| Author |
Message |
| carrier_of_the_arch |
Posted: Tue May 10, 2011 2:48 am Post subject: 1 |
|
Fluent in english only, which is unusual given by background I can understand bits and pieces of French (but not speak it very well) and a few words in German.
I find that the romance languages (French, Italian, Spanish .etc.) are quite similar so if you understand a little of one you can usually guess at the meaning of phrases in others. German is also quite similar to English, except that things can get quite interesting due to all the word-compounding! |
|
 |
| Lucresia |
Posted: Wed May 04, 2011 3:40 am Post subject: 0 |
|
I only know English fluently.
I took 4 years of Spanish back in high school which I at least try to keep decently fresh in my memory ever since by going back over spanish courses free online. I am better at reading/writing comprehension than speaking it.
I am very interested in learning multiple languages and I'd say I know beginner words / phrases for at least a few of them. When I get more time on my hands I would like to go more in depth and eventually become fluent in several languages. I find different languages to be very intriguing. |
|
 |
| MillerTime |
Posted: Thu Mar 03, 2011 3:37 am Post subject: -1 |
|
| English, and (like many people here) enough French to get by, but not fluent. I was in a French immersion program from kindergarten to grade 3, and then took regular French classes through high school. |
|
 |
| Zag |
|
 |
| Agamemnon |
Posted: Wed Mar 02, 2011 10:43 pm Post subject: -3 |
|
| I've told Zesty about this thread.........she'll blow it apart if she replies! |
|
 |
| jesternl |
Posted: Mon Feb 28, 2011 8:45 pm Post subject: -4 |
|
My youngest, (12 months) is doing more and more signing now.
She can sign milk, more, help (sort of ), up, all done, dog, cat (sometimes) and bath.. |
|
 |
| Sentran |
Posted: Mon Feb 28, 2011 5:25 pm Post subject: -5 |
|
| Fluent in English, and I've taken some French, German, Spanish, and ASL as well. I know enough German nad French to make my way through those countries, but my Spanish and ASL are pretty poor. |
|
 |
| Poisonium |
Posted: Sun Feb 27, 2011 8:45 pm Post subject: -6 |
|
| Add to the fact that English is the de facto international auxiliary language. Learning a foreign language for the culture alone is hard, and only sometimes useful. |
|
 |
| Zag |
Posted: Sun Feb 27, 2011 8:37 pm Post subject: -7 |
|
| Samadhi wrote: |
| Scurra wrote: |
| I cannot speak German. However, I can understand it passably |
That's essentially French and Spanish for me. I can get the gist of what they're saying but don't remember the words to respond. I can order food, but that's about it. |
I realize that this is the more common situation, but it completely baffles me. When I try to listen to someone else speaking French, I have trouble even telling where the word breaks are. (Of course, French speakers have lost most of their consonants, so when they speak it's like one long vowel sound. Maybe this problem is unique to French.) Then, even if I can parse it out, the key word in the sentence is one I don't know immediately, and while I am trying to recall it the rest of the sentence has gone by without me.
When I am speaking, I know where the freaking word breaks are; I can stop when I need to; and I can usually come up with a word that means close enough to what I am trying to say. |
|
 |
| ctrlaltdel |
Posted: Sun Feb 27, 2011 7:09 pm Post subject: -8 |
|
i think its mostly about where you come from...
europe is crowded with nations speaking different languages living next to each other and mixing with each other for ages. i can hardly think of anyone i know in europe who doesnt know at least one other language well enough.
when the u.s. is a chunk of land bigger than europe, why would you learn a european language? its like me living in europe trying to learn some african language - i mean what for? am i likely to go there once or twice in a lifetime? perhaps you could learn spanish, tho with the latinos becoming almost a majority in the states .
my mother language is slovak, i speak czech (throw in there the whole slavic group, because i technically *could* understand with enough back and forth efforts also polish, serb, croat and ukrainian - but thats not knowing the languages, thats just using the fact that they are so similar to slovak ), i speak english, i can easily follow a german movie but when i try to speak it half the words that come out are english - bah, i know some hungarian and some russian. |
|
 |
| Samadhi |
Posted: Sat Jan 29, 2011 7:22 am Post subject: -9 |
|
| Zag wrote: |
| As a typical, pathetic American, I am fluent only in English. I took several years of French, way back in the dark ages, and I could mumble my way along in it if I had to. |
Ironically, we have this very much in common. I know some Spanish too though (2 years, before I took 3 years of French....which ruined my Spanish).
| Scurra wrote: |
| I cannot speak German. However, I can understand it passably |
That's essentially French and Spanish for me. I can get the gist of what they're saying but don't remember the words to respond. I can order food, but that's about it. |
|
 |
| jesternl |
Posted: Fri Jan 28, 2011 7:58 pm Post subject: -10 |
|
| Jack_Ian wrote: |
While living in Germany, I used to watch the Dutch TV channels.
