yao2004bj 说:
do you want your english to be as good as English native speaker?
Formal English is generally easier for the non-native speaker to understand than informal English. When a native speaker wants to clarify a point to another native speaker, he/she generally uses progressively more casual language. The contrary is true of the non-native speaker. Speaking more formally includes:
1.Elimination of slang and informal expressions. For example, "That is not necessary," is easier to understand than "You don't have to do that."
2.Limiting the use of two and three-word verbs (run into, get across, etc.). For example, "I will organize that," is easier to understand than "I'll set it up."
3.Using Latin-based root words in place of more casual choices. Latin-rooted words in English generally indicate a more formal or academic speaking style, and the non-native speaker is more likely to have studied a more formalized, generic form of English in his/her home country or intensive ESL program.
what you said is still a little different with native speakers, so I think you may need more idioms or slangs to help you improve your English
just my opinion
I am really impressed,sister. The reply you wrote above shows me that you write fairly well, i am wondering if your listening and speaking are as well as your writing? Are you still in China or have landed in Canada already? I would guess that you either majored in English in University in China or are English teacher?
The words you used in the passage are various and I can see that those words very unlikely come from a basic English learner. May I ask how long have you studied in English? Your grammer is pretty good, your vocabulary is affluent, and you have made up yourself a couple of new words such as `latin-based`,`three-word`.....etc.. well done,sis.
I agree with both of you Suusan and Yao, your experiences are really helful. Now i would like to share a bit of my experience of studying in English as well. I found that most Chinese people don't speak English in a POLITE way,they are used to speak it in the Chinese way of speaking. When they ask someone for a favour or something, they tend to ask without using these modal verbs such as `Would,May,Could,...etc..` and other words like` please, thanks`. When they talk over a topic, they tend to make the conversation sounds like an argument
sometimes , because they are used to forgetting using the phrases like `You are right,but I can't TOTALLY agree with you...`instead of saying `I can't agree with you `,`your opinion is not right, mine is correct` instead of saying `Your opinion is ESSENTIAL,but mine is VITAL too`.....etc..... it is very easy for us to forget to bear in mind that speaking English in a polite way,and Chinese way of speaking English sometimes can cause offense slightly or severely to the person or people you are talking to
, then there it goes the arguement. This kind of cases have happened to me numerous times, and the person i was talking to felt offened, of couse the person is not Chinese.
In the nutshell, just be aware of the way you speaking English, especially when you are in a foreign country, it's better always remember how to make a good conversation with natives ,and how not to be rude which you don't intend to be,because people are not always understanding sometimes,they may think you are rude,but you never meant to be. HeHe......