusic!

[@funkleburger1]

That is really interesting. As a native English speaker myself I have never even noticed that. I was convinced that I pronounced grandkids as it is spelt. I recorded myself saying it and voila the d is definitely missing. Great stuff 🙂👍

[@eddiehawkins7049]

Also a native English speaker, my pronunciation of the D is dependant on who I am talking to. In my normal East London/Essex speech, I'll drop the D. If I need to make sure that I'll be understood by people from other parts of the country or world, I might be a little more correct in my pronunciation.

[@TheYoga1212]

I have been following you past 10 years and watching after long break , glad to watch your lessons Ms.Rachael

[@rachelsenglish]

I appreciate it @TheYoga1212! Thank you!

[@TheYoga1212]

@@rachelsenglish Thank you so much for your time and kind reply

[@Foxito73]

Thanks for such an informative video!!! In my case, as a spanish native speaker, we have the problem of trying to pronounce all letters we read in speaking, completely. Another english native speakers say, and I believe them, that this is not absolute to drop the letter completely. But in my case, and I think in spanish native speakers at least, trying to drop the letter is the best exercise we can do, because we have a natural tendency to keep all the letter, because will be very difficult to drop completely, and the remaining letter pronunciated would be ok, or at least, as some other native speakers say, acceptable. Many years studying English and is the first time I´ve learnned this about d. Thanks a lot Rachel!

[@rachelsenglish]

You're welcome and thanks for sharing Juan!

[@capivara6094]

As a Brazilian, I can say that we have the same problem in Portuguese. We have a tendency to always pronounce every single letter.

[@philippegilson]

Hello Rachel ! I learned English at school in Belgium. I'm gifted with languages pronunciation. I speak fluent French, Dutch en Flemish, English and American, and basic German. I went to the US 35 years ago with my British English. After three month everybody thought I was American. I still watch Hollywood movies in American. Phil, Belgium. Peace

[@jhogos]

Rachel you're the best teacher I ever had!! Thanks a lot!

[@rachelsenglish]

You're welcome Jho!

[@alicemilne1444]

Don't forget that this video is about speech in some parts of the USA. It doesn't necessarily apply in other English-speaking countries.

[@nikkijubilant]

It applies in Canada

[@marcuscook3852]

It doesn't actually apply in any English country, including the USA.

[@duckcluck123]

Don't forget even though he says it like 100 times

[@amandavenuto5029]

Thanks Rachel you rock! Ppl saying they are native English speakers and don't speak like her... sorry but I don't believe y’all. I'm on Rachel's side on this. My husband also drops almost all consonants in these words.

[@adolforodolfo6929]

So, rather than "friendship", your husband says "ie-i" ?

[@galegate1388]

Only here do I hear about such details. Thank you! Like the movie " Friends," - I always felt that there's something different in how it is pronounced. It takes the burden off me when I hear that the d is skipped. It is so liberating, and at the same time, it makes me angry why nobody has ever explained this to me before. Rachel, I believe your way of teaching should be more widespread. Thank you, again!

[@rachelsenglish]

You're very welcome and thanks for the kind words Gale! :)

[@QTABT4EVER]

Hi Rachel, thank you very much for all the wonderful instructional videos. As an immigrant, I came to the USA when I was 19; it’s very difficult for me to pronounce the some of the words. Since I came across your video and subscribed your channel, I learned a lot of rules of American pronunciation. It has helped me to improve my pronunciation greatly. Thanks again ❤

[@rachelsenglish]

That's great Simba! You're very welcome and keep it up! :)

[@julianneheindorf5757]

As a native speaker of American English teaching English to foreigners as an ESL, I think it’s important to point out that not everyone is dropping d’s willy-nilly as she is doing nor would I recommend learners of English to do so. Even listening to her examples of people using the the word kindness, it is obvious that some of them quite clearly pronounce the d. Just remember that American English is not the only English in the world, and even in the US there are several dialects and different ways of speaking American English.

[@vmvengsub3812]

As a Vietnamese teacher, I always encourage my students to speak the British way. Even though it's harder to learn, it makes their pronunciation much more finesse and clear. I only resolve to American English when convenience and simplicity are needed.

[@TroyQwert]

Well, that's the problem and complexity of learning English - dialects, slang, versions, write Manchester, read Liverpool. I recommend all of you learn Russian instead. All 250 000 000 Russian speakers in the world speak the same Russian with just a few exceptions. Easy-peasy 😊 As for what Rachel sais I totally agree. As a non native English speaker I see it her way.

