How can i improve my speaking skills

How Can I Improve My English Speaking Power?

Perhaps you just need more confidence, which means holding your head up high when you speak.

It means not being afraid to make mistakes and accepting them when you do.

Contents

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Become a More Confident English Speaker

But how can you do that? You can become a more confident English speaker by…

FluentU takes authentic videos—like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks—and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.

You can try FluentU for free for 2 weeks. Click here to check out the website or download the iOS app or Android app.

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Even the best public speakers need to practice before giving a speech—one of the most popular TED speakers ever practiced her speech over 200 times before going on stage!

Of course, you can’t practice your exact responses to every question you might be asked during the day. But you can practice how to breathe, speak correctly and, most importantly, improvise—make things up!

Now, let’s start with something you probably don’t even think about: breathing.

Improve Your English Speaking Power with 7 Powerful, Proven Techniques

1. Practice breathing

Do you know how to breathe? Of course you do! You’re doing it right now.

Breathing is an important part of speaking—it can help you relax, and it can help your fluency (if you run out of breath in the middle of a sentence, you have to stop!). Many public speakers, actors and other people who use their voices a lot practice their breathing before they do their speaking.

To practice breathing, stand (or sit) up straight. Count how long your inhales and exhales take. Try making the exhales (breathing out) last twice as long as the inhales (breathing in)—this is also a basic yoga relaxation technique. Do you feel more relaxed yet?

Warm up your throat by humming as you exhale. Move your tongue around in your mouth. Your mouth needs exercise too sometimes!

2. Make vowel sounds

Prepare your mouth for speaking by making the sounds of the vowels A, E, I, O and U. Make a shape with your mouth as you make these sounds. Exaggerate the sounds and shapes—that means make them both very large and obvious.

This exercise will help your pronunciation of the sounds, since it makes it easier to hear the difference between a cat and a cut (a cat can give you a cut, but a cut can never give you a cat! That’s just silly).

3. Fast and slow speech

This is a great exercise to record. Most phones come with a basic recorder or video camera, but you can also get one here for Android and here for iOS.

Find a short paragraph that’s at your reading level. You can find lots of short reading passages at different levels on this DePaul University Center for Urban Education page, or open your favorite English book to a random page and choose a paragraph or two.

Record yourself reading the passage out loud in two different ways—first as fast as you can, then very slowly.

Listen to the recordings. How do they sound? You should have felt a difference when you were speaking, too. Speaking slowly helps you work on pronunciation and enunciation (how clearly you say things). Speaking fast helps you work on your fluency, since you’re not worrying about every single word you say.

4. Improvisation

Improvisation (or improv for short) means making things up in the moment. There are a lot of really fun improvisation ideas that are even more fun in a group (one improv exercise is all about acting like an animal—it won’t help your English, but it sure is fun!).

Here are two improvisation ideas that you can do on your own:

Practicing improv is a good way to get more comfortable speaking with others, since it teaches you to speak without preparation.

5. Speak for two minutes

This is another kind of improvisation, which can help improve your fluency and increase your confidence.

Set a timer (on your phone or clock) for two minutes. Choose a random topic—you can find everyday topics to talk about at Conversation Starters or more thoughtful prompts (ideas) at Writing Exercises.

Now speak about that topic for the full two minutes without giving yourself time to think about it.

The first minute might be hard, but hopefully by the second minute you will start to speak more confidently and comfortably. Try this as many times as it takes to get comfortable within the first minute.

Next time someone asks you to tell them about yourself, you’ll be ready!

6. Say tongue twisters slowly

Tongue twisters are phrases and sentences that are difficult to say quickly. They’re meant to be said fast for fun, to see how fast you can get before your tongue gets confused.

Saying them slow, though, is an excellent way to work on your pronunciation and how clearly you speak.

Choose one of the many tongue twisters found on this site and say it slowly, making sure to correctly and clearly say every word.

7. Speak in gibberish

Now that you’ve practiced being understood, it’s time to say some nonsense!

