In this video, we are going to talk about how to understand fast English speakers. So I get this question a lot from my students that they're having a hard time understanding native English speakers who are speaking too quickly.

在這支影片中，我們會討論如何聽懂英語語速快的人。我的學生常跟我說，英語母語人士語速太快時很難聽懂。

So I want to give you some ideas and some tips and tricks today on how to understand fast English speakers a little bit better and some exercises that you can do to strengthen your listening skills when it comes to listening to native English speakers.

所以今天我想跟你們分享一些想法和技巧，幫助你們理解語速很快的英語人士所說的話，並提供增進聽力技巧的練習，這些練習能幫助你理解母語人士所說的話。

Okay. First of all, I want you to do what native speakers do and that is they don't listen to every word in a sentence.

好。首先，請你們模仿母語人士的習慣，那就是不去聽句子中的每一個字。

Typically what they're doing is listening for those stressed words so they're listening for the stressed words in a sentence.

一般來說，他們會聽有重音的字, 所以是句子中有重音的單字。

And so the every... the rhythm of English is composed of stressed and unstressed sounds and syllables.

所以每個...英語的節奏由重音、非重音及音節組成。

So they've been conditioned to listen for those stressed words and syllables in a sentence and that's really what they're listening for.

所以他們習慣聽句子中重音的單字和音節，基本上他們聽的就是這些。

So in order to understand this, let's do a little bit of a review of sentence stress.

為了更加理解這個概念，我們來複習一下句子的重音。

So if we remember, sentence stress is emphasizing important words in a sentence. Those important words are longer, louder and with a slightly higher pitch.

所以要記得，句中的重音是為了強調句中重要得單字。重要的單字會比較長、比較大聲及具有較高的音調。

Now some native speakers are really good at emphasizing and stressing these important words, and some are not as great at it.

有些母語人士很擅長強調並以重音讀重要的單字，但有些人卻不是如此。

But for those who do stress and emphasize those important words, it's much easier to understand because we can kind of pick out those stressed words and understand very clearly what they're trying to communicate.

我們較易理解那些會加重及強調重要單字的英文母語人士，因為我們可以挑出有重音的單字，並清楚地理解他們想表達的意思。

Okay, those stressed words in a sentence are a clue for your listener to pay attention.

好，句中被強調的單字就是聽者該注意的線索。

Okay so when you're saying, when you're speaking and you're using the rhythm of English, you want to stress or emphasize those key ideas and kind of hand those in most important ideas to your listener by stressing them.

所以當你在說英文並用英文的節奏時，你得藉由加重音調的方式，向聽者傳達你的主要想法。

Now you're gonna take this same advice as you're listening and say okay I'm going to be listening for those stressed words and those stressed syllables in a sentence and that's what's going to help you really hear and understand a lot better.

現在你得把這個建議用在聽力上，聽母語人士說話時，提醒自己去聽句中加重的單字和音節，如此一來會幫助你聽懂並理解。

Okay. And so some examples of important words when it comes to sentence stress are names, and typically a native speaker will stress or emphasize a name.

好。句子中會被強調的重要單字是姓名，通常母語人士會加重或強調姓名。

Numbers are typically stressed or emphasized, and negatives are typically stressed or emphasized.

通常也會加重或強調數字及否定句。

Again some native speakers do this better than others but you can get it, you can, as you follow this general rule you'll be able to pick that out a little bit better.

再說一次，並不是每一位母語人士都能落實這個原則，但只要遵循這個規則，你就能更加理解他們。

Okay, so stressed words equal or mean that they're important. They're important in the meaning, so we have that...those curves of stressed and unstressed words and syllables.

好，所以被強調的單字表示它們很重要。他們的意思很重要，所以一個句子會形成重音、非重音和子音的曲線圖。

So you're looking for those stressed, those peaks in that rhythm. So as you listen for those stressed words and ideas in a sentence, that's where the meaning and the purpose that was really the important meaning of what the speaker is saying.

所以你要去聽節奏中的重音或高音。去聽句子中被強調的單字和想法，因為那是講者所要表達的重要訊息。

Okay? Now to do this, you want to, you'll need practice. To get better at this you need a lot of practice.

懂嗎? 為了能夠做到這一點，你需要練習。你得大量練習才會進步。

Now I found a resource that is absolutely amazing and there's this guy that has a website called ESL-lab.com.

我發現一個非常棒的資源，有一個人架了一個名為 ESL-lab.com的網站。

And he has just dozens of recorded conversations between native English speakers and you can click on it, you can listen. A lot of the speakers are a little bit fast speakers or a normal pace for other native English speakers to be able to understand.

網站上有很多母語人士之間的談話音檔，點擊就能播放音檔。很多人的語速偏快，但也有語速正常的，一般英語母語人士都能聽懂。

And so you'll listen to those recordings in those conversations and then he has a listening quiz or a comprehension test.

你可以聽那些對話的音檔，此外網站上還有聽力測驗或理解測驗。

I guess I should say a comprehension test about that conversation.

我應該說關於對話的理解測驗。

It's an incredible resource and I encourage you to go to that website and I have a link here on the website.

這個網站很棒，我很推薦大家上去看看，我把網站連結放在下方。

Go there and listen to as many of those conversations as possible, take the quiz.

去網站上盡量多聽一些對話音檔，並做聽力測驗。

And...and as you do that, listen for those stressed or emphasized words and syllables in the sentence and see if you can get better at pulling out those stressed or important ideas instead of listening for every single word that that native speaker is saying.

練習的時候去聽句子中加重或強調的單字和音節，看看你是否可以掌握被強調的重點內容，而不是聽母語者所說的每一個字。

Alright so as a review, do it native speakers do, don't listen to every word and listen for those stressed words in the sentence.

最後來做個小複習，做母語人士所做的事，不要逐字聽而是聽句子中的重音。

Okay I know as you do this that you'll be do this and you practice this skill you will get better understanding native English speakers and especially native speakers who might be speaking a little too fast.

我相信你會運用這項技巧，只要多練習，你會更能理解母語人士所說的話，尤其是那些語速很快的人。

All right go practice and I'll see you again in the next video.

趕快去練習吧！我們下一支影片見。