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English speaking practice in real situations

Pick a situation and talk it through out loud. Your partner reacts to what you actually say, and you see a better way to say it when you need one.

Choose a roleplay
  • 17 situations
  • 3 levels
  • 3–5 minutes
  • Speak, or type

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In the Slova app

Your situation is not here? Make your own roleplay

Describe the conversation you need in a sentence: a landlord, a client call, your partner's parents. Felix sets the scene, plays the other person, gives you goals to reach and answers whatever you say.

Create my roleplay in Slova

Describe your situation

I'm picking up a rental car in Lisbon and the agent wants me to buy extra insurance I don't need.

Felix plays a car rental agent

  • Confirm your booking
  • Say no to the insurance politely
  • Check the fuel policy
  • Ask about damage on the car

Good morning! Before I give you the keys, can I offer you our full cover?

How does the speaking practice work?

Each situation is a short conversation with a goal, written for your level. Your partner listens for what the moment needs and answers what you actually said.

  1. Pick a situation and a level

    Your partner plays a real person, like a barista or a hiring manager, and speaks at your level.

  2. Answer out loud

    Press the microphone and say what you would say in real life. Your words appear on screen exactly as your browser heard them.

  3. See where it went

    A fitting answer moves the conversation on. A half answer gets a simpler question, and an answer about something else gets a polite “Sorry?”.

Ordering at a café · beginner

What size would you like? Small, medium or large?

An answer that fits

A large one, please.

Large, okay.

Next: anything to eat?

An answer about something else

I like football.

Sorry, I'm not sure I follow. Do you want a small one or a large one?

The same question, made easier

I want a coffee.

More naturalI want Can I get“Can I get…, please?” sounds friendlier than “I want”.

Three levels, three different conversations

The level changes the script, not only the speed. Here is how the café goes at each one.

  • Beginner

    I can order, ask simple questions and answer them.

    Hi there! What can I get for you?
    • Short questions, a slower voice
    • Choose a drink, a size and pay
    • Fixes for the basics, like “I want”

  • Intermediate

    I can explain what I need and sort out a small problem.

    And we're out of blueberry muffins today, sorry. Would you like something else?
    • A small problem to deal with
    • Ask for a recommendation and follow it
    • Polite forms: “Could I have…?”

  • Upper intermediate

    I can disagree politely, negotiate and keep a chat going.

    Here you go, one oat cappuccino.
    • The wrong order arrives: fix it politely
    • A little small talk with the barista
    • Softer phrases: “I think there's been a mix-up”

How can I practice speaking English alone?

Five habits that make solo practice count, whether you use this page or not.

  1. Talk a little every day. Five minutes daily does more than an hour on Sunday. Speaking is a habit of the mouth as much as the mind.
  2. Practice the conversations you will really have. If you are flying next month, rehearse the check-in desk, not a debate about space travel.
  3. Repeat the same situation. The second time, use the fixes from the first. That is when they start to stick.
  4. Say the better version out loud. Reading a fix is not enough. Say it two or three times, then use it in your next answer.
  5. Record yourself now and then. Listen back to one answer a week. You will hear the words you always skip.

English speaking practice FAQ

What the practice does, what it does not do, and what happens to your voice.

Can I practice English speaking online for free?

Yes. All 17 situations at all three levels are free, with no sign-up, no email and no time limit. To speak, use a browser that turns speech into text, such as Chrome, Edge or Safari. In any browser you can type your answers instead.

How does my speaking partner understand what I say?

Your browser's speech recognition writes down what you said. The page then compares your words with what fits at that point of the conversation. An answer that does what was asked moves the conversation on, an answer that only half fits gets a simpler question, and an answer about something else gets “Sorry, I'm not sure I follow”. There is no chatbot: every line was written by a person, and recorded once in a natural voice.

Does it correct my mistakes?

Some of them. Each answer is checked against mistakes people often make in that situation and in English in general, like “I am agree” or “since two years”. If one matches, you see a more natural way to say it, at most one per answer. It does not catch every mistake, and it never marks your accent.

Can I practice English conversation as a beginner?

Yes. At the beginner level your partner speaks more slowly and asks short, simple questions. At the intermediate level there is a small problem to sort out, and at the upper-intermediate level there is a real complication, like a wrong order or a missed flight. If you are a complete beginner, guided lessons will help you more than conversation practice.

How can I improve my English speaking skills quickly?

Speak a little every day, in situations you will really face, and use each fix in your next answer. Repeating the same conversation a second time, with the fixes, is one of the fastest ways to make new phrases stick. That is why the summary has a “Repeat with fixes” button.

Is this the same as talking to a real person or an AI tutor?

No. A real conversation can go anywhere; here each situation follows a script that changes with what you say. That makes it a safe place to rehearse the phrases you need before you use them. For open conversation, the Slova app has an AI partner that answers whatever you say.

Can I practice without a microphone?

Yes. Choose “Type instead” and write your answers; the conversation goes the same way. Speaking out loud is still the best practice, so switch the microphone on when you can.

Is my voice recorded?

Slova does not record or keep your voice. Your browser turns your speech into text: in Chrome and Edge that runs on the browser maker's speech service, and in Safari on Apple's. The text of your conversation stays in this browser tab and is gone when you leave.

More ways to practice speaking

Three more free tools that listen to you, each for a different part of speaking.

All free tools