What is a glottal stop?

[@desmorgens3120]

Your English is understood very easily by non-native speakers of English. Your voice, your pronunciation and your explanation are clear. Your video is useful for us. Thank you very much.

[@matte.309]

I was trying to explain this to a Chinese friend. This is really clear and understandable, exactly what I was l looking for! Thank you.

[@marinitaAIRBAG]

Hello, I'm from Argentina and I am studying to be an English teacher. Your video helps me a lot thank you very much and continue doing this because it's very helpful, greetings!

[@lacramioaratomescu3241]

Great video! I have wondered many times what that "glottalising" means given that there are British persons who talk about it. I don't think non-native English could make that sound to be natural but the video was very useful. Thank you.

[@Falenir]

I didn't realise how selective this is, nor how imbedded it is in our language. You yourself glottalized the word "it" a couple of times and also the word "yes" and that one is interesting, because yes has been glottalized so much over the years that "yeah" is now a formally recognized part of the language with is own unique spelling. Anyways. Thanks for the video.

[@larrymoran_THE_CODGER]

An informative video, and the host is very pleasant, with a relaxed demeanor. 👍👍😊

[@jiffy-jef]

Thank you! I finally understand the glottal stop!

[@omitter-q8d]

Thank you for presenting two situations of usage. I watched a video and the owner didn't say anything about getting rid of the t at the end of a word. But then i found this video and understood why he and other people don't pronounce it at the end ;)

[@kellysalvador3595]

The best English channel ever. Well done Asheley I remember the first time I heard water´´ and butter´ with glottal T. I was like: OMG, I´ve learned to pronounce this words in the wrong way back home hahahah

[@kiki201203]

this is a nice video to explain what a glottal stop is. I learned something.

[@Insanetraining16]

I just wanted to superlike this video, and since youtube doesn't have such an option, I'm leaving this comment. Thank you man that helped!

[@olliehal2663]

i really like the sound of your voice!

[@kvegh]

Weil, thank you, I was completely unaware of glottal stops, had to look it up after some indigenous nationality stories on Twitter. Thanks.

[@fredfulford676]

On Twi''er!

[@rosacanales557]

Very useful, thank you so much! It is hard for us non-native speakers to understand words with glottalisation :).

[@chadnorris5451]

this helped a lot more then I thought it would, as I'm conlanging.

[@amreys]

Wha?

[@dekebell3307]

Whoah, what a GREAT explanation, thanks so much for this! Sub’d

[@jenniferlehtinen8277]

I am a college professor in the U.S. and teach phonetics/the speaking voice, among other communication courses. When we begin our discussion of vocal “defects” (not a fan of that word,) this invariably is the most difficult for the students to grasp. I frequently must give many examples before each student finally “hears” it. Would you mind if I play this video for them if/when necessary? I will certainly be happy to credit you give feedback immediately. Thank you again for the enlightening post.

[@TheFlowerofLifeCoach]

Thank you The Social Network for brining me here today. Using this learning of the video with a fun Uber driver share with his passenger

[@orange_lime]

Thanks a lot for the explanation. Personally, I love how the glottal [t] sounds and I want to learn to prononunce it. I heard in some other videos that glottalisation is associated with Cockney accent and I now wonder whether I may come across as poor educated or bad-mannered if I overuse the glottal [t].

[@elenitsourounaki4751]

I love all the videos, such an amazing voice and absolutely fantastic accent! Well done!

[@RODOLFITO2241]

Found it very interesting, as a multi lingual I notice things in various languages. Not sure whether "glottalisation" appears in other languages, I know that in Spanish some people either pronounce the letter h at the beginning of a sentence or tend to drop the letter s at the end of it.

[@dheducate507]

Really clear. Brilliant.

[@kevinbussey32]

Very interesting video. Easily understood and respectfully explained. Thank you.

[@abdohish2079]

Your video couldn't be better . I go along with you . I firmly believe that it all comes down to whether we need to get into a conversation with a friend or an authority figure.In informal settings, British speakers tend to speak in a lazy way .That is why some people drop their h's and glottalise their t's. Posh people used to think badly of people doing that .However, RP speakers now glottalise t's in some words like part and apartment.The question is who speaks RP in modern Britain ?Only 2 percent of the British do ! Despite that fact, it is still taught to speakers of other languages in different parts of the world. As a senior teacher of English living in Bahrain, I'm obliged to speak RP in my classes. However, I speak with a Cockney accent when I chat with my friends. I only avoid speaking with it in formal settings because authority figures will look down on me . This happens in England and the same goes for other countries! Thanks again for your great video and keep the good work up !

[@elizabetholiviaclark]

Yes, I know about the glottal T. I'm from the US, Virginia specifically, and I glottalize the "T" in "mountain." I grew up in the DC area, and am the only person in my family to do that, so I suppose I picked it up from someone else I knew as a child. As a rule, I believe, glottalizing the "t" is not routine in the speech patterns of people growing up in that region of Virginia.

