Why spoken English can be so difficult to understand, good and bad mistakes

Hi there,

Welcome back to The English Breakfast — the newsletter for Italian professionals who want to sound more confident and natural in English at work.

It’s starting to get a bit chilly now (at least here in Milan!), so grab a hot drink and let’s get started.

Understanding spoken English can be tricky — even for people with a high level. It becomes even harder when you talk to native speakers.

Watch this week’s mini-lesson to learn why this happens and discover one simple trick that will help you understand spoken English much better.

@danieltannerenglish

Come capire l’inglese parlato #learnenglish #ingleseperitaliani #englishtips #businessenglish

One big reason spoken English is so difficult to follow is something called connected speech — when words join together in fast, natural speech.
The good news? Once you understand the basic rules, everything starts to sound much clearer with just a bit of practice.

So, let’s try a quick challenge!
Can you understand these six sentences? Each one includes examples of connected speech.

Listen carefully and then check your answers at the end of this email to see how you did.

Click here to learn more about understanding spoken English

Does speaking English make you anxious? 

You’re not alone! Read about my embarrassing experience trying to use Italian at work, and learn why mistakes aren’t always such a bad thing.

Let’s go.

Learn to Speak English More Fluently

But if you don’t use English at work or don’t have English-speaking friends, it can be hard to find chances to speak regularly.

That’s why I’ve started The English Fluency Club - a friendly weekly group session led by me, where you’ll build confidence and learn to talk about any topic naturally.

Right now, I only have 2 spots available.

If you’d like to join us, you can enjoy two free sessions to see if it’s a good fit.

Just contact me here with your name, email, and the message “English Fluency Club”.

Here are the answers to the connected speech challenge 👀 

1. You ate the entire cake!?

2. Where did I put my wallet? Ah, here it is!

3. She asked about it.

4. Our idea is different.

5. I need to go on a business trip next week. 

6. Yeah, I expected a raise too but instead they offered us pizza in the break room on Fridays.

All right, that’s it for today’s edition. What did you think? Reply to this email and let me know 📧 

😀 It was great!

🙂 It was OK.

❌ There was nothing useful for me.

Have a great week and see you next time.

Dan

#englishlesson #learnenglish #learnenglishforfree #speakenglish #howtospeakenglishfluently #englishconversation #englishgrammar #fluentenglish #businessenglish #ingleseperitaliani #imparainglese #inglese #ingleseperlavoro #pronunciainglese #grammaticainglese #englishteacher #englishcoach #insegnatediinglese

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