How to speak English clearly | Top ways to help you speak English clearly

How to speak English clearly

Top ways to help you speak English clearly

Abhinaya Mary Koshy

Smart Brains Spotlight

You learn something new every day; what did you learn today?

The topic for today is “How to speak English clearly“.

Learning should be for life. Every moment of every day we are being presented with new and important lessons.

Here we will present you one handpicked new and important lesson every day from smart brains and experts around the world.

Today we learned about How to speak English clearly. Let Abhinaya Mary Koshy shares with you some of her top tips and ways which can help you speak English more clearly.

Thank you

Maricel Galon Tan
 
Smart Brains Spotlight Selection
 
English Time Community

How to speak English clearly | Abhinaya Mary Koshy

How to speak English clearly

Top ways to help you speak English clearly

Abhinaya Mary Koshy

How can I become fluent in English?

Speak English More Clearly: How to Stress Short Words

Thank you, “Youtube – English with Kim“.

Answer by Abhinaya Mary Koshy (Content Manager, Aspiring Polymath, Jill of all trades, Master of some). All credit goes to
Abhinaya Mary Koshy, Thank you!

How to speak English clearly?

6.6/10

Top ways to help you speak English clearly

I assume you are referring to Spoken English, in which case I can help you.

As I always say, if you want to be good at a language like English, you need to read more English, write more English, speak more English and watch more English. And listen to more English.

Most of us study English right from Kindergarten. We learn a lot of English words over the years, one way or the other. You may read books that introduce you to a lot of new words.

Unfortunately, increasing your vocabulary is not the same as speaking English. Putting some words together is not speaking English.
Oh no.

You need to focus on the sentence and the overall language, rather than the words.

English is very different from your native language (I’m assuming you’re Indian). It has its own tone, style, stress, pitch, accent, syntax, semantics, structure, voice, tense, idioms, expressions, and so on…

So how do you get it right?

I assume you know all the bookish “rules” regarding the language, as I’m sure your English teachers would have taken the effort to teach them (yeah, all those hours you were supposed to spend on grammar exercises were pretty important).

Therefore, it will actually be easier for you to improve your language.

If you don’t, then learn them quickly. Those are the basics. Borrow your little cousins’ school textbooks if you have to, but get it done.

Read. I can not stress this enough. Unless I use Bold again. Read. Yes, develop a reading habit. Read till it tires you out. Read, day in and day out. I’m pretty sure a lot of teachers used to stress on that, too, in school.

It ain’t too late, though. Start now. Read.

And I’m not talking about those shallow, cheesy, romance stuff full of fluff. Like the Twilight series or Chetan Bhagat’s novels or even I too had a love story. For goodness’ sake stay away from Indian authors.

Unless it is Shashi Tharoor, Vikram Seth or Shobha De. Stick to reading books written by native English speakers. Read good fiction and good non-fiction. Harry Potter is good, even if it was initially meant for children. The Hobbit. The classics. A Song of Ice and Fire. Hell, even Animorphs or Archies’.

Watch. Another thing I must stress on. It’s not enough to just read, you know. You may understand the language or visualise the story, but that still won’t tell you how the words sound or about the context or the mannerisms. So, watch a lot of English. Movies. TV shows. Reality shows…

Another thing. Please don’t use subtitles. It is a very bad exercise. And a lazy one, too. You’ll probably spend the whole time reading a movie than watching it. So, don’t.

If you don’t get a particular piece of dialogue, rewind and watch again. Use subtitles as a last option.

Yes, it’s a lot of hard work. Did you think it was a walk in the park that would take only a few minutes? It takes months or even years.

When you watch, focus on the tone, the voice, the expressions, the accent, the stress, and everything else I have already mentioned above.

Listen well. Listening is crucial.

Adopt an accent, if you like. Try Received Pronunciation. Model your speech after that.

Familiarise yourself with English.

Speak. Last, but not the least. Keep speaking in English. It’s not enough that you know how. You should practise. Keep practising. Keep speaking.

EDIT:

When you speak English, DO NOT transliterate to English.

A lot of people make this mistake. They just transliterate what they usually say in their native language, into English.

E.g.

 “Kal chutti hain, na?” ——> This is correct in Hindi.
“Tomorrow is a holiday, no?” ——> This is WRONG. Especially if you keep the same tone.