[@Mistydazzle]

Is this just an area thing? I am noticing this becoming more widespread in the USA.

[@mahsadoorfard3202]

Thank you so much. Specially for the last part of the explanations 👌🏽

[@iqbalbhatti6433]

Thanks for sharing your knowledge with us. Keep it up as I love what you share with us!

[@alexschmidt2895]

I love how British people say wa-er and Americans say Wader

[@imnotbuyinit2]

We dont all drop our t's because not all us brits are comon!

[@willmcpherson2]

And us Australians say wada

[@jrexx2841]

Thank you Jesus for explaining this 🙏

[@kenfalloon3186]

We use the glottal stop very subtly, constantly when speaking. It's how we unconsciously punctuate phonemes and phrases into parcels of sound and efficiently utilise the breath in speech. It is this capacity, which I think only humans possess as a biproduct of bipedalism, that was one of the main physiological drivers in the evolution of spoken and sung language.

[@exspectans5597]

The gluttalisation is very interesting and i hear it a lot with UK speakers. In spanish there's something similar to it but with the letter "d" quite droped especially in Spain and caribean countries. And spaniards don't consider it wrong at all.

[@bizpix8476]

People in the US do this as well, though I'm not sure if it's a regional speech trait. I didn't know glottalizing was the name for it, so thank you!

[@jacquihiggins147]

Interesting thank you...being an RP speaker I could not think what this could be.... now I know it is how my lovely husband, from East London, pronouces his T's.

[@crazypenguinbob]

Wow I've been speaking English my whole life and I had no idea that there was a name for this or that I used it all the time 😂

[@marfie53]

I’ve noticed some US people using the glottal stop with words like ‘didn’t, wouldn’t, couldn’t’.

[@nataliaofficial1737]

What is the technical term for when you use your lips to pronounce a plosive word? Love you videos and would love an explanation about the different terminology for different pronunciations of sounds. I'm a singer so this would really help me if you have time. Thanks x

[@arnaldoalba6497]

Excellent!

[@cormyat07]

"What is a glottal stop?" he asks, as he glottalizes the t's in "glottal."

[@roughman998]

This is fun!

[@captaincool3329]

In Australian English glottalisation follows the second example, but Aus.E. also has the 't' to 'd' corruption. E.g. counting to a hundred by tens in Aus.E. (at least from how I speak in my area in N.S.W.): ten, twenny, thirdy, fordy, fifdy, sixdy, sevenny, eighdy, niney, a hundred. The 't' to 'd' shift is more commonly found (to me at least) in Aus.E., than the corresponding glottalisation. The first type of glottal stop is seldom heard; I have heard my mother say 'ho' ' instead of 'hot', but that's it.

[@ivanabenassai3591]

You' re stunning . Cheers from Buenos Aires, Argentina!! 🌼❤

[@ahmedfarhan843]

Its very easier to pronounce. It looks like a Standard British accent. I like it very much. Though I am a Bangladeshi, I use Glottal T /Stop in my speech in my Country with others.

[@amiraelitefitness5867]

Amazing video, thank you for the great explanation. Can you please make a video about glottal "P" at the end of the word?

[@DannyBeans]

I've noticed a tendency in the American east coast accent (or at least the North Jersey accent I grew up with) to glottalize ending Ts, but to soften the Ts in unaccented syllables to Ds instead. So for example, "water" becomes "wadder" (or "wadduh" if it's an especially thick accent).

[@Mistydazzle]

I think Americans usually replace that T sound in water with a D sound. I know I do, and I learned my language in the American West. I recently listened to a Brit and an American pointing out this rather comical fact some restaurant staff in the USA didn't understand what a crisp, full T-pronouncing British accent was requesting, when they said "waTer"! Maybe it was true?

[@dinasmodlaka8137]

Very interesting and you have a lovely, lovely voice!

[@paulanthony5274]

He has a neutral English accent that can be heard up and down the country even though others in the area can talk with accents, rather educated

[@mariambajelidze8515]

Thanks! It was quite useful.

[@interludo]

wha'?

[@roughman998]

Ra'le snake.

[@lulupupupu]

@@roughman998 😂🤣 glottal stop is what makes americans look at you puzzled and think it must be British English

[@roughman998]

For many years, I (think) I have known of something called a "Glottal CLICK". I think it is how one pronounces the "Ng" sound in Vietnamese. Example: "Nguen." When I make this sound, it is sort of like what is being described in your video, but much sharper. In analysis, I am touching the base of the tongue to the back of the mouth (Glottis?). (I do not speak Vietnamese, but I went there in the '60's...) Now for the funny part: I was led to this exploration by mastering the appliance called "Navage Nasal Care." Seems that the only way to stop water from flowing down my throat and drowning me, was to begin the manipulation I described, and pause it when the throat is closed! Thoughts and comments would be appreciated!