Between my English and German, I was ably to understand most of it. |
My wife said exactly the same |
|
 |
| Chaz |
Posted: Thu Jan 27, 2011 1:48 pm Post subject: -11 |
|
Immersion lessons are the way to go.
Rosetta Stone es muy buena. |
|
 |
| Death Mage |
Posted: Thu Jan 27, 2011 1:29 pm Post subject: -12 |
|
| I speak English. I'm not really capable of learning a second language. Oh, I've tried, I lived in Southern California for many years and couldn't pick up Spanish, even with classes. In college, I took several semesters of Japanese. Learned enough to pass tests, but couldn't retain the information. |
|
 |
| Jack_Ian |
Posted: Thu Jan 27, 2011 6:39 am Post subject: -13 |
|
| Well English isn't really a language anyway. It's just a bastardised conglomeration of Indo-European languages. |
|
 |
| Chaz |
Posted: Thu Jan 27, 2011 4:06 am Post subject: -14 |
|
I've seen a great deal of movies; most foreign languages are just English with funny accents.
Including British. |
|
 |
| Jack_Ian |
Posted: Thu Jan 27, 2011 12:46 am Post subject: -15 |
|
While living in Germany, I used to watch the Dutch TV channels.
Between my English and German, I was ably to understand most of it. |
|
 |
| groza528 |
Posted: Wed Jan 26, 2011 10:58 pm Post subject: -16 |
|
...Isn't Dutch also just English with a funny accent? Kidding!
Fluent in English. Passable in French. Can form some basic sentences in German. Remember a couple of Russian words. |
|
 |
| MatthewV |
Posted: Wed Jan 26, 2011 9:54 pm Post subject: -17 |
|
I really can only speak English (barely at that!) and could mangle out a conversation in Russian. I can understand Russian fairly well but it would take a few days of exposure to be competent again.
One of my proudest moments with Russian was after about 10 months of living there a stranger didn't realize I was foreign for about 5 minutes.
The aspect that makes English an excellent international language is that you can completely butcher it and still be understood. Because it is spoken with many different accents and styles, people have gotten used to poorly spoken English. If you pronounce "four" as "fur" or "thor" the other person will probably understand you.
My experience with Russian was quite the opposite. A slight mispronunciation of a word was met with blank stares. Unless the word was spoken almost perfectly or the person was used to Russian spoken as a second language, it is not understood.
I wall no go bak to butcher English.  |
|
 |
| jesternl |
Posted: Wed Jan 26, 2011 9:22 pm Post subject: -18 |
|
Hmm well.. English, Dutch and German fluently, enough French to make myself more or less understood..
I can recite some prayers in Hebrew, but I guess that does not count.
I know some very basic ASL, we taught it to our kids to help them communicate. My youngest (11 months) just started signing in the last few weeks, she can do milk, up and dog.
I can order beer in a great deal of languages  |
|
 |
| Jack_Ian |
Posted: Wed Jan 26, 2011 7:52 pm Post subject: -19 |
|
| Antrax wrote: |
| Isn't Irish just English with a funny accent? |
Buinneach bhuí an Diabhail ort!
May you suffer the Devil's yellow diarrhoea!
Actually, if you want to hear some spoken you can check out Dara O' Briain ar Jonathan Ross ag labhairt as Gaeilge. |
|
 |
| Antrax |
Posted: Wed Jan 26, 2011 5:07 pm Post subject: -20 |
|
| Isn't Irish just English with a funny accent? |
|
 |
| Poisonium |
Posted: Wed Jan 26, 2011 4:50 pm Post subject: -21 |
|
| Chaz wrote: |
Another great reason. Everyone could still communicate even when they're all listening to music in their headphones.
The truly anti-social could just close their eyes to let everyone know that they don't want to be bothered. |
Or wear sunglasses, to make themselves even more unreadable. |
|
 |
| Chaz |
Posted: Wed Jan 26, 2011 2:33 pm Post subject: -22 |
|
Another great reason. Everyone could still communicate even when they're all listening to music in their headphones.
