Do NOT say the T in these 11 Common Words | It's not just Californians!

In this English lesson I’ll show how Americans drop the T in many common words. It’s an important lesson on American English pronunciation—even native speakers are shocked by this! I’ll also work with you on how American English and British English differ substantially on this point. The lesson is full of examples of how to say these words like a native speaker. You will improve your English pronunciation and comprehension as you practice these words along with me.

00:00 Introduction
01:25 Identify/Identification
02:11 Twenty
03:04 Wanted
03:40 Want Another
05:52 Kitchen counter
06:16 Count
06:30 Count on
06:36 Counted
06:50 Disappointed/Disappointing
08:49 Pointed/Pointing
09:13 Printer/Printing/Printed
09:41 Rented/Renting
09:52 "Inter" words
10:01 Accounting/Accounted

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Improve your American Accent / spoken English at Rachel's English with video-based lessons and exercises. Rachel uses real life English conversation as the basis for teaching how to speak English and how to sound American -- improve listening comprehension skills. Study English vocabulary and English phrases such as phrasal verbs, as well as common expressions in English. Learn American idioms and American slang.

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[rachelsenglish]

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[s.d.schultz]

This is definitely a regional accent thing. I pronounce the T in each of the words listed, and I'm from the south. If you are learning English, don't feel you are doing it wrong if you drop or pronounce the T, it varies across the country and most will understand you either way.

[DavidSmith-sbix]

I was born in the United States and have lived here all my 74 years and never realized that I was British. Blimey!!!

[charlespartrick]

Baloney. It depends on what part of the US you are from. As an English tutor, I teach my students to pronounce the letters but I explain to them that there are many different pronunciations due to accents based on the region and dialect. I tell them not to assume they are doing something wrong. There are many videos showing the different accents. There are people within greater London who speak English and they have a hard time understanding each other. I was at restaurant in Indonesia once and an Australian came and sat to share some beers and chat. I had a very difficult time understanding him.

[bastetsbutterfly]

I’m American born and bred; and I pronounce the “T”. Many of my English teacher relatives would have “skinned me alive” if I would have done other wise. I think Rachel is teaching an American accent that isn’t one that you should use with a university English professor, but one that the average American is comfortable with.

[MrPeterJin]

Something that a learner should ALWAYS keep in mind is that, even though videos like this often say, "DON'T SAY THE 'T' IN THESE WORDS", these things are NOT set-in-stone rules. I'm from Ohio, and I've heard a PLENTY of people saying things differently. It is OKAY to pronounce the "T", because it is ultimately up to you.

[sirreptitious]

I hear a “soft” T in many of these American speakers, I don’t think it is completely eliminated. “Wanna” is more casual slang than formal speaking. “Count on” usually sounds more like “cown-don” than “cown-on”. Agree with others noting that it is more associated with regional dialect.

[derekatkins]

I’m a native-born American as well as a former ESL teacher. I’ve always pronounced the “t” in words, and I’ve always taught my ESL students to pronounce the “t” in words.

[Vertraic]

Having lived my whole life in california, I can confidently state that most in northern california pronounce the T in those words... Maybe not quite as crisply as the british do, but it is VERY different from dropping the T completely. Even in your american examples for indentify, the T sound was VERY easy to hear.

[jogarithm]

I'm Canadian and I noticed we pronounce the "t" more often than Americans but less often than the British. We're in between!

[chiletraveladventures]

the T sound is beautiful and powerful. No way I will get rid of it.

[misterpurple]

As I say to my children, there is a T in there for a reason and if there are two T's together then it is even more important to pronounce them. We have the glottal stop in many regional UK dialects and dropping the T is sadly quite common. Water becomes wau'ah, better becomes beh'ah. It is an unconscious removal of a hard consonant but just because it is common doesn't mean it is right. Stand up for the T!!

[Anne-pdhk]

Aside from it being different by region, it can also be different by context.

Where I'm from (Seattle, Washington) people generally do drop the T in casual conversation. 

But when emphasizing things, explaining things, or focusing on enunciation for professional reasons, we keep the T.

But sometimes, people really enunciate their T to show irritation, too.

[amandajewell]

I’m from the Midwest and I pronounce the “t” in these words. I think it’s very hard to generalize the American dialect due to all the regional differences.

[mattneillninasmom]

Sorry, Rachel, you've got this one wrong! "Want to" will not be replaced by "Wanna"
As a native of New York City, I have ALWAYS pronounced the "t" in all the words you cite! Not pronouncing them I've found, is more a regionalism, common to certain geographic areas of the US.

[janetgm]

As a kid, I lived in Kansas, California, Hawaii & Florida. I moved to Colorado in 1961 & have been here ever since. I have always said the Ts in these words. In fact I just tried & found it hard to eliminate the T sound in most of these words!

[gordonprice]

Funny, lived on the West Coast for 40 years. Almost EVERYONE says that T. Glad to see so many people pointing out that the US actually has variation. It amazes me how many people in the US assume everyone is just like them, only because they have somehow managed to not bother to meet (or perhaps recognize) all the people who aren't just like them.

[olixz]

I personally like when foreigners don't drop their accent when speaking English. As long as you can communicate I don't see the problem.

[mydoggylives]

The "t" is always pronounced... it's just not stressed as much as the Brits do. Casual listeners won't hear it because it's subtle, but its there.

[annerg]

As an American, I definitely hear the "t" in the "non-t" examples, particularly in "identify." I just hear it as softer than in the British examples.