You can read English well. But when you hear two native speakers talk, it sounds like one long sound. This is normal. Reading and listening are different skills, and you can train your ear.
They join words together
Native speakers do not stop after every word. They link them.
What do you want? becomes "Wha ddya want?"
Your eye knows the words. Your ear does not know the sound yet.
You are not slow
You are not slow. Your brain is still learning to pick out words from a stream of sound. This takes time, and it gets better with short, daily listening.
Listen to short pieces
Do not listen to a one-hour podcast. Choose thirty seconds. Listen three times.
- Listen with no text.
- Listen with the text.
- Listen again with no text.
Short and often beats long and once.
Read and listen together
Find a video with subtitles in English. Cover the words with a piece of paper. Listen first. Then look. This connects the sound to the word.
Do not translate every word
You do not need every word. Listen for the meaning, not the dictionary. If you catch "train" and "nine", you can guess the story.
The train leaves at nine.
Words to remember
- listening — paying attention to sounds and words
- meaning — what something says or wants to tell you
- native speaker — a person who learned the language as a child
- again — one more time
Questions & answers
Q: Should I use subtitles?
Yes, at first. Then cover them and listen. Slow steps: text, no text, text, no text.
Q: What speed should I choose?
Start at 0.75. When it feels slow, go to 1.0. Do not stay at 0.75 for months.
Q: Do I need to understand every word?
No. Catch the main idea first. You can find the small words later.
Q: How long until I understand films?
Films are hard: music, noise, fast speech. Start with short videos about daily life. Films will come later.
Q: Is music good for listening?
Yes for fun, but not for study. Songs break grammar and add music. Use short conversations for study.