Received Pronunciation (RP) is a popular British accent among learners worldwide, from actors to ESL students. Search for a tutor online via various teaching platforms or look for an accent reduction school, and you’ll most likely find RP mentioned as the gold standard of clear, articulate British English. The same holds true for YouTube videos on British English pronunciation, which will almost certainly mention RP.
However, while many teachers claim to teach Received Pronunciation, their own accents may actually be closer to Southern British English or Standard British English (SBE).
The defining features of Received Pronunciation are the aspiration of vowel sounds, distinct syllable stress, and precise articulation of consonants. Other accents, such as Cockney, Estuary, and the general London accent, can sound more nasal or guttural. It’s not simply about whether the target sounds match the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) of RP. The reason I emphasize this is because you can find regional RP accents with vowel sounds that differ from standard RP, even though Estuary English might have vowel sounds that match RP.
Let’s start with the aspiration of vowel sounds. These sounds should resonate from the front of the mouth. There should be no nasal or guttural qualities.
One of the biggest misconceptions is that simply articulating the /t/ sound in a word like “bottle” (instead of using a glottal stop) is equivalent to speaking RP. However, there are far more nuanced aspects one needs to be aware of.
For example, if you listen to current British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Chancellor Rachel Reeves, you’ll notice they make an effort to articulate consonant sounds clearly. Yet, the quality of their vowel sounds are more nasal and guttural. Their speech resonates through the nose rather than the front of the mouth. Their accents are closer to Cockney, but without the glottal stops.
The RP consonants also tend to be more distinct compared to other British accents.
Here are some examples:
- The dark /l/ at the end of the word “fall” is clearly articulated. Many teachers of RP incorrectly pronounce the word “fall” as /fɔːw/ instead of /fɔːl/.
- The /w/ sound in “winter” requires a precise formation of the lips. Many teachers tend to have an overly relaxed lip shape, which is not conducive to RP.
- The /r/ sound in the word “rabbit” requires precise formation of the tongue. Many teachers incorrectly pronounce the word “rabbit” as /ˈwæbɪt/ instead of /ˈræbɪt/.
I have met individuals who grew up in an RP speaking environment and upon graduating from university felt that their RP accent was making them sound “too posh”. However, sounding “too posh” can come from over aspiration which can give the impression of an overly affected accent or being overly dramatic.
This is why I think British actors on the international stage, do a very good job of articulating themselves in a very clear and neutral manner. Actors are often able to speak RP with a neutral tone without any unnecessary voice inflection. Perhaps this comes down to their training and the self-awareness they have developed in how they express and articulate themselves.
Sometimes people try to elevate their speech and other times people try to dumb it down. But there are always subtle hints that you can pick up even if they try to hide their original accent. In another, I explain this in more detail where I discuss the Mockney accent.
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