[@m.a.taylor6908]

Yes, she is definitely oversimplifying. Especially in more formal situations - like public speaking, in an interview, speaking in court, doing a newscast, etc. I tell my daughter that she can talk in slang or lazily all she wants with her friends, but she needs to know how and when to turn that off... when it counts.

[@valkyrieloki1991]

@@m.a.taylor6908Hi, but the real life examples she provided in this video, people in public speaking and in interview dropped the consonants.

[@kenc8411]

As a rule in English 101 or ESL classes, every single sound in an English word (except special words like corps or debt) must be pronounced. In the case of "tends," back in my ESL class, my American teacher specifically wanted to hear the "d," and she would make us pronounce "tens" and "tends" just to see if she could detect the "d." It is only when you gain a certain level of fluency that you start dropping some non-stressed sounds, and even when you do, you know the sounds are there. Like again in the case of "tends," even though the "d" was silenced, if you've learned English properly, when you say that word your tongue would involuntarily go dab the upper part of the mouth before the "s", creating an almost unnoticeable pause, whereas in "tens" you don't. In my opinion as a non-native speaker, you can tell people how some native speakers drop certain sounds, but you should not encourage that.

[@jean-jacquesdevilliers3181]

1000000000%, this right here.

[@jamescarney6894]

Yes totally agree. Rachel the pathetic lazy American language teacher is misleading foreigners on how to speak /pronounce correct English.

[@peterfitness1929]

This is the biggest load of rubbish I’ve ever seen regarding correct speech. It’s one of the symptoms of Americans butchering the English language. I’m Australian and, like Americans, we have developed our own form of the language, but it is still taught correctly in schools here. Most of the incorrect pronunciation happens afterward, but it’s not encouraged by garbage such as this video, advocating “smoothing” speech by dropping the “d” sound in certain situations. Absolutely appalling 😡 As the famous author, George Bernard Shaw once wrote, “England and America are two countries separated by a common language”, this still holds true today, only more so.

[@maxvoroshilov3207]

I get your point.... But you have to make a considerable effort to pronounce three dental consonants |ndz| without at least weakening |d|. D is destined to merge into |z|, in this case.

[@許靜婕-l4h]

Tends. The d with s become a sound like z but not exactly the same. You can not say the d is dropped. It is just coherent with the s.

[@bigredracingdog466]

Way overstated. While the d-lessness is evident in 'friendship,' it's not in 'friendly.' The problem with 'd' is that when it is used at the end of a syllable it is unvoiced and therefore tends to get drowned out by voiced consonants that surround it.

[@АлександрС-ш5ь]

Oh my God. Thank you so much for such informiton! It helps a lot to speed the speech up and understand native speakers better.

[@rachelsenglish]

You're very welcome Александр!

[@許靜婕-l4h]

From the ears of a non native English speaker and having learned kk pronouncing system, every word you say is with a “reduction d” but not “drop d”

[@PedroHenriquedosSantos]

Muito obrigado professora estou aprendo inglês e sou grato por suas explicações. God bless you. I am from Brazil.

[@TelevisionCrews]

There you go. I knew Americans didn't know how to pronounce English words correctly. Lol! Thanks for teaching and enlighten us!

[@Voccent]

we teach correct pronunciation 😊

[@philipareed]

Typical American insularity, because, of course, they invented English.

[@reyglz6955]

Wow!! you are the best teacher I have ever been across on line. I am from Mexico City and I came to USA long time ago, when I was 21and still struggling with the English league and I really want to improve my self, but I don't know who to do it.

[@francisco-kb7mv]

Rachel's English is admirable.

[@rachelsenglish]

Thanks Francisco!

[@guntherlatta704]

Listening to the song My Way by Frank Sinatra, he sings and pronounces the letter d in the word "and" extremely strong.

[@dvdortiz9031]

Frank Sinatra " the voice"

[@alexcosta8999]

What she means my friend, is not about a rule you should following strictly, right? She is just saying that you can drop the letter D in order to speak the language smoothly. If natives do that why don't we give it a try as well?

[@miguelsuarez8010]

Everything Frank Sinatra sung was clearly pronounced.

[@pvandck]

@@alexcosta8999 But the "natives" don't necessarily drop their "d"s and "t"s.

[@apexvirtualsciencelearning5171]

Thank you for your nice job. I deeply appreciate this video. As a non-native speaker of the language, I find the video to be very helpful. It has helped me to understand American, Australian and the Canadian accents. I understand CNN radio station better now. I also think this video can help in the listening part of IELTS examination. However, I also feel we're all work in-progress. No one is perfect yet; there is always room for improvement. Love this house!

