Pronunciation
Sounds Hindi speakers find tricky
V vs W — the most famous Indian accent marker
In Hindi, V and W are a single sound (व). In English they're completely different. This one change will make your English sound much more natural.
V (top teeth + lower lip)
Lightly touch your upper teeth to your lower lip, then release air with your voice. Like saying 'vvvv'.
| Word | Sounds like |
|---|---|
| Very | वैरी (V sound) |
| Voice | वॉइस |
| Vase | वेज़ |
| Love | लव |
W (rounded lips, no teeth)
Round your lips as if saying 'oo'. The teeth don't touch the lip. A soft sound.
| Word | Sounds like |
|---|---|
| Water | वॉटर (W — round lips) |
| World | वर्ल्ड |
| Why | वाई |
| Wonderful | वंडरफुल |
Practice pair — Vest vs West
Saying both words here makes the difference clear. Give it a try.
| Word | Sounds like |
|---|---|
| Vest, west | Vest (teeth on lip) — west (round lips) |
| Vine, wine | Vine (teeth) — wine (round) |
| Very wet weather | Three different sounds in one phrase! |
The TH sound — it doesn't exist in Hindi
English has 2 TH sounds (think and this). Neither exists in Hindi — so Indian speakers usually say 'd' or 't' instead. This is the second biggest accent marker.
TH (voiceless) — like 'think'
Put your tongue between your upper teeth — let it show a little — then blow air. No voice, just air.
| Word | Sounds like |
|---|---|
| Think | जीभ बाहर — air blow करो (NOT 'tink' or 'dink') |
| Thank you | जीभ बाहर — फिर 'ank you' |
| Three | थ्री — NOT 'tree' |
| Through | थ्रू |
TH (voiced) — like 'this'
Same tongue position, but with your voice. Your throat will vibrate.
| Word | Sounds like |
|---|---|
| This | जीभ बाहर + आवाज़ — NOT 'dis' |
| That | दैट — NOT 'dat' |
| Mother | मदर — TH is voiced in the middle |
| Together | टुगेदर |
Common Indian-accent traps
These words are usually said wrong. Practice these specifically.
| Word | Sounds like |
|---|---|
| Thursday | थर्ज़डे — NOT 'tursday' |
| Thirty-three | थर्टी-थ्री — practice line! |
| The three brothers think | Triple TH practice. |
Silent letters — written but not spoken
English has many silent letters. Indian speakers usually pronounce them — which sounds odd to natives.
Silent K, W, B, L
Don't pronounce these letters at all. Listen to the audio carefully.
| Word | Sounds like |
|---|---|
| Know | नो — the K is silent |
| Write | राइट — W silent |
| Knee | नी — K silent |
| Doubt | डाउट — B silent |
| Debt | डेट — B silent |
| Half | हाफ — L silent |
| Salmon | सैमन — L silent |
Silent letters in common words
These are used daily — saying them wrong is common.
| Word | Sounds like |
|---|---|
| Wednesday | वेन्ज़डे — 'd' silent, NOT 'wed-nes-day' |
| Comfortable | कम्फ़ट-बल — 4 syllables NOT 5 |
| Vegetable | वेज-टे-बल — 'e' missing |
| Chocolate | चॉक-लट — 'e' missing |
| Restaurant | रेस्ट्रॉन्ट — 'au' barely audible |
Word stress — where to put the emphasis
In Hindi, every syllable gets equal stress (syllable-timed). English is stress-timed — some syllables are loud, others almost silent. Wrong stress confuses native speakers.
Noun vs Verb stress (same spelling, different stress)
Many words are pronounced differently depending on whether they're a noun or a verb. The stress shifts!
| Word | Sounds like |
|---|---|
| PRESent (noun) vs preSENT (verb) | PREsent = gift / preSENT = देना |
| REcord (noun) vs reCORD (verb) | REcord = recording / reCORD = करना |
| OBject (noun) vs obJECT (verb) | OBject = thing / obJECT = विरोध |
| PROduce (noun) vs proDUCE (verb) | PROduce = vegetables / proDUCE = बनाना |
Multi-syllable words — Indian-accent common errors
The stress on these words shifts between Indian English and native English.
| Word | Sounds like |
|---|---|
| deVElop (NOT DEvelop) | Stress 2nd syllable पर |
| phoTOgraphy | Stress 2nd syllable |
| comMUNicate | Stress 2nd syllable |
| deTERmine | Stress 2nd syllable |
| ediTORial | Stress 3rd syllable |
Final consonants — pronounce the last sound clearly
Hindi speakers often soften or drop final consonants. In English, the last sound must come through clearly, especially T, D, P, and K.
Final T and D — Indians often drop these
Pronounce the final consonant clearly at the end of the word. Pause on the tip of your tongue.
| Word | Sounds like |
|---|---|
| Bat (NOT 'bah' or 'but') | Clear T at the end |
| Bed (NOT 'beh') | Clear D at the end |
| Past, last, first | Pronounce the final T clearly |
| Cold, world, child | Pronounce the final D clearly |
'Z' sound — Indians often replace with 'J'
Z = soft hissing sound. J = harder 'ज' sound. Different!
| Word | Sounds like |
|---|---|
| Zero (NOT 'jero') | ज़ीरो — soft Z |
| Zoo (NOT 'joo') | ज़ू |
| Easy (NOT 'eajy') | ईज़ी |
| Please (NOT 'pleaj') | प्लीज़ |
Practise
1. Which word starts with the 'V' sound (teeth touching lower lip)?
- West
- Wonder
- Vest
- Water
Show the answer
Vest
2. In the word 'Wednesday', which letter is silent?
- W
- D
- E
- S
Show the answer
D
3. How should you pronounce the 'TH' in 'think'?
- Like 'T' — tink
- Like 'D' — dink
- Tongue between teeth, blow air
- Like 'S' — sink
Show the answer
Tongue between teeth, blow air
Related lessons
- 44 Phoneme Drillsv/w, th, schwa — the hardest sounds to say
- Word & Sentence StressPHOto vs phoTOgrapher; meaning shifts
- Connected Speechgonna, wanna, lemme — recognise them
- Listening: Gist vs DetailTop-down listening for news, IVR, podcasts
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