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  • Today I'm going to teach you how to speak English better with ten super practical tips.

  • This is one you don't want to miss guys. So let's get going.

  • Hey guys and welcome to Eat Sleep Dream English. If you haven't met me before my name is Tom

  • and I teach fresh modern British English so that you can take your English to the next

  • level and achieve your life goals, whatever they may be. Now today we're looking at ten

  • super useful tips that are going to help you to improve your spoken English. Now these

  • tips are practical guys. These are things that you can do today to improve your English.

  • I'm not going to give you like 'oh practise more' 'be more confident' none of that stuff!

  • This is practical stuff. Stuff that you can really do to make a difference. Alright so

  • let's get going with number one. Ok, the first tip is to start learning collocations. When

  • we start learning English or start learning a new language we learn individual words.

  • You learn the word rain and you know what rain is but we rarely ever just say the word

  • rain in a sentence it will often go with other words. We call these collocations. A collocation

  • is when words go together frequently. They are seen together frequently, it's like a

  • pattern. So for example with rain, you learn the word rain but then learn the collocations.

  • So for example what adjectives go with rain? Well, I can think of a few. Heavy rain, that

  • means a lot of rain. Another word for that is torrential rain. Ok, so they both mean

  • a lot of rain. What's the opposite, light rain. So a little bit of rain. So as you can

  • see you are getting collocations, you are building up little chunks of language that

  • are going to help you when it comes to speaking English. Because you are going to know these

  • units to put into your sentences. So instead of learning one word try and build up units

  • of language that we call collocations. Number two, think about when and where you are going

  • to use your English and then study the language that you need for that situation. So for example

  • I did a video about going to a hotel and using English to help you in a hotel. Now if you

  • are ever going to travel with English that is a great place to start because you are

  • going to stay in a hotel. So learning phrases like 'what time is check out?' is going to

  • be super useful for you in that situation. That's the sentence that I would use in that

  • situation. So if you learn that phrases, you are using the same phrases that a native English

  • speaker would use. So think about the context in which you are going to use your English

  • and learn the specific vocabulary or phrases for that situation. Now related to that is,

  • in that situation try and predict what you might be asked or what phrases you might need

  • to use. So let's stay with the hotel context now I didd a video all about useful hotel

  • English which I'll link right above. In that video I looked at five phrases that a receptionist

  • might ask you or five questions that a receptionist might ask you. Now what you can do is anticipate

  • those questions and be prepared with your own phrases. So for example they might ask

  • you 'Can I help you with anything?' Now if they ask you this question, you will need

  • a phrase to make a request. So 'I was wondering if you could...' and then the thing so 'I

  • was wondering if you could tell me the nearest ATM'? or 'Please could you tell me the nearest

  • ATM?' So anticipating what they are going to ask you and what phrases you are going

  • to need in that situation and then preparing for it. Number four is super practical. Use

  • vague language to help you in situations when you don't know the English word. So if you

  • are trying to explain to someone a word you could throw in stuff or thing or something.

  • So for example 'What's that thing you use to travel around London?' Oh it's an Oyster

  • card, yes that's the one. So you didn't know the word Oyster card, you use the word thing

  • to replace it. So you know the word thing. Thing could be anything, it could be an oyster

  • card, a book, a light whatever. It doesn't matter. If you don't know the noun you can

  • use the word thing or stuff. OR if you are trying to describe it, it's a kind of card

  • you use to travel around London, what is it? Oh it's an Oyster card, ok. so it's a kind

  • of or a sort of. So using these vague bits of language can help you when you don't know

  • actual words. Perfect for that situation when you just can't remember the word or you don't

  • know the word. So related to that tip is to use your own language in a situation where

  • you don't know a word and you are trying to describe it to someone. So for example you

  • might say 'In my language we say una manzana, it's a kind of fruit. it's green, it's kind

  • of red.' They might know the word in your language so if you are really struggling say

  • the thing in your language, possibly the person might know what you are talking about. Now

  • for those of you that have been watching Eat Sleep Dream English for a long time, you'll

  • know how much I love semi-fixed expressions. Semi-fixed expressions are expressions that

  • are semi-fixed. That means that part of it is fixed and cannot be changed and part of

  • it can be changed and is very flexible and you can put different ideas in there depending

  • on the situation. So one of my favourite phrases to reject an invitation politely 'I'd love

  • to but...' and then the thing, maybe I'm busy or I have plans. That is a perfect semi-fixed

  • expression. You've got the wonderful phrase there I'd love to but and then you can change

  • the ending depending on the situation. So already you have half the sentence fixed in

