I. Pronunciation & Delivery
"Practise (on your own) — text to speech (Word / PDF / AI…); names of characters / stories; record your practices." — Mock SBA feedback
This page gives you a week-long drill plan to fix the four most common pronunciation problems in Hong Kong students' SBAs.
What examiners listen for
| Sub-skill | What it sounds like | Quick test |
|---|---|---|
| Clarity | Every word is audible | Record yourself; can you understand it? |
| Stress | The "main word" of each sentence is louder | Underline 1 word per sentence — does your voice land on it? |
| Intonation | Voice rises for Qs, falls for statements | Ask a question; does your pitch go up? |
| Pace | Not too fast, not too slow (~130 wpm) | Read 1 paragraph in 1 minute — that's about right |
| Pauses | Between ideas, not in the middle of a word | Use a pause where you'd put a comma or full stop |
| Voice | Not mumbling, not shouting | Aim for a "podcast voice" — clear, warm, audible |
The 5 character names you cannot afford to mispronounce
| Character | IPA-ish | Common mistake | Correct |
|---|---|---|---|
| Macbeth | mək-BETH | "Mac-beeth" | mək-BETH (rhymes with "death") |
| Banquo | BANG-kwoh | "Ban-koo-oh" | BANG-kwoh |
| Mercutio | mer-KYOO-shee-oh | "Mer-cu-tio" (3 syl) | mer-KYOO-shee-oh (4 syl) |
| Tybalt | TIB-əlt | "Tay-balt" | TIB-əlt |
| Portia | POR-shə | "Por-tee-a" | POR-shə (2 syl) |
| Bassanio | bə-SAH-nee-oh | "Bass-ano" | bə-SAH-nee-oh |
| Shylock | SHY-lock | "Shi-lock" | SHY-lock (long "i") |
| Antonio | an-TOH-nee-oh | "An-toni-o" | an-TOH-nee-oh |
| Macduff | mək-DUFF | "Mac-duff" with short "u" | mək-DUFF (rhymes with "stuff") |
| Duncan | DUN-kən | "Doun-can" | DUN-kən |
Drill: open the booklet, find any sentence with a character's name, and read it out loud with the correct stress. Do all 10 names, 3 times each, every day for a week.
Tools that fix pronunciation in 10 minutes
1. Word "Read Aloud" (free, instant)
- Open Microsoft Word.
- Type the names + 5 sample sentences.
- Review tab → Read Aloud.
- Listen, then copy the sound.
2. Google Docs voice typing (free, reverse drill)
- Tools → Voice typing.
- Speak the character names.
- If Google spells them right, your pronunciation is intelligible.
- If it writes "Mac Pace" instead of "Macbeth", you're saying it wrong.
3. YouTube — "How to pronounce Macbeth"
- Channels like "Pronunciation Book" and BBC Pronunciation have 10-second clips.
- Listen 3×, repeat 3×.
4. Forvo.com (free, native speakers)
- Forvo lets you hear native speakers say each word.
- Especially useful for Bassanio and Mercutio.
Stress drills (the secret weapon)
English stress is the difference between "REcord" (noun) and "reCORD" (verb). Your SBA examiner is listening for content-word stress.
Drill 1: Underline and read
For each sentence, underline the content word (the word carrying meaning), then read it out loud with extra volume on that word.
| Sentence | Underline this |
|---|---|
| Macbeth was driven by ambition, not by fate. | ambition, fate |
| Lady Macbeth's guilt destroyed her, not the law. | guilt, law |
| Romeo and Juliet's love was bigger than their families. | love, families |
| Shylock's revenge grew from years of prejudice. | revenge, prejudice |
| Portia used the letter of the law, but maybe not its spirit. | letter, spirit |
Read each one 5 times, exaggerating the stress. Then re-read at normal volume. The stress should still be felt.
Drill 2: Contrast pairs
Practice these contrasts:
- "Macbeth had everything a soldier could dream of — and threw it away."
- "It wasn't the witches who killed Duncan — it was Macbeth."
- "The play isn't about love — it's about hatred."
- "Portia saved Antonio with mercy — and punished Shylock with law."
Stressing the contrast words doubles the impact of your sentence.
Intonation drills
Statements (falling)
Voice goes down at the end:
- "Macbeth chose to act on the prophecy↓"
- "Romeo and Juliet fell in love at first sight↓"
- "Shylock demanded a pound of flesh↓"
Questions (rising)
Voice goes up at the end:
- "Do you think Macbeth had a choice↑?"
- "Was Portia's trick really just↑?"
- "What would you have done if you were Juliet↑?"
Lists (rise-rise-fall)
- "The themes are ambition↑, guilt↑, and fate↓."
Practice with: "Macbeth↑, Romeo and Juliet↑, and The Merchant of Venice↓."
Pace and pauses
The "podcast pace"
130–150 words per minute is the sweet spot. To test:
- Read this paragraph (about 130 words). Use a timer.
- Macbeth is one of Shakespeare's most studied tragedies. It tells the story of a Scottish general whose ambition, fed by a chance meeting with three witches, drives him to murder his king and seize the throne. But the throne brings him no peace. Each new crime requires another to cover it, and each death pushes him further from the man he used to be. By the end, his wife has gone mad with guilt and his army has deserted him. He dies in single combat against Macduff, the man whose family he ordered killed. The lesson is sharp: ambition without limit destroys the ambitious, not just their victims. We should pay attention.
- 60 seconds = perfect pace. 45 seconds = too fast. 80 seconds = too slow.
Pauses are powerful
- A 1-second pause before a key word makes it land harder.
- A 2-second pause after a question gives the group room to think.
- Don't fill pauses with "um" — silence is more confident.
Voice drills (warm up before practice)
Humming (1 min)
- Hum a low note for 5 seconds.
- Slide up to a higher note over 3 seconds.
- Slide back down.
- Repeat 5×. Your voice will feel "open".
Tongue twisters (2 min)
- "Red lorry, yellow lorry" × 10
- "She sells seashells by the seashore" × 5
- "Macbeth marched to murder Macduff's many men" × 3
- "Portia's portrait — that's the lead casket's secret" × 3
Reading aloud (5 min)
- Read 1 page from the booklet (any of the three stories) out loud, at podcast pace.
- Record yourself.
- Listen back and notice: are any words mumbled?
Mumbling fixes
If listening back reveals mumbling:
- Open your mouth wider — exaggerate, even uncomfortably.
- Pull your tongue forward — Cantonese speakers often hold the tongue back.
- End consonants matter: don't drop the "t" in "Macbeth" or the "k" in "Shylock".
- Slow down by 10% — most "mumbling" is actually "rushing".
Volume
Your examiner is listening to a recording. The recorder usually sits on the table. If you mumble, the recording will pick up nothing.
- Aim for slightly louder than a normal classroom conversation.
- Project to the wall behind the examiner, not to the examiner's face.
- If you're naturally quiet, sit up straight — posture controls volume more than effort does.
The night-before voice routine (5 min)
- Hum (low to high) — 30 sec
- Tongue twisters — 1 min
- Read aloud the opening sentence of your sample answer — 1 min
- Practise the 5 hardest names — 1 min
- Drink warm water with honey (optional but helpful)
- Sleep on time. Your voice rests when you do.
A 30-second self-check after every practice recording
- [ ] Could I hear every word clearly?
- [ ] Did I stress the content words?
- [ ] Did my questions rise and statements fall?
- [ ] Did I pause between sentences (not in the middle)?
- [ ] Did I keep podcast pace?
- [ ] Did I pronounce all the names correctly?
Tick 5/6 = band 5+. All 6 = band 6.
Next: II. Communication Strategies.