Spanish tips Question....
What tips will help a Spanish learner sound as if they actually are Spanish and native to a Spanish speaking country? I can speak Spanish enough to carry a conversation but I don´t think I sound like a foreigner even if I pronounce all my words correctly.
2 Answers
I have a sister though that speaks Spanish very well. Spanish natives think she sounds like she´s from a Spanish country.
Some people just seem to have a special ability to mimic the sounds of a language. I have heard that people who are musically inclined are sometimes able to do this, more so than other people. This is because they are naturally gifted in a way that enables them to hear certain sounds and rhythms and to reproduce them.
I was speaking earlier in the week about friends from Uruguay. The husband has a very minimal accent, but the wife has a thick accent. They have both been speaking Spanish for the same amount of time, but the husband sounds like more of a native than his wife. Although this frustrates her a little, she is still fluent in Spanish and able to communicate to everyone in Uruagua
Practicing our phonetics, vowel sounds, etc., is a very important part of learning Spanish. We also must make sure that we are accenting words properly.
That being said, most of us will probably never lose the accent of our native tongue. There is nothing wrong with this. I think accents are beautiful. Of course it is important to listen to the pronunciations and sounds of Spanish and to emulate them as best as possible. However, the goal is communication. We should not be concerned about people knowing we are foreigners, because we are.
Instead, focus on and be proud of the fact that people from another country and language can understand you. 
