Article Categories

»	Arts & Entertainment
»	Automotive
»	Business
»	Careers & Jobs
»	Education & Reference
»	Finance
»	Food & Drink
»	Health & Fitness
»	Home & Family
»	Internet & Online Businesses
»	Miscellaneous
»	Self Improvement
»	Shopping
»	Society & News
»	Sports & Recreation
»	Technology
»	Travel & Leisure
»	Writing & Speaking

Reprint Article Code

Category: Articles » Education & Reference » Language » Article » Article Code

Overcome Your Fear Of Speaking Foreign Languages

Many people hesitate to try and speak in a foreign language. This might be because they don't want to feel foolish, are worried about how they will sound, are scared of sounding silly and so on. As a result, they remain resolutely monolingual during any trip abroad, preferring to speak loudly in English. These are the same people who are clever, articulate and never lost for words when speaking in English. The same people who are achievers in other areas of life. But why? It may be because many people stop learning (or never start) languages when leaving school ... read more

Article Title:

Article Body:

But why? It may be because many people stop learning (or never start) languages when leaving school and when they travel abroad have only haunting memories of having to learn lists of words or conjugate verbs. Yuk. It could also be because many foreign language courses are detailed, promise a lot and require to much time. Anyway, let's cut to the chase. Who has the time or inclination to spend months learning Spanish / French / German or any other language when planning a three day visit?

Well, maybe things have moved on or maybe not as regards language learning when still at school. I don't know, but I do know that it is fun and possible to learn some basic language for when you travel.

By basic, I mean basic. How to start? Learn a few key words. For example, 'hello', 'goodbye', 'please', 'thankyou'. These are words that you will hear all the time and be able to use all the time. Learn them and say them as often as possible. It is a great confidence booster to do this, and once you can do this you have cleared the first hurdle.

I'm suggesting that it is always worth learning these key words because you will almost certainly have a better holiday. Try them out. Taxi drivers and waiters are great and will almost always respond positively. The moment you attempt to speak in another language you stop being a number to them and become a human being.

Almost always you will receive a positive reaction. In some cases, especially with shop-keepers it takes longer, (a few days) but most will crack eventually and reward you with some recognition that you are not just another tourist.

So, here we are, you can now speak ten or so words fluently. A good start but perhaps it might be fun to learn a few more and so how about some numbers. Start with 'one', 'two', 'three'. Remember that the goal is not fluency, or obsessing about finishing what you start (like having to count to ten) but to have a little fun and communicate.

Everyone buys drinks on holiday. This is an ideal occasion to use the numbers you know. It doesn't matter if you ask for the drinks in English. The important thing is to use the opportunity to ask for the number of drinks in the foreign language, or to confirm the number of drinks ordered.

Feeling inspired move onto a few phrases. A good one is 'that was delicious', assuming of course that you have chosen a good restaurant, and it is amazing how appreciative and surprised the owners will be.

Decide in advance what you are going to say. If you are getting a bus or if you are going to take a taxi learn 'one ticket' or whatever you will need, but keep it simple.

Start with the simplest phrase you can imagine. A common mistake is to make sentences in a foreign language more complicated than necessary. For example, instead of saying 'could you tell me where the beach is?', it is easier to say 'where is the beach?'. In other words skip out the non-essential.

So, don't be shy, learn ten, twenty or thirty words and a few phrases and make sure you use them.

Author Bio:

Some other recently published language articles

How to Learn Bahasa Malaysia? by Wan Yee
Or rather, how to learn Bahasa Malaysia as a standard language instead of being contented speaking the very easy Creole Malay? The first step is to assess your motive. While it is not my ...

How demanding are intensive week-end or summer courses? by Rick Martin
People of all ages find it easier to learn English or further study English language and literature through intensive week-end or summer courses. The thick unexciting books containing thousands of pages with ...

How to simply learn Spanish? by Patrick Clark
o learn Spanish, you could go to college spend a lot of money and you could earn a degree in the language. At the end you ...

Why learn to speak Spanish? by Patrick Clark
Because it is the fastest growing language in america right now. With the Latin American population expending, being able to speak a language that is becoming so widely used would be an ...

Learn Chinese! by Gong Mo Tai
Essential Chinese Have you ever wanted to learn Chinese? Don't know where to start or tried products that promise fluency and give you about 10 phrases? Well, no more… come over to ...

Motivating Young Children to Learn English: Keeping Their Attention without Giving Them Gifts by Shelley Vernon
Young children are often eager, almost too eager. The problem arises when they are eager to do things other than ...

Publisher Guidelines

You may reprint this article electronically in your newsletter or on your website, free of charge.

If you reprint this article from our site, then you must keep everything intact. This includes the articles title, author name, articles body, authors bio / resource box, the links contained within the article, all copyright notices and the link pointing back to our site. All links within the article must also be made active / hyperlinks.