[@Opayemim]

Awesome video, Do you do private lessons, please?

[@anne-juliedupart5194]

Great video! Thank you:) I understand the difference between a glottal /t/ and “regular” /t/ and can pronounce both, but the sound that keeps me puzzled is the /t/ in the word “glottal”, the way YOU say it. It’s neither a /t/ nor a glottal. Do you know what I mean? Thanks again for the videos. Best. AJ.

[@Sarah-wh6ge]

I don't know if you're reading older comments, but after living in Australia, I've accidentally replaced my UK glottal stop in "better" for example, for "bedder"! Is there some optimum tongue placement or mouth shape while making that sound so I don't feel I'm going to spit at people if I pronounce it nicely. Thanks!

[@anandlivingstone3206]

Woderful. Won the heart

[@cyclistRM2024]

Cheers dear teacher 😘

[@houriazemmit9718]

wow that's amazing sir thanks a bunch ☺

[@ghadahussein5653]

thank you for this helpful video💜 could you please make a video about triphsongs !!?

[@hbowman108]

What USAns do (in the "Generic American" pronunciation) with "T" is different, and more complex. They use the glottal stop in a very different way than UKans, and in addition they have a "flap" t used in some positions, and even an exotic "nasal flap" used in sequences of -nt- between vowels, like in the words "international" and "Antarctica".

[@hbowman108]

Yeah, THIS guy. This guy knows EXACTLY how we do it. kzbin.info/www/bejne/Z5XGknZ8hK14j8U

[@Mistydazzle]

So, "innernashunal"? "annardicka"?

[@hbowman108]

@@Mistydazzle I later found after posting this that many of us in the USA, especially in the south, have no nasal flap and so they have "inner national" and "annarktika".

[@norah-yasmindawoodiclavera6464]

i love this glo'al t!

[@davehumphries]

Oh damn, I thought I didn't do this since I use the t in British and water but I missed the t in all of the first examples.

[@honoriocarmona2897]

I like this guy....

[@demetrioslekkas3994]

What ʔI hear in English, the present speaker ʔincluded, ʔis a very frequent insertion of a gloʔl stop at the beginning of many words formally starʔn with a vowel; ʔexcept that the speakers, ʔincluding the one in this clip, ʔinsert a preceding gloʔl stop, ʔespecially ʔafter a punctuation mark, ʔor for ʔemphasis, like nothing happened, ʔas though it were a dummy sound that may ʔor may noʔ be ʔinserted, ʔin English, without consequence. ʔI would think that, ʔif the subject is gloʔl stops, ʔit should be heard and be pointed out, ʔalong with gloʔl stops occurring in substitutions of denʔlz, because thaʔ's noʔ the ʔonly place where thaʔ happ'nz by far.

[@askoulsawsan6074]

I would think of glottalisation as an informal (rather a slang) way of speaking English than formal, regardless of where it is used or who uses it. I wouldn't imagine the queen using it, for example!

[@PaulineGitau-df7mo]

Please explain goal digging and gold digging in phonology

[@peek-ka-boom6017]

Why the 't" at the end of the word 'about' is not stopped?

[@ankitshrestha4229]

Hello sir, can you please make a video bout the difference between the London, Essex, Sussex, Lancashire and Yorkshire accent please!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@quiakamara]

I didn’t even realise how much I do this

[@bahogbilat136]

Thank you! Now I know 😁

[@superhuman5857]

Can you make a video on how to sound more happy

[@kennethdickie4281]

What is it called when the double-t is pronounced with more of a modified "d" sound than a full glottalization of the t? For example, when butter sounds more like "budd-er" than like "butt-er"? This is probably more common in American English than a British English. We don't hear a lot of "buh-er", but anything other than "budd-er" almost sounds kind of affected.

[@willmcpherson2]

I believe it's called flapping en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flapping It's common in American and Australian accents

[@mariaa92]

can you make a video about diacritics?

[@monicastringaro637]

Hi Ashley and thank you for this helpful explanation. I'm Italian and I'm from a region called Abruzzo where our accent is so strong and heavy that when I listen to how smooth your accent is ... I feel ashamed and embarrassed .I downloaded your "850 words" mini course (thank you for giving it for free) and I'm aware that I have a lot of work to do. But whit the right guide I'm hopeful (hopefully not illuded) that I might improve over time. Thank you for your fantastic work, I love your voice and how relaxed you look when teaching online. I was wandering if your "Intonation" course could help me to sound less "robotic" and monotonous when speaking. Maybe I should give it a try, shouldn't I. Best wishes.

[@Englishpronunciationroadmap]

Hi Monica, thanks very much for your kind words. As with any physical skill, you're right, it's simply a matter of time (and consistent practice!). It sounds like the Intonation training would be a good match for you (you can indeed try it out - have a look at the guarantee detailed on the sales page). Speak soon.

