A beginner’s guide to writing an essay in English for non-native students

There is no denying the fact that the English language is the most globally accepted lingua franca whether it is in the world of business or education and learning.

While English is the first language of 378 million native speakers, it is also spoken by more than 750 million non-native speakers.

This means that the 750 million have another different first language.

While this might not amount to much after a cursory glance, you need to understand the implications of this figure to get a proper understanding of what we are referring to.

The non-native speakers can be professionals, businessmen, students, or just individuals that might it hard to get done what they are aiming to do because they do not read, speak, or write English, as well as the native speakers, do!

In this beginner’s guide, we are going to address an issue that plagues millions of non-native English students worldwide- writing an english essay.

If you are a student that originally speaks Chinese or Hindi as their first language and are looking to ace writing an essay in English, this guide is for you.

Improving your English writing skills: 5 things you should note

In this section, we are going to list down five things non-native English speakers should note that can help them improve-

1. English grammar differs in different English-speaking countries

If you are proficient with your English, you would know that there are vast differences between US-English and UK-English. Everything from the spelling of words, to phonetics, is different.

This means that if you want to succeed in the US, you need to be well-versed with the English that is spoken and written there.

This is not as easy as it sounds and might require you to spend many years to come to grips with the language, its sounds, construction and more.

2. Hire or call in an English writing expert to help you out

A lot of international students that want to study in the top colleges and universities in the US and UK need to sit for entrance examinations in English.

You are generally required to write an essay as part of your college application process. If you are underconfident in terms of giving in your best as part of the essay, be sure to hire professional essay writers to help you out.

Once you get admitted, you can take credible courses to help you become proficient in the language.

3. Try to keep your English as lucid and coherent as possible

English is one of the oldest languages. This means that it has a rich vocabulary. While you might be tempted to start using big words and complex phrases in your speech or writing, it is best to keep it as simple as possible.

Remember that for you to come across as someone whose native language is simple, you need to have the best grasp of the language.

Use small sentences, avoid complex jargon, and try to add as many local phrases in your speech and written text.

4. Avoid using the dictionary or Thesaurus on a frequent basis

English is a confusing language. Even though two words can be synonyms, they might have subtle nuances or differences that end up making their use and execution completely different.

This is why you need to stay away from using the Thesaurus as frequently as you might have hoped.

The best way to start picking up the language as a native is to listen to news channels, tv shows, or movies on streaming platforms. This will help you understand the finer nuances.

5. Pick and choose your humour and slang appropriately

Humour is something that is entirely subjective. This means that it is best to maintain a safe distance from the safe.

While the local population might get away with using slang and colloquialisms in their speech, you might not.

Make sure that you are being conservative as far as using idioms, examples, metaphors, and similes are concerned. Do not use long sentences since they are more prone to grammatical mistakes.

How to write the perfect essay in English: Top tips from experts

Writing the perfect essay in English requires a lot of practice and familiarity with the language. In this section, we are going to briefly discuss the top tips to help you craft the best essay in the English language-

1. Begin with understanding the question or argument that is being posed by the essay topic. If it is possible, break it down and figure out the exact intent. Once you are convinced about what you should be writing, the process becomes much easier.
2. Once the topic is clear to you, proceed to the research stage. Never attempt to start writing right away before you have taken a long and hard look at the references. The more solid your research, the better will be the composition of your essay.
3. After you are done with the research, you should have your writing points ready. This means that you need to start working on the structure and format of the essay and put the words to it. The structure is very important when you are looking to write an essay.
4. Don’t get carried away when you are looking at the references in terms of extravagant vocabulary. Try to use simple language, short sentences and paragraphs. The clearer and more lucid you make your writing; the lesser will be the mistakes you will make.
5. Many students that are non-native speakers try to break down the meaning and sentences into their own language. Translating is not a good option when you are trying to get the hang of the language. Make sure that you are thinking in English only.

Apart from the above tips, it is important that you figure out the correct usage of apostrophes. Last but not least, never copy anything from a source. Plagiarism is the one enemy you should stay from at all costs.

The Final word

When you start writing an essay, you will come across several challenges and problems. You need to be patient in overcoming them and give yourself the time to get better. Your first attempt might not be a good one, but that does not mean that your hundredth one will not bring you an A! If you have any more questions regarding writing an essay in the English language, please let us know in the comments section below.

 

 

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