Speaking in gibberish means speaking with made-up words that don’t mean anything. Sit or stand in front of a mirror or another person, and try to have a conversation without using any real words. You can say nonsense words, or even say the ABCs.

How could this possibly help your English skills? Speaking is not just about the words—your body and tone (how you say things) make a huge difference in how well you are understood.

As you speak in gibberish, use your hands, body and tone of voice to make the nonsense words into something meaningful. Try showing that you’re sad, angry, happy, confused. See how much sense you can make when you’re not even using real words?

It’s important to know English well in order to speak it. But it’s also important to know how to speak. These exercises will make a big difference in your confidence and how well you speak English. And you’ll have fun while you do them, too!

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How to Improve English Speaking Skills and Become a Great Communicator

English is the world’s most studied language — around 20% of the world speaks English. Knowing how to speak English can open new life possibilities: from traveling more easily to communicating with more people, and even getting better jobs. It also means that you can study higher education at some of the world’s top institutions, including the University of the People’s online programs, which are tuition-free! If you are looking for advice on how to improve english speaking skills, there are plenty of methods and techniques.

Photo by Bewakoof.com Official on Unsplash

How To Improve English Speaking Skills

Mastering any skill, including communication skills, comes down to practice. By practicing speaking, you can learn from mistakes and build both your vocabulary and understanding.

Here are some tried and proven methods to enhance your English speaking skills:

Build a Strong Foundation

Foundationally, learning a language comes from understanding the tone, vocabulary, and grammar.

Techniques to Improve English Speaking Skills

There are also a variety of techniques to help improve your English speaking skills. Try your hand (or should we say mouth) at these:

Photo by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash

Frequently Practice to Improve Your English Speaking Skills

From friends to strangers, you can always find someone who speaks English to practice with. Here are a few more ideas on how and where you can speak English:

Strategies and English Trainings

Everyone has their own favorite methods and ways of improving their English communication. There is no one right or wrong choice, so you can pick as many or as few as you wish and mix it up:

Resources

If you want to invest more in learning, consider using the following resources:

Tying it Up: Talk the Talk

English is the most global language. Being able to speak English will widen your possibilities for higher education and career options. It will also help you access some of the best entertainment straight from the source — Hollywood!

When enhancing your speaking skills, be sure to practice a lot. Don’t give up! You can practice by yourself, with the help of friends, or use technology to make it work for you.

How to improve your spoken English: 8 tips

When you ask a language student what their goals are, almost everyone says “improve my speaking”. When learning a foreign language, you’ll find yourself talking with all kinds of native speakers – your teacher, servers in restaurants, taxi drivers and your landlord, so it’s vital that you feel comfortable. Just like improving your writing, listening or any other skill, there are techniques you can use to improve your spoken English in a targeted way. Here are eight of our favorites:

1. Speak, speak, speak

Let’s start right off by saying that there isn’t a magic pill for better speaking. That would be too easy, right? Basically, the best way to speak better is to, well – speak! Commit to practicing often and with as many different people as possible. Do you already live or study overseas? Take advantage of the thousands of native speakers in your immediate community, such as your friends, their families, your coworkers, classmates, employees at the coffee shops, supermarket, post-office and other places you visit. If you’re learning in your own country, increase your practice time by meeting your classmates after class, finding an language exchange partner or joining an online community of learners.

2. Reflect on your conversations

After your conversation is over, take a moment to reflect. How did it go? How much do you think you understood? How comfortable did you feel with that subject matter? Did you encounter any unknown words? The mere act of thinking about it in this way will increase your confidence for the next time you speak (and give your targeted things to work on, for example vocabulary you didn’t understand).

3. Listen and read

You need words in order to talk, right? Class time is great for learning vocabulary, but there are other ways you can increase yours: Watch movies, listen to music, the radio and to podcasts. Read books, magazines and blogs. When listening and reading, find new and interesting expressions, slang terms and synonyms, write down this new material and look up anything you’re not familiar with. All this will provide more “meat” for you to use next time you practice.

