How To Improve Immigrants’ English
Comments
Sorry but this REALLY doesn't cut it! Most Brits don't even open their mouths when they talk!
Posted by Expat47 in Athens, Greece on 11/20/14 at 09:06 AM
"My hovercraft is full of eels."
Through my studies of, mainly, French, and dabbling in a few other languages I have come to appreciate how difficult English can be to non-native speakers. Expat, your description could also apply to some of the natives here in the Lower Midwest. I've come across a few Boomhauer's around here. (ref: "King Of The Hill" series)
Through my studies of, mainly, French, and dabbling in a few other languages I have come to appreciate how difficult English can be to non-native speakers. Expat, your description could also apply to some of the natives here in the Lower Midwest. I've come across a few Boomhauer's around here. (ref: "King Of The Hill" series)
Posted by KDP on 11/20/14 at 09:51 AM
Kenny on South Park talks/mumbles like that too KDP. The guy should practice saying- 'This is customer service how may I help you?' That's what we hear most often from that accent. 😉
Posted by Patty in Ohio, USA on 11/20/14 at 08:42 PM
We all need to learn "Engrish" .. that wording in the Chinese manuals and all the cheap crap we get and order.
Posted by BrokeDad in Midwest US on 11/20/14 at 08:52 PM
This cracks me up. I'm a speech-language pathologist and find old elocution books and movie scenes so funny. I love how the professor tells him, "Get it right!"
There is truth in that the prosody (rhythm and intonation), along with vowel pronunciation, tends to be what makes English as a second or later language speakers difficult to understand. The prosody is also why foreign languages almost always sound so fast, since non-speakers of the language don't know where the breaks between the words, phrases and sentences are.
I always wonder about Americans who make fun of others' accents, since the vast majority of Americans speak only English, and often that not particularly well to boot. I wonder how many of them speak ANY other languages and how authentic their pronunciations are if they do.
There is truth in that the prosody (rhythm and intonation), along with vowel pronunciation, tends to be what makes English as a second or later language speakers difficult to understand. The prosody is also why foreign languages almost always sound so fast, since non-speakers of the language don't know where the breaks between the words, phrases and sentences are.
I always wonder about Americans who make fun of others' accents, since the vast majority of Americans speak only English, and often that not particularly well to boot. I wonder how many of them speak ANY other languages and how authentic their pronunciations are if they do.
Posted by ScoutC on 11/20/14 at 09:50 PM
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