0:00 Today, I'm going to show you why it's difficult to understand native English speakers
0:06 and what you can do about it
0:08 so that you can understand them...
0:10 Them?
0:10 Us?... much more easily.
0:18 Hello.
0:18 It's Keith from the Keith Speaking Academy,
0:21 here to help you become a more confident speaker of English.
0:25 And today, to help you understand native English speakers and fast-spoken English.
0:31 Have you noticed that you can understand me in my videos,
0:36 but when you listen to two
0:38 or three native English speakers in a real conversation
0:42 or in a film,
0:44 you get lost?
0:46 And you're thinking sometimes, "Is that even English?"
0:51 Well, in this video,
0:53 I'm gonna show you all the reasons you can't understand native English speakers,
0:58 or at least why it's difficult, and what you can do about it.
1:02 And this is gonna help you understand fast-spoken, natural English a lot,
1:08 lot more.
1:08 Whether you're learning English for fun, for school,
1:11 or for preparing for exams like IELTS, this is gonna be more than useful.
1:17 You ready?
1:19 Let's do it.
1:23 Right.
1:24 Native English speakers swallow or eat the words.
1:29 It's true.
1:30 You hear a native English speaker, "Wanna come?"
1:35 "What?"
1:35 "Wanna come?"
1:37 "Oh, do you want to come?"
1:40 "Yeah, wanna come?"
1:41 "Do you..."
1:43 We eat the words.
1:44 It's true.
1:46 The thing is, many students expect spoken English to be the same
1:52 as written English,
1:54 and it's not.
1:55 Spoken English is very different from written English.
2:00 If you don't believe me, check out this seminal book,
2:03 Longman Grammar of Spoken and Written English.
2:07 This is not a 10-page PDF, right?
2:09 Look.
2:12 It's huge!
2:14 Spoken English is different from written English.
2:17 Now, you...
2:18 Just most people don't know that.
2:21 Now, you do know that.
2:23 You see, when we speak in English,
2:26 words change their sounds when we speak in at least six different ways.
2:31 And I'm gonna show you those six different ways in a moment.
2:35 Students of English usually listen for words, like written words.
2:42 Native English speakers listen for sounds and then make the meaning from the sounds.
2:47 That's the difference.
2:49 Let me show you those six ways that words change their sound,
2:53 and I'll also show you with an example how you can use this information
2:58 to really understand fast-spoken English.
3:01 Okay?
3:02 Now, this took me three months to learn
3:05 when I was training to be a teacher.
3:07 You're gonna get this in three minutes.
3:09 Okay?
3:10 Let's do it.
3:11 Okay.
3:12 One, contractions.
3:14 That is that's.
3:16 So, you're expecting to hear, "That is," but you actually hear, "That's."
3:22 I am, I'm.
3:24 Number two, linking.
3:26 For example, a good idea you're expecting to hear.
3:31 Actually, you hear, "A good idea."
3:34 Idea.
3:34 "A good idea."
3:36 Linking of words.
3:37 Number three, dropping the first word.
3:41 You may expect to hear "I don't like that," but you might hear,
3:48 "'Don't like that."
3:50 First word disappears.
3:51 You're expecting that or that's a good idea, but you hear,
3:58 "'S a good idea.
4:00 'S a good idea."
4:01 That disappears.
4:04 Number four, weak forms.
4:06 So many prepositions in English have a weak form and a strong form.
4:09 For, for.
4:11 To, to.
4:13 Can, can.
4:15 Not a preposition, but can, can.
4:18 So, for example, we'll get for me is actually, "Fa me."
4:24 To go is actually, "To go."
4:28 And also, I can swim, I can swim, I can swim.
4:35 Number five is elision, and this is where one sound in a word disappears.
4:41 For example, next week.
4:44 In reality you hear, "Next week."
4:47 The T sound, it's not there.
4:49 Next week.
4:51 Next week.
4:53 I must go, written, I must go.
4:58 The T goes.
5:00 I must go.
5:01 I must go.
5:04 Okay?
5:04 I don't know.
5:07 I dunno.
5:08 I dunno.
5:11 Sometimes even, "Dunno."
5:12 The I also disappears, right?
5:15 "Dunno."
5:16 Number six, assimilation.
