# Speech Impediment...
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/speech-impediment/134940
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [November 2, 2002, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/speech-impediment/134940 "2002-11-02T02:19:51Z")
**Posts on this page:** 5
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@DRRJP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DRRJP)
#### Post date: [November 2, 2002, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/speech-impediment/134940/1 "2002-11-02T02:19:51Z")
I have a slight speech impediment and I’m 20 years old, so I’m thinking about having a family within the next decade or so. If I talk to my kid and teach him English, will he acquire my speech impediment from the way I sometimes pronounce or slur words?
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### Author:  [@Early\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Early_Out)
#### Post date: [November 2, 2002, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/speech-impediment/134940/2 "2002-11-02T03:55:59Z")
If you’re the _only_ English speaker he ever hears, I suppose he would pick up your unique pronunciations. But if he gets planted in front of the TV for an hour or two every day, or if he plays with a bunch of other kids, he’ll pick up standard English without any problem. I know some immigrant couples who speak with very thick accents, but their kids sound as American as they come, even when they end up being completely bilingual.
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### Author:  [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)
#### Post date: [November 2, 2002, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/speech-impediment/134940/3 "2002-11-02T13:07:41Z")
Hmmm… DDRJP’s location indicates he lives in Albania, where presumably he has Albania-language TV and the hypothetical child’s playmates would be speakers of Albanian.
In which case, exposure to other English speakers may require a little extra effort. Like video tapes, for instance.
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### Author:  [@Early\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Early_Out)
#### Post date: [November 2, 2002, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/speech-impediment/134940/4 "2002-11-02T13:46:00Z")
Given the spelling of **DDRJP’s** location, I wasn’t sure where he was - Albania, or perhaps just a joking reference to Albany. Just a WAG, but I’ll bet that English-language TV is fairly common, even in Albania. Videos for the little **DDRJP** would certainly help.
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### Author:  [@DRRJP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DRRJP)
#### Post date: [November 8, 2002, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/speech-impediment/134940/5 "2002-11-08T04:53:32Z")
Heh. I’m in Albany, New York, not Albania…hence my spelling it Albanyia. 😉 But, the only reason I have a speech impediment is because I’m deaf in my left ear as a result of a birth accident in which my umbellical cord was tied in a knot, thus preventing oxygen getting to my brain. I was just curious as I was thinking about it, but I never really thought about non-English speaking parents having kids that speak English accent free, so I guess that answers my question. Thanks.