Want to speak better English
Dear Dr English,
I have a problem speaking English. I donÕt have a large enough vocabulary to express myself and I donÕt know how to put the words in order. Your recommendation would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.
Juthamas Petchoo
I donÕt know if you can write a sentence, although it appears from your letter that you can.
Your problem might be your lack of confidence when trying to speak. And small vocabulary makes matters worse.
You should enrich your vocabulary, study English grammar and work hard on sentence construction, either by reading books or by taking a course.
As for vocabulary, you can make a list of words for practice: starting with the items you use daily and going on to include your areas of interest.
At the same time, find an opportunity to practise speaking English. DonÕt worry too much about not being able to compose perfect sentences at this stage.
Reading novels and short stories also helps. Choose books you find easy. You may also try and find a friend or two who, sharing the interest, can be your practice partners. Good luck!
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Want to pronounce
correctly
Dear Dr English,
When I read, I donÕt know where to stress and I canÕt pronounce the words correctly. Can you advise me? Thank you
Phenphak Prompilai
First, Get a good dictionary that details the phonetic spelling for each entry and learn from there.
Secondly, listen carefully to native speakers and watch movies if you donÕt have any foreign friends.
The most important thing is that you must pronounce the words and stress them exactly the way native speakers do; donÕt try to make it sound Thai or do it the easy way; it will not help. And...have fun!
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Regards or regard when ending a letter
Dear Dr English,
I have a simple question about ÒBest regardsÓ and ÒRegardsÓ. There should always be an ÒsÓ at the end, right? I have seen people write ÒBest regardÓ and ÒRegardÓwhen ending a letter, but are these correct?
Jutakarn Promwichit
ÒRegardsÓ in such expressions as ÒBest regardsÓ, ÒWith warm regardsÓ or ÒRegardsÓ is used at the end of a letter and denotes a plural noun, accounting for the ÒsÓ. The phrase conveys friendly sentiments.
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