Do you ever run out of things to say?
It is a common experience and can be embarrassing when you are at a public event. It is disastrous when you are doing an examination under time pressure. In this post I suggest some tricks to help you keep the conversation going, so that you don’t dry up.
Don’t Give Monosyllabic Answers!
Dry as the desert
When someone asks you a conversational question they are not just looking for information. «Did you enjoy the film?» Sure, you could reply «Yes» or «No», but that is not what the question is for. You are making the other person work too hard. It is much more interesting to say what was good or bad about it.
You can say what you liked, tell a bit of the story, say how long it was, or describe the best scene. Talk about the actors, the script, the director or the photography. Fluency is not just about language. It is also about knowing what to say. Here is an example: «I loved it. Brad Pitt was excellent as the hero. I am not a big fan of Meryl Streep but, fortunately, she didn’t overact in this movie. It was all set in the desert and was beautifully filmed and directed.»
If the film was a complete bore, tell an anecdote about your experience at the cinema. For example, you might say, «Well, the film wasn’t that interesting to be honest. We arrived a bit late because we couldn’t find a place to park the car. Then Rob had to go and buy popcorn, just like he always does, and the queue was enormous. We missed all the ads and trailers and had to squeeze past a couple of people to get to our seats. A shame really because I am sure the trailers were better than the film itself.»
Where Are You From?
This is a common question that comes up in many examinations. The point of a language exam is to give you the opportunity to speak, and there is nothing wrong with preparing your answer for this one. It will be useful outside of the exam as well because it is a common social opener. I might say, «I was born and grew up in Somerset in the South West of England. The town was surrounded by hills. I always enjoyed going up to the hills to walk.» From here I could go on and talk about walking, the hills, the scenery, the people, my interests and so on. It is important to remember that «Where are you from?» as a social question is not a request for one fact so much as an invitation to talk about yourself.
Returning the Ball
Don’t hog (=monopolise) the conversation. If someone asks you where you are from, you could talk for ten minutes about the town, the area, its economy, its arts and culture and how it has changed You may be demonstrating perfect English but you will not be making friends. Conversation proceeds by small steps, hand-in-hand. Here are some expressions that will help you return the ball to your conversational partner:
- How about you?
- Don’t you agree?
- Wouldn’t you say?
- Tell me something about your…
- …or maybe it is different in your experience
When your partner says something, it is good to acknowledge it:
- That’s a good idea
- I see your point
- I agree with that
- I don’t agree
- I see what you mean
Giving an Example
«Mobile phones are terrible.» A quick opinion doesn’t give you time to speak fluently. It is much better to give examples to support all of your opinons. In this case you might say «I was sitting at a coffee shop the other day and saw a whole family looking at their phones. They weren’t talking. They were all hypnotised by their screens.»
Giving an example and telling a story are both good ways of making your language more interesting. The English does not have to be sophisitcated or complex. When we speak we don’t normally use complicated language. You will seem fluent if you can connect your ideas to the real world. Try connecting lots of stories and anecdotes together to make your language come alive.
Practice Makes Perfect
When you start driving a car you have to think about all the different actions that go together. None of the individual actions is difficult. The problem is putting them all together. When I first passed my test I took the car out for some long drives just to get used to driving. Speaking English is a little like that.
The more you practice, the better you get.