4. Prepare cheat sheets

Part of nervousness around speaking is the feeling of not knowing what to say. To combat this, prepare a cheat sheet. Are you going to the doctor’s? Before your appointment, research vocabulary relating to your condition and some common phrases you’ll probably need. Use the technique before going to pay a bill, eating at a restaurant, job interviews, making a complaint, or for any other situation that might make you anxious.

5. Pick up the phone

Most people find phone conversations particularly challenging. Why? Because on the phone, we can’t see the other person’s body language or watch their mouth move, both of which are tools that really help communication. To feel more confident on the phone, start small with phone conversations with friends – then move on to more challenging calls like making appointments or inquiries. (This is a great time to use tip 4, and prepare a list of questions and useful vocabulary to help you during your call!)

6. Record your voice

We know, we know – most people dislike hearing their voice recorded – but it’s actually an extremely beneficial way to improve your speaking! Hearing yourself on tape shows you things you might not realize (maybe you tend to speak quickly when nervous, swallow your “s’s” or mumble). On the other hand, you could be pleasantly surprised to hear that your speaking is far better than you thought! For bonus points, take your recording to your teacher or to a native speaker friend and have them give you feedback.

7. Learn phrases rather than single words

Another tip to increase your fluency is to speak using a variety of phrases rather than individual words. (You probably do this all the time in your native language.) Instead of automatically asking “Hello, how are you today?”, mix it up by choosing other expressions like “What’s up, man?” “Hey dude!” or “How ya going, mate?” (Be careful though: Some expressions will be very informal and not ideal for some situations!)

8. Have fun

Let’s face it. It’s far easier to learn something new when you’re having fun. Inject silliness into your speaking practice by talking to yourself when you’re alone, singing along with popular songs in English, doing tongue twisters (Try our top tongue twisters) or doing one-minute “impromptu speeches” on randomly-chosen topics (such as snakes, coffee, India or subjects such as “If I ruled the world, I would…”, “Three surprising facts about me,” or “Which came first, the chicken or the egg?”). Great practice and great, silly fun.

12 Tips on How to Improve Your English Speaking Skills

English is the world’s lingua franca, a common language that people with different native languages can use to communicate.

The more fluent you are in English, the more interesting, exciting and insightful conversations you can have.

This article will take you beyond the foundational aspects to reach communicative competence.

Contents

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Build a Strong Foundation

In order to express yourself eloquently in English, you need a wide variety of vocabulary and the correct pronunciation.

1. Expand your vocabulary

Learn New Words Every Day

Gleaning new words day in, day out is a good way to widen your vocabulary. Commit to a suitable target: it can be three daily words or it can be ten daily words.

Even if you only have time to learn one new word per day, it is still worth trying. By learning one word every day, after one year you will have learned 365 new English words.

Write the number down to remind yourself frequently. If you have a learning partner, share it with her so that she can check on your progress.

Some good resources for words are the news, songs and TV shows, depending on your daily habits. If you love listening to music, pay attention to the lyrics and take note of the words you do not know. Songs often contain a lot of useful vocabulary, phrases and expressions, therefore, they are great for learning English.

Learning words in context will help you remember them much easier, and you will be surprised by how quickly your vocabulary will grow!

Learn Words in Phrases and Chunks

It is important that you learn words in groups. For example, you refer to beverages as a glass of wine, a pint of beer, a cup of tea, a pot of coffee, etc. It is better to learn those phrases than merely wine, beer, tea and so on.

You can also benefit from learning words that are related. The moon has four phases during a lunar month: crescent, gibbon, waxing and waning. It is more efficient to learn all four words at the same time.

2. Improve your pronunciation

You might know a lot of words, but if you fail to say them correctly, you will not be understood. That seems like a waste of the time spent on remembering words, right?

When using online dictionaries such as Macmillan and Merriam-Webster, make use of the little speaker symbol to check the pronunciation of any word that you are not sure about. There are English pronunciation tutorials on YouTube or podcasts like English Pronunciation Pod or American English Pronunciation to teach you the many aspects of American English pronunciation.

When you are ready for something more challenging, try out tongue twisters. Some examples are available here. Personally, I love the Fork handles sketch from the show “The Two Ronnies.” It might not be a typical example of everyday conversation, but it shows you the richness of spoken English. Besides, you will have a good laugh.

