Shame Is The Enemy #1 Of All Foreign English Speakers!
Here’s how to improve your spoken English when reading this article: read it out loud, then read out loud the collocations highlighted in red 10 times each to memorize them, then look away from the monitor and try and say 3 sample sentences for each of those collocations! For best results record your speech so that you can go back, spot any mistakes you might have made, and then do some more spoken English practice by correcting yourself! How many times you HAVEN’T SAID something in English because you’ve been ashamed? I bet it’s too many to count, my friend foreign English speaker, and that’s the prime reason why your fluency isn’t at the level you’d like it to be. Well, of course, it could be the case that you’re quite happy with your level of English fluency, but the chances are – if that were the case, you wouldn’t be reading this blog, am I not right? Anyway, let’s not get side-tracked from the main subject which is all about being ashamed of your level of English and NOT speaking enough. Imagine the following scenario. Two foreign English speakers move to an English speaking country, take up jobs and settle down to live in that country for a good few years. The first foreigner takes every opportunity to open his mouth and say something in English. Every time his boss, co-workers or customers ask him something, he always tries to say something extra, something to keep the conversation going. And he also doesn’t miss a chance to start a chat with others. Now, the second foreigner is also doing alright, however, unlike the first one, he will only say the bare minimum that people ask him. He will never start a conversation, will never say anything extra, and it’s all because he’s ashamed of making mistakes and sounding stupid. You think the first foreigner isn’t making any mistakes? Oh boy, of course he is! We all do, it’s an integral part of being a foreign English speaker – you are bound to make lots of mistakes before achieving a decent level of fluency. Yet, the first guy just DOESN’T CARE. (more…)
Best English Phrase Memorization Techniques for Those Who Want to Speak Fluent English
Tips on How to use Contextual Thinking to Gain a Native-Speaker Level
The Most Frequent Speech Errors to Avoid
It’s common knowledge that English is one of the most popular languages in the world. This is both good and bad when it comes to everyday use of the language, no matter if you are a Native or a foreign speaker. English language is both flexible and easy to grasp at first, but it still proves to be too much for many speakers. Some of the most common pitfalls are common in American, English as well as foreign speakers and they can be easily avoided. Using “much” and “many” Depending on the context of your sentence and the message you are trying to communicate, using these two words and mixing them up can be quite common. Using “many” with words that apply to countable objects is the proper way to use the word, while “much” can be applied to uncountable items. “Many apples have fallen from the trees.” / “Much apples have fallen from the trees.” You can easily see that the second sentence makes little sense when you think about it. Using “much” with items such as fuel, water, air and others is the proper way to do it. Knowing this can help you avoid your next speaking mistake without any worries whatsoever. (more…)
Is It Possible To Sound Too Fluent in English?
Most of you guys visiting this blog have certain English fluency related issues, the most typical of which is the tendency of getting “stuck” while speaking. It’s the terrible feeling of “I know exactly what I want to say, yet for some reason or another I can’t seem to be able to say it out loud!” So I guess if you were to hear another foreign English speaker who can speak for hours on end in a way that it would seem you just can’t shut them up, you’d be thinking to yourself – “I wish I could speak like that…” Well, as the old saying goes – be careful what you wish for! (more…)
Becoming Fluent in English While Living in Your Home Country is Impossible… Or Is It?