Use those words!

Imagine walking into a café while travelling.

You’ve studied. You know the words for “coffee”, “milk”, “sugar” and even “teaspoon”.

Then the person behind the counter looks at you and asks you something.

You smile.

They wait.

You keep smiling.

All the words you need are in your head. Unfortunately, they’re having a meeting, and none of them wants to be the first to come out.

Eventually, you point to the coffee the person next to you is drinking.

You’ve made yourself understood, but you leave wondering:

“Why do I know the words but struggle to use them?”

In our first October article, we explored how our first words emerged: through listening, observing and trying to communicate.

Now let’s take another step: how do we turn a word we recognise into a word we can use?

“Water” Is More Than the Name of Something

A child points to a glass and says:

“Water!”

That word might mean:

“I’m thirsty.”
“Can you give me a drink?”
“I want that glass.”

In another situation, while pointing to a puddle, it might mean:

“Look what I’ve found!”

The word is the same. The situation and what the child wants to achieve are different.

The person listening interprets the gesture and might reply:

“Would you like some water? Here you are.”

The child encounters a sentence connected to something they are experiencing.

This is something valuable we can bring into foreign language learning: connecting words to a situation and an intention.

We can ask more than:

“What does it mean?”

We can also ask:

“When do I need it? What can I do with it?”

Recognising a Word and Finding It When You Need It

You read the English word hungry and immediately think:

“Yes! I know that one!”

Then someone asks how you are. You want to say you’re hungry, but all you manage is:

“I… food… erm…”

Recognising a word when you encounter it and retrieving it while speaking are two different tasks.

In the first case, the word is already in front of you. In the second, you need to find it, pronounce it and include it in a message.

That’s why a useful exercise is to start with a situation:

“It’s lunchtime. I want to say that I’m hungry.”

Try to respond without immediately looking at the text:

I’m hungry.

Then check and try again.

The word starts becoming available for something you want to say.

Words Need Company

Studying individual words can help us build our vocabulary. To speak, however, we also need examples of how those words work together.

You might know the word take without yet knowing how to use:

• take a break — stop for a short rest;

• take a photo — use a camera to capture an image;

• take the bus — travel by bus.

If we translate each expression word by word, we may end up with sentences that sound unnatural.

Instead, we can learn a short, complete expression and connect it to an action.

Have you been studying for a while?

Let’s take a break.

Would you like to photograph a friend?

Can I take a photo?

The British Council’s speaking activities also introduce useful expressions through specific situations, with opportunities to listen and repeat them.

A short sentence can give us a starting point. Then we learn to adapt it.

One Sentence, Many Possibilities

Take this request:

Can I have some water, please?

Once we understand it, we can change part of it:

Can I have some bread, please?

Or:

Can I have a coffee, please?

We are using a familiar structure to communicate something new.

Grammar helps us understand how these changes work: why do we say some water but a coffee when ordering a cup of coffee?

Experience gives us the sentence; an explanation helps us understand it and reuse it more accurately.

We can do both: try speaking and understand how what we say is put together.

Returning to Natural Learning Without Becoming Children Again

As children, we encountered many words while something was happening: we were eating, playing, looking for something or asking for help.

As adults, we can create similar opportunities.

We don’t need to wait until we live abroad. We can start with our daily lives:

• prepare breakfast and say what we want;

• choose an outfit and describe its colour;

• look for our keys and ask where they are;

• arrange a meeting and suggest a time.

Adults also have resources that can make learning more deliberate: we can take notes, compare examples and ask for explanations.

Drawing on natural learning means making room for listening, context, attempts and interaction, alongside the study tools that help us.

Choosing Words That Matter to Us

If we teach people to make pizza, we might need words such as “dough”, “flour”, “oven” and “wait”.

If we work in a shop, we might need “size”, “price”, “try on” and “pay”.

No single vocabulary list can meet everyone’s needs.

The British Council suggests connecting new vocabulary to meaningful contexts and personal interests.

We can begin with a simple question:

“What five things would I like to be able to say this week?”

Our answers might be:

“I’d like a coffee.”
“I didn’t understand.”
“Could you repeat that?”
“I’m tired today.”
“See you tomorrow.”

These are small, practical goals. We can prepare them, practise them and notice when we manage to use them.

Repeating While Changing Something

Repeating a sentence allows us to practise its pronunciation. We can make the practice more interesting by changing one detail.

Start with:

I’d like a coffee, please.

Then imagine three situations:

1. ordering a coffee;

2. asking for tea;

3. adding that we would like it without sugar.

We can also ask someone to respond:

With milk?

Now we need to listen and choose an answer.

The sentence we studied becomes part of a conversation. And that conversation may lead us to words we hadn’t expected.

When a Word Is Missing

You want to ask for a spoon, but you can’t remember the word spoon.

You can point to it, describe it or ask:

What do you call this?

When you hear the answer, try to use it straight away:

Can I have a spoon, please?

You’ve found the word and used it to achieve something.

Of course, misunderstandings can happen. A question or a correction can help us understand what went wrong.

Managing to communicate is an initial achievement. Learning a clearer way to express ourselves prepares us for the next conversation.

A Word Can Open the Door to a Relationship

In this week’s comic, Marco meets people who initially look at him with suspicion.

He hears a word, discovers its meaning and begins using it. But friendship also grows through the time they spend together and the work they share.

Language becomes part of that relationship.

This happens in much simpler situations too: we remember how to greet a neighbour, ask a colleague a question or thank someone in their language.

We may not have much to say yet. But we’ve begun to take part.

The Cassano Academy Challenge

This week, choose three real situations in which you would like to use the language you’re learning.

For each one:

1. write a short, useful sentence;

2. listen to its pronunciation using a reliable model;

3. say it without reading;

4. change one detail;

5. use it in a real or simulated conversation.

For example:

Situation: asking for something in a café.
Sentence: I’d like a coffee, please.
Variation: I’d like a tea, please.
Interaction: someone asks whether you would like milk or sugar.

At the end of the week, ask yourself:

“Which words did I manage to use? When did I get stuck?”

You’ll have specific information to help you decide what to practise next.

A word can stay in a notebook for a long time.

It starts becoming ours when it helps us say something to someone.

FAQ