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ESL forum >
Message board > Speak English or Speak in English?
Speak English or Speak in English?
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manonski (f)
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Speak English or Speak in English?
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Hi
I need your input about something that happened to me this week. Outside the door in my class, there is a poster of two children talking. First one says "I speak in English", the other one says "me too!". I did not make that poster, it was given to me by some people who prepared material at the Ministry of Education. This poster has been there for many years. The purpose is to emphasize to my students that they must switch language when they enter my room; meaning here, we have to speak in English.
To my surprise, this morning, someone unknown to me had made a big "x" over the in word of "I speak in English". First of all, I �m disappointed that another person took the time to get a pen and destroyed something that is my property. Second of all, I don �t see why they think the poster could be wrong. I do understand that "I speak English" is also a correct way of saying this. I �m kind of curious about your opinion on this.
English is not my first language and maybe I �m missing some subtleties in the language...
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6 Sep 2012
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Olindalima ( F )
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Hi
Guess you are having some political issues around.
Speak English
Different from
Speak in English
Big kisses, wishing all my Canadian friends, all the best
( What else can I say )
Linda |
6 Sep 2012
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yanogator
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There would be only a few special situations in which "speak in English" would be used. We can say something in English, but with speak, we don �t use in, in the Present Simple. With continuous tenses, in a situation where English wouldn �t normally be spoken, it works with "in".
I heard some people on the street speaking/talking in English.
I couldn �t understand them because they were speaking in English.
One of the special situations I mentioned would be something like "When I don �t want the children to know what I �m saying, I speak in English". (It would also be correct without "in").
When you said "here, we have to speak in English", that is correct with or without "in", but the poster really is incorrect. Of course, it was very rude of someone to anonymously deface it, but it gave us the opportunity to discuss it here.
Bruce |
6 Sep 2012
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redcamarocruiser
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I agree with Bruce. It sounds wrong to me, too.
However, here is a list of forums that discuss "speak in English"vs. "speak English." They give explanations and example sentences, including when to use "Speaking in English"
Basically "speak in English" is used when a speaker knows more than one language and is asked to use English as opposed to the other language.
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6 Sep 2012
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ueslteacher
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when my ss use native language in class I say, "In English, please" so I guess the full phrase would be "Speak/Say in English, please"... speak in something/speak something - use a particular language to express yourself Sophia |
6 Sep 2012
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douglas
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The poster isn �t really wrong--it �s just awkward.
"(In this classroom) I speak in English" is acceptable, but sounds better without the "in".
Sorry about the vandalism, those kinds of acts hurt the soul the most.
Cheers,
Douglas |
7 Sep 2012
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joy2bill
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I must say "Speak English" at least 20 times a day especially as I go through the students � commonroom!! |
7 Sep 2012
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almaz
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I �d agree with Douglas that it �s not that serious and certainly doesn �t warrant the attention of the felt-tip brigade. Actually, nothing warrants the attention of these clowns; like the pedants from TEAL, they do it to show you how �superior � they are. Geoff Nurnberg once compared them to "rhesus monkeys baring their teeth and pounding the ground with their palms". Every staffroom has at least one, so it shouldn �t be too difficult to work out whodunnit.
PS I �m assuming it wasn �t done humorously. My colleagues and I once changed the Geography department �s sign to �Welcome to the Colouring-in Department �. Well, I thought it was funny. |
7 Sep 2012
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Zora
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I �d have to agree with everybody that - speak English - sounds less awkward and more natural.
The vandalism part is just out of line though. I am sure that whoever did that doesn �t have such perfect faultless French that they should be touting their superiority. Things like that just make me want to throttle somebody with something not very nice.
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7 Sep 2012
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manonski (f)
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Thank you all for your input. I appreciate your support.
I �m not that worried about the poster. It �s quite easy to get from an ESL website made for teachers here. I �d much rather have a discussion with the person who did that In fact, when I go to a public place and see a sign with a mistake, I prefer to go in and explain the problem than rant or vandalize. I figure that if I explain, chances are they won �t do the mistake again.
Have a great weekend!
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7 Sep 2012
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Jayho
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Manon
That�s a truly terrible thing for someone to do.
Grammatically speaking, I would think that speak in English implies a choice. When travelling O/S my cousins, who speak four languages (the benefits of being native to a country with a language not used in other countries), often ask people if they can explain something in English if they don �t fully understand the language being used in the country we are travelling in. But little ole me, who only speaks one language (the disadvantage of being born in an English speaking country), usually ask do you speak English (not in English) because I have no choice. Anway, just my little ole humble opinion.
Cheers
Jayho |
7 Sep 2012
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