EnglishClub ESL Forums

Hi all,

I wanted some advice on how you would get Saudi Arabian students in the habit of pronouncing the letter -p- sound in English. In Arabic, they don’t have the -p- sound and pronounce it with their letter in Arabic ب (ba)/the -b- sound in English. There are actually many words in English that the Saudi Arabian community uses in general Arabic not formal Arabic, so when it comes to the -p-, they substitute it with -b- like the fizzy drink/soft drink/soda -Pepsi-, they would say بيبسي -Bebsi-.

Tongue twisters: "Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers." Have a prize jar. Let them pick a partner. Give the group and assignment while each pair that has practiced together come up to you and say the tongue twister. Each pair gets a prize and positive feedback. When they practice together make sure they put their hands in front of their mouths. If they do not feel a "puff" of air it is closer to a /b/ than a /p/. Have fun!