How to Read Lips
Know that you must focus equally on context and visual cues as the actual lips., Lipread sentences, not single words., Check in to facial movements and expressions to understand tone and mood., Study body-language and posturing to learn from...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Know that you must focus equally on context and visual cues as the actual lips.
Only 30-40% of sounds in the English language are noticeable by sight.
Too many of our words and syllables are so similar that you can't actually just tell them by lip reading alone.
Most lip-readers will tell you, at the end of the day, that lip-reading isn't actually reading.
The words aren't so simple, and tics, mumbling, accents, and mouth covering all make straight "reading" impossible.
Once you learn to make lipreading a part of your communication, not the only tool you have, you will be much more successful.
At Better Hearing Australia's annual lip reading competition, most people score only 40-50%.
The few who hit 90% and higher do so through context, context, and guess work. -
Step 2: Lipread sentences
Trying to pick up every single word is going to be hard, and you'll struggle mightily.
Most lip-readers know that long words and sentences are easier to read than short ones because longer phrases allow you to fill in the blanks through context.
By focusing on the whole sentence, you can comfortably miss a few words here and there and still understand what was actually said., The eyes and mouth are incredibly express
-- often more so than your tone of voice.
Don't just look at someone's lips, as the rest of their face offers important contextual clues to determine not only the sentence but how the sentence is said.
Tugging at the lips (small grimaces or smiles) often indicate worry, fear, or anxiety.
Raised eye brows also tend to indicate anxiety or stress.
Furrowed brows and foreheads indicate displeasure or anger.
Creases around the edges of the eyes indicate happiness and excitement.
Cocking the head to the side usually indicates discomfort or even slight hostility.
Looking down shows nervousness, shyness, or an unwillingness to communicate., You're trying to translate one sense (sound) into another (sight), and this is an inherently impossible task to perfect.
The best lip readers use everything to their advantage, including body language, to gauge mood, tone, and themes of conversation.
While imperfect, this list covers many of the basics:
Closed off arms tend to indicate anger or aggression.
Open arms indicate friendship, closeness, and honestly.
Open and closed legs have similar connotations.
The way a person's shoulders and hips point often indicate their priorities or who they are most comfortable with.
Leaning towards you implies intimacy and connection.
Leaning away generally indicates discomfort or confusion.
Big, expansive posture implies confidence, strength, and dominance.
Slouching shows a lack of confidence .
There is a lot of nuance, subtlety, and interpretation involved in body language, and every situation is different.
But, used with lip reading, you can learn a lot very quickly in most situations., There are roughly 38 different sounds formed in English.
Unfortunately, only a third of them are visually different.The following list of sounds can get tricky, as they have similar mouth shapes when formed, or are frequently confused.
Note that the brackets indicate the letters sound, not the letters themselves, are what gets confusing: & &
&
, , & & &
You're basically given an incomplete map and asked to fill in the blanks, and you're not always going to get it right.
But this is far more effective then harping on every word and sound.
Many lip readers know they need to take a second to "re-construct" the sentence before responding, allowing them to speak more fluidly and skip over issues., Just be honest with your conversation partner and ask them to slow it down a bit.
The point of a chat isn't to impress someone with your skills, but to actually talk to someone! Slower, better enunciated words will be much easier to read and pull context from. -
Step 3: not single words.
-
Step 4: Check in to facial movements and expressions to understand tone and mood.
-
Step 5: Study body-language and posturing to learn from non-verbal cues.
-
Step 6: Know which syllables look similar to avoid common mistakes.
-
Step 7: Use the words you do know to figure out the ones you don't.
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Step 8: Ask people to speak a little bit slower if you're comfortable.
Detailed Guide
Only 30-40% of sounds in the English language are noticeable by sight.
Too many of our words and syllables are so similar that you can't actually just tell them by lip reading alone.
Most lip-readers will tell you, at the end of the day, that lip-reading isn't actually reading.
The words aren't so simple, and tics, mumbling, accents, and mouth covering all make straight "reading" impossible.
Once you learn to make lipreading a part of your communication, not the only tool you have, you will be much more successful.
At Better Hearing Australia's annual lip reading competition, most people score only 40-50%.
The few who hit 90% and higher do so through context, context, and guess work.
Trying to pick up every single word is going to be hard, and you'll struggle mightily.
Most lip-readers know that long words and sentences are easier to read than short ones because longer phrases allow you to fill in the blanks through context.
By focusing on the whole sentence, you can comfortably miss a few words here and there and still understand what was actually said., The eyes and mouth are incredibly express
-- often more so than your tone of voice.
Don't just look at someone's lips, as the rest of their face offers important contextual clues to determine not only the sentence but how the sentence is said.
Tugging at the lips (small grimaces or smiles) often indicate worry, fear, or anxiety.
Raised eye brows also tend to indicate anxiety or stress.
Furrowed brows and foreheads indicate displeasure or anger.
Creases around the edges of the eyes indicate happiness and excitement.
Cocking the head to the side usually indicates discomfort or even slight hostility.
Looking down shows nervousness, shyness, or an unwillingness to communicate., You're trying to translate one sense (sound) into another (sight), and this is an inherently impossible task to perfect.
The best lip readers use everything to their advantage, including body language, to gauge mood, tone, and themes of conversation.
While imperfect, this list covers many of the basics:
Closed off arms tend to indicate anger or aggression.
Open arms indicate friendship, closeness, and honestly.
Open and closed legs have similar connotations.
The way a person's shoulders and hips point often indicate their priorities or who they are most comfortable with.
Leaning towards you implies intimacy and connection.
Leaning away generally indicates discomfort or confusion.
Big, expansive posture implies confidence, strength, and dominance.
Slouching shows a lack of confidence .
There is a lot of nuance, subtlety, and interpretation involved in body language, and every situation is different.
But, used with lip reading, you can learn a lot very quickly in most situations., There are roughly 38 different sounds formed in English.
Unfortunately, only a third of them are visually different.The following list of sounds can get tricky, as they have similar mouth shapes when formed, or are frequently confused.
Note that the brackets indicate the letters sound, not the letters themselves, are what gets confusing: & &
&
, , & & &
You're basically given an incomplete map and asked to fill in the blanks, and you're not always going to get it right.
But this is far more effective then harping on every word and sound.
Many lip readers know they need to take a second to "re-construct" the sentence before responding, allowing them to speak more fluidly and skip over issues., Just be honest with your conversation partner and ask them to slow it down a bit.
The point of a chat isn't to impress someone with your skills, but to actually talk to someone! Slower, better enunciated words will be much easier to read and pull context from.
About the Author
Claire Cruz
Brings years of experience writing about creative arts and related subjects.
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