Speak Clearly Q&A with Heather Hansen - Do I have to open my mouth so wide to speak clear English_

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I was recently interviewed by Adrian Lee of http://www.VideoLane.com for their Expert Interviews series, and Adrian asked me this really good question:

It seems like speaking English is very physical. Your mouth opens much wider than I see my friends' mouths open when they speak! Do we have to open our mouths that wide to speak clearly?

The answer is YES! But for many people, opening their mouths to speak English can feel very uncomfortable. Until you can learn to let go and use your lips, tongue and teeth to make sounds clearly (even if that means showing a little bit of tongue or teeth), it will be very difficult to make English sounds correctly.