Common Pronunciation Problems for

Vietnamese Learners

Error Type 1: Omission of final consonants

ERROR DESCRIPTION EXAMPLES

As in the case of several Asian languages, Vietnamese does not /z/: tables; rose; rise; bags
contain words ending with consonants; so naturally, learners are /s/: mice; class; mess; rice
usually very confused with final consonants and thus end up /t/: right; fight; hate; fruit; start
deleting most of them. The consonants commonly omitted are: /v/: love; drive; retrieve; Steve
/z/, /s/, /t/, /v/, /ks/, / ʤ / /ks/: six; lakes; cooks; hacks
/ ʤ/: manage; bridge; engage

Error Type 2: Omission of Medial sounds

ERROR DESCRIPTION EXAMPLES

Some sounds occurring in the middle of words are also omitted /z/: Wednesday; president; rising
by Vietnamese learners as such occurrence is an unfamiliar /s/: master; western
phonetic phenomenon: These sounds are: /z/, /s/, /t/, /v/, /ks/, /v/: severe; savage; rival; never
/ʤ/ /ks/: mixer; Foxtel; excel; vaccine
/ʤ/: pledger; virgin; midget;
bludger

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 Common Pronunciation Problems for
Vietnamese Learners

Error Type 3: Replacing /t/ /tr/ /dʒ/ with /tʃ/

ERROR DESCRIPTION EXAMPLES

A significantly common error committed by Vietnamese learners /t/: time; task; talent; cutter
is to replace /t/ /tr/ & / ʤ /, with / ʧ /. That shows that /tr/: trash; transit; hatred; tried
learners struggle greatly with the concept of combining purely / ʤ /: cage; Jamaica; badge; grudge
alveolar sounds with post palatal ones.

Error Type 4: Confusing /ð/ for /d/ or /z/

ERROR DESCRIPTION EXAMPLES

Vietnamese learners find it difficult as most English learners to /ð/: weather; loathe; then; rather
place the tongue tip between the teeth, so they resort to an easier
solution that is to bring the tip into contact with the back of the
teeth or alveolar sometimes in the form of /d/ or /z/.

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 Common Pronunciation Problems for
Vietnamese Learners

Error Type 5: Confusing/ʃ/ for /s/Or/s/ for /ʃ/

ERROR DESCRIPTION EXAMPLES

Vietnamese learners use /s/ and /ʃ / /s/: muscle; person; percent; mouse and rats
interchangeably, however, based on my classroom / ʃ /(initial): shovel; shine; sheep; shape; shallot
experience, I have found that / ʃ / is more / ʃ /(final): reddish; selfish; cash; rush; tarnish
commonly confused for /s/ especially when it is the
initial sound in a word as in [shoe], which becomes
[sue] and sometimes when it’s final as in [cash]
which becomes [Cass]. There are times when the
opposite is true but more commonly when /s/ is
located in the middle of the word as in [castle]
which sounds as [cashol?]. Due to the lack of
distinction between the two sounds, it’s very
difficult to establish a pattern of error. Teachers
then are strongly advised to provide the students
with step-by-step instructions on how to produce
these consonants and train their ears to distinguish
between them.

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 Common Pronunciation Problems for
Vietnamese Learners

Error Type 6: /dʒ/

ERROR DESCRIPTION EXAMPLES

Since / dʒ / is one form of consonants cluster (/d/ + /ʒ/), Vietnamese confuse it / dʒ / (medial): pledger;
with a number of other consonants most commonly as follows: /j/ /d/ /s/ /t/ virgin; midget; bludger
/z/ /ʧ/./ dʒ / then, as mentioned in TYPE 1, is normally either omitted when it’s / dʒ / (final): ridge;
the final sound in a word, or substituted for one of the consonants mentioned surge; wedge; cage;
in the beginning of this section. Teachers must advise their students of the dodge
correct and detailed articulation of this consonant as well as remind them of
voicing it. The best way would be to start with / ʧ/ and then ask the students to
vibrate their throats after that.