5:18 So when two words come together, that sound in the middle often changes.
5:23 Common example is that.
5:25 That friend becomes, "That friend."
5:28 That.
5:29 The T is no longer plosive.
5:32 It's that.
5:33 That friend, that book that pen.
5:38 So those are six very common changes that happen to words when we speak.
5:42 So, let's look at a practical example.
5:45 Okay?
5:46 You might hear a conversation with native English speakers a bit like this.
5:51 " 'S a good idea.
5:52 I'm up for that.
5:53 We can go next week.
5:54 Wanna bring that friend of yours?"
5:56 Dunno.
5:57 Maybe."
5:59 And you may not understand it because you're expecting to hear this."
6:05 That is a good idea."
6:08 "I'm up for that."
6:10 "We can go next week.
6:12 Do you want to bring that friend of yours?"
6:16 "I don't know.
6:20 Maybe."
6:20 But spoken English is not the same as written English, right?
6:25 We've seen six ways that sounds change.
6:29 Listen again, and see
6:30 if you can if you can notice those changes
6:33 and hear the sounds
6:34 and the meaning.
6:35 I'll do it first slowly with pauses and then quickly.
6:39 Okay?
6:40 Ready?
6:41 First one.
6:42 "It's a good idea."
6:45 "I'm up for that."
6:47 "We can go next week."
6:50 "Wanna bring that friend of yours?"
6:53 "Dunno.
6:53 Maybe."
6:56 And more quickly.
6:58 "It's a good idea."
6:59 "I'm up for that."
7:00 "We can go next week."
7:01 "Wanna bring that friend of yours?"
7:02 "Dunno.
7:03 Maybe."
7:07 So, can you start to see and notice and hear some of these changes?
7:11 So, my first big tip for you, right,
7:13 is to get familiar with these six differences.
7:18 Pronunciation features.
7:19 If you're studying for IELTS,
7:21 these are key pronunciation features the examiner is listening for, okay?
7:26 What you need to do, I would say, is, as you're listening to English,
7:31 start to notice linking, contractions, assimilation, all of these things.
7:36 Just start to notice them.
7:38 Okay?
7:38 Now that you know about them, they'll become more obvious.
7:42 Okay?
7:43 Another tip is, also use context to help you.
7:46 I mean, if you've got three mates in a pub, there's no context.
7:49 But if you're watching a film,
7:51 use the context and the setting to help you construct meaning.
7:56 And focus on the stressed words.
7:59 It's the stressed words that carry the meaning.
8:03 And as native English speakers, this is what we listen to, the stressed words.
8:08 Because as you know, we swallow lots of other words.
8:14 Okay.
8:14 That's number one.
8:16 Let's move on.
8:21 Right, number two.
8:22 What the hell are they talking about?
8:25 So, there you are.
8:26 You're in the pub with your mates, your British friends, John and Sarah,
8:31 and you're listening to the conversation.
8:36 And it's like Wimbledon, tennis.
8:39 What the hell are they talking about?
8:43 And the thing is, right,
8:45 you may not be familiar with predictable conversation structures and turn-taking.
8:54 There's a difference between watching a teacher, like on YouTube or in a classroom,
9:00 one person, and listening to a conversation with several people.
9:05 The thing is, you need to know the typical conversation structures in English,
9:12 because they may be different from your own language or your own country.
9:18 For example, in Spain, it's quite different from being in Britain, the conversation structures.
9:23 So, let's take an example.
9:24 We're in the pub with John and Sarah.
9:26 Actually, I'm gonna call them A and B.
9:30 Conversation structure.
9:31 A asks for an opinion, "What do you think about banning social media?"
9:40 B gives an opinion, "I think it's a good idea.
9:44 We should ban it."
9:46 And asks for A's opinion, "What's your take?"
9:52 A will comment on that opinion, often hedging politely, "Well,
9:58 I know what you mean, but..."
10:01 And then give their own opinion.
10:03 "I reckon we shouldn't ban it,
10:05 because otherwise they end up finding a way around it
10:08 or going on the dark web."
10:11 Next, B will often connect a personal experience to that topic.
10:19 "Yeah, that's true.
10:20 I've got a mate, and his parents banned his phone, and in the end,
10:24 he found a way around it,
10:25 and he was on the dark web and all of that."
