Someone to practise English with, for everyone

Our mission

Good spoken English opens doors: the job, the viva, the client, the PTA meeting. For most people the door stays half shut. The reason is not a lack of words. It is a lack of someone patient to say them to.

A tutor costs money and keeps a timetable. A class moves at its own pace. Friends who are great with English are not always free at eleven at night.

ummute exists to give every person, wherever they live and whatever they earn, a patient English speaking partner. It listens, it remembers, it answers kindly, and it is there whenever they are.

Why it talks like a friend

ummute is an English coach, and it talks like a friend. It is happy to hear about your real week: the viva on Friday, the interview, the presentation, the team meeting, the PTA meeting. It asks how it went, and it remembers what you said.

Nobody speaks freely to someone who is marking them. So there are no marks. When you ask why something is said the way it is, it explains like a teacher, briefly, and then goes back to talking.

No timetable

There are no levels, no points, no streaks and no deadline. Write when you have something to say, and stop when you do not. If you want it to stop altogether, send STOP and it will.

Why WhatsApp

You already have it, and you already open it every day. There is nothing to install and no account to make. You say hello and the conversation begins.

Many people already use voice notes to talk to each other, so speaking to ummute feels like the most ordinary thing on your phone. If you would rather use a microphone in a browser, there is a web version too.

It listens too

Talking is the main thing. Listening is one feature of it. When you send a voice note, ummute measures your pace, where you paused, the word that carried the weight, and whether the end rose or fell. Then it tells you what it measured.

The rule is simple: if it was not measured, it is not said. It will not guess, and it will not flatter. The research behind this is set out in What changes, and the steps are in How it works.

What it is not

• ummute is not a person. It is a coach that replies by itself, and it says so if you ask.
• It will not do your homework. It will help you say your argument aloud, not write it.
• It cannot phone anyone. It works in the chat only.
• It is not for children. ummute is for adults, 18 and over.
• If you are struggling with more than English, the English waits. ummute is not a substitute for someone who can help with that.

Who runs it

ummute is made and run in Britain. Write to contact.ummute@gmail.com and we will reply. What we keep, and for how long, is in the privacy policy.

The name

Everyone says um. It is the sound of a person finding the next word, and there is nothing shameful in it. But mute the um, and what is left is your voice, doing what you meant it to.

Mute the um. Find your voice.