There are plenty of ways that you can practice your English all by yourself! Here, we've gathered some of the best ways to work on your pronunciation and the fluency of your speech, even if no one else is around to hear you.

1

Speak in front of a mirror.

  1. Watch the shape of your mouth and your facial expressions. Pronouncing words correctly has a lot to do with getting your mouth in the right shape to make the necessary sound. By speaking in front of a mirror, you can see what your mouth and face are doing and correct what's wrong before it becomes engrained.[1]
  2. Advertisement
2

Read aloud to yourself.

  1. This gives you a chance to practice reading and speaking. There are plenty of words in English that are spelled differently than they sound. Reading aloud is a different kind of speaking practice, in that it helps you better understand how words are written in English as well as how they're spoken.[4]
    • Choose a story or article on your reading level to get the best speaking practice. You want to be able to read the words fairly smoothly without having to stop frequently to look something up.
    • If you're reading dialogue, try to say the parts that characters would speak using the same tone they would use if they were speaking the words. For example, if a character is asking a question, speak with a rising tone at the end of the sentence to indicate a question.
3

Listen to spoken English and repeat it back.

4

Narrate your actions.

  1. Say what you're doing or thinking aloud in English. As you go about your day, pretend you're a character in a novel and tell your "reader" about your every move. Don't worry about getting everything exactly correct grammatically—just work on expressing yourself and describing actions.[6]
    • For example, you might say, "I'm getting ready to go to work. Now I'm taking out the trash. I see clouds in the sky. I hope that it won't rain today. I'm looking forward to playing soccer later."
    • You can use this to practice verb tenses or conjugation as well. For example, you might say, "I am taking out the trash. My brother is not taking out the trash. He will take out the trash next week."
5

Memorize a poem or speech and recite it.

  1. Find a short poem or speech you love. Go line by line to memorize the passage you've chosen—just this act is already helping you become more familiar with English. Repeat the passage until you've memorized the whole thing. Then, when you've got a minute or two, recite the passage aloud.[7]
    • You can even do small parts of the passage when you have just a few seconds. For example, suppose you've decided to memorize the poem "Trees," by Joyce Kilmer. Whenever you have a couple of seconds, you might say aloud, "I think that I shall never see, a poem lovely as a tree."[8]
  2. Advertisement
6

Test out tongue twisters.

  1. Use these silly phrases to practice problematic pronunciation. Tongue twisters are typically troublesome sentences that stress certain sounds. These phrases can be difficult even for native speakers, so don't beat yourself up if you have a hard time with them! Here's a few to get you started:[9]
    • She sells seashells by the seashore.
    • Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.
    • How much wood could a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?
    • He threw three free throws.
    • We surely shall see the sun shine soon.
7

Record yourself speaking and play it back.

  1. Read a passage in a book aloud, then listen to yourself speaking. Any sort of voice recorder will work for this—most smartphones have recording apps. It can be awkward to listen to your recorded voice, but it'll help you recognize issues with your pronunciation.[10]
    • If you have a recording of a native English speaker reading the same passage, play your recording first, then play theirs. Note where your pronunciation differs so you'll know what you need to practice more.
  2. Advertisement
8

Sing along with English lyrics.

  1. Learn the lyrics to English-language songs that you like. Popular music can be great because you'll also pick up some of the slang and casual speech that most people use in daily life. The rhythm, rhyme, and repetitiveness also make the lyrics easier to memorize.[11]
    • Listening to English-language music is a good way to immerse yourself in the language. Initially, you might find that you don't understand all the words. But as you continue to listen, you'll start understanding more and more.
    • If you're having trouble understanding the lyrics, search for them online. Then, you can read along as you listen to the song.
9

Dictate in English instead of writing.

