Although many ESL
students have problems with big numbers,
they are not more difficult to pronounce than 1, 2, or 3.
Even Fluent
Persons Have Problems with Big Numbers
I can't remember the
number of businessmen I met who were fluent in a foreign
language, but couldn’t manage big numbers.
I especially remember a CEO (Chief Executive Officer) who
had a lot of vocabulary, good pronunciation, almost no
accent, and a good grasp of English grammar. However, he
was self-conscious because he couldn’t pronounce
big numbers correctly. He asked me to go to a
meeting with him so I could get a better idea of his
problem. Everything went well—until he reached the
numbers. He went from almost native speaker to total
beginner in a few seconds.
The Good News
I don't mean numbers
like 3, 4, or 5. I mean numbers like 192,684,357. Yes,
pronouncing big numbers in a second
language is confusing, and scary. Pronouncing big
numbers shouldn’t scare us because they are easy.
We just think they are difficult.
The good news is:
there's a secret to learning big numbers
in a foreign language. Once a person learns it, the
problem is gone forever. When a student is able to read
and pronounce a big number once, he/she
will never forget how to do it.
The Solution
Example: 777,777,777
Work this way:
7
Seven
70
Seventy
7
Seven
77
Seventy-seven
700
Seven hundred
707
Seven hundred and seven
770
Seven hundred seventy
777
Seven hundred seventy seven
Repeat the 7 to 777
several times.
The Reason Why
There’s a beat to
numbers. Learn them like a song. When I learned French I
sang the big numbers until they became
part of me.
The reason we have
problems with numbers is because:
And the Beat
Goes On
Once the student is
comfortable with 777, it’s a hop to:
Seven Hundred Seventy
Seven Million
Seven Hundred Seventy
Seven Thousand
Seven Hundred Seventy
Seven
In other words:
777,777,777.
Assignment:
1. Practice:
