Q&A for How to Speak Proper English

Putting thoughts and feelings into words can be hard - especially if English is not your native language. It takes work, just like drawing a picture to express an idea takes some work. But the more you practice, the better you will get and the more naturally it will come.

"Here is the good news" is correct because "news" is an uncountable noun. It's always treated as singular.

First of all, have confidence in yourself. And even if you commit mistakes, calm down, no one's going to get upset with you. For practice, stand in front of the mirror and speak to yourself, there's no pressure there. The more you do this, the more your language skills will improve, and the more confident you will become.

I would recommend listening to English podcasts or tapes to help with your use of proper English. If you want to speak a certain dialect/accent, study the accent and speak in it as much as possible. I am learning Spanish and I found this very useful.

Look for easy-to-read novels at the library to learn English and increase your vocabulary in a fun, entertaining way. You can also use magazines, newspapers and audio tapes to boost your comprehension on a variety of topics.

Use English as much as possible to boost your confidence and recall words faster. Read English newspapers and magazines, listen to English podcasts, watch the news in English and keep a journal in English to practice your skills and increase your vocabulary.

It's proper to say, "Why didn't you text me?" If it wasn't a question, you would say, "You didn't text me" rather than "You text didn't."

The way you've expressed it is just right.

No. You can say "way before", but not "way before's". For example, you might say, "that happened way before the internet got big". Of course, in more formal English, "way before" is actually frowned upon. You would instead use "long before".

There's no substitute for practice. Copy native speakers and writers.

Thank you for considering me to be one of your online instructor. I have a problem with the work schedule, however, as I am not able to work on the weekends.

Read as much as you can, as widely as possible (newspapers, books, magazines, blogs, etc.). Keep a notebook for collecting vocabulary, in which you include the word in context (in the sentence you found it in) and its meaning. Practice using new words each day.

Either is correct.

The best thing to do is to find books that are written for your age range and try to read through them. If you find them too difficult, gradually decrease the reading level until you're comfortable again and then work upwards from there.

Yes, it is correct.

It depends on the question. If the question is, "what did she say?" then the first answer is suitable. If the question is, "what does she say?" then your last answer is correct.

"What did you say?" or "What did you just say?"

In informal speech one person might say, "I don't like onions," and another person might reply, "Me neither."

No, just say "Good morning."

It can mean both of those things.

When you are in front of people speaking a new language, there will always be pressure to keep the conversation going at the speed of the other speakers. Native speakers of English will speak very fast sometimes and for those learning English, it has to be a struggle to speak in front of us because sometimes we are speaking back and forth very quickly. My advice is to first get your fluency and pronunciation down, then to worry about speed.

Just smile and keep trying. In consolation, you might try to imagine what they'd sound like if they tried to speak your native language.

"Some of us are" is correct. You are talking about a group of people. Other way around - "One of us is" - is correct because you're talking about one person out of a group.

"...had come..."

Saint Mary's Church is the correct way.

Yes, "you" can be used in the plural sense, or you can say "all of you," "each of you" or "every one of you."

"Must I go out" is correct.

No, if you are speaking about someone slowing down, you would say, "He has slowed down". Sometimes we native English speakers sound like we are saying "slown" or "sloan", but we mean to say "slowed down".

It's entirely up to you whether to use a synonym. Your goal is to use words that mean exactly what you want to say.

"You said what?" is correct, but a more common phrase would be "What did you say?"