10:28 So this structure is a typical conversation structure that you get,
10:33 at least in Britain, especially amongst friends.
10:37 So my tip is to become familiar with these different kinds of conversation structures.
10:45 And how do you do that?
10:46 Well, you can't do that listening to me or listening to your teacher.
10:51 You've got to listen to conversations.
10:55 The perfect way is the TV, the internet, Netflix.
11:00 Watch programs where there are conversations, right?
11:03 So not the news, for example.
11:06 Reality TV shows, soap operas.
11:10 In Britain we've got, I don't know, Crossroads, Crossroads?
11:14 Coronation Street EastEnders.
11:17 There's lots of them.
11:18 Soap operas are great.
11:21 Or your classic drama shows.
11:23 The classic Friends from the U.S. is a great one.
11:27 Where you're experiencing natural spoken conversation structures.
11:32 Even if it's a simple A-B-A or A-B-A-B,
11:36 just getting familiar with those is going to help you understand natural spoken English.
11:42 Let's move on.
11:48 Right.
11:48 Next.
11:49 Native speakers, they speak so fast.
11:53 Mm, not quite true.
11:55 I'm sorry.
11:55 It's not true.
11:57 Some native speakers speak quickly, some speak more slowly.
12:02 It's all relative.
12:04 It's that you're not used to listening to fast English,
12:08 so you think it's fast.
12:10 It's not.
12:11 Naturally, I speak quite slowly.
12:13 For you, I speak even more slowly so you understand me.
12:18 But it's about getting used to the speed.
12:21 That's all it is.
12:22 So the thing is, as a student, at school,
12:25 in the classroom with your learning materials, everything is slowed down.
12:31 Everything's made easy so you can learn.
12:35 And that's great.
12:37 Learning materials are great.
12:38 But you must also, also use authentic English materials.
12:44 Start listening to films, series, podcasts, from day one.
12:49 Don't wait til you're intermediate.
12:52 Big mistake.
12:53 So many people do that, and then it's difficult.
12:56 Listen to the real English from day one, A1 level, beginner.
13:03 Even if you're just getting used to the melody.
13:06 Doesn't matter if you understand nothing.
13:10 It's getting used to the sounds, remember?
13:14 It's not the written word, it's the sounds you need.
13:18 So that's really important.
13:19 You know, when I started learning Chinese, even before I went to China,
13:24 I was listening and watching films without subtitles in Chinese for a month.
13:31 I didn't understand a word.
13:35 Well, very little.
13:36 Now and again, there was the, oh,, and some words, and that was great,
13:37 but I was getting the melody and the intonation.
13:37 And it was a big investment, but a huge payoff.
13:37 It is so, so worthwhile doing.
13:37 It will help you understand fast native speakers.
13:40 All right.
13:40 Let's move on.
13:40 Next one.
13:40 Ooh, by the way, if you're enjoying this do give me a like,
13:40 subscribe to the channel.
13:40 It helps a lot,
13:40 and if you want to review all of this there's a PDF you can
13:40 download from the link in the description.
13:40 Let's get into the next point of why you can't understand native speakers
13:41 and what to do about it.
13:41 Oh, those native English speakers have a strange accent.
13:41 Let's not call it strange.
13:41 It's a unfamiliar accent, and there are so many of them,
13:41 and unfamiliar accents can confuse you.
13:41 It's often the vowel sounds that change, like in the South of England,
13:41 they will "have a bath."
13:41 In Manchester, we "have a bath."
13:41 Bath, bath.
13:41 In England, you may say, "Ooh, it's a nice house."
13:41 In Scotland, "Oh, nice house."
13:41 Again, South England, "Let's go now."
13:41 Over in Ireland, "Let's go now."
13:41 And then England, "Hot," America, "Hot."
13:41 And again, America has lots of different accents, East Coast, West Coast, mid-country,
13:41 New York accents.
13:41 There are so many accents, and the challenge for students is, as they're learning,
13:41 they normally have one teacher, and often at school,
13:41 it's a local teacher with a local accent, not a native English accent.
13:41 That's fine.
13:41 Local teachers are fantastic and brilliant.
13:41 In addition to that sound, you need also to be listening to other accents,
13:41 right?
