English Pronunciation: Contractions

Pronunciation Tips- A Guide to Better Speaking

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Below is a list of the topics that are covered in this site. Just click on the link and go to that page. Each page will have examples of correct pronunciation of the topic chosen.

Vowels	Consonants	Syllables	Intonation
Common Reductions	Consonant Clusters	Contractions	Ending Sounds
Voiced/Voiceless	Linking	Rhythm	Sound Changes

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Contractions

Contractions are commonly used in English. Contractions are the reductions in word sounds by the dropping of a letter or letters in the word.

This page will examine contractions of did and Wh- question words and with would and had.

Listen to the following contractions. First, the words are spoken separately, then with the contraction, and finally used in a sentence.


Contractions with Wh words and did

	where did	where'd	Where'd you go?
	what did	what'd	What'd you do there?
	how did	how'd	How'd you get there?
	why did	why'd	Why'd you decide to go?
	when did	when'd	When'd you leave?


Would and had are also common reductions. When pronounced in the contracted form they both sound alike, so the listener must rely on the context of the sentence to determine if the speaker means 'would' or 'had'.

	that would	that'd	That'd be most kind of you.
	what would	what'd	What'd you do in my shoes?
	she would	she'd	She'd travel to France if she could.
	that had	that'd	That'd better work.
	what had	what'd	What'd he done before that?
	she had	she'd	She'd gone before I got there.

Other Contraction Pages

Page 1 Contractions with will

Page 2 Contractions with to be and modals

Page 3 Contractions with Wh- words and have/has

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