Error Type 7: Consonants clusters

ERROR DESCRIPTION EXAMPLES

As formerly stated, the consonants cluster
phenomenon is quite unfamiliar to the Vietnamese
language and hence complex, so teachers should
expect to see plenty of omissions, additions and
substitutions occurring in words with [pr] [pl] [tr] [kr]
[kl] [fl] [ks] [sk] [st] [ts] combinations. Teachers need
to spend a considerable amount of time with the
students to practice these sounds as they affect
intelligibility dramatically.
/pr/: problem; practice; pronunciation; present
/pl/: place; plough; plane; please; plumber.
/tr/: try; train; trophy; trail; tricky; trace; trim.
/kr/: crane; crab; crime; Kristen; cram; cradle.
/kl/: climb; claim; cloud; clear; Clayton; cluster.
/fl/: fly; fleece; Fletcher; fluke; flirt; fluster.
/ks/: lacks; Max; spikes; takes; seeks, ticks.
/sk/: ask; task; husky; rascal; mascot; risky.
/st/: must; rusty; festival; Crystal; pastor; best
/ts/: rights; mates; fights; boots; seats; hits

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 Common Pronunciation Problems for
Vietnamese Learners

Error Type 8: Confusing /r/ for /z/

ERROR DESCRIPTION EXAMPLES

The Vietnamese language does not have consonant /r/ /r/ (initial): rat; reason; right; really; rest
in its phonetic system at least not as it is produced by /r/ (medial): parking; caring; bartender; fertile.
Americans or most native English speakers in the /r/ (final): letter; radiator; armor; closer; aware
world. It is, therefore, commonly mistaken for /z/
especially in the North of Vietnam. Teachers again
must elaborately explain to the learners how to
produce that sound to clear up the confusion.

Error Type 9: Confusing /l/ for /n/

ERROR DESCRIPTION EXAMPLES

Once again, the Vietnamese language does not have an /l/ (initial): light; lace; lead; laugh; learn
equivalent to the English consonant /l/. Consequently, /l/ (medial): fault; rolling; falling; swollen;
they typically confuse it for /n/. Teachers need to help really
the learners drop the nasality when attempting to /l/ (final): recall; fall; roll; available; identical
produce that sound as well as free the sides of the
tongue while keeping contact between the tip and the
alveolar ridge.

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 Common Pronunciation Problems for
Vietnamese Learners

Error Type 10: Voiced-Voiceless distinction

ERROR DESCRIPTION EXAMPLES

In English, frequent shifts between voiced and
voiceless consonants are required to distinguish
between certain words. Such mechanism does not exist
and is not required in Vietnamese, thus, constitutes a
complex problem. It is the teacher’s responsibility to
explain the contrast between voiced and voiceless
consonants as well as the opposition of fortis and lenis
as they can play a part in the voicing and de-voicing
process.
/v/: live; serve; Dave; leave; vile; volt; oven
/f/: life; surf; Tafe; leaf; file; fault; often
/b/: beal; best; ball; bye; ban; rib; robe; burb
/p/: peel; pest; Paul; pie; pan; rip; rope; burp
/g/: goal; gap; gate; ragged; beggar; bag; blog
/k/: coal; cap; Kate; racket; Becker; back; block

Error Type 11: Confusing /θ/ for /t/ or /s/

ERROR DESCRIPTION EXAMPLES

As voiced /ð/ is confused for /d/ or /z/, voiceless /θ/ is /θ/: both; Ruth; math; teeth; thick; thin;
confused for /t/ or /s/. Teachers must advise the bath etc
learners to place the tongue tip between the teeth /t/: boat; root; mat; teat; tick; tin; bat
without biting or moving the lips down. For many /θ/: path; faith; thought; forth; growth; thank.
learners, it is simply odd or embarrassing to have the /s/: pass; face; sought; force; gross; sank.
tongue visible to others. Also, most often, the problem
for English learners is to be able to produce either /ð/
or /θ/ smoothly along with /s/ /z/ /t/ /d/ and mainly
other alveolar sounds. That means practicing these
sounds in isolation is likely to be ineffective.

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 Common Pronunciation Problems for
Vietnamese Learners

Error Type 12: Confusing /j/ for /z/

ERROR DESCRIPTION EXAMPLES

For learners from the south, or central provinces of /j/: yes, young, yellow, yeast; yell, yacht
Vietnamese, /j/ in word initials is often confused for
/z/. Again, plenty of listening drills are required to
help learners to distinguish between these two
consonants.

