I understand Yorùbá but can't speak it: why it happens and how to fix it

I lived with my grandmother for most of my teenage years. She spoke only Yorùbá, so I understood the language well. But whenever I tried to speak it, my accent sounded off and the words rarely came out right, so I replied in English. Now I'm a dad, and I want my children to speak Yorùbá. That's the moment many of us realise that understanding a language and speaking it are not the same thing.

If that sounds like you, this guide explains why it happens, why it's so common, and what actually gets you talking.

Why do I understand Yorùbá but can't speak it?

Because you spent years listening to Yorùbá and almost no time speaking it. Your brain got very good at one skill and barely practised the other. Several things usually add up.

You practised listening for years, and speaking almost never

Most of us learnt Yorùbá by listening. Parents and grandparents spoke it to us, and we answered in English. Nobody planned it that way. It was simply easier, and at school English was the language that counted.

By adulthood, you may have heard Yorùbá for thousands of hours. You may have spoken it for a few dozen.

Understanding and speaking are different skills

When you listen, you recognise words someone else has chosen. Context helps you fill gaps, and you can follow along even if you miss a word or two.

When you speak, you have to find the words yourself, put them in the right order and say them with the right tones, while someone waits. That is a much harder job for the brain, and it only gets easier with practice.

English became the safe choice

For many Yorùbá families, English was the language of school, work and getting ahead. In cities like Lagos, and in homes where parents come from different backgrounds, English is often the language everyone shares. Abroad, it's the language of everything outside the house. Every time English was easier, Yorùbá speaking lost a little more ground.

The fear of being laughed at

Many of us have tried a Yorùbá sentence at a family party, been laughed at for the accent, and gone quiet again. Even gentle teasing teaches you that silence is safer. After a few of those moments, you stop trying, and the gap between what you understand and what you can say keeps growing.

Respect makes mistakes feel bigger

Yorùbá builds respect into the language. You greet an elder with Ẹ kú àárọ̀, not the casual Káàárọ̀ you'd say to a friend. You use Ẹ (the respectful "you") for elders, not O. Getting this wrong in front of an aunt or an in-law feels worse than saying nothing, so many heritage speakers stick to English with exactly the people they most want to speak Yorùbá with.

Is it normal to understand a language but not speak it?

Yes. It's common enough to have a name: receptive bilingualism. A receptive bilingual is someone who understands a language well but can't easily speak it. It shows up wherever children hear one language at home and use another everywhere else, from Yorùbá families in Lagos, London and Houston to Spanish-speaking families in the US.

You may also hear the term heritage speaker: someone who grew up with a language at home but became more comfortable in another one.

Signs you're a receptive Yorùbá speaker

• You follow family conversations and laugh at the jokes, but you reply in English.
• You can say greetings, then stall after the first sentence.
• You build sentences in English in your head and translate them, slowly.
• You mix Yorùbá and English in the same sentence because the English word arrives first.
• You understand Yorùbá films, music or your parents on the phone, but freeze when someone asks you a question in Yorùbá.
• You worry more about your accent and tones than about the words.

Why this is good news

You are not starting from zero. You already have the sounds, the rhythm, the tones in your ear and thousands of words stored away. A complete beginner has to build all of that from scratch. What you need is practice pulling those words out, and that is a much shorter road.

What actually fixes it?

Speaking. Regularly, out loud, with real people. It sounds obvious, but it's the part most methods skip. These seven habits make the difference.

1. Speak every week, live. Speaking in a real conversation forces you to find words in the moment, which is exactly the skill that's missing. Reading and apps can't do that for you.
2. Practise with people at your level first. Talking with fluent relatives can feel like a test. Talking with people who also understand more than they can say feels like practice, and you'll say far more.
3. Keep the group small. In a one-hour class of 15, each learner gets at most four minutes to talk. In a group of three, it's up to twenty.
4. Let mistakes happen. A good guide corrects you gently and moves on, so the conversation keeps going. You learn more from ten imperfect sentences than from one perfect sentence you were too scared to say.
5. Swap English words out one at a time. Mixing Yorùbá and English is a bridge, not a failure. Each week, replace a few English words you keep reaching for with their Yorùbá versions.
6. Use apps for words, not for speaking. Apps and word lists help you remember vocabulary, but they won't get you talking.
7. Create small Yorùbá-only moments at home. Greet your parents in Yorùbá every day. Ask for small things in Yorùbá. Reply in Yorùbá to one message a day, even if it's short. Put on a few minutes of BBC News Yorùbá or a Yorùbá film while you cook.

Phrases to start with

Start with phrases you can use this week. Say each one out loud, even on your own. The "say it like" column is a rough English guide; the tone marks on the Yorùbá show whether your voice goes high (á), low (à) or stays in the middle.

How long does it take to start speaking Yorùbá?

It depends on three things: how much Yorùbá you already understand, how often you speak, and how much Yorùbá you hear around you. Heritage speakers usually move faster than complete beginners, because the listening work is already done.

Progress tends to show up in this order:

1. You stop translating greetings in your head.
2. You can answer simple questions in Yorùbá instead of switching to English.
3. You can keep a short conversation going about your day, your work or your family.
4. You start reaching for Yorùbá words before English ones, at least some of the time.
5. You can talk with elders without rehearsing first.

The most important thing is to keep showing up. Confidence comes from speaking often, not from cramming. One hour of speaking every week, kept up for months, beats a burst of effort that stops after a fortnight.

How Soro helps you speak

Soro is a live speaking programme for adults who already understand Yorùbá. It was built by two people with exactly this problem, and every session is designed around speaking, not grammar drills.

• Groups of three. You speak with two others at your level, so everyone gets time to talk.
• Live, every week. One hour online, at the time slot you choose.
• Led by a guide. Your Atọ́nísọ̀nà (guide) keeps the conversation going and corrects you kindly. No one will make fun of you.
• Every session stands on its own. Miss a week and you can rejoin the next one without falling behind.
• Start with one session. Try Soro is a single live class, and you get a refund if you don't enjoy it.

Questions people ask