Where are you good at - spoken english or written english ?
By Zerzis
@Zerzis (557)
India
April 15, 2007 9:50am CST
im mostly good in both but comparitively at spoken english. Spoken english is difficult to master as we also have to add an accent to what we speak.
Our speech shouldnt be monotonous, we should give proper stress upon proper words. On the other hand writing business letters are tough as we have to convey the idea only thru words, which is much more difficult.
I think written english is difficult but spoken english conveys better and conveys perfectly what you actually want to say..
what are your views about this?
6 people like this
44 responses
@easy888 (10405)
• Australia
15 Apr 07
I think I am not good at both.lol.but comparatively I am worse in written one. I think everyone will have an accent, no matter you are a british,american,aussies, you still have your own accent, I do not feel any problem with it, as long as it is understandable, it will be fine. I would say written english is harder as you need to write it really perfectly in order to convince people, a poorly organized article is also fatal in business communication. I am even worse when I am typing englis as I may type too fast, and end up using the wrong words or incorrect spelling.
May be I need to do some english courses to learn.lol.
@Zerzis (557)
• India
15 Apr 07
i completely agree with you when you say written englich is more difficult,,...because when you are face to face you other hand movements and face guestures also help you to convery what you actually wanna say..which is upsent in written english..
all you have are words..
thanks for responding..
1 person likes this
@mindrich (183)
• Philippines
16 Apr 07
Yeah still same here not good both but the good thing I'm always positively looking some ways to improve both oral and written communication since these are crucial to my success.I won't forget what my witty friend told me that for me to be master of the language I must have a habit to think and say in English oftenly. That's why I love posting or take participation here at mylot discussion because it would personally help me develop my endeavor regarding this matter. Aside from that I get myself involve in a social club just like Toastmaster Club.
1 person likes this
@sarahruthbeth22 (43143)
• United States
16 Apr 07
I think English is hard period. With spoken English it is a little easier because there is more to conversation than lanuage. And the other person is right there and can ask you what you mean if it isn't clear. With written English there are so many pitfalls. Good grammar is a must and English grammar is the hardest to learn.
1 person likes this
@Zerzis (557)
• India
16 Apr 07
english grammer is hardest to learn..! really ..?
i dont think so..you know what to master the grammer you should read and read more and more english. Because you read correct gramatical english you will be used to correct grammer and in your speaking also you will autopmatically follow that grammer - this automatically improving yur grammer.
If someone goes wrong in grammer you can immediately pinpoint that its wrong and will tell the correct one...
1 person likes this
@sukumar794 (5040)
• Thiruvananthapuram, India
6 May 07
I am more good at writing than speaking English. We just do not have an English speaking environment up here...hence I am a poor talker.
1 person likes this
@Zerzis (557)
• India
21 May 07
Dear federickp,
sukumar is not weak in written english. He is weak in oral communication. so he has to speak more and listen to good english to learn the accent. ANd as we cant speak over here in mylot i dont think just posting more and more will help in oral communication, yes in written communication we do learn a lot in mylot!
@federickp (607)
• India
6 May 07
but you are a good writer! I think we can improve english by posting more and more responses in here! isnt it! he he he!
1 person likes this
@rockerwitch (538)
• Philippines
7 May 07
I'm better at written English. I guess because I don't speak English that often but I do read a lot and write a lot so that's the area that I've developed. And when I write, I can edit it so it'll sound better. :) Although sometimes, in informal things such as this, I don't edit a lot. Just let it flow. When I speak I kind of get panicky and it's kind of hard to translate in my mind. At least when I write I can think the words through. I would love to be able to speak proper English though. I mean, I don't suck, it's just not perfect. :) I find it better for me to express my thoughts through written words... I don't know why. Maybe I've just got the soul of a writer. Lol! :)
@Zerzis (557)
• India
21 May 07
In my case i have been studying in Englich medium school right from my age 4. So i am very very confortable in english right from beginning, also me and my dad and my brother speak in english many times. I have habbit of reading english newspapers and novels. I began to read novels at an early age of 11, so i am good at reading and vocabulary.
Grammer was never a problem. I then began to see english movies, which again helped me to get the US anf UK accent of englich speaking. Now i also read novels as i love reading.
Due to all these reasons i am quite confortable in englsh.
@federickp (607)
• India
8 May 07
you should tryu to listen to better english and pure english. Try to get grammer basics first then everything will be nice and fine!
1 person likes this
@rockerwitch (538)
• Philippines
8 May 07
Thanks for the advice. :) I think I just need to speak more English in order to improve it. I don't think I'd like to go to another grammar basics... Although from time to time I get confused about pluralization or something. Ha Ha! In my country, English is actually the second language so since I was like, 2 years old, we've been studying English and our classes are held in English. But mostly I learned the language through watching TV (and who said tv isn't helpful?). I think it's a more effective way to learn the expressions and slangs and stuff like that, and also learn the accent. Also, I read a lot of books. They're a bunch of light reads like Meg Cabot but they do help me learn.
How about you, how did you learn English? Was it mainly learned in school or did you have other venues from which you learned it?
1 person likes this
@squaretile (3778)
• Singapore
25 May 07
I am fluent in spoken english. having learnt it since young. my parents speak english at home as well.
the best way of speaking good english is to interact with those who speak it well. failing which, there is always BBC worldwide broadcasting.
