Can you change your accent?

What is my ESL accent?

For English As A Second Language (ESL) learners, your ESL accent will have characteristics of your mother tongue and the accents of all the teachers you have learnt English from.

If you have learnt with teachers from your own country, who are ESL learners themselves, you may have a stronger country accent (e.g. Italian, Russian, etc).  If you have learnt from only British English teachers, you may already speak with at least a bit of a British accent, equally, you may have an American accent if you have learnt from only American English teachers.

If you are a pupil at an international school, or otherwise have learnt English from a wide range of international accents, you may speak with one accent for some words and another accent for other words.  

There is nothing wrong with speaking in any particular accent as long as your diction is clear and you are easily understood.  Additionally, it’s important that even if you speak with a strong accent, that you can recognise the correct pronunciation of English words.  Knowing the ‘standard British Pronunciation’ of words is important because it can help you to understand regional variations by giving you a standardised reference point.

Does your accent change when you move?

The answer to this question is complicated.  Yes, even your accent can and often does change when you move location or start spending a lot of time in a new environment.  This can also be true for people starting university or work for the first time, where they interact and are influenced by new circumstances and peer groups. 

Native British English speakers who move to the USA or Australia often find that they begin to lose their British accent and start to speak with the local accent.  It doesn’t have to be another country, however, the process of accent change can also happen just by moving from one region to another within the UK.

That said, it is also true that in some circumstances, people’s accents get STRONGER!  

In general, however, it is human psychology that we want to fit in and the more affinity we have for our peer group the more we are driven to be accepted.  Assimilating the accent of the people you spend time with is a natural process and we can take advantage of it if we decide we wish to change our own accent.

What should I change my accent to?

If you are wondering ‘what should I change my accent to?’  Well, what do you want to change your accent to?  

There is no right or wrong answer to this question unless you don’t want to change.  I cannot over emphasise the importance of understanding that as long as you are clearly understood with good, clear, articulate speech then you are already perfect.  

However, if you want to change your accent you probably already know how you want to sound and why.  Whatever your reasons for wanting to change your accent, they are your reasons and they are completely legitimate reasons to have. 

Finally, if you are an English as a Second Language learner and want to speak with a native English accent, I have two pieces of advice. 

1. Choose a British accent for no other reason than I am biased.  You can see why I think you should speak with a British accent in my video below. 

2. If you don’t have a permanent location in an English speaking country or don’t currently live in the UK, I would advise learning the British RP accent.  You can learn more about why you should choose the British RP accent in my Accent Coaching article. 

How to change your accent permanently

We often get asked how to change your accent to British permanently.  It is possible, but it takes a long term commitment to normalise your speaking patterns and the sensation of speaking in a British accent.  

For this reason, we have created the Lifetime Package for English language learners, providing students like you with all the resources needed to immerse yourself in English through online courses and communities.  The Lifetime Package will give you lifetime access to the ELAN Community where you can access live lessons on pronunciation, drop-in sessions and the Conversation Club where you can practice your new accent skills without judgement. 

Take the first steps to change your accent

We often get asked how to change your accent to British permanently.  It is possible, but it takes a long term commitment to normalise your speaking patterns and the sensation of speaking in a British accent.  

If you want to find out more about your accent and pronunciation skills, how they compare to the 44 sounds of a British RP Accent and exactly what you need to do to improve your speaking clarity, confidence and fluency, then sign up to our persoanlised pronunciation assessment today for just £49.99 by hitting the big red button below!