Here's a breakdown of different ways to consider this:
Official Languages:
* There are approximately 67 countries where English is an official language. This includes countries like the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, and many more.
Widely Spoken Languages:
* English is spoken by a vast number of people in many countries where it's not an official language. This is due to historical factors like colonization, trade, and globalization.
* It's estimated that over 1.5 billion people worldwide speak English as a second language, making it the most widely spoken language in the world.
Native Speakers:
* According to the Ethnologue, there are approximately 379 million native English speakers worldwide.
Therefore, there's no single number that definitively answers how many countries "speak" English. It's a complex issue with varying definitions and interpretations.