Learning with these types of authentic videos is key to improving your pronunciation because you are listening to media by and for native speakers.

But finding videos on your own, or trying to learn with just a video can sometimes be tricky. If you need some help finding relevant English videos with examples of authentic pronunciation, FluentU‘s online learning program is filled with real content and extra tools to help you get started.

The videos on the program each have interactive subtitles, which allows you to easily see the definition of every word that is spoken. It is great for pronunciation practice, particularly because every word you click on will be automatically added to a personalized word bank, with audio you can listen to later.

If you are looking for a particular word, FluentU has a video dictionary that shows you videos in which each word is spoken. There is also a speaking feature built right in, which allows you to focus on any pronunciation or intonation that might be tricky. The easiest part is that the platform is available as a website and app (Google Play and App Store), so you can brush up on your speaking skills on the go.

3. Learn the natural flow of English

Being able to say individual words correctly is great, but the secret of speaking fluently in English lies in the flow of sentences. Whenever you read a piece of poetry, listen to a melodic song or watch a hilarious sitcom, pay attention to the following:

4. Build English speaking confidence

One of the biggest barriers to developing English speaking skills is confidence. It is certainly something that all language learners have difficulty with and one of the best ways to overcome this is to get out there and practice.

The best way to do this is to try speaking English with strangers!

The following video gives some tips about avoiding mistakes, and that can help you to focus on a sometimes forgotten component of language learning: confidence! It is possible to rid yourself of any English speaking fear by building a strong foundation in the language.

Techniques to Improve English Speaking Skills

Now that you have a strong foundation, you can apply some techniques to hone (improve) your English speaking skills.

5. Speech shadowing

In a nutshell, this technique is about imitation. You listen to how a native speaker says something and try to copy it.

With enough shadowing, you’ll naturally get closer to sounding like a native speaker. Just make sure to pick videos with the same kind of English accent!

6. Self-talk

Talk to yourself in English loudly. It can be anything from a suggestion like, “Shall we go get a glass of water?” or a reminder, “I need to do a load of laundry today.”

Alternatively, pick up a book and read a couple of pages out loud. This exercise might slow down your reading, but it will speed up your speaking skills.

You can also record yourself, listen to the recording and watch out for any wrong pronunciations. If it is possible, ask for feedback from a native speaker.

7. Think in English

If you already think in English, it takes less time to produce or respond in everyday conversations. No translation needed!

A good way to start rethinking is to keep a diary where you express your daily thoughts in English. It does not have to be perfect, it is more about getting out thoughts in English with less and less effort.

8. Retell a story in English

Take the challenge a step further by retelling a story. You retrace other people’s line of thoughts in your own words.

I would start with a familiar story from your culture. Your translation needs to convey not only the meaning of words but all rhetorical and cultural nuances.

Alternatively, you can choose different words to retell a simple story in English. Start from the basics, reading something like a fairy tale or a fable. Either way will be beneficial to your English communication skills.

Frequently Practice to Improve Your English Speaking Skills

Practice makes perfect, so do speak English in plenty. Some people think that they do not have the opportunity to practice speaking because they do not live in the US or another English-speaking country. They might also be discouraged because English is not used at their workplace, or they do not know any native speakers.

There is some validity in those excuses, but do not let them hinder your learning. Thanks to the growth of globalization and technology, you have more chances than ever to practice speaking English. You’ll find many ideas below.

9. Participate in public speaking events

Big universities, theaters and culture societies organize events like open debates, spoken word readings and improvised storytelling gatherings. These are places where you can come and mingle with like-minded people and practice speaking English.

Many cities are now hosting TED or TEDx talks where you can register to participate and share your innovative ideas. Check the events page of your local university to see if there are any available. It might be a nerve-racking experience, but it would be great for your English!

10. Go to language cafes

If public speaking terrifies you (and I know it does for many), you can opt for language cafes. Those cafes create a friendly and relaxing atmosphere for people who want to practice and exchange languages.

