Speak Like A Native English Speaker

Jack Davidson
Mar 29, 2016

When was the last time you really listened to a native speaker talk?

Maybe it was when you were chatting with a British or American colleague
at work? Or perhaps it was when you were watching a movie or TV show in
English? Well, if you were paying attention, you may have noticed
something a little strange happening. The language they were using was
slightly different from what youd been taught. They seemed to be cutting
out some words and skimming over others. Sometimes, they seemed to be
using entirely new forms that youd never heard before.

Its easy to become disheartened when you hear native-level English spoken
so differently from the way you speak it. Youre left with the question What
am I doing wrong?

Well, the simple answer is: nothing. When were taught English, were
taught how to speak it properly. This generally means making sure that
every auxiliary verb and preposition is in the right place and that everything
is pronounced correctly. And this is how it should be. English learners need
to take things slowly at first and become familiar with the grammatical
structures of the language. However, native speakers use the language in a
much more fluid and intuitive way. They condense whole strings of words
into just a few sounds, they skip consonants and flatten vowels. Essentially,
they take shortcuts when speaking.

Youll already be familiar with some of these shortcuts, in the form of

written contractions. This is when we take a subject and an auxiliary verb or
main verb and contract them into one word. For example:

She will > Shell

Example: Shell be late if she doesnt get a move on.

I had > Id

Example: Id left my coat at work.

John has > Johns

Example: Johns taken the file home with him.

I am > Im

Example: Hi, Im new here. Nice to meet you.

We would expect to hear these contractions regularly from a native speaker

(and even most learners). Using them makes us sound relaxed and fluent in
spoken English and its appropriate to use them in most informal situations.
They are also perfectly appropriate for informal written English, such as a
message to a friend, an informal memo or a postcard.

However, were going to be looking at something different today. Were

going to focus on the contractions that English learners rarely get taught but
are incredibly helpful for learning how to speak the language in a natural
way. These are the shortcuts that you may have overheard and struggled
to comprehend completely. Lets look at informal spoken contractions.

Informal spoken contractions

First of all, a word of caution. While we may see some of these contractions
(wanna, gotta, gonna, etc.) in very informal writing (a postcard or a short
note), other forms (whatcha, dya) are never written and are only spelt out
here for the purposes of learning them. In addition, while most of these
forms are accepted as being colloquial spoken English and are appropriate
in certain situations, some forms like aint are often considered incorrect or
bad English. Thus, it is important that you learn them so you can
understand others, but maybe it is best to avoid using them yourself.

Finally, a lot of these forms use the schwa sound. To find out what this sound
is and how to form it, check out the article The Most Important Sound in
English.

Now, lets take a look at some specific examples:

Wanna: This can either be a contraction of want to (+ verb) or want a (+

noun) and it is one of the informal contractions that we are most likely to
see written from time to time. The second syllable is pronounced as a schwa
sound.

Examples:

I wanna see that new Coen brothers film tonight.

I wanna beer. Fancy one?

Gotta: This contraction of got to (+ verb) or got a (+ noun) is, again,

seen quite commonly in writing. The second syllable is pronounced as a
schwa sound.

Examples:

Sorry, Ive gotta go. Ive gotta prior appointment.

Shes gotta lot of respect for her teacher.

Gonna: Unlike wanna and gotta above, gonna is only a contraction of

going to (+ verb), but is also commonly seen in very informal writing. Both
syllables are pronounced as a schwa sound.

Examples:

Theyre gonna win the league if they keep playing like this.

Shes gonna meet me for lunch tomorrow.

Lemme: This spoken contraction is most commonly used in the imperative

form, as a request or as an instruction to someone. It is a contraction of let
me.

Examples:

Lemme take a look at that document.

Well, lemme think for a second

Kinda: This contraction of kind of means rather or to some extent. The

second syllable is pronounced as a schwa sound.

Examples:

Hes kinda funny looking.

I hope you can come. Its kinda important.

Whatcha: This contraction is never written, but its incredibly common in

spoken English. It is a contraction of what are you (+ verb + ing) or
what have you (+ past participle). The second syllable is pronounced as
a schwa sound.

Examples:

Whatcha done with my pen?

Whatcha doing tomorrow afternoon?

Aint: This multipurpose contraction is used to express am not, are not, is

not and have/has not. Remember, this is considered to be very informal or
even bad English.

Examples:

I aint eaten all day.

She aint here, so I cant ask her.

Dya: This form is never written, but its very common to pronounce the do
you in questions by contracting it to only one syllable. This sole syllable is
pronounced as a schwa sound.

Examples:

Dya smoke?

Dya live around here?

Combining the informal contractions

So far weve learnt how to create these very common spoken contractions.
Now, were going to look at combining them into longer sentences. This
should help you to get a better idea of how different native English can be
from the English youve learnt in classes.

What are you going to make for dinner tonight?

Whatcha gonna make for dinner tonight?

Do you want to come to the cinema tonight?

Dya wanna come to the cinema tonight?

What have you got to do on the computer?

Whatcha gotta do on the computer?

He isnt going to like that.

He aint gonna like that.

I havent got to get up until eight oclock. Let me sleep some more!

I aint gotta get up until eight oclock. Lemme sleep some

more!

I want to find the kind of girl who wants to settle down.

I wanna find the kinda girl who wants to settle down.

Do you know if he is going to bring it today?

Dya know if hes gonna bring it today?

Jack Davidson
Teaches English,
Hi, I'm British, 34 years old and a TEFL-qualified English-language teacher
with more than five years' experience. I'm looking for students who want fun
and engaging sessions which help them progress quickly. Let's talk!
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150-220 ITC