  1. If your word processing app has a dictation function, use it to practice. Many smartphones, including the iPhone, also have dictation apps that you can use for this purpose. If the app shows the word you meant to say, you'll know your pronunciation is clear.[12]
    • The neat thing is you can also see your words in print, so you can read them back and check for grammatical errors.
    • If you have a virtual assistant, such as Siri or Alexa, you can set its default language to English. Then, you'll have to speak to it in English to get it to do things for you. How the virtual assistant understands what you've said also helps you improve your pronunciation.[13]
  2. Advertisement
11

Commentate a sports broadcast.

12

Practice shadow reading.

  1. Get a transcript and read along as someone is speaking. For this exercise, you'll need both a written transcript and a video of a person saying those exact words. When you start the video and the person starts speaking, speak aloud along with them using the transcript. Try to mimic their speed, rhythm, and speaking style as closely as possible.[16]
    • This is a more advanced practice, because many native speakers will speak much faster than you're used to. It can be easier if you find a prepared speech—people making speeches tend to speak more slowly and distinctly than in casual speech.
    • This practice differs from reading subtitles aloud because subtitles aren't meant to be a verbatim transcript. Often, the subtitles merely provide the general idea of what the person is saying, and they don't get everything—especially if there are several people talking at once.

Expert Q&A
Did you know you can get expert answers for this article? Unlock expert answers by supporting wikiHow

  • Question
    How can I sound more natural when learning a new language?
    Patrick Muñoz
    Patrick Muñoz
    Voice & Speech Coach
    Patrick is an internationally recognized Voice & Speech Coach, focusing on public speaking, vocal power, accent and dialects, accent reduction, voiceover, acting and speech therapy. He has worked with clients such as Penelope Cruz, Eva Longoria, and Roselyn Sanchez. He was voted LA's Favorite Voice and Dialect Coach by BACKSTAGE, is the voice and speech coach for Disney and Turner Classic Movies, and is a member of Voice and Speech Trainers Association.
    Patrick Muñoz
    Voice & Speech Coach
    Expert Answer

    Support wikiHow by unlocking this expert answer.

    If you begin to incorporate the rhythm and melody of the language, then you'll be off to a really good start. Practice specific sounds and overall intonation patterns, notice their differences, and reproduce and copy those sounds.
  • Question
    What does "split" mean?
    Donagan
    Donagan
    Top Answerer
    The verb "to split" means "to divide" or "to separate." The noun "split" means "division" or "separation." The adjective "split" means "divided" or "separated."
  • Question
    How do I improve my functional English?
    Donagan
    Donagan
    Top Answerer
Advertisement

References

  1. https://idc.edu/15-unique-ways-to-practice-speaking-english/
  2. Patrick Muñoz. Voice & Speech Coach. Expert Interview. 12 November 2019.
  3. Patrick Muñoz. Voice & Speech Coach. Expert Interview. 12 November 2019.
  4. https://youtu.be/sYzR1_tMI7c?t=34
  5. Patrick Muñoz. Voice & Speech Coach. Expert Interview. 12 November 2019.
  6. https://idc.edu/15-unique-ways-to-practice-speaking-english/
  7. https://engfluent.com/english-speaking-practice/
  8. https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poetrymagazine/poems/12744/trees
  9. Patrick Muñoz. Voice & Speech Coach. Expert Interview. 12 November 2019.

About This Article

Patrick Muñoz
Co-authored by:
Voice & Speech Coach
This article was co-authored by Patrick Muñoz and by wikiHow staff writer, Jennifer Mueller, JD. Patrick is an internationally recognized Voice & Speech Coach, focusing on public speaking, vocal power, accent and dialects, accent reduction, voiceover, acting and speech therapy. He has worked with clients such as Penelope Cruz, Eva Longoria, and Roselyn Sanchez. He was voted LA's Favorite Voice and Dialect Coach by BACKSTAGE, is the voice and speech coach for Disney and Turner Classic Movies, and is a member of Voice and Speech Trainers Association. This article has been viewed 69,095 times.
46 votes - 91%
Co-authors: 9
Updated: August 25, 2021
Views: 69,095
Categories: English
Advertisement