It can be difficult to know how to speak correctly, but you must do. The way you talk reflects your personality and intelligence, so if you’re not using the correct words or speaking too monotonously, people may judge you poorly.
If this seems like something that might happen to you often, don’t worry! Here are some easy things that will help improve your language skills in no time at all.
Use a dictionary
If you do not know the meaning of a word in the sentence, either find it in a dictionary, ask someone who understands it well, or use context clues to find out. One problem with using context clues is that they are often subjective. It can be challenging to determine if one person’s interpretation is correct because there are no objective criteria for judging someone understanding of the situation. When you want additional resources on improving word choice, look at this site.
Consider the tone of your diction
You’ll want to make sure you don’t use the same words repeatedly, which will sound like gibberish. This can be done by avoiding certain colloquialisms or words that are regional in your speech. You also want to consider the tone of your diction while speaking – some words are more formal than others, so you should weigh your word choice carefully when presenting something in front of an audience.
Choose words that fit the tone
Every word in the English language has a tone, and when communicating it is important to use an appropriate word that matches the tone of what you are trying to express. When you want to sound happy, it’s good to use joyous, delightful, and triumphant words. When you want to sound angry or troubled, it’s good to avoid using nice words like cheerful or friendly because they will not match how you feel.
Pay attention to the age group
If the listener is an older person then it is important that you use more complex sentences. When speaking to younger people it is important that you use simpler sentences. If you are not sure, just speak in a way that feels natural to you.
Make sure that you are fully committing yourself when speaking. Using vocal variety like tone or pitch can make all the difference in someone clearly understanding what you are saying.
Make sure to avoid using “you” when in a conversation with a larger group. Using pronouns like “he”, “she”, or even “they” is less distracting and easier to follow than focusing on the actual people you are talking about.
Use different vocabulary
One way to use different vocabulary is, not to overuse any one word in a sentence or in a conversation because it will sound like gibberish and be difficult to understand. You’ll want to make sure that you’re not too monotonous with the words you use and add some variety to your sentences to hold your listeners’ attention.
Conclusion
When you’re speaking in front of an audience, it can be hard to know what words will resonate with them. However, follow those simple techniques that can help improve your word choice when presenting or speaking at the office.