13:41 For the vowels, for the intonation, for the melody, which is different.
13:41 Simple tip, simple answer, Netflix, or Prime, or Amazon, or Apple, or Disney.
13:41 Just listen to all the different accents you can get used to, right?
13:41 Even if you don't understanding everything,
13:41 get used to the sounds and how they're different.
13:41 You don't need to learn to speak with a American
13:41 or British accent at all.
13:41 It's not about accent, but understanding, yes.
13:43 Let's move on.
13:43 What does he really mean?
13:43 He says this, but does he really mean this?
13:43 Pragmatics.
13:43 Pragmatics is all about...
13:43 What you mean may not be the same as what you say, right?
13:43 For example, if I say, "Ooh,
13:43 it's cold in here," maybe what I really mean is, "Shut the window."
13:45 But I'm being polite.
13:45 This area of pragmatics can be very different between your language and English.
13:47 Even amongst British, Americans, Australians, we have different pragmatics,
13:47 whereas what we say may carry a different meaning.
13:47 It's almost the hidden meaning behind the words.
13:47 So sometimes it's hard to understand native speakers.
13:47 Even though you understand the words,
13:47 you may not understand the meaning behind the words.
13:48 A few examples, right?
13:48 For example, a British person says about a film, "That's interesting."
13:48 Now, an American may think that I liked the film,
13:48 but the British person who says, "Oh, that's interesting," probably means it was terrible.
13:50 It's a different way of using the word....
13:50 If we say in a meeting context, an American might say,
13:50 "I'll think about it."
13:50 And it probably means they will think about it.
13:50 But if a British person says,
13:50 "I'll think about it," it means they are not going to think about it.
13:50 Forget it.
13:50 It's over.
13:50 It's not gonna happen, right?
13:50 Another classic one about British and American differences of pragmatics.
13:50 British people use the expression not bad a lot.
13:50 "That restaurant's not bad," right?
13:50 "That restaurant's not bad."
13:50 The intonation can change it a bit,
13:50 but often for a British person that means it's quite good.
13:50 We like the restaurant.
13:50 It's not bad, that restaurant.
13:50 But an American may hear that and think,
13:50 "I didn't like the restaurant," 'cause they might say, "It was amazing."
13:50 We never say that in British English.
13:50 Well, we do, but we like to say, "It's not bad," meaning,
13:50 "I like it.
13:50 It's good."
13:50 Okay?
13:50 So the pragmatics can be difficult to understand the real meaning of English,
13:50 of native English speakers.
13:50 So my tip for you here, first of all, be aware of pragmatics.
13:51 Be aware of the different meaning, and it can depend on the intonation,
13:54 the situation cultural references, the relationship between the people,
13:54 especially the power dynamics in that relationship.
13:54 My second tip is try and, again,
13:54 expose yourself to natural spoken English in situations.
13:54 This is one reason why I don't like students learning lists of words
13:54 or learning a list of phrase,
13:54 because outside of the context, it may have a different meaning.
13:54 It's really good and powerful to learn your English in context, in situations,
13:54 watching films, clips, whether it's podcasts, chat shows.
13:54 Getting your language, discovering new language from the situation can help you get to
13:55 grips with pragmatics.
13:55 All right.
13:55 Let's move on.
13:55 Right.
13:55 Idiomatic language, and this is where sometimes you hear something and you think,
13:55 "What does that mean?
13:55 That doesn't make sense."
13:55 Idiomatic language includes idioms.
13:55 A lot of phrasal verbs are idiomatic, where the single words have a meaning,
13:55 but the meaning of the whole phrase is different from the individual words, okay?
13:55 For example, somebody says, "He spilled the beans."
13:55 It's like, "Ooh, dear, I hope he's all right.
13:55 Was was it a mess?"
13:55 No, he didn't spill any beans.
13:55 It means he told a secret, right?
13:55 He let the cat out of the bag.
13:55 But he doesn't have a cat.
13:55 No.
13:55 It means he told a secret.
13:55 He let the cat out of the bag.
13:55 Oh.
13:55 These are idioms, and it's even more challenging or fun,
13:55 because American idioms are sometimes different from British idioms, right?
13:55 You can imagine a British person, an American person, and the British person says,
13:55 "Oh, my boss lost his rag."
