{"id":150,"date":"2016-03-18T04:01:08","date_gmt":"2016-03-18T11:01:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/ielts\/?p=150"},"modified":"2018-10-15T20:02:03","modified_gmt":"2018-10-16T03:02:03","slug":"how-important-is-pronunciation-in-the-ielts-speaking-test","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/magoosh.com\/ielts\/how-important-is-pronunciation-in-the-ielts-speaking-test\/","title":{"rendered":"How important is my pronunciation in the IELTS speaking test?"},"content":{"rendered":"

How important is your pronunciation<\/a> in the IELTS Speaking test? You may be surprised to learn that there is actually a quantifiable answer here! Specifically, your pronunciation represents exactly 25% of your potential\u00a0speaking score, as do three other markable\u00a0skills: fluency and coherence, lexical resource, and grammatical range and accuracy. (Learn more about how the IELTS speaking test is marked here<\/a>.)<\/p>\n

Keep reading to learn more about how your pronunciation factors into your speaking score and how you can work on improving troublesome features of English.
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How is my pronunciation in the IELTS speaking test marked?<\/h2>\n

Your speaking score will be the average of four scores, each\u00a0consisting of a number\u00a0between 0-9. These represent a “band” that describes your skill level. You would earn a zero if you didn’t speak. It seems silly to mention this, but that means that if you take the speaking test, your score would technically fall between 1 (if you are completely unintelligible) and 9 (if your pronunciation is excellent).<\/p>\n

So, what makes pronunciation excellent? The key factor here is intelligibility. If your pronunciation interferes with the examiner’s ability to understand you, then you will receive a less-than-perfect score. Ideally, it should\u00a0require no (or minimal) effort for your listener to understand what you’re trying to say.<\/p>\n

Check out the band descriptor for the possible scores you could receive below. You’ll see that if your pronunciation is less than perfect (and by this I mean less than perfectly comprehensible) you can still receive a relatively high score.<\/p>\n

\"IELTS<\/a><\/p>\n

As far as your overall speaking score is concerned, there is great news for those who feel less confident in this area. Since there are three other skill areas marked, you may make up for a lower pronunciation score and bring your average up if, say, you’ve got great command of the grammar and an ability to speak smoothly and fluently. If there is a break in communication because of your pronunciation, you\u00a0can make yourself clear by rewording something the examiner didn’t understand.
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How can I work on my pronunciation?<\/h2>\n

Correctly pronouncing some sounds of the English language can be challenging for two main reasons:<\/p>\n

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  1. It’s not a part of the sound system of your\u00a0native language.<\/strong>
    \nFor example, the two variations of “th” (as in th<\/strong>e and th<\/strong>ink) are linguistically rare sounds. Its absence in many world languages makes its pronunciation challenging for speakers of all levels of English. Speakers usually cope with this by replacing it with other sounds (f, v, s, z, d, etc.) Although it is un-native-like, this often does\u00a0not interfere with comprehension. It only becomes problematic when it makes you difficult to understand. Worry about mastering this sound or its variants only if it makes it hard for others to understand you.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

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