Exercise:

1. Listen to the recording and repeat each word or sentence in the same way as the speaker.

   (Do your best to imitate them!)

2. Voice-record yourself reading the words out loud

3. Play your voice recording audio and listen to your pronunciation

4. Compare with the original audio and Imitate the speaker

5. Send your voice recording to your language coach.

British English Pronunciation: /B/ and /V/

Goal: Help Spanish speakers distinguish between the /b/ sound, as in berry, and the /v/ sound, as in very.

• /B/ — berry: Close both lips, stop the air briefly, then release it.

• /V/ — very: Place your upper teeth gently against your lower lip and let the air vibrate through the gap.

Important: In Spanish, the letters b and v are generally pronounced with the same phoneme, so learners may pronounce English berry and very almost identically. Practise feeling the difference between the two sounds.

Level 1 — Easy: Individual Words

Focus: Learn the mouth position for each sound.

/B/

1. Buy

2. Best

3. Boat

4. Berry

5. Rob

6. Job

/V/

1. Vie

2. Vest

3. Vote

4. Very

5. Rev

6. Jove

Level 2 — Intermediate: Minimal Pairs

Focus: Change only the first or middle consonant.

1. Berry — very

2. Best — vest

3. Boat — vote

4. Ban — van

5. Bet — vet

6. Bowel — vowel

7. Rebel — revel

8. Cub — curve

Level 3 — Challenging: Short Sentences

Focus: Alternate between /b/ and /v/ without losing clarity.

1. Ben bought a very big van.

2. Victor believes that the book is valuable.

3. Bella visited the village before breakfast.

4. The best vegetables are available every Friday.

5. We believe the boat will arrive before five.

6. Barry gave Victor a very valuable book.

7. The brave driver avoided the busy avenue.

8. Vanessa bought seven blue vases for her bedroom.

Level 4 — Advanced: Longer Sentences

Focus: Keep the sounds distinct while speaking naturally.

1. Victor believes that practising every day will improve his vocabulary.

2. Barbara visited her brother before travelling to a beautiful village.

3. The volunteers brought several boxes of books and valuable belongings.

4. Before buying the vehicle, we carefully reviewed its service history.

5. Beverly was very brave when she volunteered to lead the discussion.

6. The business owner believes that better communication brings valuable opportunities.

7. Every visitor was invited to observe the birds beside the river.

8. The university provided a variety of valuable books for beginners.

Level 5 — Expert: Complex Sound Combinations

Focus: Maintain accurate articulation in longer phrases and connected speech.

1. Victor bravely voiced his beliefs during a very important business meeting.

2. The behaviour of several visitors became increasingly unpredictable as the evening progressed.

3. Before investing in the business, Beverly reviewed every available financial document.

4. The government believes that improving public services will benefit vulnerable communities.

5. Various environmental problems have become increasingly visible in several British cities.

6. The experienced adviser provided valuable evidence to support the development of the new business venture.

Final Challenge — Read Without Stopping

Read the paragraph three times: slowly, at a natural pace, and then with expression.

Barbara and Victor visited a beautiful village beside the river. Before leaving, they bought several books, fresh vegetables and a blue vase for their friend Beverly. During the visit, they spoke about their jobs, their beliefs and the benefits of learning new skills. Victor believed that building better communication skills would give him more opportunities, while Barbara was convinced that regular practice would help them both become more confident.

Practice routine

• Round 1: Practise the minimal pairs slowly: berry–very, best–vest, boat–vote, ban–van.

• Round 2: Put one hand on your throat. Both /b/ and /v/ are voiced, so you should feel vibration for both sounds.

• Round 3: For /b/, close your lips completely. For /v/, keep your lips apart and let your upper teeth touch your lower lip.

• Round 4: Record yourself reading the final paragraph. Check whether a listener can distinguish the two sounds without seeing the words.

Teacher tip: The biggest challenge for Spanish speakers is often not hearing the difference but physically producing it. Make /b/ a clear lip closure and /v/ a continuous, voiced friction sound. Avoid producing /v/ by closing both lips.