Practice Connected Speech
With the American accent, native speakers don’t pause between every word much because they use a lot of connected speech.
These are the two most common ways it can happen:
Catenation
When a word ends in a consonant and the next word starts with a vowel, they’re pronounced without a gap between them.
To hear this in action, listen to the sentences below and focus on the bolded words. You’ll notice that they flow together, almost as if they’re one word.
I usually get up at 6 AM. (pronounced like getup)
She’s eating an egg. (pronounced like anegg)
Don’t take it personally. (Pronounced like takeit)
Intrusion
When a word ends in a vowel and the next one starts with another vowel, there’s usually a “bridging” sound between them so the transition doesn’t sound too abrupt.
I’m ready if you are (pronounced like youware)
I am driving a car (pronounced like Iyam)
Can you free up some time for me? (Pronounced like freeyup)