r/ENGLISH • u/thslightofmine • 6d ago
Problems with Accents
I have an online friend from Scotland. She’s one of the sweetest people I’ve ever had in my life, I love her with all of my heart. But in all of honesty, I’m having hard times, I may only understand like >75% of what she’s saying whenever we have phone/video calls, due to her thick Scottish accent
English is not my first language, I still have a very long way to learn. I have communicated my difficulty with her, and she took it very lightheartedly, telling me to not hesitate to ask her repeat her words if I didn’t catch something. I’m learning to accustom myself with Scottish accent and I’m getting better and better. But it still pains me to this day, knowing that if I may have another friend with accent, I may not understand them right away
Dear native English-speaking people, what do you think / how do you feel when a non-native frequently ask you to repeat the things you said because they didn’t catch it?
And to those who might have similar experience, how do I get better at understanding different accents?
Thank you in advance
3
u/Slight-Brush 5d ago
Listen to more Scottish voices - if possible with subtitles so you have a better chance of decoding. Len Pennie on Insta is very good, or try BBC Radio Scotland, or try and find TV series in genres you like - there's lots of crime (Taggart, Rebus), comedy (Lovesick, The High Life), drama (Stonemouth, Crow Road). Or if you want films, Trainspotting, Brave.