Error Type 13: Confusing /ŋ/ for /ŋk/

ERROR DESCRIPTION EXAMPLES

That is a common mistake not only made by the /ŋ/: king; bring; sing; wing; bang; thing
Vietnamese learners but also by most Asian’s and /ŋk/: kink; brink; sink; wink; bank; think
European’s. Learners often rely on spelling to guide their
pronunciation and since /ŋ/ is often spelled as /ng/, they
attempt to force out the /g/ at the end, which sounds like
/k/ once it is de-voiced.

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 Common Pronunciation Problems for
Vietnamese Learners

Error Type 14: Confusing /ɪ/ for /i:/

ERROR DESCRIPTION EXAMPLES

Another common mistake resulting of the confusion
between spelling and pronunciation. Vowel / ɪ / is quite
frequently spelled as letter [i] in English and since
Vietnamese rely on spelling to produce the English sounds,
they confuse / ɪ / for /i/.
/i/: Need; read; teat; leave; meat; wheel;
seat
/ ɪ /: Knit; rid; tit; live; mitt; will; sit

Error Type 15: Confusing /æ/ for /ʌ/

ERROR DESCRIPTION EXAMPLES

As in TYPE 14, this error is among many generated by the /æ/: bad; man day; hat; badge; tramp
learners’ unawareness of the gap that exists between the / ʌ /: bud; Monday, hut; budge; trump
English spelling and pronunciation. Vowel /æ/ is quite
often spelled with letter [a] which learners would then read
as / ʌ / or /a/. Teachers must repeatedly remind the
students that English spelling and pronunciation are two
very different things.

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 Common Pronunciation Problems for
Vietnamese Learners

Error Type 16: Confusing /ʊ/ for /uː/

ERROR DESCRIPTION EXAMPLES

These two vowels are sometimes spelled the same as in
[foot] and [food]. Teachers must explain the difference
between lax VS tense as well as short VS long vowels and
conduct some minimal pairs’ exercises to drill these sounds
and assist learners in distinguishing between them.
/u:/: Room; tooth; food; mood; rude;
wooed
/ ʊ /: Book; put; foot; hood; could; would

Error Type 17: Confusing /ɝ/ for /ɔː/

ERROR DESCRIPTION EXAMPLES

Vowel /ɝ/ is quite difficult for most English learners /ɝ/: First; sir; burn; curl; work; learn;
including Vietnamese and is usually mispronounced as /ɔː/ worm
which could considerably affect the speech intelligibility. /ɔː/: Forced; soar; born; call; walk; lawn;
warm

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 Common Pronunciation Problems for
Vietnamese Learners

Error Type 18: Confusing/eɪ/ for /e/

ERROR DESCRIPTION EXAMPLES

Diphthongs are very complex sounds as they require combining one vowel and / eɪ /: fade; date; wait;
one consonant in one sound and these combinations are unfamiliar to the trained; bake; cane;
Vietnamese learners who typically end up dropping consonant /j/ and retaining wage
vowel /e/. /e/: fed; debt; wet;
trend; beck; Ken;
wedge

Error Type 19: Confusing/oʊ/ for /ɔː/

ERROR DESCRIPTION EXAMPLES

Vowel / oʊ / is another diphthong involving vowel /o/ and consonant /w/ and / oʊ /: Wrote; old;
as in TYPE 18, only the vowel is retained while the consonant is dropped. boat; coat; mode;
Teachers must encourage the learners to round their lips at the end of that sound road; showed
after pushing them forward for /ɔː/.

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 Common Pronunciation Problems for
Vietnamese Learners

Error Type 20: Confusing the schwa sounds/ə/ or /ɚ/

ERROR DESCRIPTION EXAMPLES

One of the most important English sounds yet most neglected by teachers is the /ə/: about; taken;
schwa sound. This smallest sound in the English language is crucial for pencil; eloquent;
reasonably accurate production of stress and rhythm and without it, the supply; sibyl
Vietnamese learners, and all English learners, will never be able to fully
understand natural and native-like English speech. The schwa sound can
be spelled as: [a] [e] [o] [u] and [y]. That can cause plenty of confusion
for learners who will again attempt to pronounce the words as written,
not as spoken.

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