Shona — Pronunciation for English Speakers
This guide is based on a phoneme-by-phoneme comparison of Shona and English. Shona and English share 16 sounds — about 38% of Shona's inventory. The remaining sounds are where English speakers will need to focus their practice.
Sounds to learn from scratch (26)
These phonemes exist in Shona but not in English. English speakers will need to learn to produce and perceive them as new categories — not just a variation of an existing English sound.
Familiar sounds (16)
These phonemes exist in both Shona and English. You already produce and perceive them — though they may appear in different positions or syllable structures.
English sounds not used in Shona (29)
These English phonemes don't exist in Shona. Native Shona speakers learning English will face the reverse challenge with these sounds.