I would say i write english well too. Took the Cambridge A levels English Literature paper at age 17, including the 's' paper, which is i guess university level. Writing good business letters or reports or proposals may be difficult and tedious. however, what I really enjoy is writing prose, or fiction.
new learners of english usually write much better than they speak. whereas for languages with difficult scripts, usually they speak it well but cannot write it at all. examples include thai and mandarin.
@Zerzis (557)
• India
26 May 07
Your parents speak good english and they speak with you everytime is the best way to learn because when ever you go wrong they can guide you when you went wrong! ANd thats best learning.
THanks a lot for your elaborative response!
You get a '+' dear! as i cant give you more than that.
@squaretile (3778)
• Singapore
26 May 07
thanks for the rating! I didn't expect anything more. just happy to share. :)
@banta78 (4326)
• India
28 Apr 07
I feel comfortable in both written and spoken english as i was introduced to it as a kid and was taught well. I feel if one has got his fundas and grammer right then it becomes easy to learn the language in correct manner. Besides proper practise does make one better and there is always scope for improvement. good luck. enjoy. :)
@jain_bangalore (3136)
• India
30 Apr 07
Same here....iam also good at both the things...
1 person likes this
@Strawberry_one (243)
• United States
29 Apr 07
I am better at written english because I'm better at expressing myself that way. I am from the southern part of Kentucky which is in the United States. Well I have what is known as an apalacian accent so I don't say the whole words sometimes or others I have a southern draw and it doesn't sound like the word at all but those that live around me understand because they talk the same way. Now when I go to other states I have to speak slowly and pronounce my words and that is very hard for me.
1 person likes this
@er_gagandeep (261)
• India
29 Apr 07
i am not good at both lol .the only subject for which i have ever failes in my life is english .though it was more becoz of my hard prep for iit (indian must be knowing abt this )Anyway out of 2 options u have given i think speaking english is much difficult .This is because u need a courage to speak english (in my case )as this is not my mother tongue or my accent is not very gud .i cant speak very fluetly this language and may stammer in between .Whereas in writing i can properly think abt words and then write to express myself in better way .this is not in real time .U have some time to think
1 person likes this
@Zerzis (557)
• India
29 Apr 07
yes in written english you have some time to think. But you dont have expressions to help you in written english. But you have those in spoken - face to face communication.
Try to listen to english news channels, they have goo dpronunciation as compared to movies. Try to read more english newspapres and good grammer... you will surely increase you speed and fluency.
@Shrenik007 (314)
• India
6 May 07
Me better on written english rather than the spoken one.. I mean, i can speak english fluently, but still i prefer more on writing...
I can easily write business letters, memos or drafts..
No problems to me in written english...
But its true, that spoken english is more difficult to learn quickly....
1 person likes this
@lunnobanks (102)
• Brazil
20 Apr 07
I like to spoken english, i try so much, I'm brazilian and I learning english, I have studied for four years, and I'll two years for receive the cetificate.
@mckenziejohnn (85)
• Brazil
29 Apr 07
I know how to speak english, but I'm better at written english.. I guess I can express myself better at written english than at spoken english..
I have a neutral accent, by the way.
@Liting (55)
• China
16 Apr 07
Thank you for starting this topic!I like this!I'm good at writing english,but not very good at spoken english,so I have to practise a lot,becuase I am a chinese girl,,,but nearly all of my clients are american people.sometimes I picked their call...but I can't understand well what they are talking about,one time,one of my clients were laugh at me..because i can't say I can't understand all his words.In fact,I can't understand him.So I'm very worry about this,I do not like to take their phones...because of my bad spoken english and listening...i have to make a great effort to learn more on how to communicate with them.My god...could you pls let me know how to do well?you said that your spoken enlish is very well...I admire you.really!so Let's learn from each other ok??haha....sure I can't be a teacher of your's.
1 person likes this
@Zerzis (557)
• India
16 Apr 07
hi liting,
i appreciate you comming forward with your drawbacks. Very few people have those guts.
Now i am going to disappoint you more by saying that even your written english is also not that perfect (as i can make out from above post - if u have written that after a drink..LOL! then thats excusable.)
What you lack is following,
1. Grammer. Read what you wrote "So i'm very worry about this" - it should be "So, i'm very worried about it". or simply "I worry about it"...any of those...
Improve on grammer. I have already told to someone above how to improve on grammer.
2.Since you dont understand your clients, you are not used to american accent. Try to watch more and more english movies..listen to CNN and american news channels.
i hope this helps you.
Report after somedays what changes you had in your english,
bye and takecare...
@soumidattaiitd (75)
• India
16 Apr 07
i think i am good at both...but en it comes to written...i am perhaps a bit btter at it...coz while writing u also get enuf time to think before penning down your felings...
1 person likes this
@genman (34)
• India
16 Apr 07
I am good at both.
As we know that english is the official language all over the globe it needs to be well developed.
When we go out of our country,the required language to communicate with someone is english and even anywhere in the world there are the majority of english medium schools.
1 person likes this
@confusedheart (207)
• Philippines
16 Apr 07
I think I am pretty good at both but I want to excel in writing. Writing is a good channel f expressing your thoughts even if no one is listening right? I think speaking is much difficult since you must be aware of your pronunciation an stress and emphasis. Of course you still have to watch out for your words.
@Zerzis (557)
• India
16 Apr 07
confused heart you have confused me regarding whether spoken english is difficult or written english is difficult. By the way think both of them go hand in hand upto a certain level. Again i think written english is difficult, its really difficult to convey your idea to other person theu written matters.
@Pulakesh360 (121)
• India
20 Apr 07
I am trying to increasing my spocken and writing skills.
1 person likes this
