ELT365 · Day 210 — Pronunciation in Production: The Intelligibility Principle

Idea — The goal of pronunciation in production is intelligibility — being understood by the intended listener — not native-speaker accuracy. Many native-speaker features are unnecessary for communication (Levis).

Example — A learner who adds a vowel after final consonants is perfectly intelligible; targeting this error wastes time better spent on nuclear stress or weak forms.

Try — Listen to a learner recording. Identify one feature that causes a listener to mishear, and one that is simply “non-native.” Address only the first.

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