Gabbyユーザーであれば、一度ならず何度もコーチから受けるアドバイス、”Faster is better than perfect.”。

そうです、正確さにこだわるよりも、少々の間違いは恐れず、リズミカルに話す方が、ネイティブにとって喜ばしい話し相手です。

とは言え、せっかくトレーニングしているのですから、同じ間違いの繰り返しはできるだけ減らしたいもの。

さて、今日も、3分で英語ブログを流し読み。

以下のポイントに少し意識を向けるだけで、繰り返しがちな間違いを減らせるはず。

You already know you can communicate in English without perfect grammar. Even so, you’re probably curious about the kinds of mistakes you might be making as you learn.

Take a look at some common speaking errors. The more you know, the easier it will be to correct your mistakes and improve.

1. Prepositions
In general, a preposition is used with a noun to show direction, place, or time. There are a lot of prepositions in English, so you might sometimes use the wrong ones.

But don’t worry: Learning the basic rules will help you improve quickly!

Examples

• Direction: He went to the shopping mall.
• Place: She sat across from me.
• Time: I like to relax in the summer.

2. Articles
A, an, the: These words are called articles. Even though they’re small, using them correctly is often confusing.

The
The word the is called a definite article. It’s used with specific nouns (when there’s only one). The can be used with singular and plural nouns.

Examples

• The sun is hot today. (There’s only one sun, so it’s specific.)
• The students are listening. (We’re talking about a specific group of students in a class.)

A or An
The words a and an are called indefinite articles. We use them to talk about nouns that are not specific—when there’s more than one. Use a before a consonant and an before a vowel. These articles basically mean one.

Examples

• My father is a doctor. (He’s one of many doctors; he’s not the only doctor.)
• I saw an owl last night. (There are many owls in the world; you only saw one.)

3. Countable and Uncountable Nouns
In general, a noun is a person, place, or thing. Some are countable, and some are uncountable. It’s common for learners to make mistakes, especially with uncountable nouns.

Countable
A countable noun is one that, well, you can count! It can be singular or plural.

Examples

• 1 apple ➝ 14 apples
• 1 person ➝ 18 people

Uncountable
An uncountable noun can’t be divided or counted. To count these nouns, you need to be more specific.

Examples

• ❌ 2 rices ➝ ✔️ 2 bowls of rice
• ❌ 1 oil ➝ ✔️ 1 spoonful of oil

4. Subject-Verb Agreement
The subject and the verb of a sentence should always agree in number. A singular subject should use a singular verb, and a plural subject should use a plural verb. This is called subject-verb agreement. Often, English learners forget to pronounce the –s sound at the end of a singular verb.

Examples

• She exercises every day. ➝ She is the subject, and it’s singular. Your verb also needs to be singular; the verb is exercises.
• They exercise every day. ➝ They is a plural subject, so the verb should also be plural. The verb is exercise.

5. Participial Adjectives
Participial adjectives look like verbs, but they’re actually adjectives. They usually end in –ed and –ing, like surprised and surprising. They’re often mixed up and used incorrectly.

Try this: Use –ing to describe a situation. Use –ed to describe your feelings about that situation.

Examples

• I’m excited because the party is exciting.
• The class is boring, so they’re bored.

Conclusion
Knowing about some common speaking errors will help you hear them in your own speech. When you can hear your mistakes, you’ll be able to correct yourself and improve every time you practice!

英語学習者がスピーキングエラーを起こしやすい上の5つのポイントを意識するだけで、Speed を保ちながらも、Accuracyを上げられるはずですよ！