How do I learn to understand people's names when listening?

[Imsocool123]

It seems like I can't discern proper names from normal nouns when I'm listening to a recording in English. It's very annoying because when I can't get some name or surname, I get confused for a second and end up missing a whole segment of what is being said. Any advice on how I can improve my name recognition skills?

[Natasha81]

You should "train your ears" by listening anything in English as much as possible. This way you will get used to different voices, accents and manners of speaking. The easiest way to start is cartoons, for more advanced learners watching TV news is always of help, now when there are Euronews, BBC news, and CNN news in Russia, it should not be a problem. All DVDs come in the original language plus subtitles. You can try watching with subtitles first, and eventually when you get better, just watch a movie in English and you will feel the difference. Even if you do not understand half of what is being said, you still train your brain to recognize the words that you know or may have heard before. Numbers and names are always difficult to pick up, and the only way to get better is to LISTEN.

It all comes with practice like anything else,

Good luck.

[Matthieuxmillion]

Natasha's advice above is priceless here, and doesn't need repeating. Do what she suggests and you'll be well on your way to greater listening comprehension of English. Let me add also that audio books are wonderful for building a strong foundation in listening comprehension. I recommend them highly here in Moscow. The best way to use them is to have the original text in front of you while listening to the book on your computer or mp3 player. This way you'll see and hear the thousands of different words as they're being spoken, and very soon you'll come to understand how English is pronounced. Please note that in real life, most native speakers, whether they're speaking British English or American English (or Australian English!), usually speak faster and not nearly as clearly as audio book narrators do, so when training your ears for faster, more casual, realistic English, follow Natasha's aforementioned advice.

Stay cool in Bashkortostan. Summer there can be scorching at times.