Do not do this. This is NOT English. You need to actually speak in English. Not transliterate.

The right way is:

“Isn’t tomorrow a holiday?”

Do not be lazy. Practise the right way. Always.

EDIT:

As my good friend below said, the most important thing to do while learning a language is to think in it.

This is actually true, and the reason I’ve not mentioned it is because those who have a habit of consuming a lot of English content already think in English.

Also, reading to me does not mean self help books or cheesy romances or even the little comprehension passages to pass an exam. It usually refers to pleasure reading. And a lot of it. You need to love the language a little. And even live it.

Reference: Abhinaya Mary Koshy. “How do I speak clearly to others?”  originally appeared on Quora, the place to gain and share knowledge, empowering people to learn from others and better understand the world.

Other Ways and help you speak English clearly

Practicing English with the Imitation Technique

Now, imitating something is similar to copying something.

Usually, ‘imitating’ is copying actions or words. So this technique is all about copying something that a native speaker is saying – exactly. It teaches you to listen to the sounds and patterns of English and trains you to make those same sounds yourself. You’re training your mouth with your ears. So you’re listening to the sounds and you’re not training your mouth with your eyes by reading and guessing the pronunciation of words. You are training your mouth with your ears.

By practicing with this technique, you will reduce your accent and pronunciation problems more quickly and become a clear and more confident English speaker.

Thank you, mmmEnglish –  Cook. Eat. Learn English.

Concentrate on speaking your words

First, it’s important to concentrate on speaking your words.  If you are nervous try a few different techniques to calm your nerves before speaking.  When you are calm, you speak more slowly, and this improves your diction and clarity of your voice.

Thank you, Lisa B Marshall – Through our products and services we help companies improve productivity and stop wasting money due to poor communication.

Honing Speech Mechanics

Practice your grammar. If you use poor grammar, your thoughts and ideas may not come across as clearly as you’d like. Speak as though you’re composing an essay or a letter: with patience, poise, and precision.

Avoid speaking in run-on sentences. If you let yourself ramble, your listeners might miss the point. Try to break up your thoughts into comprehensible chunks

Thank you, WikiHow – How to do anything.

Make Friends with English Speaking Expats

The more you practice, the more you will gain confidence in your English speaking abilities. An excellent way to practice English (and enjoy it!) is to make friends with people who only speak English.

You are then forced to speak with them in English, instead of relying on your native language. Friends are not there to judge you and your English skills. All they want is to meet new people in the local area.

Thank you, T J Taylor – Corporate English language training focussed on results.

IMPROVE YOUR ENGLISH PRONUNCIATION

Good pronunciation will help people understand your spoken English clearly, even if you don’t know many words. There are three levels of pronunciation, and most English learners need some improvement in their pronunciation. You can practice your pronunciation with Espresso English pronunciation lessons.

Thank you, Espresso English – Everyday English Lessons.

Focus on How to Learn English from Everyone

You don’t have to only learn English from textbooks and teachers-anyone who speaks English can help you practice.

Imagine how you would feel if someone asked you, in your native language, how to pronounce something. Would you be angry? No! You’d probably be happy to help, just like most English-speakers are happy to help you figure out how to learn English.

If you know any English-speakers, whether it’s a friend or co-worker, take advantage of the opportunity to practice and learn from them. You can also try an online English language exchange to chat with native speakers from anywhere!

Thank you, FluentU – Language Immersion Online | Learn a Language with Videos.

Out of your comfort zones.

When you try to speak English with good pronunciation, it might only sound ridiculous to you not to anyone else. Because you are the only one who knows you. Don’t worry. You’re not going to lose your soul by sounding different. You’re not abandoning your culture and giving up on your values by speaking English with proper pronunciation. It will only boost your confidence if anything. It will make you more successful as a professional. It will make you happier as a resident. Because as humans, we have a great need to communicate.

So go ahead and step out if your comfort zone. The greatest things in life only take place out of comfort zones.

Thank you, English Speak Like Native –  Speak English to Impress: Online Pronunciation and fluency Courses.

Speak with a native English speaker

Improve Your English Pronunciation And Speak With A Native British, American Or Australian Accent In Just 15 Minutes A Day!

Thank you, Speak More Clearly – 15 Minutes/Day Accent Course‎.

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