[@rachelsenglish]

Glad you found this helpful! You're welcome and thanks for sharing! :)

[@justsomeguywhoneverdies9210]

Is it okay if i assume this rule apply to every word that has "d" in it. Even for uncommon words

[@rachelsenglish]

Yes!

[@mattshialdean9356]

Thanks A LOT for introducing Youglish to us, it's a very useful tool for me. How to pronounce a specific word is always a big problem to me, and now it can be solve. I am struggling for a long time because many Engluish native speakers speaking words are different from dictionary, and that would be a huge obstacle to learn how to understand a native's meaning. This tool can help me through it, thanks, Rachel. : )

[@rachelsenglish]

Indeed it's a great resource! You're very welcome Matt!

[@jakobler3474]

Discussing the topic of pronouncing or leaving out the D sound you have to take into account that you CAN'T pronounce any voiced consonant like m, n, l together with sh or s without a very little b or d sound between respectively. For example: If you go from n to sh you have to move your tongue from your palate to behind your teeth. You can't do that in a smooth way but create a D sound pushing the tongue right off your palate. (A similar thing is true for example for words like redem(p)tion or hol(d)s.)

[@sergeipetrov5572]

Hello, Rachel! Thanks a lot for the lesson! I was able to repeat the words after you in your temp:)

[@rachelsenglish]

Great! Keep it up Sergei!

[@Impulse_Photography]

I am a born American - I have always pronounced my Ds and Ts in words, everyone I know does too. I am not so sure how accurate this information is. .. ...

[@mengsiongkheng113]

Thoughts so too.

[@atdzsny]

OK, she can't speak properly. Who cares? She's not alone. But she's proud of it, anD she wants to spread it. ;)

[@LoreMartinelly]

@@atdzsny spread misinformation?

[@agbrites]

I am a born American, as well! I was born in South America! 😎

[@beatrizguevara4368]

@@agbrites explained

[@MrGregHiller]

I'm afraid that all the examples you put on the front page of this video are incorrect: The 'd' needs to be pronounced in all those cases.

[@philipareed]

She's deranged.

[@RetroResearch]

I completely agree. Spoken English has become increasingly sloppy. This trend must be stopped! And this present situation with the lost 'd' is absolutely tragic. Just because so many Americans neglect their 'd's doesn't make it correct! It sounds so parochial.

[@EelcoWind]

Yeah, all those examples sound like they have caught a cold. Sounds so lazy to people from the other side of the pond. She should change her channel to Rachel's American. And even then I think that there are probably quite a few areas in the US where people pronounce D's in all these examples. She just can't keep the D sound small; I agree that BRANS sounds better than branDs, but BRANDS or preferably BRANdS sounds best.

[@kambata1]

Correct, but the americans have lazy mouth and they don’t say D

[@acasualviewer5861]

Yeah. I fear that a lot of these examples may be regional. Maybe there's some accent in the US that drops them. But generalizing is a bit much.

[@orlandohernandez9396]

Excellent video. Thank you so much.

[@rachelsenglish]

You are welcome! @Orlando Hernandez

[@evop]

Thank you for the video, the topic is interesting. In some given examples I personally hear not a drop, but a reduction from the 'd' to a kind of shortened 't' sound (escpecially in cases of the letter 'd' foolowing the letter 'n' to make a nasal 'n' sound which, when followed by a consonant, transitis into a brief 't' sound or at least a prolonged bridge just naturally). When the 'd' is completely dropped, the speach becomes sloppy, harder to comprehend and easier to misinterpret.

[@jmurillo4682]

Never drop letters, speak correctly do not follow the crowd. Be the person who speaks correctly. English is my first language.

[@katherinemorey6517]

As a teacher of effective speaking at the university level, I view many of your instructions as based purely on your opinion rather than any officially sanctioned way of speaking the English language. Much of what you present would make your followers more inarticulate than desired by audiences who learned to enunciate clearly.

[@latrelle6655]

Could you please explain to me why the word “from” is being dropped from linguistics In certain sentences? For example, “…to keep them messing with your day!” I’ve always heard such sentences with “from” after “them”. Help?