  • your brain. You know I'd love to but because it's the same every time. I'd love to but

  • I'm busy. I'd love to but I've got plans. I'd love to but I'm washing my hair. Whatever

  • the thing is. You just change that second part of the sentence and you've got a beautiful

  • English sentence. So learning semi-fixed expressions can really help you to get more fluent and

  • to create sentences more easily. One way to really focus on your pronunciation and therefore

  • your speaking is to notice natural speech patterns and in particular intonation. So

  • when you are watching a British TV show or you are listening to an interview or you are

  • watching the news or whatever it might be listen in for exactly how they say the sentence

  • and maybe try and repeat it yourself. Try and replicate it. It's called the mirroring

  • technique, when you listen to someone and you try and do exactly the same thing. You

  • try to repeat exactly what they say and more importantly how they say it. So for example

  • 'I'm absolutely knackered'. Ok, try and repeat that. Alright try again 'I'm absolutely knackered.'

  • So are you noticing that stress on the absolutely. I'm absolutely knackered. That means I'm really

  • tired, basically. So if you are mirroring someone's speech, if you are listening closely

  • to how they say it and then repeating it and trying to get it exactly the same that will

  • really improve your intonation and sounding more natural in your own speech. So maybe

  • pick a TV series that you like. Really notice how they say phrases and sentences and then

  • try and repeat them. Staying with pronunciation, it's really important for you to get your

  • mouth used to making sounds in English. Now I know a lot of sounds are different from

  • your language so your mouth and the muscles in your mouth aren't used to making those

  • shapes and therefore those sounds. So practise is super important. Take the word 'comfortable'.

  • Ok, there are a few sounds going on there. Comfortable. Now you've got to watch what

  • your mouth is doing 'comfortable'. Get your mouth use to making that shape, ok? Now that's

  • really important, you've got to practise, you've got to, it's like going to the gym

  • and training your body. You are not going to get the body you want just by lifting one

  • weight once. You've got to do it over and over again and you've got to repeat it over

  • and over again. It's just the same with the mouth. Get these muscles use to making the

  • shapes that you want to make the sounds that you want. So practice is so key and being

  • aware of what your mouth is doing and maybe looking in the mirror as you are making these

  • sounds or saying these words and seeing what's going on in your mouth, ok? Super important.

  • Practice and repetition are so important. Ok, and the last two kind of go together.

  • First of all I want you to take a sentence and break it up into speech units. Now a speech

  • unit is a couple of words or a phrase that we would say in one and then we would pause

  • and then maybe say the next part and then pause and say the next part. And that helps

  • you to say the sentence clearly and fluently. So let's take this sentence 'I'd love to live

  • abroad but I don't want to leave my family' Ok, so break that down into speech units that

  • you can say together so 'I'd love to live abroad but I don't want to leave my family'.

  • So you can see there we are breaking it up. I'd love to live abroad but I don't want to

  • leave my family.' So you break the sentence up into how we would say it, chop it up and

  • then practise and then build it up in terms of speed so start slowly 'I'd love to live

  • abroad but I don't want to leave my family.' Ok, so speech units super important. Taking

  • a sentence and breaking it up into how we would say it not just how it's written. Ok

  • and that flows into the last one number ten, which is use a voice recorder to record your

  • voice saying these sentences and listening back and comparing how you think you said

  • it to how you actually said it, ok? So recording on your phone, your phone has a voice recorder,

  • use that to record yourself. If you are lucky enough to have someone that can speak English

  • really well maybe it's an English speaking friend or someone that has learned it at a

  • high level then maybe they could listen to it and give you some tips on how to improve

  • it. Maybe one part you need to say slightly differently, but yeah record your voice. Wow,

  • ok that was ten practical tips. What did you think guys? Did you find those useful? Let

  • me know in the comments below, which one did you find most useful and which one are you

  • going to try and use today in your English? Obviously if you have any other tips for improving

  • your spoken English then let me know in the comments below, share your ideas with the

  • rest of the Eat Sleep Dream English community. Guys before you go anywhere remember to get

  • on to Instagram and follow my Instagram account and my Instagram stories and of course I'm

  • on Facebook as well. You know of course by now that I've got new videos every Tuesday

  • and every Friday helping you take your English to the next level. Thank you so much for hanging

  • out with me guys, I hope you found that one useful. I felt like we dug into some really

  • interesting stuff there. So yeah let me know. Hit me with big thumbs up and of course subscribe.

  • Alright guys, thank you so much, this is Tom, the chief dreamer, saying goodbye.

Today I'm going to teach you how to speak English better with ten super practical tips.

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