13:55 And the American says, "Oh, where did he lose it?"
13:55 "No, no, no.
13:55 He didn't lose anything.
13:55 He lost his rag.
13:55 He got angry.
13:55 He got very angry."
13:55 "Oh, like he lost his temper."
13:55 "Yeah, lost his temper, got angry."
13:55 Different idioms, right?
13:55 Lose your rag, lose your temper.
13:55 I remember once, working with an American, and I said one day,
13:55 "We should go for lunch together."
13:55 And he said, "Oh, I'll take a raincheck."
13:55 And I said, "No, I don't think it's gonna rain tomorrow.
13:55 We'll be fine."
13:55 And he kind of looked embarrassed and went No, no.
13:55 Well, maybe not tomorrow.
13:55 Maybe a later date."
13:55 To take a raincheck is an American idiom meaning to kind of politely decline
13:55 an offer or postpone it,
13:55 and I didn't know that at the time.
13:55 But that's the fun bit is you pick up these idioms as you learn,
13:55 learn, and more.
13:55 So, my tip for you here is it's a bit like walking across a
13:55 field and you're picking a flower,
13:55 and you pick a flower, and you carry on walking,
13:55 and you pick another flower.
13:55 When you get home, you have a big bunch of flowers.
13:55 I'm not sure if green activists will like the metaphor,
13:55 but it's the same with learning idioms.
13:55 On your learning journey, as you're going through learning, pick up an idiom here,
13:55 here, make a note, build them up over time, right?
13:55 That's the best way to do it, through conversations.
13:55 Again, listening to natural spoken conversations with native English speakers
13:58 or through films and series,
13:58 pick them up one by one.
13:58 If you like, you can go and study my 150 Idioms course,
13:58 if you like.
13:58 I can use my platform to blatantly advertise to you.
13:58 There you go.
13:58 Key thing is just build them up over time,
13:58 and it will help you understand real spoken English from native English speakers.
13:58 All right, let's move on.
13:59 So, did you watch Love Island last night?
13:59 Love Island is a reality TV show, probably in many countries around the world.
14:01 My sister loves it, right?
14:01 I honestly can't bear it.
14:01 I don't watch it.
14:01 However, often in conversations, native English speakers will make reference to TV shows,
14:01 pop songs, advertisements, even humor, jokes.
14:01 It's cultural references, and these cultural references, if you don't know them,
14:01 you can't follow the conversation, okay?
14:01 So, cultural references are not just about country or nation.
14:01 It's age as well.
14:01 You get a lot more references to music maybe from teenagers,
14:01 younger people than older people.
14:01 But these cultural references can be an integral part of communication with native English
14:01 speakers,
14:01 and not only communication, but bonding as well I I guess, right?
14:01 That you understand me.
14:01 So, I don't think this is hugely important unless you're living in a country
14:02 like England,
14:02 Scotland, Australia, Canada, where it probably is important to get familiar with the local
14:02 culture,
14:02 including pop culture, jokes,
14:02 learning what jokes are references that are happening through the culture, whether it's music,
14:02 art, et cetera, okay?
14:02 So yeah, if you're in a particular country,
14:02 I think it's worth investing time exposing yourself to the local culture,
14:02 and then you're more likely to pick up these cultural references
14:02 which are often used in conversations Monday morning in the office around the water
14:02 cooler.
14:02 But again, I don't think it's hugely important unless you're living in a native
14:02 English-speaking country.
14:02 Now, somewhat connected to this is my next point.
14:02 I guess connected to this is also slang.
14:02 Slang is kind of the informal language used by certain groups of people
14:02 or identities or people in a certain region.
14:02 So you may have, you know, Scottish slang or teenager slang.
14:02 Again, I don't think it's
14:02 that important really to learn it unless you're living in a particular place
14:02 or you're surrounded by a particular group of people.
14:02 But even then, you see, I mean,
14:02 if Imagine that you really like watching American teenager high school series.
14:02 You're naturally gonna pick up the slang they use anyway from watching that.
14:02 So, I don't think it's that important.
14:02 And slang changes over time.
14:02 I mean, I know words in Britain like you know, it's sick, right?
14:02 Meaning it's really good.
14:02 Or mate, meaning friend, or I'm skint, meaning I'm broke.