[@cmh8241]

Native English speaker from the Midwest (Chicago) here. I teach English online as a side hustle and will definitely bookmark this for my students! If you're learning English and struggling to say those middle Ts and Ds in words, yes, just drop them in casual conversation. There are regional variations, but I don't think a college student from Saudi Arabia who wants to "sound more like an American" needs to get into the weeds that much. Enunciating sounds formal anyway, or like you're trying to be too hard to be formal...It can also sound more confrontational or aggressive than you may mean to be if you pronounce every consonant in every word. "What are you doing?" vs "Whaddaya doon?"

[@GabrielRosariordt]

Exactly

[@LechuzaPrecoz]

I've been watching your videos since you started making them and I've learned a lot of English with you. And I also want to say you are beautiful and in each video you are even more beautiful, Rachell.

[@rachelsenglish]

Thanks a lot!

[@rafaeloledo]

Thank you from a brazilian english student. The final part is pretty helpful for me to repeating together.

[@brandonflorida1092]

I'm a native English speaker and I pronounce the D, at least little, in all of these words given as examples. I think what's being taught is wrong and will lead to sub-standard English.

[@KenFullman]

I think she's American.

[@rollout1984]

Never in my whole life have I ever heard "smoothness" attributed to English.

[@crtxl]

Compare a German native speaker speaking English and you will see how hard it can sound. Works the otherway around. Americans speaking German sounds way too smooth for my ears. Dropping our hard consonants left, right and center 😄

[@jonathonshanecrawford1840]

She isn't even English, as we know that Americans are lazy when come to English, like the word colour (UK correct spelling) whereas color (US incorrect spelling). Their excuse? Simplified English! Since when can they change thing to suit themselves? Since they got nuclear weapons

[@ausgefuuchst]

It's clear that there is a bit of a speculation about if this is right or wrong to do. But remember, Rachel is teaching a generalized *american accent* to "sound more american". Even if this is not the case in all parts of the US: Adding more peculiarities to the speech in everyday/colloquial context can help getting closer to that accent. From observation I would say the positioning of the tongue for a D sound is being done in the mouth but it is not or barely audible. Thereby Rachel is saying to leave it out completely for learners instead of trying to do an inbetween mix of those. Of course when it's all about clarity an accent is not desirable, but that's not what this video is about.

[@PanglossDr]

Then she should bloody well say so, not talk as if she is talking about English.

[@valkyrieloki1991]

@@PanglossDr She clearly mentioned about American English. Did you watch the video?

[@TroyQwert]

Hey! Rachel, talk about not pronouncing "o" like "o" in many words in English: not [nat], stop [stap], got [gat], dog [dag] or about a sound between "o" and "a" in a word with a weirdest spelling - Vaughan [vawn], author [awtha], sausage [sawsij]... You write Mancher, read - Liverpool. Also, what drives me crazy is lots of other soubd substitutions: drives [djraivs], grocery [grousheri], street [shchri]...

[@rachelsenglish]

Thanks for sharing @TroyQwert!

[@ri-khasitourism4601]

Thankyou so much. Very helpful for me

[@rachelsenglish]

You're welcome Ri-Khasi!

[@FPXS24]

You rock Rachel! I love lessons like this one, where you teach us the shades of English! Bravo! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

[@rachelsenglish]

Thank you Filipe!

[@chicochester]

Ótima professora eu aprendo muito pronúncia com você obrigado por compartilhar

[@xiomararodriguez9281]

Hello Raquel. I like your class, I hadn't had time for studying because my mom died, but I am starting againg. thankfully

[@rachelsenglish]

Sorry to hear that Xiomara. My condolences.

[@disismyutubename]

It's a good job that in most of your examples the speaker pronounces the d - as you also do. If not, as a native English speaker, I would not have a clue what the speaker was talking about.

[@catdaddy5192]

Those D’s are not totally silent. Rather, they are very subtle.

[@krishnamarandi1853]

Hello Rachel! I really like your videos. It's very helpful to understand the native English speakers. By the way, I'm also working on my American accent. Your videos are very helpful. Keep making videos like this one.

[@rachelsenglish]

You're welcome and thanks for watching Krishna!

[@triplec8375]

I've lived in the Midwest all of my 75 years -- in Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota and Indiana. The recognized standard for American English is Midwestern. Never have I heard the "d" dropped as described in this video. In college those many years ago, I had a Phonetics professor who came from the east coast who was trying to instruct us students in Illinois on Midwestern English. We had some great arguments with him and between ourselves. He insisted, for instance, that the "l" was silent in "alm" words so palm, calm, and balm became pom, bomb, and comm. Because he had been raised where this was standard, he persisted in his belief but, after 2 days of arguing this and similar points, it never came up again. Encouraging people to drop letter sounds is only encouraging lazy speech. English is most certainly not known for its smoothness. That would be the romance languages for the most part. The American English dialect will certainly continue to evolve, but we do not need this kind of forced mutation.

