内容简介
一位听众想知道一些提高英语口语的小技巧。“Em(嗯)”...... “Actually(其实)” 这是个很常见的问题。在口语学习中,我们除了可以使用 “fillers(填充词)” 来帮助我们调节语速,还可以尝试通过一些练习来帮助我们在口语交流过程中更加自信。听本期 “你问我答” 节目,学习几个提高口语能力的小技巧。
文字稿
(关于台词的备注: 请注意这不是广播节目的逐字稿件。本文稿可能没有体现录制、编辑过程中对节目做出的改变。)
Buli
大家好,欢迎收听 BBC 英语教学的 “你问我答” 节目。I'm Buli.
Georgie
And I'm Georgie. We've got a question from one of our listeners.
Question
Why can I understand some daily English conversations, but when it comes to communicating with others, I find it hard to talk naturally? Are there any tips to improve my English speaking?
Buli
这位听众想知道:虽然能够听懂日常英语对话,但真的到了需要张口说英语的时候总是感觉不够自然,是否有能够提高英语口语的方法呢?
Georgie
This is a great question and I'm sure many of our listeners can relate to it! Let me start by saying that this is very normal – a lot of people feel that they can understand more of a language than they can speak. I certainly felt that way when I was learning Spanish!
Buli
其实我对这个问题也颇有同感。只是在非母语的语言学习上,除了像学习开车或者炒菜做饭一样多多练习,也并没有什么捷径。俗话说得好:勤能补拙。了解自己的不足之处并且多多练习才能够不断进步。
Georgie
That's right, Buli. But, between the two of us, we've definitely got some useful tips for how to improve your speaking fluency. Now, the first one I have is about getting used to how speaking feels and sounds in your mouth.
Buli
没错,本期节目中我和 Georgie 会从自己的经验出发,给大家介绍一些练习口语时的方法和技巧,希望对你有所帮助。不过 Georgie,你的第一个建议好像还是有点抽象,能不能详细说说怎么能习惯说英语时口腔发音的感觉呢?
Georgie
Of course! This you can do at home without a speaking partner. Ask yourself questions. For example, how was my day? What happened? How did I feel? Who did I see? What was the weather like? Respond to the questions aloud. Now, there are a few variants to this activity. How would you do it, Buli?
Buli
自问自答确实是练习口语的好方法。像是我就尝试过问自己一些简单的问题,并且有时还会给自己录音。虽然刚开始在录音里听到自己的声音会有些不好意思,自己的声音听上去也不太熟悉,但尝试几次以后我发现这个方法不但能纠正一些平时不容易发现的错误,也能让自己在说英语时更加自信。
Georgie
That's a good idea. If you don't feel very confident, a first step could be to write some notes about what you want to say, so you feel prepared to speak. Now, I make this suggestion of practising by yourself first, because I know that speaking in front of others can be nerve-wracking if you're scared of making mistakes.
Buli
是的。之所以向大家推荐自主练习,一方面是因为这种方法简单易行,另一方面也是考虑到直接和他人对话时大家都会担心出现语言上的错误,以致太过紧张达不到练习的效果。那么,我们该如何克服对犯错的焦虑,自信地参与到日常对话中呢?
Georgie
Well, you could first try having a conversation via voice messages on your phone, or even a phone call. Voice messages are a good middle ground because you are having a real interaction with someone, but you still have time to think about what you want to say, and you can re-record your message if you aren't happy.
Buli
原来如此!通过发送语音消息的方式交流就可以反复斟酌自己的用词,积累自信。从我的经验来讲,使用语音输入等工具也可以达到类似的效果,并且可以直观地看到句子结构是否完整,单词发音是不是准确等问题。可是即使如此,在面对面交流时怎么做能帮助自己组织语言呢?
Georgie
Um, well, my tip here is to learn some fillers. So, basically, fillers are very common in everyday English conversations, and they're useful for our listeners because, well, they can slow down the conversation a bit and, you know, give you more time to think about what you want to say. Buli, I used some there, didn't I?
Buli
Yes! You said "um", "well", "so", "basically" and "you know". 在英语口语中,我们可以通过 “fillers(填充词)” 来给自己提供思考和组织语言的时间。比如,Georgie 刚刚用到的 “um(嗯)”、“well(其实)”、“basically(大体上,基本上来说)” 或 “you know(你知道的)” 等等。这些词通常不在句子中构成主要的语法成分,因此不会影响句意的表达。你也可以通过重复他人的问题等方式给自己留出思考的时间。来听下面的两个例子。
Examples
What did I do at the weekend? Good question! Well, um, it was quite sunny, so I went to the farmer's market and then, let me see… Oh, yeah! I saw my older brother, and, basically, I had a really relaxing weekend. So, yeah. How about you?
(我周末干什么了?这是个好问题!嗯……周末阳光很好,所以我去了农贸市场,然后嘛,让我想想……对了!我还去看了我的哥哥,所以,大体上我的周末过得非常放松。大概就这样。你过得怎么样?)
How are my studies going, you ask? Hmm. Well, to be honest, the term started badly as I missed a few lectures because of illness. But, you know, I caught up on the work I'd missed and, well, actually, I'm now top of the class. So, basically, I'm doing OK, I guess.
(你问我学习上近况如何?嗯……说实话,这学期刚开始并不好,我因为生病落下了几节课。不过你知道的,我把落下的课程都补回来了,而且,其实吧,我现在在班里可是第一名呢。所以,我基本上学得还不错。)
Georgie
So, basically, don't be afraid of fillers! Fillers are your friend. They not only give you more time to think, but they help you sound more natural.
Buli
Exactly! 上面的例子中使用了不少的填充词,但并没有给人说话拖沓或意思不清楚的感觉,这是因为实际上这些词就经常被使用在英语对话中。所以,在练习时我们也可以积极尝试使用填充词,让自己的口语听上去更加自然。最后,还想鼓励大家在学英语时不要害怕犯错误。学会在口语中发现错误,改正错误,会让你的语言学习更加高效。
Georgie
I totally agree, Buli. Remember, if you have a question about the English language you'd like to ask us, please send us an email. Our email address is: questions.chinaelt@bbc.co.uk
Buli
你也可以通过微博向我们提问。我们的微博账号是 “BBC英语教学”。Bye, everyone.
Georgie
Bye!