English Dictation Practice
Type any sentences and practise dictation: the browser reads them aloud in a US or UK voice at three speeds, students type what they hear and get word-by-word feedback.
Results
The 7ESL Dictation Practice tool reads sentences aloud and checks what you type, word by word. Enter any sentences — this week's grammar patterns, exam sentences, lines from the coursebook — choose an American or British voice and one of three speeds, and press play. After typing, the checker shows exactly which words you caught (green) and which you missed (red), with a score for each sentence. It uses your browser's built-in speech, so it is free, needs no account, and nothing you type is uploaded.
How to use Dictation Practice
Type up to twenty sentences, one per line. Students press play on a sentence — replaying as often as they like — type what they hear, and press Check. The "Slow" speed stretches the audio for lower levels, "Normal" suits most learners, and "Natural" approaches native pace for exam preparation. Teachers can also print an answer sheet: numbered writing lines for students, with the teacher key on a separate page for traditional in-class dictation.
Why dictation still works
Dictation trains several systems at once: sound discrimination (catching weak forms like "have" in "should have gone"), spelling, grammar expectation (hearing the -s and -ed endings learners most often drop), and short-term memory chunking. The word-by-word feedback makes the invisible visible — learners discover it is nearly always the small grammar words they miss, not the content words. A good routine: dictate five sentences containing this week's target structure, and have learners replay each sentence no more than three times before checking.
Frequently asked questions
Where does the voice come from?
From your browser's built-in speech synthesis (Chrome, Edge and Safari all support it). You can choose an American or British voice and three speeds. No audio files are uploaded or downloaded.
How does the checking work?
The tool compares your typing with the original sentence word by word, ignoring capitals and punctuation, and shows each original word in green (caught) or red (missed), plus a score like "7 of 9 words".
Can I use it for a whole class?
Yes. Project the page and play sentences to the class, or print the answer sheet — numbered writing lines for students and the sentence key for the teacher on a separate page.
How many sentences can I enter?
Up to twenty per session, one per line. For longer dictations, run a second set — sentences are free to change at any time.
Is it free?
Yes, completely. Dictation Practice runs entirely in your browser with no sign-up, and the sentences you type never leave your device.