When learning languages, especially if I’m a beginner, I focus my energy on input. I read and listen to as much of the language as I can daily. I enjoy these activities, and I know that this will lead me to fluency. Eventually, when I reach an intermediate level in the language, I want to start integrating more speaking practice into my routine. When focusing on your speaking skills, it’s important to have the proper mindset and approach.

I know that I am not going to learn to speak a new language perfectly. Perfection is not my goal. My goal is effective communication.

I am far from perfect in any of the 20 languages that I speak. In some languages, such as Chinese, French, or Spanish, I can communicate quite well. In other languages, such as Polish or Romanian, it’s a bit more of a struggle. Regardless of my level in the language, I understand that my speaking skills are never perfect and can always be improved upon.

I am reasonable with my expectations. I understand that my ability to speak a language naturally and effectively will improve over time, and I do not get too discouraged by imperfect pronunciation or sentences that were awkwardly strung together. If you’re at a point in your language learning in which you feel ready to use the language more actively, here are some tips to successfully improve your speaking skills. 

1) Listen a lot

I’d recommend listening to your target language at least an hour a day on a daily basis. I do this when I am just starting out with a new language, refreshing my memory in a language that I’ve let slip, or when I’m hoping to improve my speaking skills. 

Listening creates a body of experience for the brain. You’re exposing yourself to countless examples of natural speech in the target language. If the content is interesting, you’ll form a stronger connection with the language. Through simple exposure, I can pick up phrases, improve my comprehension, and hear the pronunciation more clearly. Ample listening time gives me momentum for developing my speaking.

How do I find the time? Well, I listen to podcasts in my car. I listen to music or audiobooks while doing chores around the house. I listen to the language while exercising or running. I rarely just sit down and focus on listening. I transform “dead time” during the day into an opportunity to listen to my target language.

2) Read a lot

Simply put, you need words to speak. Reading is one of the best way to increase your vocabulary. Stephen Krashen, for example, has done considerable research on the power of reading.

Communication requires a large, passive vocabulary. Sure, you need an active vocabulary to express yourself. However, to understand others and have meaningful conversations, it’s especially important to understand what the other person is saying. This means that your passive vocabulary needs to be larger than your active vocabulary. If your comprehension is strong enough to continue the conversation and engage in a wide variety of conversations, you’ll develop a larger and larger active vocabulary.  

You’re going to build a large passive vocabulary through reading. Most of my reading is initially limited to transcripts or texts of whatever I am listening to. A lot of this is done on my iPad using LingQ. However, as I progress in the language, I develop the ability to read anything I want, albeit with a small percentage of unknown words. As I become more advanced, the listening and reading diverge. I engage in both activities independently. 

How To Improve Your Speaking Skills

3) Imitate

While reading or listening, you may want to imitate a word or a phrase that you come across. This type of activity is sometimes referred to as shadowing. I don’t do this systematically, but I do find myself repeating certain phrases aloud, developing a feel for its meaning and attempting to produce it more naturally. Of course, this isn’t a guarantee that you’ll remember what you’re imitating.  And yet, by simply noticing these words and phrases, repeating them, attempting to better capture the sound or cadence, you’ll find some success in retention. 

When imitating what we hear, focus on the rhythm and the intonation of the language. When I was studying Mandarin, for example, I had better success with the tones repeating phrases and not stressing over perfect pronunciation of individual words. All languages have their own intonation, their own music. We need to acquire this through imitation. You’ll not only improve your pronunciation, but also develop a stronger sense of intuition with the langauge.

4) Write

How To Improve Your Speaking Skills

Writing is a great way to start producing the language. It’s another means of producing the language spontaneously, putting your active knowledge to the test. 

I have to confess that I’m often a bit lazy when it comes to writing in the languages that I am learning. I mostly limit my writing practice to dictation tasks on LingQ, one of the many custom review activities provided after each lesson.

However, if I did take the time to write regularly, I believe that this would improve my speaking faster. When we write, we have the time to look up words, to clarify a grammar rule, or verify a word ending. In other words, we have more time to correct ourselves and produce the language more thoughtfully. However, I’d like to emphasize that it is merely the activity of writing, not correcting your writing, that is of greater benefit. Prioritize producing the language, not analyzing mistakes. 

5) Speak

To speak well, you will need to speak a lot. This sounds obvious, but it’s an important point. Find someone to practice speaking with. This can be done on language exchange platforms or with online language tutors. For example, I have worked with tutors from italki and LingQ to ensure quality, consistent speaking practice. 

When I speak, I don’t worry about my mistakes. I even ask my speaking partner to refrain from correcting me while I speak. I just want to communicate. Besides, I immediately forget any corrections made during our conversations anyway. I do, however, enjoy reviewing useful words and phrases that came up during our lessons. I import these words and phrases into LingQ as lessons, and I’m able to review more efficiently.

Final Thoughts:

Effective communication is not necessarily perfect communication. Speaking without error is not necessary to express yourself effectively. The goal is to engage in meaningful conversations with others. Understand that developing your speaking skills takes time and practice. Through ample reading, listening, writing, and speaking (of course), trust that your grasp of the language and ability to communicate naturally will grow stronger indefinitely.