Say every t in full

The rule

Stop the air completely with your tongue for every t you see in the spelling.

Say every t you see in the spelling as a full t, as in Standard English. The only exceptions are the silent-t words listed below.

How to check

A full t: press the tip of your tongue on the ridge behind your top teeth so the air stops completely, feel the pressure build, then release it. If your tongue only flicks the ridge and the air never stops, you have made the American tapped t.

The t rule: one decision

There is only one question to ask about a t in the spelling.

You see a t in the spelling

Is the word on the silent-t list?

listen, castle, whistle, fasten, Christmas, mortgage, (often)

Yes

Don't say it

li-sən

No (almost every word)

Full t

tongue stops the air, then releases

Why

The American tapped t in water and better is almost exactly the Kinyarwanda r. If you copy it, better sounds like 'berrer' to most listeners outside North America, or 'beller' if your r slides towards l.

Full t words

Word	Say this(Standard English)	Recognise, don't copy(American)
waterCambridge	woo-tə	waa-dər
betterCambridge	be-tə	be-dər
cityCambridge	si-ti	si-di
twentyCambridge	twen-ti	twe-ni
internetCambridge	in-tə-net	i-nər-net
computerCambridge	kəm-pyuu-tə	kəm-pyuu-dər
meetingCambridge	mii-ting	mii-ding
a lot of	ə lo-təv	ə laa-dəv

Silent t

Don't say the t in these words. Say often as o-fən (of-tən is also correct).

Word	Say this (Standard English)	Note
listenCambridge	li-sən
castleCambridge	kaa-səl
whistleCambridge	wi-səl
fastenCambridge	faa-sən
ChristmasCambridge	kris-məs
mortgageCambridge	moo-gij
oftenCambridge	o-fən	of-tən is also correct

Practise these sentences

I'll meet you at twenty past eight.
It's better to buy a bottle of water.
Wait a little, I'm getting the tickets.