International Journal of English Linguistics; Vol. 7, No. 3; 2017 ISSN 1923-869X E-ISSN 1923-8703 Published by Canadian Center of Science and Education 11 Pronunciation of English Dental Fricatives by Slovak University EFL Students Rastislav Metruk 1 1 Department of English Language and Literature, Faculty of Humanities, University of Žilina, Žilina, Slovakia Correspondence: Rastislav Metruk, Department of English Language and Literature, Faculty of Humanities, University of Žilina, Univerzitná 8215/1, 010 26 Žilina, Slovakia. E-mail: rastislav.metruk@gmail.com Received: December 7, 2016 Accepted: December 27, 2016 Online Published: February 9, 2017 doi:10.5539/ijel.v7n3p11 URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.5539/ijel.v7n3p11 Abstract The article attempts to explore the difficulties in pronunciation of English dental fricatives by Slovak EFL university students. The primary objective of the study is to examine to what extent Slovak university students mispronounce [θ] and [ð] and which sounds act as substitutes for the two consonants. A total of 44 Slovak first-year university students whose major was Teaching English Language and Literature delivered unprepared English monologues, which were recorded on a computer. Subsequently, the files were sent to an English native speaker from Canada who performed an auditory analysis of pronunciation errors in the participants’ utterances. The results indicate that English dental fricatives pose problems for Slovak EFL learners since a considerable number of participants mispronounced both voiced and voiceless dental fricative consonants. Finally, the study emphasizes the immense significance of pronunciation instruction as this area still appears to be rather neglected in the context of English language teaching in Slovakia. Keywords: English dental fricative, English spirant, erroneous pronunciation, mispronunciation, EFL learner, Slovak university student 1. Introduction Phoneme substitution errors represent a principal source of erroneous pronunciation (Munro, 2008). Replacing certain phonemes for others is typically the direct result of non-existence of particular L2 sounds in the native tongue of a learner. Such substitutions frequently impede intelligibility (Munro, 2008; Zampini, 2008). English dental fricatives are one of the most often mispronounced sounds in the English pronunciation of L2 learners. The dental consonants [θ] and [ð] do not exist in the majority of languages; therefore, they are overwhelmingly likely to pose difficulties for EFL learners (Celce-Murcia, Brinton, & Goodwin, 2010). Several scholars have conducted studies into English pronunciation of Slovak speakers. Repka & Sabol (1970) carried out a study which explored the problems of Slovak learners of English with English consonants. Similarly, Soudek (1977) introduces the challenges speakers of Slavic languages face when they produce English consonants. Lenhardt (1983) examined how Slovak speakers pronounce the English vowels [ə] and [ɜ:], and Kráľová (2011) analyzed English pronunciation errors with regard to Slovak-English language interference. Nonetheless, it appears that devoting closer attention specifically to the pronunciation of English dental fricatives by Slovak EFL learners would prove valuable since the information available on this particular subject in the Slovak context is rather sparse. Moreover, conducting a further study into the mispronunciation of English spirants could be of practical importance for both Slovak learners and teachers since English dental fricatives are commonly replaced by a variety of consonants, exhibiting no particular pattern regarding the substitutes. The objectives of this study are as follows: • to examine to what extent Slovak learners of English mispronounce dental fricatives; • to discover which consonants act as substitutes for [θ] and [ð]; • to propose what steps should be taken to decrease the occurrence of mispronouncing English spirants by Slovak EFL learners.