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How to improve my spoken and written English?

edited October 2015 in Preparation FAQs
plz suggest ways to improve my English SPEAKING and WRITING skills along my civils preparation so that i can conveys my ideas effectively and proficiently both in oral and written form
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Comments

  • Start with grammar.

    For eg. in your comment above, 'I can conveys....' is wrong.

    I ----> first person singular, use verb as it is, 'convey' here. So, correct sentence is 'I can convey'

    Now when to use 'conveys' ?

    That only with third person singulars - he/she/it/etc.

    Eg. He conveys, She conveys, It conveys.... but I convey.... :\">

    Let me also convey further that learning English is easy. Just get one grammar book, Wren and Martin preferably. Seek help from elders/juniors near you who are good in English and grammar. Learn the basic syntax.

    Learning vocab is good but you must not sacrifice English grammar at the altar of fancy words. What good it would serve if you know a high sounding word but does not know which part of the speech it belongs to? Hain na? :\">

    First grammar, uske baad sab kuch. :P

    cc: @DayDreamer, would you like to put in something? :ar!
  • @PublicToilet conveys was typo and i have corrected it in next comment.... and i am not that bad in grammar ....can you suggest ways so that after having a threshold level of grammatical knowledge i can able to write and speak fluently....practice is everything??...or there are certain other ways also?....thnx in advance
  • @PublicToilet conveys was typo and i have corrected it in next comment.... and i am not that bad in grammar ....can you suggest ways so that after having a threshold level of grammatical knowledge i can able to write and speak fluently....practice is everything??...or there are certain other ways also?....thnx in advance
    Oops! Sorry for the oversight. Writing definitely helps. Take out your favourite magazine/newspapers and see how ideas are framed with the least use of fancy words. You can get inspired by them. Try to write in as many ways as possible. A study published in Readers' Digest(it's a mag) showed that when one writes to attain perfection, one must repeat the words in himself so that there is sense of conversation. This exercise was meant for people who are in solitude, with no aid around to be part of his learning process. See if this can help you.

    Keen reading also helps. (I think the person I quoted in the first comment can help you immensely). ATB!
  • edited October 2015
    @mimansa As I can see, you are able to convey your ideas effectively.

    Still, I would like to mention that in order to improve your writing skills, the first and foremost thing that you should do is to inculcate a habit of reading. Reading is the single most important thing that you can do have proficiency in any language. Somethings you would already be doing like reading Hindu / Frontline etc. This would give you a sound vocabulary.

    Apart from reading the Newspaper and Magazine, widen your scope and read some literature as well. Get into that habit of reading. Newspaper and Magazine will help you to a great extent but if you read some literature, your english will have aesthetic value as well. By literature I do not mean Chetan Bhagat but something which has some more literary value. Choose your genre and read something good in it. Suppose you like mystery, start from Enid Blyton's Famous 5 / Hardy boys or any children's classics... then move on to Sherlock Holmes... and then further.

    These will give you an idea as to how to frame nice sentences, figures of speech, nice phrases etc which wont be available in newspapers and magazines. (But go for these only if you have extra time... This will give you that extra 10% edge but don't do that at the expense of knowledge which you get in Newspapers and magazines only) .

    As far as the speaking is concerned, there is one and only way : SPEAK English. However incorrect it may be. It will improve over a period of time. There is no other way.

    DO NOT join any English speaking institute. They are just a waste of money. They make you speak for some time and that to focusing more on pronunciation of cliched words.

    Get a friend to talk to you only in English. Regular practice will help (both) for sure.
  • For grammar part, go for basics from Wren & Martin.

    Practice grammar questions from some GMAT/ CAT preparation book.
  • since u have command over grammar, its time to read a lot and speak a lot .
    also, try having your thoughts in english. Watch english movies, videos, news channels, avoid BBC. with time ,it will improve.
  • edited October 2015
    Angrezi to bhaiyya humari bhi thik nahi hai ......Lekin abhi language improve karne ka samay nahi hai ab kyonki Mains Exam nikat hai .....

    Jitna thoda bahut sambhav hoga , utna kar loonga main bhi ....

    ab jo hoga wo dekha jaaega Mains mein. Ab to Yuddha ke maidaan mein kood pade hain , isliye ab wapis nahi laut sakte hain . .....Mains Exam ka result aane ke baad pata chal jaaega sab ki examiner ko meri language pasand aayi YAA mere answer ke contents .....

    Kyonki agar meri language pasand aayi examiner ko , to iska matlab mera Lanka Dahan ho jaaega LEKIN agar answer ke contents pasand aaye to fir Vaare Nyaare ho jaaenge ..

    Dekhte hain , Kismat aur Bhagwaan kis taraf lekar jaate hain ...
  • This helped me : http://page4upsc.blogspot.in/2013/10/improve-you-english-for-upsc-civil.html
    @Etat : Dada point 6 and point 8 , dono points bahut sahi lage mujhe ....
    specially point 6 .....point 6 ko to main follow kar hi raha hoon , isliye I know ki isse bahut faayda hota hai ..
    Thanks Dada :)
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