即便你背了无数的单词，即便你对语法了如指掌，但当用英语表达自己想法时，是不是仍然会感到“话在心头口难开”?

　　为什么会这样呢?有些原因是非常显而易见的。

　　那么，今天就来讲讲6个技巧，让你有效突破英语交流障碍，轻轻松松讲一口流利的英文!

　　Slow Down Your Speaking Speed

　　减慢语速

　　You might be an eloquent speaker when it comes to your mother tongue, but expecting the same standards from yourself when speaking in a foreign language may not be very realistic.

　　当你用母语交流时，你可能不输给奇葩说的辩论选手。而当你使用外语时，想要达到这样的水平，显然是不现实的。

　　Especially, if you’re at the early stages of learning. Learners are often told not to worry about the mistakes they’re making, however, it is easy to understand why you would like to make a good impression on your audience.

　　尤其，你还是语言的初级学习者。周围的人经常说不要在乎是否会犯语法错误，但是如果你想用外语给对方留下好印象的话，尽量还是要避免语法错误。

　　To overcome this difficulty, you may try slowing down your speaking speed.

　　Nobody will hold it against you if you speak more slowly and clearly. Great speakers do the same to get their message across. Selecting your words carefully may also be seen as a sign of respect towards your audience. It shows that you want to give them the best possible answer.

　　为了克服这个障碍，你需要减慢你的语速。如果你讲得慢一些，但是更加清楚、有条理，没人会反对你的。伟大的演讲者也是通过这种方式去表述自己的观点。谨慎地选用词汇也是对讲话对方的尊重，因为这体现了你想让对方得到明确清楚的答复。

　　Give Yourself Time to Think

　　给自己留些思考时间

　　You may be worried that the people you’re talking to are impatient and would like you to say what you want as quickly as possible.

　　你可能认为谈话对方不耐心，希望你讲得越快越好。

　　First of all, it may not be true – people often prefer a well-thought-out answer to a rushed one.

　　So just relax.

　　首先，这个认知可能是错误的。人们往往更愿意得到一个经过深思熟虑后得出的答案，而非一个匆匆忙忙的回复。

　　所以，放轻松。

　　Another practical thing you can do is equipping yourself with fixed phrases you can use when remaining silent doesn’t seem to be an option.

　　保持沉默并不是最佳选择，但是有一个可行的办法：自己准备些固定的术语。

　　举个例子：

　　Why is there so much violence on TV? That’s a good question. Let me think for a moment, I haven’t really thought about it before. Well, I suppose…

　　为什么电视节目如此暴力?这是个好问题，让我想一下，我之前还真没考虑过这个问题。我认为…

　　Here the speaker gains considerable amount of time to reflect just by repeating the question and adding a few sentences. If you do the same, you’ll sound more fluent and won’t feel the pressure of having to say something before you’re ready.

　　重复问题，并加上几个句子就能给说话者足够的时间去思考了。如果你这样做，我相信你的回答一定会更加的流畅，你也不会感到准备不充分所带来的巨大压力了!

　　常用的连接词：

　　during the day

　　in the meantime

　　It’s been a long time since

　　Sorry to bother/trouble you, but…

　　Would you mind if…?

　　Oh, come on!

　　I’m just kidding!

　　For what it’s worth,…

　　To be right/wrong about

　　Tit for tat/an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth

　　Learn Sentences, Not Only Words

　　记忆句子，而非单词

　　When you learn a new word, try to memorize a couple of sentences that contain it.

　　当你学习一个新的单词时，去记这个单词所构成的句子。

　　There might come a time when you can use one particular sentence with little, or no alteration at all. Unfortunately, many people learn words by heart, but have no idea how to use them in a sentence.

　　有时你甚至可以原封不动地在交流过程中使用这个句子。但是很多人都是记住一个单词，却不知道在句子中如何它。

　　It will be such a relief not having to worry about whether the sentence is correct grammatically or not. Let’s look at an example:

　　此外，记句子的好处在于你都不用去担心自己的句子语法正确与否，譬如：

　　appreciate = to recognize the value of something/somebody

　　I think it’s necessary to feel appreciated in a relationship/ at work.

　　I appreciate all your hard work.

　　Isn’t it much more useful to memorize ’appreciate’ this way?

　　难道背句子不比背单词更有效吗?

　　Learn to Listen

　　聆听

　　When speaking in a foreign language, you might be so focused on what you are saying and whether it’s correct or not, that you forget to listen to what others are saying.

　　当讲一门外语时，你可能太专注于你讲的句子正确与否，而忽略了对方在说什么。

　　This is a big mistake as they might be using the exact words or grammar you’ll be needing later on. So pay attention to what’s being said around you, it’s your most important resource at the time of speaking to someone.

　　你身边的人可能会使用你接下来需要的语法结构或者是词汇，所以聆听周围人在讲些什么，那是你对话时最重要的词汇语法“宝库”。

　　Practise Your Interrogatives练习提问

　　We also need to keep in mind the fact that communication is a two-way process. Not only does it make you seem uninterested – even rude – if you don’t ask questions, you might also end up being the one who has to do all the talking.

　　我们要知道交流是双向的。如果你不问对方问题，对方可能会觉得你不感兴趣，甚至认为你没有礼貌。结果就是你必须要一直说话。

　　So, when you’ve run out of ideas about what to say next, remember: others might have something to add.

　　所以，当你不知道接下来要说什么的时候，记住：对方可能也有想要表达的想法。 可你以尝试这样提问对方：

　　What are your views on that?

　　How about you? What do you think?

　　Why do you think there’s so much violence on TV?

　　Questions like this will keep the conversation going and will show your interest in other people’s opinion. They will also give you time to relax a little and start enjoying yourself.

　　这样的提问能够保证对话健康地进行下去。同时，也能体现你对对方的观点感兴趣，这样做也会给你一些时间放松自己。

　　Produce, Produce, Produce

　　练习，练习，练习

　　As I said at the beginning of this article, you might know a lot about the language, but this is passive knowledge that must be activated somehow. Your aim is to be able to produce correct English; practice is undeniably the best way to learn and improve.

　　正如文章开头所讲，你所学习的大量的语言知识都是被动的知识，你需要激活他们。以此来达到最终的目的---使用正确的英语。练习，毋庸置疑是最好的方式，它可以帮助你适应英语的使用规则。

　　Speaking, on the other hand, is a much more spontaneous process and nothing prepares you for it better than actually doing it. So, find people you can practise with.

　　交流，其实是非常自发的过程，只有你去说，你才能去总结反思成长，所以，找个可以和你对话交流的人吧!

（编辑：何莹莹）