Record yourself while reading a random page from a book and then listen to the recording. When I did, I found a few defects and managed to fix them, though it took some time.
Ask HN: How did you become fluent in English?
11–20 of 187 posts
Re: Ask HN: How did you become fluent in English?
#12To answer the question in title, I came to Canada and lived here for the last 20~ years. Since day one, I always opted to try to use English (rather than my first language) whenever possible. It was hardest at first, but the more I did it, the easier it became.
Re: Ask HN: How did you become fluent in English?
#13computer games for vocabulary, TV shows and movies for phrases, Simpsons and Friends are particularly good
in the end it doesn't really matter if you speak perfect English, most of the English users are not native English speakers and everyone makes mistakes, it's better to communicate with mistakes than being afraid to use language at all
i worked in China with tons of different nationalities with varying levels of English and we could always understand each other, only people who care about grammar are grammar nazis online who are most likely not speaking any foreign language and not own even passport
Re: Ask HN: How did you become fluent in English?
#14I also second the suggestion of things like movies, podcasts, books, etc...
I think you have to find a "cheat" that immerses you in English as a SECONDARY side effect.
For example find a TV show that you like to watch and understand then sit through it with English subtitles so you can see what you are hearing in written form. As you get better you can turn off the subtitles.
I think the methods that focus on language learning as the primary objective are not successful after you learn the basics. Perhaps because they are too boring or some other reason.
Re: Ask HN: How did you become fluent in English?
#15Best thing to do is travel, or language vacation. I've done a language holiday in Spain, learning Spanish, and that worked really well. I only did two weeks, but got a basic understanding of Spanish, in a beautiful old town - Salamanca. You can do the same with English. I bet you can go to London, Sydney, New York and many other places to learn English. You have to do this in a country or city where the main language is English of course. You don't want to do this in Paris or Barcelona.
I did morning study and afternoon free, but you could do much more if you wanted, like 6 or 8 hours daily, and even private classes. Besides that we had to do homework, and that could take two hours or more, so be aware of that. Two weeks is a minimum to learn anything, but if you have the money go for at least three or four weeks. Then you set something in motion.
We could stay with local families or in an appartment with other students. With a local family you'll learn a lot more, especially if they don't speak any other language. If you prefer to stay in an appartment, ask for an appartment without people who speak your language. The tendency is to go speak the easiest language, and you're not there to do that.
Have fun! Do all the tours etc. Avoid people who speak your language.
Re: Ask HN: How did you become fluent in English?
#16People's expectation of what is considered "fluent" is very different and many different approaches can work. Regardless of where you are, there are things that you can do.
I am Vietnamese and studied English as a second language at 10 years old. I have been living in the US for the last 10 years -- 1/3 of my life. I have very little problems communicating in English now, but I want to give you a glimpse of how confident I am with my English. I used to know a professional interpreter who is not a native speaker either but has got an excellent grip on English. He interpreted for a couple of US presidents on their diplomatic trips. He often commented on my Facebook that my English is shit when I had Facebook. He would poke fun at my misspellings and grammatical errors. I still write, listen, and speak like a machine.
If I remember it correctly, the translator fiend's advice to everyone was always that to read lots of books. His advice to learn to speak English was to go out and talk to the English expats. Many long for a friend, and you might learn a thing or two on the way. He did that when he was 20. I think those are a solid advice.
For me, it was a little bit different. I think a big part of it is that I had an itch to do it. When I was younger, I learned English by reading MSDN + VB manuals because I needed to code. Then for a couple of years in HS, I lead an indie translation project to translate a couple of Harry Potter books to Vietnamese. My schedule was totally fucked up in the summer when the books came out: Sleep in until noon, then at night just translate 1/4 of a chapter or so, or proofread other people's translations until 6 AM. After that project, I wouldn't care if my English is not good anymore, I knew I've dealt with enough shit to not be intimidated by English.
But in general, I think what works best is that you have to have a use for it. If you don't have a use for it, your work doesn't depend on it, then you need to have a hobby in which your English skill is needed to get the work done. Maybe you can make an impact or two along the way. It's just like to learn a new programming language or paradigm.
Like now, I'm a professional HN commentator, and it requires some serious English skill, don't you see ;-)?
Re: Ask HN: How did you become fluent in English?
#17Daily 2-3 articles of reading of papers e.g. guardian, ny times, science journals
reading the IELTS prep material
Speaking a lot English with friends
Vocabulary practice by installing google dictionary in chrome while reading
Movies with subtitles followed by without subtitles
Re: Ask HN: How did you become fluent in English?
#18First of all read a lot. Read local communities like Reddit, HN (here), slashdot, etc. This will make you familiar with the daily language.
Second, listen a lot. Watch movies with original sound and English subtitles. Try to understand, try to make sense of it. If you listen English songs, try to listen a little more attentive.
Then write a lot. Try to take your notes in English. Comment your code in English. Try to comment more into stories or forums around the world.
These three will sharpen you in daily English. You'll become more familiar. Becoming fluent becomes after becoming familiar. As everyone said, also read books, novels in English and take notes, however some books' vocabulary may be drastically different from others (e.g., Both Hyperion Cantos and Ready Player One are SciFi novels, but latter one has a much more accessible English than the former).
Last but not the least, don't focus on your progress. You'll advance inevitably. Just continue doing so, and you'll find yourself much more improved after some time. Fluency is best when it comes with time, and when it's built step by step, it becomes permanent.
Re: Ask HN: How did you become fluent in English?
#19English is everywhere, so it's very easy to consume English media to improve your vocabulary and comprehension skills. As for speaking (for me, that was - and still is - the hardest part), I'd try to find native speakers to communicate with. If you live in a big city, there are probably foreign students teaching English. You can also find a remote tutor on italki.com.
Re: Ask HN: How did you become fluent in English?
#20Play online games with English speaking teammates.