Why no one understands English speakers

Columnist BBC Capital came to a paradoxical conclusion: if in a group of people who communicate in the same language, at least for some of the interlocutors, it is not native, then they have little chance to truly understand each other. And often it is native speakers who cannot convey their thoughts to the rest.

Фото: Depositphotos

One small word in the letter was a grain of sand that caused an avalanche of gigantic losses to an international company.

This letter was written in English by its carrier addressed to a colleague for whom English was foreign.

The recipient of the letter was not sure of the correctness of the translation of one of the words: he looked into the dictionary, found there two opposite meanings ... And chose the wrong one.

A few months later, the company’s management decided to figure out what had caused the project to collapse, which cost hundreds of thousands of dollars.

“As it turned out, the culprit was that same ill-fated word,” explains British teacher of communication and intercultural differences Chia Xuan Chun. She does not say what word she was talking about, since its industry specificity would allow us to guess at which company this story took place.

“The situation became increasingly out of control as the parties continued to imply contradictory things.”

According to Chun, the paradox is that native speakers often convey their thoughts to others worse than those for whom English is the second or third language.

“Many English-speaking people were happy when English became the language of global communication,” explains Chia Xuan Chun. “They no longer need to learn foreign languages.”

“But more and more often we see this situation: a meeting room is full of people from all over the world, they communicate in English and understand each other perfectly... And then an Englishman or an American comes into the room - and no one understands them.”

It turns out that those who speak a foreign language - a second or even a third language - are characterized by greater meaningfulness of speech and accuracy in expressions.

On the other hand, Chun explains, native speakers of English often speak too quickly, peppering their speech with jokes, slang expressions and specific cultural references.

In email correspondence, they can confuse their recipients with strange abbreviations like “OOO,” which simply means “out of office.”

“An English-speaking person may be the only one who does not want to meet others halfway or adapt to those around them,” the teacher adds.

How to achieve understanding of the audience

Since for most of the inhabitants of the planet English is not their first language, Anglophones will probably have to adapt.

“In situations where a lingua franca is used, which is usually English, native speakers are at a disadvantage,” says Jennifer Jenkins, a professor at Britain’s University of Southampton, who specializes in the world’s varieties of English. “It’s Anglophones who have the hardest time explaining themselves and understanding other people.”

People who speak a foreign language usually have a poorer vocabulary in it and choose simple phrases without florid turns and slang. It helps them understand each other without ambiguities.

For example, Professor Jenkins found out that in British universities foreign students easily communicate in English and quickly adapt their speech so that they can be understood by schoolmates who are less proficient in this language.

“What the hell is RVP?”

Zurich-based Michael Blattner's native language is Swiss German, but he mostly speaks English at work.

“Colleagues who do not speak English as their first language often tell me that they understand me better than native speakers,” says Michael, who works as director of training and certification in the international operations department of Zurich Insurance Group.

Фото: Depositphotos

Most foreigners scare abbreviations.

“In my first conversation about international affairs, I heard “TRP - 16:53” and thought: “What the hell is TRP?” - recalls Blattner (ETA, estimated time of arrival).

“Furthermore, abbreviations in British and American English can be wildly different.”

Blattner also notes the nuances of cultural subtext: for example, if a Briton says “That’s interesting” about a proposal, his compatriot immediately understands that he considers the idea complete nonsense, while representatives of other nations will take everything at face value.

In addition, factors such as the use of rare words and rapid or slurred speech, especially against the backdrop of poor quality telephone or video communications, contribute to confusion.

“You lose the thread of the conversation and switch to something else because you don’t have the slightest opportunity to understand the other person,” he admits.

“As a rule, 90% of speaking time at meetings is spent by speakers whose first language is English,” notes Michael Blattner. “But other people were invited there for a reason!”

Фото: Depositphotos

Dale Coulter, who heads the English language course at TLC International House in the Swiss city of Baden, agrees: “English-speaking people who do not speak other languages ​​often do not understand how to speak English with foreigners.”

In Berlin, Coulter had a chance to see how the employees of the company's Fortune 500 Californian headquarters conduct video tutorials for the staff of their German division.

The Germans were quite confident in English, but they only captured the general essence of what the American project manager told them.

Therefore, having discussed what they heard among themselves, they agreed on the version that arranged everything; its degree of compliance with the design of the California office remains unknown.

“A lot of information gets lost,” warns Coulter.

The simpler, the better

A native speaker often runs the risk of losing a deal, says former French senior international marketer IBM, Jean-Paul Nérier.

“Very many of those for whom English is a foreign language (especially the French and Asians) will prefer to “not lose face” and will nod approvingly in response even in cases where they do not grasp the essence of the conversation at all,” he warns .

This is why Nerrier developed globish, a concentrated form of English with a vocabulary reduced to 1500 words and a primitive but standardized grammar.

“This is not a language, but a tool for communication,” explains the inventor, who has sold more than 2004 thousand Globish textbooks in 200 languages ​​since 18. “By being able to communicate effectively in a simplified language with a limited vocabulary, you save time and avoid misunderstandings and mistakes.”

Rob Steggles is senior director of marketing for Europe at telecommunications giant NTT Communications. He was born in the UK, has spent a lot of time learning French and can offer useful advice to Anglophones.

“Keep it short, clear, precise and simplified,” instructs Steggles, who is currently based in Paris. — The main thing is that your communication style does not seem condescending to your interlocutors. Staying on that fine line can be difficult.”

Give people a chance

Professor Jenkins notes that in a conversation with a group of people whose English language level differs, it is necessary to be receptive and flexible, adapting your hearing to all variants of speech.

“For people who speak foreign languages, this is easy, but native English speakers, as a rule, do not know other languages ​​and have difficulty switching,” she says.

Фото: Depositphotos

Steggles adds that at meetings, English-speaking speakers usually speak with a normal for themselves, but too high for the surrounding speed, and also in a hurry to fill in the pauses in the conversation.

“But during this pause, perhaps the foreigner was trying to formulate his answer,” he prompts reproachfully. - Wait a little, give him a chance to speak. Otherwise, after the meeting, he may come up to you and ask: “What was all the talk about?” or just leave and do nothing because he simply didn’t understand your words.”

Steggles recommends repeating his thought several times in different formulations and asking the listeners to confirm their understanding or to react to what was said.

“Without feedback,” he warns, “you will never know whether you were understood or not.”

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