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wm27
Community Member

When English is the first crazy thing in my life|Share your experience to gain native-level fluency

Hi Upwork Community,

I want to make myself a native level fluent in English. Is that possible? If so, then please give me the most effective tips to gain the native level fluency in English.

At this moment, I watch Hollywood old movies at least 3 hours each day and write 1000 words anything that my mind wants each day.

I read web article regularly each day and also study high school & college grammar books to improve my English grammar skills.

By the way, I also created a self-hosted blog site to improve my English Writing skills.

Kindly, let me know your valuable thoughts & experiences.

Thanks

Waled Munker

 

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ahsan-kazmi
Community Member

The more you read the better you write. That's the only formula. Moreover, watch bbc world news and cnn news channels. To achieve native level fluency, you should read standard english literature to collect idiomatic expressions and vocabulary of daily use. I'd recommend PG Wodehouse and Agatha Christie's novel for reading. You will learn a lot from their dialogues and prose. But it is a fact that it will take time. You cannot achieve native level fluency overnight.

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44 REPLIES 44


@Luce N wrote:

 Well, I knew about the other thread. Also knew that for some reason many people here find it necessary to humiliate people whose English is not great, and I can't stand that.  


Sorry, Luce, that is your perception/opinion, not something you “know.” Only recently, someone came in out of nowhere with a post rather pedantically criticizing another poster’s non-native English, and the forum regulars scolded him severely.

It is a working assumption that many people in this global platform will have English as a later-acquired language. Typically their infelicities go unremarked, unless:

  • (rarely) The English is so bad that it’s necessary to ask what they mean.
  • (all too commonly) Would-be writers or translators claim a level of skill or expertise belied by their every post.

No one’s interests are served by that kind of deception, or self-deception—neither the pretenders’, nor ours, nor the clients’.

 

Best,

Michael


@Eve L wrote:

I think we could need something like "Upwork police", and my vote would go to Petra. 🙂


She's too strong, she'll have us all by the throat.

I do admire her strength, though 🙂

husainaa
Community Member


@Md.Waled B wrote:

I want to make myself a native level fluent in English. 


 

The following is Upwork's definition of someone who is fluent: "A person who has complete command of a language with perfect grammar."
 
In all honesty—and this is coming from a non-native English speaker—you are far, far away from meeting that criteria. I have to say, however, that you have done the right thing by coming here and asking for advice; we all need a reality check every once in a while 🙂


@husain A wrote:

@Md.Waled B wrote:

I want to make myself a native level fluent in English. 


 

The following is the Upwork definition of someone who is fluent: "A person who has complete command of a language with perfect grammar."
 
In all honesty—and this is coming from a non-native English speaker—you are far, far away from meeting that criteria. I have to say, however, that you have done the right thing by coming here and asking for advice; we all need a reality check every once in a while 🙂

 And the next right thing for the OP to do would be to accept the advice given by people like Petra and Rene.   

sgoble
Community Member

The reason it is so difficult to be "native" fluent in a language you did not speak at home is that you grew up surrounded by the words and structures and rhythm of your country's language. It has soaked into your mind so thoroughly you don't even notice it.

 

It affects the way you speak and write any other language.  I'm a native English speaker and find it easy to spot non-native speakers by the way they structure sentences and the strange things they do to prepositions. 

 

To improve your fluency, read fiction and non-fiction in the language you want to improve.  Read children's books and adult's books and read all genres.   Find books in your native language and their English translations and read them side by side, comparing the translations and figuring out why they used the words they did.  

 

Read English until you have worn out your bilingual dictionary looking up the words. And then buy another one.