14 Smart Keys to Speak English fluently

1. Don’t worry too much about making Mistakes

Many students worry that they are prone to make a mistake and that the people listening will not understand them.  Please understand that English is a foreign language, and we are bound to make mistakes in the initial stages of learning.  If you are too sensitive about making mistakes and trying to convey information perfectly, most likely your efforts will only frustrate your partner in conversation.

In speaking English, you probably fell that you’re making hundreds of mistakes-but, in fact, you’re only making five or six mistakes hundreds of times.

Get over your shyness and hesitation. Use the language as often as you can; the more you speak the faster you will learn.  The more often you speak, the easier it becomes.

2. Don’t try to avoid ‘fillers’, ‘noises’, ‘repetition of words’, ‘pauses’ etc.,

Go through the following piece of ‘real’ English taken from an interview with tennis player Goran Ivanisevic just after he had won the Wimbledon Tennis Championship.

“This was my dream, all my life and..er…you know…to serve for the match, suddenly I have a match point out of nowhere, you know…I came here, nobody even talked about me and now I am holding this trophy.  And it’s, it’s just…the support today is like..er…I mean…I was…er… three times in the final but this, this is just unbelievable, this is too good…”

When a spoken interview is written down, we can see that many of the sentences are not grammatically correct and that the speaker repeats words to give himself time to think, about what he is saying.  He also uses fillers like ‘er..’ which are ‘repetition of words’, ‘pauses’ etc., are the life of spoken language.  If these features are absent, your speech will have no life in it.

Most of the students fail to learn spoken English because they deliberately try to avoid the ‘fillers’, ‘noises’, ‘repetition of words’, ‘pauses’ etc.

As you listen to native speakers, you will notice that they use ‘filler’ phrases to varying degrees.  These are phrases like “What I’m trying to say is . . . “, “If you know what I mean . . . “,” Let me think a minute here… “etc., which give speakers a small space to think before they express their next idea.

Now, tell me, is this the problem you also face while trying to speak English? Yes, when you want to speak English you try to speak without any mistakes: in other words, you try to speak just like written English.  And naturally the result will be disastrous. So remember: don’t try to avoid ‘fillers’, ‘noises’, ‘repetition of words’, ‘pauses’ etc., while speaking English. These ‘fillers’, ‘noises’, ‘repetition of words’, ‘pauses’ etc., are the life of spoken language.

3. Don’t Speak Fast

Being fluent does NOT mean speaking quickly.  It is better to speak slowly and clearly than quickly and incoherently. Speak too quickly with the wrong intonation and rhythm; and native speakers will have a hard time understanding you.  Don’t worry about your listener getting impatient with your slow speech.  It is more important that everything you say is understood.

4. Be a confident Speaker.

It is easy to become nervous if you only focus on grammar rules when you are speaking.  But as you see from Goran Ivanisevic’s interview (see key 2 on page 8), what you want to say is more important than how you say it! The key to relaxing when you are speaking is to talk about something which you find really INTERESTING. Speaking is easier when you have something to say, and you are enjoying the conversation.

If you are very nervous, try to practice saying what you want to say yourself a few times- in other words rehearse what you want to say.  Planning and rehearsal can make your speaking more confident.  Try to keep a relaxed attitude! If you are TOO worried about correctness, your speech may be filled with pauses!

People who say “I can’t speak English well” are correct.  People who say “Every day in every way, my English is getting better and better” are also correct.  What you think is what you get. Practice saying the second sentence every day, and you will see greater improvement in your English and in your confidence.

5. Be aware of Chunks

Becoming aware of chunks is another way to improve your fluency. When you listen to English News, there are probably phrases or groups of words which you hear together all the time.  For example when announcers begin talking about a programe which is about to start, they usually say, “Coming up next is….” In this situation ‘coming up next’ is a chunk of language – a phrase or group of words which you hear together all the time. While learning English, it is very important to notice how words are often heard together. By learning and using useful chunks of language you can begin to sound more fluent.

Our brain tends to store language in chunks, rather than individual words.  Thus, when we speak or write, it is more efficient for us to remember and use phrases as chunks rather than constructing them one word at a time.   This increased efficiency promotes fluency.

While focusing on phrases rather than individual words, you can begin to build your store of language chunks.  This can help you become more fluent because you will not need to think about each individual word in the sentence.

6. Don’t follow written English Style/ Don’t learn by heart

Don’t try to follow a formal written English style while speaking English. Don’t make deliberate attempts to speak full and complete sentences as in written English. Also don’t try to connect your sentences through logical connectors like ‘Above all’, ‘in addition to’ etc.

