Which English Accent Is Easiest for You to Understand?
To non-native English speakers:
Which English accent is easiest to understand Australian accent American accent Canadian accent British accent Scottish accent Irish accent Kiwi (New Zealand) accent Indian accent Other accent (please specify) |
Great question, Amara. Spanish-speaking friends of mine say the British is easier, because in it the consonants are emphasized more than in the American.
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For me I'd say:
Canadian American NZ/Australian British Irish Scottish But probably depends what you are around the most. I was exposed to a lot of American TV when learning. The Canadian is very similar just pronounced more carefully and without the southern or east coast accents. British really depends, the Queen's English is fine, but some northern or more working class accents are much more difficult for me. |
I think it depends totally on what you get more use to hear... Last time I flew with British Airways I was shocked at my inability to understand what the flight attendant was saying... until I got used to it...
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Quote:
The regional accents in the US are also more varied that it might seem from US films and television. While it's true that US regional accents are often classified into 3 groups (northeastern, southeastern, and everywhere else), each of these groups consists of dozens of smaller regional accents that tend to share a relatively small number of features but still have significant differences in both pronunciation and vocabulary. Urban areas such as Boston, New York, and Philadelphia are notable for having distinct accents between individual neighborhoods, although some of those differences have become less strong over the past 50 years. |
American
British |
British
American No matter how hard I try, I cannot understand the Australian accent....:sad: |
Sorry, the title should be "easiest" not "easier."
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Quote:
I completely agree that Canada has regional accents and slang as well, however I find even the strongest Newfoundland accent much easier to understand than say an African American person from New Orleans. And I think also with the Canadian you are much less likely to be exposed to a strong regional accent as compared to the US. The large majority of Canadians seem to have very similar accents whereas in the US, you can tell their origin much easier, at least to my ears While I certainly agree there are strong regional variants and a Boston and a Long Island accent for example are very different, I couldn't pick one over the other for easier understanding. I find most of the east coast and southern variants equally as hard. |
Some of the thick Irish/Scottish stuff is near impossible for me to understand as a native English speaker. I have no issues with most of the normal British English. Thick Australian can be pretty tough as well, but it isn't as bad as some of the Irish/Scottish.
So even though you didn't ask me since I am a native speaker: American - minus Boston and Cajun (Louisana area) Canadian British Australian Irish/Scottish Jamaican - some parts are so hard to understand like certain Cajun dialects. |
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