Ты неплохо говоришь.

Ты is the informal singular word for you. It is used with friends, family, children, or in casual situations.

Вы is used:

• for one person in a formal/polite situation, or
• for more than one person

So Ты неплохо говоришь is something you would say to one person informally.

Неплохо literally means not badly, but in natural English it often means:

• pretty well
• quite well
• not bad

It is usually mildly positive. It often sounds a little modest or understated, which is very common in Russian.

So Ты неплохо говоришь is often closer to You speak pretty well than to the very literal You speak not badly.

Here неплохо is written together because it functions as a single adverb meaning something like fairly well or quite well.

A useful rule of thumb:

• write it together when it gives a general positive meaning like not bad / fairly good
• write it separately when there is a strong contrast or direct negation

Compare:

• Ты неплохо говоришь. = You speak pretty well.
• Ты говоришь не плохо, а отлично. = You speak not poorly, but excellently.

In the second sentence, не плохо is separate because there is a contrast: not poorly, but excellently.

Говоришь comes from the verb говорить = to speak / to say.

This form is:

• 2nd person singular
• present tense

So:

• я говорю = I speak / am speaking
• ты говоришь = you speak / are speaking
• он/она говорит = he/she speaks / is speaking

The ending -ишь tells you it matches ты.

It can mean both, depending on context.

Russian present tense often covers both:

• You speak
• You are speaking

In this sentence, the most natural meaning is usually the general one: You speak pretty well, not necessarily You are speaking pretty well right now, although context could make that possible.

Russian often leaves out information that is clear from context.

So Ты неплохо говоришь can mean:

• You speak pretty well
• You’re speaking pretty well

If you want to name the language, you can add it:

• Ты неплохо говоришь по-русски. = You speak Russian pretty well.
• Ты неплохо говоришь по-английски. = You speak English pretty well.

Without that extra phrase, the sentence stays more general.

This is the neutral, natural word order:

• Ты = subject
• неплохо = adverb
• говоришь = verb

Russian word order is more flexible than English, so other orders are possible, but they change emphasis.

For example:

• Ты неплохо говоришь. = neutral
• Неплохо ты говоришь. = stronger emphasis on pretty well
• Говоришь ты неплохо. = emphasis may sound contrastive, like As for speaking, you do it pretty well

For a learner, Ты неплохо говоришь is the safest standard version.

Yes, usually it is.

It sounds like a moderate, natural compliment:

• not too strong
• not exaggerated
• often polite and encouraging

Depending on tone, it can mean:

• sincere praise
• mild surprise
• encouragement to a learner

Because Russian often prefers understatement, неплохо can sound warmer than the literal English not bad sometimes does.

Yes, говорить is the correct verb here.

Говорить is used for:

• speaking in general
• the ability to speak
• ongoing speech

That is why it fits Ты неплохо говоришь.

Сказать means to say in the sense of one completed act of saying something.

Compare:

• Ты неплохо говоришь по-русски. = You speak Russian pretty well.
• Ты хорошо сказал. = You said it well.

So for general speaking ability, говорить is the natural choice.

The stress is:

• ты
• неплОхо
• говорИшь

So the sentence is pronounced roughly: ty ne-PLO-kha ga-va-RISH

The most important stress points to remember are:

• неплОхо
• говорИшь