7. Speak Spontaneously

Don’t try to speak sentences translated from other languages. Always speak spontaneously. Talk to yourself, rehearsing conversations and explanations you might need to do. Play back in your mind language what you just heard, mimicking intonation, stress and rate of speech. This will help you to think in English, improve your fluency and reduce your anxiety about speaking English.

8. Don’t worry about starting trouble

Even native speakers of English find it difficult to get started. In fact this is something that is a normal part of their everyday speech. So, don’t let the starting trouble disturb you.  Using discourse markers is a good idea in handling starting trouble.

Okay, all right, right then, well, hmm’, you know, like, etc., are all examples of discourse markers used in conversation. They are employed to give the speaker a second to think about what he wants to say.

Like is very heavily used as filler at the moment, especially by young adults and teenagers. For many young people it has become a speech habit. Here are some examples of use:

That strong wind that caused all the damage to the beach huts. That was back in – like/let’s see – October?

I don’t ever throw my rubbish away in the street. I – like/you know – care about the environment and stuff.

She didn’t get the joke! I’m – like – laughing my head off, but she couldn’t see what was funny about it.

He phoned me to say it was all over. I said – like – you can’t do that to me.

You’re from Tunbridge Wells. That’s like / let’s see – south of London?

He was rapping away like Eminem. And I’m – like – wow!

9. Hear English Everywhere

You are very good at languages. That’s obvious, because you already speak one language very well – your own! And if you can learn and speak one language well, then you can certainly learn and speak one or more other languages.

But did you ever ask yourself: “How did I learn my own language?” In fact, you never really “learned” it at all – you just started speaking it. One day, when you were about two or three years old, you started speaking your language.  A few words at first, not full sentences. But you spoke. And very soon you made progress without even thinking about it. It was like magic!

But it wasn’t magic. It was the result of hearing. For two to three years before you spoke, you heard people speaking your language all day and maybe all night. You heard people speaking your language. Maybe you listened to people, but more importantly you heard them. Then, as if by magic, you started to speak. All that hearing was necessary for you to start speaking. For two to three years, words went IN to your head. Then words came OUT of your head! That is why hearing (and listening to) English as much as possible is so important to you now. The more English you put in, the more you’ll get out!

So how can you hear a lot of English when you’re not in an English-speaking country or family? Fortunately, there are many ways of hearing English in al most all countries of the world.

Radio:

You can receive English language radio in most countries. Two of the best international networks are the BBC World Service and Voice of America. Both of them have special programmes for learners of English. In addition to this you can make it a habit to listen to News broadcast by All India Radio.

Television:

TV is an excellent resource for hearing and listening to English. The pictures help you understand what is being said. Again BBC, CNN, DD News, NDTV24/7, Star News etc, and the good choices to serve our purpose.  When you are watching T.V. observe the mouth movements of the speakers. Repeat what they are saying, imitating the intonation and rhythm of their speech.

Music/Songs

Songs in English are everywhere, even on foreign-language radio and TV stations. Listen to them often. Buy some cassettes or CDs, or make recordings, and try to write down the lyrics of an entire song. But choose one that is not too difficult. That means it should be reasonably slow, and with the words sung clearly. Some pop songs are very unclear and are difficult even for native English-speakers to understand fully!

Cinema

Make it a habit to go to English films. If you need to read the sub-titles, at least you’ll be hearing English even if you don’t understand it.

CD Player /Computer

CD Player has one really great advantage. You can hear/watch repeatedly by replaying them. If there are sub-titles, you can cover them with paper (which you can remove if you really don’t understand after listening several times). And you can record programmes from Radio/ television and then watch them several times to improve your understanding.

Friends

Try to make friendship with English – speaking people so that you can practice your English through conversation. This will serve as an exercise for your speaking as well as listening. And if you don’t have a lot of time to go out and meet people, at least you can chat a little by telephone.

Speak lots of English with your friends, both natives and foreign nationals. You improve your spoken English by speaking English in different situations with people of all nationalities. If you want to speak English better in the future, speak it as much as possible Now!

Speak lots of English with your friends, both natives and foreign nationals. You improve your spoken English by speaking English in different situations with people of all nationalities. If you want to speak English better in the future, speak it as much as possible Now!

Finally, don’t worry if you don’t understand everything you hear. Hearing comes first! Understanding comes next! Even if you don’t understand everything, you will still be learning. It is possible to understand the content even if you know only 30% of the words that you hear! Your listening ability will improve day by day – and it’s fun!

