How to Learn English Fast - Quick Ways
Most people want to learn a new language as quickly as possible. Countless factors will affect how quickly you can learn English - which includes how close English is to your mother-tongue language, your ability to learn languages and the amount of time you have to dedicate to learning English. However, these tips and tricks to learning English fast will help you to learn English efficiently and effectively. You, as an English learner, need to find what works best for you. The most important point is to be consistent with your process. An all-or-nothing approach will not be very effective if you burn out or run out of time in a day.
There are many right ways to learn a language and there are wrong ways. The main aim should be to optimise learning and minimise time-wasting. Follow our guidelines and you will improve your English in 30 days.
Is It Possible to Learn English Fast?
The short answer is yes, you can learn English fast. If you aim to be competent in English and to be able to hold in-depth conversations in English without too much pausing and thinking then yes, you can learn English fast. The long answer would depend on what you define as ‘learning English.’ Languages are incredibly complex and English is no exception. There are phrasal verbs, idioms and connotations to the tone of voice that challenge even the most seasoned English language learner. So no, you won’t reach native-level fluency fast but you can learn how to communicate in English, expand your vocabulary, improve your fluency, and learn how to use grammar structures correctly quickly.
Where to Start?
The best place to start is with a native English speaker. A native English speaking partner can guide you from the very beginning to speak English fluently and confidently. It is never too early to hold conversation practice with a native English speaker. In the beginning, the classes should be shorter and they should focus on basic English phrases. As you progress through your English language learning process, you can build on a solid foundation, learn new grammar structures and practice your pronunciation to sound like a native English speaker.
Another great place to start is by watching English movies with subtitles in your mother-tongue language. This isn’t the best way to actively learn English because you will rely on the subtitles, however, it is a great way to expose yourself to the sounds of the English language and the rhythm of spoken English. As you advance, you can re-watch the same movies again in English with English subtitles. Re-watching movies is a great idea because you won’t need to rely on your understanding of English to understand the movie.
It is never too soon to throw yourself into the deep end when learning a language. Most people learn a language very quickly when living in a country where the language is spoken. This is because their brains need to adapt to survive and they are exposed to the language every single day - they don’t only learn the language formally. Exposure means that you’re listening, reading, speaking and writing in real-life situations that don’t require dedicated learning time. Don’t only focus on learning a language. You must also focus on surrounding yourself with English to learn English fast.
Best Tips For Beginners to Learn English Fast
Beginners usually struggle to find the best way to start. However, it doesn’t matter exactly how you start. The most important thing is that you start. Here are some tips to get you started on your road to learning English fast.
Listen To English
We often forget that babies listen to a language for at least a year before they attempt their first word. They don’t understand everything they hear but their brains use listening as a way to understand the language. It’s never too soon to start listening to English in TV shows, movies or podcasts. Set yourself a listening task that is achievable for you. Listen to the rhythm of the sentences and try to hum or mimic the rhythm or try to figure out if the speaker is happy, excited, bored or worried. If two people are speaking, try to figure out what their relationship is. Are they being kind to each other? Are they being polite? Are they arguing?
It’s important to always set your listening tasks to your level. If you try to understand everything from the beginning then you will feel overwhelmed and you will want to quit. However, if you set tasks that you can achieve then you will feel motivated and driven to keep learning English.
Read Books
The only way to expand your vocabulary is through listening and reading tasks. Start by reading comic books or children’s books. These are designed to be easily understood and can be used to grow your vocabulary, revise vocabulary and learn English grammar.
Watch YouTube Videos
In your free time, you can watch native English teachers’ YouTube videos that are suitable to your level. Listen and repeat the words, sentences and phrases and learn English from the comfort of your own home. You should record yourself when practicing pronunciation so you can listen to the words and sentences you say and compare them to the native English speaker. You won’t be perfect the first time but learning how to correct yourself is one of the most valuable skills to learn to speak English fast.
Master Difficult Sounds
There will be sounds in English that don’t exist in your mother-tongue language (and vice versa). Replacing a sound with an entirely different sound can lead to miscommunication so the sooner you learn how to master difficult sounds in English, the sooner you will be able to communicate effectively. Don’t waste time forming bad habits.
Speak English
The best way to learn English fast is to speak English with native English speakers. A native English speaking partner will correct mistakes before they become habits and they will be able to correct your spoken grammar so that you can express yourself clearly in English.
Trust Yourself
It may seem ridiculous to listen to a language that you don’t understand - but if you can trust your brain to do the work then it will make your English language learning process a lot easier. Don’t put too much pressure on yourself to learn everything right away. Your brain will put the pieces together if you learn, read, listen to and speak English regularly.