[@fredatoussaint9162]

Thanks a lot Rachel! You help me so much improve my pronunciation.

[@rachelsenglish]

Happy to hear that Freda!

[@ሚኪ-ጐ1ፐ]

Really ,teaching lesson. A good and qualified English teacher that I have ever met.keep going my smart oecturer

[@rachelsenglish]

Thank you so much for your kind words and encouragement! I appreciate it @user-lz6jn9fu7w!

[@martyw9504]

I always pronounce my ds and ts in these words

[@tehonez5083]

Completely disagree. While I have heard some regions pronounce these words the way you stated, it’s generally a minority and it’s often frowned upon. I think teaching this under the pretense of “Americans” is grossly misleading and inaccurate.

[@guide2tech854]

Thank you Teacher Rachel for such a great video. Your content is always informative and stunning. We love been your students

[@adolforodolfo6929]

I'm English and we don't have always the same pronunciation as in American English. I was actually surprised by the thumbnail of this video (before I realised it was talking about American English), because we certainly don't drop the 'd' in words like "friendship" - it's not strongly pronounced, there is no pause between the two syllables, but it is not completely absent.

[@blotski]

I just commented on this. I have a feeling the d becomes very soft like a t and joins with the sh to produce a soft 'ch' sound. So it sounds a bit like frenchip. I'm not sure. I'm just saying it out loud to myself and trying to work it out.

[@NotThatKraken]

Most American dialects don’t drop the d either. It’s usually softer than in RP English though. Californian accents slur syllables together more than most other dialects. I don’t know where the presenter is from, but she sounds Californian to this native US speaker.

[@MrElephantShrew]

As an American I was very surprised about the thumbnail too, because I don't agree. The way you describe the sounds matches exactly how I would describe it.

[@ricardoninohe]

Rachel is the best!!! Thank you for your channel, I'm learning a lot...

[@rachelsenglish]

Glad to hear that Ricardo!

[@stefanogattoCH]

ah ah - it's so funny when she explains that D is not pronounced in friendship, while at the same time, I see the E of friendship that is dropped too while this is not even mentioned 😀 Anyway this video definitely helps! Thank you!

[@rachelsenglish]

Glad it helped and thanks for watching Stefano!

[@bror8228]

Not E but I....

[@hydrolito]

Sounds like could just us FRND in friend, however same ND sound as in word end.

[@PeacePlease.]

@@bror8228 EXACTLY - But then the i is simply there because & need NOT be pronounced - because English rules & exceptions to the rule are made to baffle the learner & make the master "smug" - L😆L!?

[@NotThatKraken]

English people pronounce every letter. This is the biggest difference between English accents and American accents. Americans merge a bunch of these so wh just sounds like w, gh just sounds like g, kn sounds like n, and so forth. In English accents, ie is (usually) a different sound than e. Spelling of English words would make a lot more sense if you were to speak with an English accent rather than an American one.

[@GrahamAstles]

As an English speaker from the UK, generally we regularly pronounce many of the written letters. It is not "smooth" to drop them. It is lazy.

[@Ash-gk8jp]

So should all English be exactly like British English just because you think the differences are "lazy"?

[@GrahamAstles]

@@Ash-gk8jp Nope, but making it sound virtuous to drop letters is just silly. Languages evolve as they are spoken, and not always for the better. The French have legally binding standards for their language, which helps maintain its quality and sets a required standard for usage.

[@lizramos3583]

Unless people in the UK speak any of the Romance languages, they do drop sounds. Phonology says so.

[@GrahamAstles]

@@lizramos3583 Agreed. A common form is to drop all consonants and kind of mumble using only vowels. Very difficult to understand!

[@lizramos3583]

@@GrahamAstles Exactly! Especially people from Manchester. So hard to understand, I've always even wondered if that's English.

[@wideawake5630]

As a retired educator I would have used your vids as an example of what NOT to heed.

[@martinruizvelasco6835]

Awesome work Rachel! We all thank you very much for this help.

[@MYTHOMINHTRAN]

This small detail bring me close to the native speaker! It is contrast to German which I have to pronounce "d" or "t' at the end. Thank for teaching Madam!

[@rachelsenglish]

Thanks for sharing!