10. Develop your Vocabulary

Even native speakers of a language have both an active and a passive vocabulary. Active vocabulary consists of the words you use frequently and comfortably in speaking and writing, while passive vocabulary consists of the words you recognize when you read and listen.

Typically, a language speaker’s passive vocabulary is much bigger than his/her ‘active’ one.

When you encounter a new word or expression that you want to learn, do you simply want to be able to recognize it again or is it important to make it part of your ‘active’ vocabulary?

Make a list of frequently used words that are difficult for you to pronounce and ask a native speaker or consult a dictionary and learn its correct pronunciation. Record these words listen to them and practice saying them.

Take an active approach to learning new words. If you and add 5 words a day, to your vocabulary, 6 days a week (you can rest for one day), you will learn about 130 new words a month; 10 words a day would bring you over 260 new words a month! Because you are searching for words that you want to know, it will be easier to remember them. (Hint- approach new words by subject: things in the kitchen, things in the bedroom, things connected to your hobbies, etc.) Do it this way:

a)      Keep a small notebook handy: Think of a word you know in your mother tongue. As you read, study, listen to TV or talk with other people, note down words and expressions that you think would be helpful for you. Note that often, certain words are used together frequently, particularly in specific disciplines. It’s helpful to note down not just individual words but sets of words that seem to frequently appear together. You will sound more fluent and comprehensible if you use words in combinations as native speakers do. When you find the English word, write it down on the left side of your vocabulary note book.

b)      Look it up in your dictionary. Refer only an English – English dictionary. Get into the habit of looking up words in a dictionary every now and then. Become familiar with the phonetic symbols of your dictionary and look up the correct pronunciation of words when you are not sure.

c)      Write the English definition on the right side of the page.

d)     Copy a sentence from the dictionary. This will help you learn how to use the word correctly. Do not yet write your own sentence. Practice reading this sentence until it becomes natural for you.

11. Make Substitutions

If you learn some basic sentences in English, you will be able to make unlimited number of sentences based on this basic structure. This process is called substitution. Let us see how it works:

Basic sentence: Do you speak English?

Substitutions: 1. Do you speak Hindi?

            Do you speak Spanish?

            Do you speak Tamil?

            Do you speak Greek?

            Do you speak Italian?

(Just imagine how many sentences you can make substituting English)

            2. Do your sisters speak English?

            Do your parents speak English?

            Do your brothers speak English?

            Do your lawyers speak English?

            Do your teachers speak English?

(Just imagine how many sentences you can make substituting you into you’re…)

3. Do you speak English fluently?

            Do you speak English rapidly?

            Do you speak English very well?

            Do you speak English correctly?

(Just imagine how many sentences you can make adding one more word)

12. Read aloud

Flex the muscles of your mouth! Understanding something doesn’t mean that muscles of your mouth can produce the sounds. Practice speaking aloud what you are learning.  It may seem strange, but it is very effective. Read aloud in English for fifteen to twenty minutes each day. This will help you strengthen the mouth muscles that you use when you speak English. Research has shown that it take s about three months of daily practice to develop strong mouth muscles for speaking a new language.

13. Read a book

Find a book that is not too difficult – don’t be embarrassed to start with a children’s storybook with pictures! Once you feel comfortable with these kinds of books, you can start reading simple short stories and then graduate to novels. By reading a story, you create a picture in you r imagination that will connect different parts of your brain to English. They will definitely give you a lot of exposure to those structures, words and expressions that are used every day in real-life speech. Books written by James Hadley Chase, Arthur Hailey, Erle Stanely Gardner, and John Grisham are ideal from this point of view. Do not stop every time you find a new word. Guess what the word probably means, continue reading, and check in your dictionary at the end of the page or chapter.

14. Record your own voice

Record your own voice and listen for pronunciation mistakes. Many people hate to hear the sound of their voice and avoid having to listen to themselves speaking. However, this is a very important exercise because doing it will help you become conscious of the mistakes that you are making.

In the following pages you will find a number of sentences or word groups, conveniently classified into different categories. Read these sentences or word groups aloud several times. Please don’t try to learn by-heart. Your sub-conscious mind will do that job, even without your knowledge, and rush into your tongue whenever it is required. Yes, your job is just read these word groups aloud several times. While reading these sentences or word groups, you may feel that, these are all primary level sentences and word groups. If you have any such feelings, give it up, because the aim of this practice is not to improve your understanding of the meanings of the sentences or word groups, but to help you get your organs of speech, which are used to working in a particular way, the English language wants them to work.