How to talk to someone who doesn’t speak your language

Most conversations across a language barrier fail for the same reasons: sentences that are too long, words that don’t translate, and two people waiting for the other to make the first move. The good news is that each of those has a simple fix. Here are ten that work whether you’re using a translator app, a few words of the other language, or just your hands.

1. Start by naming the problem

A quick “I don’t speak Spanish, sorry. Can we try with this?” changes the mood. The other person stops wondering why you’re hesitating, and you’re both working on the same problem. If you know the word for “sorry” or “thank you” in their language, use it. It costs nothing and buys a lot of patience.

2. One idea per sentence

“I booked a room for two nights but the confirmation says one, and I wanted to ask whether I could stay until Sunday” is three sentences hiding in one. Split it:

• I booked a room for two nights.
• The confirmation says one night.
• Can I stay until Sunday?

Short sentences are easier to understand in a language you’re learning, and much easier for a translator, human or machine, to get right.

3. Use plain words, not idioms

“It’s raining cats and dogs”, “let’s touch base” and “that’s a piece of cake” don’t survive translation. Say what you mean: “It’s raining hard”, “let’s talk again”, “that’s easy”. The same goes for sarcasm and jokes that rely on wordplay: they come out as nonsense, or worse, as the literal opposite of what you meant.

4. Slow down, don’t speed up the volume

Speaking louder doesn’t help anyone understand. Speaking a little slower, with a small pause between sentences, does. Say every word: “do you want to” rather than “d’you wanna”.

5. Show numbers and names

Prices, dates, times, addresses and names are where misunderstandings get expensive. Write them down, point at them, or hold up fingers. A street name spelled on a screen beats the same name pronounced three different ways.

6. Check you’ve been understood

Ask the other person to repeat the important part back to you: the time, the platform, the dose. “So, platform 4 at 10:15?” takes two seconds and catches most mistakes before they matter.

7. Let them answer in full

When someone is speaking through a translator, or in a language that isn’t their first, they need a moment to finish. Don’t jump in on the first pause. The second half of the sentence is often the part that matters.

8. Use a translator that speaks out loud

Text-only translation turns a conversation into passing a phone back and forth. A voice translator that says the translation aloud keeps your eyes on each other. In Kenly, you put the phone between you, each pick your own language, and tap your mic when it’s your turn. Kenly shows the translation on the other person’s half of the screen and speaks it, and their half is turned upside down so they can read it from across the table.

9. Fix mistakes instead of starting over

Machine translation mishears names, numbers and unusual words. When it does, correct the line rather than repeating the whole sentence louder. In Kenly you can press and hold a line it misheard, fix it, and the translation follows. If you’d rather not say something out loud at all, type it, and Kenly says the translation for you.

10. Know when to get a professional

A translator app is great for a hotel desk, a market, a neighbour or your partner’s grandparents. It isn’t a substitute for a qualified interpreter when a misunderstanding could hurt someone: a medical diagnosis, a police statement, a legal contract. Ask for an interpreter there. Many hospitals and public services can arrange one, sometimes by phone. We wrote a separate guide on talking to a doctor abroad.

A quick checklist

• Say that you don’t share a language, and how you’ll handle it
• Keep sentences short, one idea each
• Swap idioms and slang for plain words
• Write down numbers, times, prices and names
• Ask for the important part back
• Use a translator that speaks out loud, so you can keep looking at each other