You can find language cafes through local universities or the Meetup groups available in your cities.

11. Using apps

Another option is to use an app to talk to native speakers online, in the comfort of your own home. Some popular apps are HelloTalk and Tandem. Basically, you register for an account, introduce yourself, your native language and your hobbies. The app will find you some matches—the people who speak English and want to practice the language you know well. All you need to do is to press a few buttons and start talking.

12. Chat with Siri

I find chatting with Siri is a great way to force myself to speak more clearly. As Siri is a machine, you cannot rely on environmental clues and facial gestures to get your ideas across. Your words are the only tool you have to make yourself understood. Thus, you need to speak as clearly and precisely as you could.

Another plus point of using Siri is that she is always available (as long as your phone is charged and connected to a WiFi network). Just press the home button and start asking questions.

If you own an Android smartphone, you can practice speaking with Google Now.

So, off you go! Choose your preferred method to expand your vocabulary, correct your pronunciation, and boost your English speaking with the methods that are right for you. Do not forget to practice as much as possible.

Quynh Nguyen works as a freelance communication professional while traveling the world. She loves learning languages, riding a bike and having nice cups of tea. Connect with her @QuynhThuNguyen or visit her at www.quynh.nl.

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How to Improve Spoken English (Without a Speaking Partner!): 27 Incredible Methods

Can you practice speaking English on your own?

The answer is absolutely!

Here are 27 time-tested tips for improving your spoken English, all by yourself!

Contents

1. Think in English

Sometimes, the difficult thing about English speaking isn’t the language itself, but how you think about it.

If you think in your native language and then try to speak English, you’ll always have to translate between languages. Translating isn’t an easy thing to do! Even people fluent in two or more languages have trouble switching between languages.

The solution is to think in English.

You can do this anywhere, anytime.

Try to use English when you’re thinking about your day, or when you’re trying to decide what food to order.

Even try to use an English-to-English dictionary to look up words. That way, you never have to use your native language and translate words.

You’ll notice that when you think in English, it’s easier for you to speak in English, too.

2. Learn from English Media on FluentU

English-language movies, TV shows and other native content are helpful for language learners. These types of videos help you learn about the natural flow of conversations, pronunciation and everyday vocabulary.

But watching English-language media can also be quite difficult.

Native speakers talk fast with many different accents. You also have to pause videos and check a dictionary every time you hear a word you don’t understand.

FluentU helps you learn from and enjoy music videos, movie trailers and other English language clips. It’s a language learning website, iOS and Android app, with fun videos for every level and learning tools to help you understand everything the native speakers are saying.

For example, the media clips have interactive subtitles. That means you can click on any word in the subtitles—this will pause the video and show you the word’s definition, pronunciation, image and other videos that include that word.

You can also add that word to your personal flashcards so you can practice later. These flashcards also have the same learning aids as the interactive subtitles.

There’s a short quiz after each video that will ask you questions about vocabulary and grammar from the clip. You can also speak and record your answers to test your pronunciation.

3. Pay Attention to Stressed Sounds

English uses stresses in words and sentences. That means when you speak English you’ll need to stress, or emphasize, certain words and syllables (sounds) to give them different meanings.

Listen to where native speakers place the emphasis when they speak. Try to repeat it the same way to improve English stress in your own speech.

This won’t only help you speak English well, it might even reduce misunderstandings.

Sometimes, placing the stress on the wrong syllable completely changes the word. The word ADdress, for instance, isn’t the same as the word adDRESS. ADdress refers to a physical location where someone lives, and adDRESS means to formally speak to a group of people.

Listen to how both of these words are pronounced right after each other on Forvo. Can you tell the difference?

Learn to hear the difference!

4. Talk to Yourself

If you’re already thinking in English, try speaking your thoughts out loud.

Practice is practice, and even if you don’t have anyone to correct your mistakes, just the act of speaking out loud will help you become more comfortable speaking English.

5. Master English Registers

In order to communicate effectively in English, you need to know the different English registers that exist.

A register is a different set of words and phrases that you use depending on the situation you find yourself in.

For example, the way you speak English to a friend is different from the way you would speak to a child, and that would be different from the English you would speak in a business meeting.

To improve your speaking, you need to move effortlessly between all registers of English. This means you should know what register to use with your friends, at work and with people you meet for the first time.

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6. Use a Mirror

Whenever you can, take a few minutes out of your day to stand in front of the mirror and speak. Choose a topic, set a timer for two or three minutes and just talk.

The point of this exercise is to watch your mouth, face and body language as you speak. It also makes you feel like you’re talking to someone, so you can pretend you’re having a discussion with a study buddy.

Talk for the full two or three minutes. Don’t stop!

If you get stuck on a word you don’t know, try expressing your idea in a different way. You can always look up how to say that word after the two to three minutes end.

This will definitely help you find out what kinds of words or sentences you have trouble with.

7. Focus on English Fluency, Not Grammar

When you speak in English, how often do you stop?

The more you stop, the less confident you sound and the less comfortable you become. Try the mirror exercise above, but challenge yourself to speak without stopping or stammering (taking pauses between your words) the entire time.

This might mean that your sentences won’t be grammatically perfect, and that’s okay!

If you focus on speaking fluently instead of correctly, you’ll still be understood and you’ll sound better. You can fill in the correct grammar and word rules as you learn them better.

8. Try English Tongue Twisters

Tongue twisters are series of words that are difficult to say quickly. One example is: “The thirty-three thieves thought that they thrilled the throne throughout Thursday.”

Try saying this a few times! It’s not easy.

Word games like this will help you find the right placement for your mouth and tongue, and can even help your pronunciation. You can find a list of great tongue twisters here.

9. Listen and Repeat

Following along with TV shows, YouTube videos or other natural English speech to practice sounding natural, too!

Find a short clip that you like, or that uses words that you would say in real life, then repeat it line by line.

Try to match the tone, speed and even the accent (if you can). It doesn’t matter if you miss a few words, the important thing is to keep talking. Try to sound just like the native speakers.

10. Sing Along to English Songs

Singing along to your favorite English songs will help you become more fluent. This is a tried-and-true language learning method that’s backed by science.

Once you can sing along to pop singers like Taylor Swift and Jason Mraz, you can test your skills with something a bit more difficult: rap!

Rap is a great way to practice English because often the words are spoken like regular sentences.

However, the rapper uses a stronger rhythm and faster speed. Some of the words might not make sense, but if you can keep up with the rapper then you’re on your way to becoming fluent!

11. Learn Word Forms with New Words

Some practice comes before you even open your mouth.

Make speaking easier by learning the different forms of any words you learn. You should do this when you’re learning new vocabulary.

For example, if you just learned the word write, you should also learn some other forms like wrote and written.

Knowing the correct way to use a word in any kind of sentence is important. This knowledge will help you while speaking. You won’t have to stop and think of different words—you’ll know exactly when you need to use that word while speaking.

12. Learn Phrases, Not Words

An even better idea to improve English is to learn word phrases, not just words.

You might be using correct grammar and vocabulary, but it’s still not how a native speaker would say it.

For example, you can say “how do you feel today?” but a native speaker might say “how’re you doing?” or “what’s up?” instead. Phrases and expressions can be helpful for sounding more natural when you speak.

13. Learn Your Most Common Sayings

Take some time to really notice how you speak in your native language.

What words and phrases do you use the most often?

Learn how to say your most commonly used phrases and words in English. Knowing them in English will help you speak as well in English as you do in your native language.

To get you started, one of the most basic and useful phrases in English and arguably any language is “I’m sorry.”

“I’m sorry” has lots of different uses and can help with daily interactions as well as more complicated and emotional situations.

The video below shows how important learning basic native expressions can be and how they change depending on the context.

14. Prepare for Specific Situations

Are you learning to speak English for a specific reason?

For example, are you learning English so you can make friends in America? Then you’d need to learn the American English dialect.

What if you’re learning English so you can get a job in an English-speaking company? In that case, practice English that will help you in an interview.

Before you go to a place where you have to speak English, you can practice what you might have to say.

If you’re preparing to go to a restaurant, which phrases do you need to know? Answer the questions a waiter might ask you. Try talking about food and menus.

You’ll feel more confident if you’re prepared!

15. Learn Exceptions and Use Them

If you’ve been learning English for a while, you probably know that it is full of exceptions to its rules.

A lot of learners will get angry at this, but here’s what you can do: Use those exceptions to speak English better!

It would be impossible to learn all the exceptions of the language, but you can focus on groups of exceptions and learn one or two groups every week.

The next step in this tip is to use the exceptions you’ve learned. In order to do this, you can use any other tip on this list. Just take the exceptions and use them as much as you can in your conversations, and soon they’ll be so common for you that you’ll just use them naturally.

Some examples of exceptions or irregularities you can learn are:

Don’t miss “The Chaos of English Pronunciation” poem if you want to see hundreds of pronunciation exceptions in a couple of minutes. Would you be able to learn it by heart? Now, that’s a challenge!

16. Learn the IPA Alphabet

A great tool you can use if you want to pronounce “The Chaos” poem perfectly is the International Phonetic Association (IPA) alphabet or, the IPA chart.

The IPA alphabet is a chart where all the sounds that exist in all the languages in the world are included!

Of course, you only have to learn the sounds of English, but once you do that, you’ll be able to pronounce without hesitation every phonetic transcription you see.

Learning the IPA alphabet can seem very difficult, but it’s totally worth it. Next time you see the transcription [ trænˈskrɪpʃən], you’ll know how to pronounce that word perfectly.

17. Take Online Speaking Courses

You may not have a speaking partner, but guess what you have? Free online speaking courses!

Learning online is becoming more and more popular. Besides, the offer is so huge that many times the price is actually free.

There are thousands of courses online that can help you improve your English speaking skills. I’ve selected three that I’m sure will help you with that:

18. Be Creative

Improving our English speaking skills can be fun if we have a little bit of creativity.

Whatever “fun” means to you, use it to your advantage and include English in it.

For example, try sitting on your couch and looking around.

Find an interesting object and try to describe it in English.

If you’re just starting, you might use easy vocabulary and short sentences. But the better you get, the better you’ll get at this little exercise!

Something else you can try is creative journaling in English. A lot of people think that journaling is the same as keeping a diary, but it’s so much more! The sky’s the limit—as long as the sky is in English.

Finally, try to make your own life difficult. No, I’m not crazy.

Have you ever had a situation where you were trying to say something in English but you got stuck because you couldn’t remember a word? Do that on purpose!

Try to talk about something without using specific words. It’s like a real-life game of “Taboo,” but you make the rules.

In other words, be as creative as you want, and use English all the way.

19. Narrate Your World

Something similar to describing objects is to describe what you see when you’re outside.

If you’re walking to the grocery store or commuting to work, try to describe what you see. It’ll be like having a guided tour of your own surroundings, but the narrator is you!

You don’t have to talk out loud if you don’t want to or you can’t. Do it in your head, instead, and listen to your inner voice.

The more you practice this, the easier it’ll be to have a real conversation with other people. It’ll also help you get into the habit of thinking in English!

20. Read in English

Do you want to improve your speaking skills? Then you have to start reading, as well!

It’s impossible to improve one area of a language (like speaking) if you don’t practice and improve other areas, as well.

Reading helps you to improve your speaking skills because it makes your brain work. When you read, you probably listen to your head or inner voice pronouncing the words.

Besides that, you’re able to learn new words in context that you can use later in your conversations.

Finally, when you read (newspapers, books, graded readers, poetry…), you’ll mostly have contact with correct, well-structured English.

The more you read, the faster your brain will start recognizing patterns and groups of words that normally go together. When those patterns are already in your head, you can use them in your conversations without hesitation.

21. Relax!

You can be your best helper or your worst enemy when learning to speak fluently! I know it’s hard, but you should try not to worry about how you sound when you speak. Just relax!

If you get stuck or confused, just take a big breath and start over. Speak slower if you have to. Take time to pause and think about your next sentence.