14:02 But slang changes over time,
14:02 and the youth in Britain today use words
14:02 that I don't understand 'cause I don't mix in
14:02 that environment.
14:02 So, is it important?
14:02 Not that important.
14:02 I wouldn't worry too much about it,
14:02 but you'll be aware
14:02 that slang exists and maybe that's sometimes why you cannot understand certain native English
14:02 speakers.
14:02 I'm gonna move on now to the last one,
14:02 which will really open your eyes.
14:02 Should I use subtitles?
14:02 It's a good question and a very controversial one, right?
14:02 When I was a young man, old man, growing up, we never saw subtitles.
14:02 Very rarely.
14:02 Not on the TV.
14:02 If you watched a French film, maybe.Nowadays, subtitles are everywhere, on Netflix,
14:02 social media.
14:02 Everywhere you look, subtitles or captions.
14:02 And I get it.
14:02 The idea is to be inclusive.
14:02 It helps more people access the content, absolutely.
14:02 Although on social media, I'm not sure that's the motivation.
14:02 I think a lot of content creators realize people scroll with the sound off,
14:02 and then captions were needed 'cause people are reading.
14:02 But it is inclusive.
14:02 However, as a language learner, captions, subtitles destroy your listening skills.
14:02 They're great if your objective is to learn some vocabulary, fine.
14:02 But if you want to develop listening skills, turn off the subtitles.
14:02 They will destroy your listening skills.
14:02 And what's more, they encourage you to focus on the written word instead of
14:02 the sound.
14:02 So you've got your subtitles, right, saying,
14:02 "That is a good idea," and you hear, "'S a good idea."
14:02 You go, "Oh, well, that's not what he said."
14:02 Of course not.
14:02 The written word is different from the sound.
14:02 It's a good idea.
14:02 I'm up for that.
14:02 Do you remember, at the beginning of the video?
14:03 Right.
14:03 So if you want to develop your listening skills, turn off the subtitles.
14:03 Finally, this ability to understand fast English, native English speakers, doesn't come from study.
14:03 Study, like this video,
14:03 is a good first step
14:03 and if you want to study this more
14:04 and review,
14:04 there is a PDF you can download to help you review and study.
14:04 But to actually get good at this and to understand native English speakers,
14:04 you need to practice and it takes time.
14:05 It takes years and years of experience to develop this ability.
14:08 So I encourage you to practice, but also adjust your expectation.
14:08 Don't expect to be fluent in three months or a year.
14:09 Takes a long time.
14:09 Just to give you an idea, in my 20s,
14:10 I moved to live in Spain and work in Spain.
14:10 It took me about three years to get really good and confident in Spanish.
14:10 Not fluent, but very, very close.
14:10 Three years.
14:10 I was working in English, but I lived with Spanish people,
14:10 I had about five hours a day over three years with Spanish practice
14:10 and study.
14:10 My daughter, when we came back to Spain later,
14:10 she was about 10 years old it took her two years to get fluent
14:10 in Spanish and that was nine hours a day at school for two years.
14:10 Now, if you're studying one hour a day,
14:10 how long will it take you to become fluent?
14:10 You can do the maths, but my message is, it takes a long time.
14:11 It's experience with the language, okay?
14:11 The great news is, it's great fun.
14:11 It's challenging, but it's fun, and if you're enjoying the journey,
14:11 you're gonna learn so much more.
14:11 How exciting, right?
14:11 Languages, great fun.
14:11 So if you wanna review today's lesson, check out the PDF.
14:11 If you want to take your learning a step further
14:11 and not only improve listening skills,
14:11 but actually develop your speaking skills
14:11 so you can speak natural spoken English better
14:11 and better,
14:11 whether it's for everyday life or for IELTS,
14:11 come and check out my online courses.
14:11 You can improve grammar, fluency idioms you can learn, preparation for IELTS speaking.
14:11 It's all there.
14:11 The links are down below, check them out, and if they're right for you,
14:11 I would love to see you on the courses.
14:11 In the meantime, thank you so much for watching me today.
14:11 It's been great fun for me.
14:11 I hope you've enjoyed it, learned something useful,
14:11 and I look forward to seeing you soon.
14:11 Take care.
14:11 Bye-bye.
