If you’re not feeling confident in your English conversation skills, it can be tough. Here are 5 easy ways to keep an English conversation going.
English is a difficult language to learn, and holding a conversation with someone who speaks English fluently can be a real challenge.
Even if you’ve been working on improving your English-speaking skills, and you understand perfectly what the other person is saying, quickly thinking of what to say next can be difficult if English is not your native language.
If the words don’t pop into your head quickly enough, you can be stuck with an awkward silence while you try to search for the right thing to say.
But with a few useful tips, you never have to worry about that again. Here are 5 simple ways to keep your English conversation going.
Show interest
Letting the other person know that you’re interested in what they’re saying doesn’t necessarily require a lot of words.
Acknowledging your partner with simple phrases like “That’s great!” or “Wow!” or “Really?” will show them that you’re intrigued by their story. This will encourage them to keep talking while also keeping the conversation from being one-sided.
Offer an opposing view
Another way to keep your English conversation going is to let the person you’re speaking with know that you have an opposing view. But make sure to do so politely, or your conversation might quickly become an argument!
If your partner tells you, for example, they think a certain restaurant is fantastic, you could say, “I think that restaurant is good, but my favorite restaurant is the diner down the street.”
Some common phrases to use when you want to express a different idea without offending your partner are “I see what you mean, but…” or “In my opinion…” or “You make a good point, but…”
Ask a follow-up question
A great way to keep your conversation going is to ask follow-up questions.
If you’re unsure what type of question to ask, remember the “Five Ws“: Who, What, Where, When, and Why. Start your question off with one of those five words to ensure your conversation moves right along.
For example, if your partner tells you they’re going on vacation, you could ask “Who are you traveling with?” or “Where are you going?”
If they tell you they got a new job, you might inquire, “When do you start?” or “Why are you leaving your old job?”
Start a new topic
Eventually, you might run out of things to say about a topic, or sometimes you don’t know enough about the subject matter to discuss it comfortably. When this happens, it’s okay to change the topic, but you’ll want to lead into it politely rather than just jumping in without warning.
You can smoothly change the subject with just a few introductory words. Phrases like “That reminds me…” or “I’ve been meaning to tell you…” give your partner fair warning that you’re moving on to a different topic.
Tell them you don’t understand
If you’re not able to keep the conversation going because you’re having a hard time following what the other person is saying, sometimes it’s best to just be honest.
You can say “I don’t understand” and then ask them to repeat what they just said more slowly, to rephrase their sentence, or to explain a specific word you’re not familiar with.
This is also a great way to keep learning more about the language!
Enhance your English conversation skills even more
These tips are a great way to help keep your English conversation moving along, but perhaps you’d like to learn even more.
Are you ready to master the English language? Contact us today for more information. We look forward to hearing from you!