Do whatever it takes to become more comfortable with speaking English.

22. Tell a Story from Your Language in English

Here’s a fun way to test how well your spoken English has developed: Choose a story that you know really well and tell it in English.

Remember to think in English as you’re telling your story. Focus on speaking fluently instead of correctly. Say every sentence out loud to yourself.

23. Explore English Dialects

English comes in all kinds of shapes and sizes. Dialects are the different ways in which a language is spoken based on who the speaker is and where they come from.

The United States alone has over 20 English-language dialects, including Southern English, New England English and Western English. Many natives can even guess where a person comes from based on the dialect they use!

There are also English dialects from other countries, such as Canada and the United Kingdom. One of the most popular is the British English dialect, which a lot of people find very fancy and appealing!

Once you become comfortable with standardized English, you can branch out and explore different dialects.

It can make speaking practice quite fun as you learn how the same words are pronounced across different places. Also, learning dialects can teach you different phrases that mean the same thing.

If you want to learn more about different dialects, you can look up videos online (particularly on YouTube) to hear native speakers talking in their unique dialects. You can also find informational videos made by English coaches, who can teach you how to speak in a certain dialect.

Movies are also a great way to listen to dialects. English language films from different countries can show you how a dialect sounds and how it’s used. Plus, you might get some new additions to your “favorite movies” list!

24. Talk to Your Smart Device

Most smartphones and devices let you speak into their microphones so that you can do a lot of things with just your voice, instead of using your fingers. You may have used this to tell Siri or Cortana to do something, or to speak out a message instead of typing it with the keyboard.

These abilities can work fantastically for your speaking practice.

After you switch your device’s language settings to English, you can test how well your spoken English is understood by the device.

The device will be very honest and will show you what words it thinks you’ve said.

From there, you can maybe see if you need to work on anything, whether it’s your pronunciation, grammar or choice of words.

Of course, sometimes the device won’t work at its best, so it won’t always be your fault if what you say isn’t picked up correctly.

25. Use Apps with English Audio

Apps are convenient, fun and interactive. That’s why they’re perfect for on-the-go English studies!

You can easily find apps that let you practice your English speaking skills. They were built to help learners to work on their conversation practice even when they don’t have a speaking buddy.

With these kinds of apps, you can learn a lot of vocabulary and hear audio pronunciations of words and phrases—some even come with review quizzes and a recording tool that can help you track your improvements!

You can also use other kinds of English language apps.

An English dictionary or translation app can give you definitions of words, but they almost always come with short audio clips of how they’re said.

An English flashcard app lets you easily memorize vocabulary with card sets, which can also include audio pronunciations.

Here are some great examples of apps you can use for speaking practice:

And there are many more!

If you’re the kind of person who always has a smart device nearby, then you should fill it up with helpful English learning apps. Whenever you’re bored or have some extra time, you can just open an app and instantly start some English pronunciation practice!

26. Watch and Copy English Speakers

When we were younger, we used to copy what other people said all the time, usually to annoy them. But this practice, called imitation or mimicry, is actually a key method in foreign language learning!

Whenever you watch something that shows the English speakers, try to copy what they say either after or while they talk.

Do your best to match how they say their words. You can also see how their lips are moving to improve your pronunciation.

You don’t only have to do this when watching videos! If you happen to be near people who are speaking English, you can try to repeat useful pieces of what they say in your head or quietly under your breath.

27. Keep Notes on Your Mistakes

Whenever you make mistakes in your spoken English, don’t be embarrassed!

Instead, write down or remember the mistake, whether it’s your pronunciation, grammar or word choice.

Figure out what went wrong and then find any answers you need to fix and understand your errors.

Many of the mistakes you make are likely to be very understandable or common for non-native speakers, so you should never hide from them. Analyzing mistakes is one of the best practices any learner can do so that they can truly improve their skills with confidence.

Even if you have nobody to talk to in English, you can still build confidence and master fluency on your own time.

In some ways, practicing speaking is even easier by yourself! Now you know exactly how to improve spoken English by yourself and should feel confident doing so!

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