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Journal of Undergraduate Research

Keywords

Russian, pronunciation difficulties, native speakers, English, foreign accent

College

Humanities

Department

German and Russian

Abstract

The major goal of this research was to determine through both theoretical analysis and practical application which Russian pronunciation difficulties for native English speakers result in a misunderstanding of meaning rather than foreign accent. Therefore, it focused on Russian pronunciation errors which can significantly hinder communication and understanding of speech by those who listen. This research took into account the differences between English and Russian sound inventory, thus indicating not only possible stumbling blocks for any speakers of Russian as a non-native language, but also denoting specific difficulties for those who speak English as their first language. The major stumbling blocks causing alteration of meaning in non-native Russian speech, according to hypothesis of this research, are (1) Russian sounds that don’t have their counterparts in the speaker’s native language, (2) Russian stress, (3) Russian intonation, and (4) the relationship between spelling and pronunciation:

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