[@pvandck]

Sorry, but this is just another attempt (in a time-honoured tradition) to impose prescriptive order on English pronunciation. While there is such a thing as completely wrong pronunciation, there's no such thing as 100% correct pronunciation. And pronouncing the letters "t" and "d" as proscribed in this video is definitely not wrong. English pronunciation is largely a practical matter, depending on the alphabetical/lexical context, with lots of regional and cultural influences thrown into the mix. I am British, mother tongue English, from South East London (I don't say "Saaf Eas' Lund'n"). It just so happens that I've been teaching English pronunciation to foreign students in Italy for the last 20 years or so. There really are lots of pronunciation difficulties that foreign English speakers encounter, not least of which is because the set of discrete English sounds is different and more extensive than that of most foreign speakers' mother tongues. And English spelling is, unhelpfully, all over the place when it comes to pronunciation. But the subject of this video is mostly mistaken and unhelpful.

[@MarcoAAOrtiz]

Next step is to pronounce just half of words like in some USA places.

[@atdzsny]

Next video: Do NOT say ANYTHING.

[@CaioFran]

Americans speaking be like: h hw ar yo tday my frind?

[@manxkin]

I’m on the fence with this one. As a native American English speaker I don’t think the “d” is dropped as much as this video suggests.

[@maxvoroshilov3207]

well, the thing is there a slight trace of the sound ....

[@jos.3079]

I realized many of the T’s D’s drop is unconscious for many native speakers . However if you ask them to pronounce the same word , same context they will pronounce the T’s or D’s

[@best4el]

Thank you very much for your lesson! I hope that my English will be better and better!

[@rachelsenglish]

You can do it! :)

[@patpatterson4311]

I strongly disagree that educated native speakers would drop the d from 'and' and 'friendly.' I did not listen to the rest. Spoken English can be 'smooth' without being sloppy.

[@thatonegirl6880]

I have lived in the USA all my life and have not experienced people dropping the “d” sound in these words. This is bad advice. We don’t just drop random letters out of words. 😂

[@kaan2215]

'The police find me' vs 'The police fine me' Pronunciations of these two sentences are the same? How does one tell the difference?

[@melissaneel3650]

Enunciation

[@carlosmarcello]

I love the gaze of this teacher.

[@hydrolito]

Some of these actually said the d. Listen to them more carefully if you're not hearing d. Use of d vary with part of country. I generally say grandchildren not grandkids. Farmers use term kid to refer to a young goat, nanny a female goat and Billy a male goat.

[@powersulca3033]

Yo estaba pronunciando mal algunas de las palabras que has mencionado, estoy practicando inglés y ya estoy apunto de llegar al nivel avanzado, muchas gracias por el video. Saludos desde Perú

[@rachelsenglish]

That's great! Keep it up!

[@miriaaguiar]

Gente, tô chocada hahahahaha Muito boa essa aula. Fica muito mais fácil de pronunciar com fluência e agilidade com essas cortes e reduções! Amei! ❤️

[@mindstreakbf8056]

Há situações que leva ao erro.

[@ape_man6055]

Poucas palavras em inglês soltam letras como essa, é melhor aprender a pronúncia real dessas palavras ao invés de ouvir isso

[@miriaaguiar]

@@ape_man6055 A pronúncia real delas separadas eu já sei, o problema é na vida cotidiana, quando juntamos uma palavra com a outra, no momento das reduções, na fala rápida. No entanto, só agora que fui ler os comentários abaixo, onde tem algumas pessoas dizendo que tais exemplos não se aplicam a todas as regiões, oq não é de se admirar devido a extensão dos EUA. Mas tem gente até dizendo que é feio não pronunciar ou pode soar de forma mal educada rs. Como eu não sei pq eu não vivo por lá e não tenho contato com nativos, melhor msm pronunciar as palavras como elas são do que pecar por parecer estar falando errado. Enfim, obrigada pela chamada.

[@SrtaLJCarneiro]

Não houve nada do que essa mulher está falando está tudo errado. O D está lá, só está sutil.

[@Borgatiger]

Não, se você ler os comentários verá que uma grande maioria dos nativos discordam do que ela disse. Procure pelo canal Advanced English que é bem melhor e mais honesto que este.

[@kscamm]

I just started watching his video. You say drop the 'd' in "my friend was here last week" I disagree with that.

[@UnknownProfileGPT]

I have learned something that I did not know I always pronounced the consonant D in all those words but now I will have to correct my pronunciation to sound more native and say it correctly Thank you teacher

[@rachelsenglish]

You're welcome @WernerSanchez!

[@zitacabrera9165]

Omg this was an amazing class, it was very helpful. Thanks ❤️