Use The Internet
You don’t need to attend English classes in-person to learn English. If you know how to use Zoom and have a reliable internet connection then you can bring a native English speaker into the comfort of your home. Learning English at home can be hugely beneficial timewise and it can build your confidence.
Make Notes Of New Vocabulary
Write down new words that you hear, their definitions in English, their forms (noun, verb, adjective, adverb, or preposition etc), example sentences and your own sentences with the new vocabulary. This will allow you to review and revise new vocabulary. It can take up to 17 exposures to a new word or piece of vocabulary to learn it - so make sure you’re exposing yourself to new vocabulary regularly.
Keep It Interesting
Make sure that you learn all aspects of English - not only English grammar. Grammar is important to know but if you’re not able to use it then the knowledge is useless. Add variety to your learning by learning grammar, practicing speaking, writing, listening and reading. Mix your learning up by watching shows you’re interested in or reading books, articles or news reports that interest you. Learning a language can get boring if we don’t change things up regularly.
Learn English Every Day
If you want to learn English fast, you should spend around 3 to 4 hours total learning grammar, listening, reading, writing and speaking English every day. However, you can still make excellent progress if you’re able to dedicate 1 to 2 hours daily to learning and practicing the English language. The most important thing is to use English every day and to be consistent with it. You should dedicate most of your time to speaking English and a portion of your time learning grammar. Watch English movies throughout the week and keep a journal to practice your listening and writing skills regularly. Read the morning news articles in English to practice reading. There are ways to incorporate learning English into everyday tasks so find what works for you and do it every day.
What is English Everyday
English-Everyday is an English course with live lessons for English learners who want to improve their English with native speakers, professional teachers, and students from around the world.
You have live lessons where you can join every day. You can review all record lessons. There is a calendar of scheduled lessons so you can see when lessons are and at what time you can join.
In English Everyday program, you have support and also you have student chat where you can speak with other students from all around the world. You can look at our feedback page so that you can know from which countries our students are. Before you join our program, we strongly recommend you sign up for our free seminar with Kris Amerikos, where you can learn:
- What goals you need to have to get better results
- How to become fluent in English very quickly
- What you need to do to have perfect pronunciation
- The 3 biggest mistakes you need to avoid
- Which free resources will help you learn English
- The best resource to use to improve your speaking
Interesting Ways to Learn English Fast
Have A Movie Night Once A Week
Join up with your friends who are also learning English and watch an English movie once a week that you can discuss in English. It would be best to not use any subtitles, but if you want to use subtitles, use English subtitles to help you understand the movie better. Find phrases and new words that you like and share them with your friends. This will help expand your vocabulary and learn phrases and phrasal verbs while having fun.
Sing Karaoke
If you’re a person who enjoys singing karaoke then use this activity to your benefit. Karaoke can help with word recognition in written form and it can help improve your pronunciation. You can also sing songs on your own at home while you’re cooking or cleaning. It’s also a great way to learn the words to songs that you might not have known before.
Find An English Pen Pal
If you don’t want to keep a journal then reach out to an English pen pal and start sending letters or emailing each other. Writing and speaking are both productive skills which means they require you to produce language. Writing is a great way to improve your spoken English skill and it gives you a chance to practice what you’ve learnt when reading or listening.
Learn English Jokes
Jokes, like puns, are a play on words. A play on words is a joke where a word with two meanings is used to create a joke. For example:
“Waiter, will my pancakes be long?”
“No, sir. Round.”
The joke is based on the double meaning of the word ‘long.’
Long: to take a lot of time.
Long: a distance between two points that is greater than average.
English has a lot of words and phrases that have double meanings. If you can learn and understand puns then it will be easier to remember the double meaning of a word, phrasal verb or phrase.
Start A Book Club
Book clubs are a great way to motivate yourself to keep reading English. When life gets busy, reading is usually the first thing we stop doing. An English book club will keep you motivated to keep reading and you and your book club friends can hold each other accountable.
How to Learn American and British English Fast
If your goal is to learn English with a specific accent or to learn either American English or British English then you must find an English speaking partner with that accent and watch movies or TV shows where the characters speak with your desired accent.
If you want to learn both versions of English, then make sure that you’re exposing yourself to both. Listen and repeat the words and phrases that you hear and focus on pronouncing them in the same way as the native English speaker.
Things to Remember When You Learn English
Don’t put too much pressure on yourself. It’s common to try to learn everything at once and to feel disappointed when you fail. Start with the basics and make sure you have a sturdy foundation to build on. You will progress a lot faster long-term if you perfect the basics. It will be difficult, you will get confused and you will make mistakes. If you’re not doing all of these things then you’re not learning the language. Be kind to yourself and be forgiving. Learning a language should always be fun - no matter how fast you want to learn it.
