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Tanushka

Good communication skills are of extreme importance in the business world. Be it spoken fluency or written fluency of the English Language. People, especially in the business world, remain stuck in a single position for not having the same. If you are a beginner and just started to learn the language, there is a good chance that you translate to English from your Mother Tongue in your mind before you speak. While this technique helps you get your idea across and also, gets you a bit of practice, here is why we should not use it:

Time-taking: Translation takes a lot of time due to which you might miss your window of opportunity. It takes a lot more time for us to process the information and look for words and grammar structures suitable for the information.

 

Message: Translation of your message from your mother tongue to the English language doesn't always successfully convey it. Every language is unique and has its own grammatical structures. Therefore, even if you find the words meaning precisely the same in the English Language, they might not convey the same message.

For ex - In Hindi, ‘Main sone ja raha hun’. Here, the word ‘sone’ can mean either sleep or gold. Therefore, when you translate word by word, it might become, “I am going to gold”, which doesn’t make any sense.

 

Mistranslation: When you are just learning the English language, it is possible for you to get confused between words, which means the same in your native language, but are very different in the English language. You might use them incorrectly while speaking. For example, you may get confused when to use 'abandon' and when to use 'left' while speaking in English as both the words have the same meaning to you in your native language.

Therefore, to overcome these challenges and many other small challenges that come with such translations, we need to train ourselves to think & speak in English. Here's how you can go about it:

  • Think in words, sentences, and conversations: First off, start by thinking in terms of a simple word,' table,' 'chair,' 'pen,' etc., and try to build your vocabulary about the things around you. Slowly, start making small yet straightforward sentences, without thinking of them in your native language, like ‘How are you?’ etc. Gain some practice and confidence in them, and after that gradually, start thinking in the terms of conversations and practice the same. For ex, practice small talk like, ‘how are you?'; 'I am fine, thank you' etc. 

 

  • Another method to stop translating is that of association: Try associating words with a clear image in your head, like the image of a file to that of its word. Try to understand the word's emotion and meaning. Therefore, after some time, if some say the word "file-case," you automatically associate it with a file and a case and know what it means and implies. Hence, you would automatically grasp words and won't spend time translating it.

 

  • Yet another but effective method of getting fluent in English is to surround yourself with it: Try and speak as much as you can in English; read English newspapers, novels, etc.; watch English news, English movies; listen to English songs, etc. This will gradually build your vocabulary, sentence formation, and speaking skills, and you would be speaking fluently without the need for translation.

 

  • Go online: Yes, you can go online and practice your English language skills in the form of various minigames that are available on the internet, which forces you to think in English. The idea is to develop how quickly you can think in English without looking at your accurateness as that is something which can be worked at after the game, taking as much time as you want.

 

English is a beautiful language, though a little complex to someone who is just a beginner. It will take time to be a master at this language, but the key is to get in as much practice as you can and to ask for help whenever you are stuck somewhere. Try the methods listed above, and in no time, you will see yourself getting fluent in this language.

 

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Tanushka

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