[@oneno3436]

how to find the download link

[@mgal6234]

Ahhhh I understand now! I don’t notice Americans doing this but maybe my region just doesn’t use it...I do notice Brits using F instead of TH...as in “I am going wif my friend...”

[@2012Aragorn]

I really liked Thahh.

[@Jan-uu9fr]

Is this intentionally or involuntarily?

[@pnxpto]

I'm learning American English, and I've noticed they glottalize the t on words like mountains, for me in this context is more difficult to get the sound right. Some tips in this case?

[@eleanorlastname1271]

Patrícia Poulain As someone who's been speaking American English since I could speak, it won't sound out of place if you do a non glottal t in that context.

[@Mistydazzle]

my tip is to use the T sound, if it is easier. I am an American who says "moun-tins". I have mostly noticed the skipping of the T sound in speakers born in the last 30-40 years. It seems to be an evolving trend, learned in the latest decades of American speech.

[@jbexta]

You say "glockal", is that also glottling? Some people say 'lickle' instead of 'little' etc. Is that also a glottal?

[@romuldochewkimfat818]

Yes, those are glottals. Lick-ul, glok-ul

[@abeerfahad8733]

is t glottalized in "flat" ?

[@zackvitoh1632]

Seems related: do an episode on " Do Americans pronounce T like D? " i.e. taps and flaps vs glottal t?

[@menow.]

It's not just British English speakers. It's become epidemic in America. Example: "mountain" has become "mow-in".

[@jjwp-ql5rv]

Cornish is where I've heard it most.

[@sanjaydabhi3151]

is it acceptable not to pronounce T at the end of the words as in 'night'?

[@Englishpronunciationroadmap]

Hi Sanjay, it's simply a matter of preference really. As Ashley says, it may be considered a bit clearer, but many speakers do miss out the T at the end of such words.

[@imnotbuyinit2]

I dont drop my "ts" I emphasise between "ts" as in water I say war Ter or cottage I say coTT-age and not chicken but chiCKharn. And the word most people are perplexed by my pronunciation is ORANGE JUICE. I say oranjuice. I cant say or orange juice. If I try to say it as people ask me me/repeat it. I hear orangestchews.

[@El-clartitan]

T's are often 'glottalised' (no matter what part of the UK or Ireland you're from) when there's back-to-back 't's' - like: Can't tell you Edit: 4:51

[@scottk1525]

So glottal stops are why brits say "boh-oh uh woh-uh" instead of "bottle of water."

[@gearboxworks]

What is an "RP speaker?"

[@paulsheehan5554]

The Queen of England speaks in RP

[@markneary1889]

@@paulsheehan5554 RP stands for "Received Pronunciation". Listen to the Queen (especially from 20 years or more ago) or BBC broadcasts from the 1960s and earlier and virtually every voice you'll hear is RP.

[@judithdavies6200]

Oh dear, I just realized that I pronounce water, like wudder! Eek! From Connecticut, U.S.

[@paulanthony5274]

I'm a manc we say wartar lol

[@mvann5]

So lots of glottal stops in cockney accent? Interesting!!

[@secretumoperatio99]

This is Birmingham accent especially with water

[@RenderBones]

American here, I think it is dumb to make fun at how people pronounce words. Language is fascinating.

[@pringle-man]

Glottal T? More like Glo al T

[@murataubakir8437]

You're like Jesus👼😇

[@receivedSE]

[ˈwɒʔ ɪz ðə ˈɡlɒʔl ˈstɒʔp]

[@FirstLast-fr4hb]

R and P are letters, they dont make very good adjectives for describing things to most people.

[@ratlinggull2223]

It's almost like how Americans say innernational

[@grantjamieson4291]

Vocal folds come together completely ? You might have the beginnings of the UPTALK VIRUS !!!!!!!!!!!

[@devinbrines]

Exaggerated here

[@eduardowardo5621]

I barely understand the British accent and it gets more complicated when speaking with "glottal t"

[@Englishpronunciationroadmap]

Hi Eduardo, thanks for your thoughts. Yes, some non-natives do find the glottal T an extra 'barrier' to their comprehension, especially if they're not used to hearing it consistently. Whether you consider it something worth working on really depends on personal preference and who you usually interact with, right?

[@jjwp-ql5rv]

No such thing as a "British" accent, mate.

[@DaveTan65]

Ba-tt-eries.

[@mokkaveli]

You are exaggerating the stress of the glottal stop too much

[@malvane8061]

Actually, it's pronounced gloh-ull stop.

[@1vezleien1libro]

It's hard to understand when English speakers use this stuff in their speech. I hate it... :'(

[@vagrant-techart8278]

pronounce the bloody T bruv make it easier on us have mercy