Speaking
Most people who say they cannot speak English can, in fact, speak it. What they cannot do is begin.
The real obstacle
Very few adult learners lack the words. What stops them is the moment before speaking: the fear of the mistake, of the pause, of the look on the listener's face.
It is worth saying plainly: that fear is the problem, and it is a bigger problem than your grammar. A learner who speaks badly for a year ends the year speaking well. A learner who waits until their English is ready is still waiting.
Nobody learnt to walk without falling. Nobody learns a language without getting it wrong in front of somebody.
Practising when you have nobody to talk to
Narrate what you are doing
Out loud, alone. I am making tea. The water is boiling. I have forgotten where the sugar is. It feels ridiculous and it works, because the difficulty is producing speech, not knowing words.
Read aloud, five minutes daily
This trains your mouth to make English shapes at speed. It is the closest thing to speaking practice that requires no other person.
Record a two-minute answer
Choose a question — Describe your journey to work — and record yourself answering. Listen back. Record it again. The second attempt is always better, and the improvement is real.
Rehearse the conversation you are going to have
Before the bank, the interview, the telephone call, say your part aloud twice. Rehearsal removes most of the fear, because the words are already in your mouth.
Have imaginary arguments
Take a position and argue it aloud for two minutes. Arguing produces more fluent, less careful language than describing does, which is exactly what you want.
Then find one real person
A colleague, a relative, a friend at the same level. Twenty minutes a week with one person will change your speaking more than anything above.
Phrases that keep you speaking
Fluency is not speed. It is the ability to keep going. These phrases buy you time without silence, and fluent speakers of every language use them constantly.
Thinking time
- Well, let me think for a moment…
- That is an interesting question.
- How can I put this…
- Actually, I am not sure.
When you cannot find the word
- It is a kind of…
- It is the thing you use for…
- I do not know the English word — it is like a…
- Sorry, what is the word for…?
Correcting yourself
- Sorry, I mean…
- Let me say that again.
- What I am trying to say is…
Keeping it going
- And what about you?
- Really? What happened then?
- I see what you mean, but…
- Can I ask you something?
Describing the word you do not know
This is the most valuable speaking skill of all, and it is rarely taught. When you do not know a word, describe it, and keep talking.
I need the thing you use to open a tin. You will get the tin opener, and you will also get the word, because the person you are talking to will supply it. Nothing was lost, and something was gained.