Don’t be afraid to make mistakes when you speak your second language

Are you afraid of speaking English because you feel that you make too many mistakes? Well, don’t worry, I’ve heard some pretty funny mistakes over the course of my short career as an English teacher. I’ve also made some pretty funny mistakes during my time as a Spanish speaker. It’s confusing for everyone involved, but, in reality, it’s not the end of the world.

Of course, a few mistakes stick out over the years. One of my favorites happened when I was teaching technical English to adults in Colombia. I had just finished the weekly English club I led and was talking with some students outside the building. One man’s phone rang and he left the conversation to take it. He spoke for a few minutes and the conversation seemed a little heated. He came back to our small group and said “I’m sorry that was my wife, she’s a criminal liar.”

Now I knew this student well at this point and I knew he had a decent command of English. He easily spoke at a B1 level of higher and, most importantly, was not afraid of speaking English. I looked at him in confusion and his expression began to mirror my own. I asked him what he meant by that, because it was not a very nice thing to say about his wife.

He rushed to explain. “She’s a liar” he insisted. “She goes to the court and argues with the judge.” He imitated slamming a gavel.

Now of course, here we might joke that there is a little difference between a lawyer and a liar. However, in terms of pronunciation, a difficult challenge in the English language, the two sounds are quite close.

Language is full of nuances

In fact, English pronunciation can lead to countless such errors if we’re not careful. Just think of how a small phoneme can change words like “sheet” or “beech” to become much more offensive words.

And this is only pronunciation. English grammar can provide many more pitfalls. Correct pronouns must be observed and the wrong verb tense can cause you to wait for a meeting that already happened.

With all these risks, I can understand why English learners fear speaking out loud. It’s because they don’t feel confident speaking in English.

But here’s the good news. Perfection is overrated. And as they say, it’s much better to try and make a mistake than not to try at all.

Let’s go back to my student. Sure I briefly re-evaluated what kind of person he was if he could talk about his wife like that so brazenly. But after we reached an understanding, everything was just fine. In fact, it turned into a learning moment, and I promise you he will never mistake the words “lawyer” and “liar” again.

Fear is understandable, but it turns into a problem when it stops learners from speaking altogether. I’ve met countless people here in Colombia and around the world who insist they “don’t speak English” and after some coaxing they speak at a solid intermediate level. I’ve had advanced students tell me they don’t know anything about a certain topic because they fear using new vocabulary.

And worst of all, I work with near native level speakers who don’t take advantage of opportunities at their work or express their value because making mistakes makes them afraid of speaking English.

The truth about language

So to all of these non-native English speakers I need to share something with you: perfect English is a myth, mistakes are going to happen and YES, we can understand you just fine.

Take for example verb tenses. If you say, “I see the game yesterday” we are going to understand that the game already happened. Similarly, if you say “I go tomorrow to the meeting” no one is going to get confused. Everything has context, and within the context, we will understand you.

Pronunciation is tricky and of course we have to be careful. But again, context is our friend. In conversation, we don’t look at at every word individually but at the sentences as a whole. Just like I doubt most of you noticed the mistake in the previous sentence. If you make a mistake while speaking, most of the time no one will bat an eye.

And sometimes they will, but that’s not a bad thing. Remember, when you’re in a conversation, the goal is to understand each other. If someone is not clear what you said, they will ask you to clarify. The moment turns into one you can learn from, and the conversation moves on.

Language is cool, and it’s also malleable. There is no single way to express yourself. You have the power to string together whatever words get your point across. But you’ll never master any language if you’re afraid to make mistakes. I make mistakes in my second language, Spanish, and I often make mistakes in my first language as well. Mistakes are natural and they’re going to happen. So next time, don’t get upset or flustered, take the moment and learn from it. You’ll be a better speaker for it.

Don’t forget to laugh at yourself

Now, since I shared a student story above, I thought it was only fair I shared my own most embarrassing mistake. It was embarrassing, and I know I will never make the same mistake again.

I was with a friend at a small cafe where I live in Colombia that serves vegetarian food. We both ordered burgers and I was expressing my joy at the wonderful ingredients on my burger. I talked about the caramelized onions and vegetables and finally got to the goat cheese. Speaking in Spanish, I explained with gusto, “que delicia este queso de cabron.

My friend looked up in shock and looked around to make sure no one else had heard me, then she burst out laughing. I was bewildered, wondering what I said that was so funny. She couldn’t even stop laughing to explain my mistake. Eventually, she calmed down and let me in on the joke.

If you speak Spanish you may have already realized. A goat in spanish is “cabra” which is what I had intended to say. Instead I said “cabron” which is a terrible insult in Spanish. It’s more or less the equivalent of “asshole” in English, or, in some places “cuckold.”

Of course, my friend knew what I wanted to say, but the small slip took her by surprise and led to this humorous moment. I learned the difference quickly and effectively.

Chances are, whatever mistakes you make when speaking your second language will not actually be so bad. So, don’t be afraid of speaking English, especially if you really want to get better at it.

Do you have a story of a mistake you’ve made when speaking your second language? Share it in the comments below.

And don’t you forget: practicing with a native is a great way to learn! If you are looking for language partners to improve your foreign language skills you can find it on swaplanguage.com.