What was that? 👂Would you please repeat that? I’m sorry, what did you say?

Sometimes it can be difficult to identify each word when someone is speaking a language you are learning. Do you often need to ask these questions in English because you didn’t understand what the person said?  How can this be helped?!

Let’s take a look at 4 steps for success:

Step 1. Take a look at common pronunciation in the accent you often hear.

With a USA or American English accent “Tree” is pronounced “tchree”. “Try” is pronounced “tchreye”.

There are so many examples.

Step 2. Learn common contractions and combos.

“How did it go?” Might become: “How’d it go?”

Step 3. Learn commonly excluded words.

It can be helpful to think of them as invisible words 🙂 Native speakers know they are there, but it can be confusing if you’re used to a basic or textbook way of speaking.

“Did you eat lunch yet?” Might become: “You eat lunch yet?”

Step 4. Learn common expressions.

This step can be really fun, and funny, too! Expressions are generally different between languages and are usually odd if translated directly to another language 🙃🙂 .

For example: “Look what the wind blew in!”

Meaning: “It’s a surprise to see you!”

With these steps, comprehension can be made easy.

-You Are Learning English Team

A group of experienced and certified ESL and English as a Foreign Language teachers.