The truly anti-social could just close their eyes to let everyone know that they don't want to be bothered. |
|
 |
| Jack_Ian |
Posted: Wed Jan 26, 2011 2:12 pm Post subject: -23 |
|
| Chaz wrote: |
| I think everyone should learn ASL. |
After a long and weary train journey sharing seats with some kids going home from a School for the Deaf, I heartily agree. What's ASL for "Please close your mouth while chewing, the noise is quite distracting!"?  |
|
 |
| Jack_Ian |
Posted: Wed Jan 26, 2011 2:11 pm Post subject: -24 |
|
| Antrax wrote: |
| Hebrew's main usage is gossiping about people while in foreign countries. |
I use Irish for that
English, German, Irish, French. (in order of competency) |
|
 |
| Chaz |
Posted: Wed Jan 26, 2011 2:03 pm Post subject: -25 |
|
Heh.
There are two languages I'd like to know fluently.
Spanish (just because so many people in the US speak it now that it's getting "silly" not to learn it) and ASL (American Sign Language.)
I think everyone should learn ASL. It's super useful for trying to communicate across a noisy room (like a rock concert), underwater, to someone in another vehicle, and during a video feed where multiple people want to say something at the same time.
The last reason is a lot of stretch, sure, but I can think of a few taffy moments when it might be useful. |
|
 |
| Quailman |
Posted: Wed Jan 26, 2011 1:19 pm Post subject: -26 |
|
| Lepton* wrote: |
| When most Americans come to the country in which I live, as mono-linguists they figure that learning the local language would be too difficult ... |
It's early in the morning, and as I read that I forgot that you are not in Canada any more. I thought to myself "What? All you have to do is speak English, but end every sentence with 'eh'" |
|
 |
| JohnyFake* |
Posted: Wed Jan 26, 2011 12:14 pm Post subject: -27 |
|
| I speak Russian, English, and I used to know some Serbo-Croat but it's now mostly gone. I want to learn Portuguese and German (my new niece is Swiss-German) and my best friend now lives in Brazil). Other priorities are first though (like my wife's recipe program!). |
|
 |
| Lepton* |
Posted: Wed Jan 26, 2011 10:05 am Post subject: -28 |
|
When most Americans come to the country in which I live, as mono-linguists they figure that learning the local language would be too difficult -- even if they are planning on staying for the long term -- and end up isolated. The French, Japanese, and others (most of whom have previously learned English as an international token) aren't scared and make serious progress with the language.
On the other hand, I don't think I met a single immigrant in Canada who didn't speak English (or French, of course). At the risk of confusing cause and effect, we're lucky that English is becoming the lingua franca. |
|
 |
| Antrax |
Posted: Wed Jan 26, 2011 7:47 am Post subject: -29 |
|
| Hebrew's main usage is gossiping about people while in foreign countries. Any foreign language is likely to be useful for that. |
|
 |
| Chaz |
Posted: Wed Jan 26, 2011 6:48 am Post subject: -30 |
|
| Crap. I'd forgotten/repressed that 'traxy knows Hebrew. I was always a bit jealous about that. |
|
 |
| Antrax |
Posted: Wed Jan 26, 2011 6:30 am Post subject: -31 |
|
| Mainly Hebrew and English. Learning Russian by bits and pieces, and I still remember some Arabic from school, but nothing more useful than reading street signs slowly and the such. |
|
 |
| Chuck |
Posted: Wed Jan 26, 2011 4:38 am Post subject: -32 |
|
| They tried to teach me French when I was in the 7th grade. I taught them that it wasn't going to happen. |
|
 |
| Dread Pirate Westley |
Posted: Wed Jan 26, 2011 4:37 am Post subject: -33 |
|
| Right now, English only. I used to be able to carry on a decent conversation in Spanish and knew enough German to communicate, although it wouldn't have been pretty. Now, I can still read them, but haven't spoken either in a decade or so. |
|
 |
| dethwing |
Posted: Wed Jan 26, 2011 3:32 am Post subject: -34 |
|
| English only. Took French but je ne parle pas francais. |
|
 |
| Chaz |
Posted: Wed Jan 26, 2011 3:24 am Post subject: -35 |
|
I speak English and Pig-Latin.
I also speak enough Cantonese and Spanish for native speakers to really dislike trying to talk to to me in them. |
|
 |
| referee |
Posted: Wed Jan 26, 2011 2:45 am Post subject: -36 |
|
| Mother language is Spanish and Catalan, and I have pretty good knowledge of English. Now learning Japanese. |
|
 |
| Dragon Phoenix |
Posted: Wed Jan 26, 2011 2:01 am Post subject: -37 |
|
| Fluent in Dutch, English and German. Can cope reasonably well in French. Enough Italian for hotels and restaurants. About 100 words of mandarin only. |
|
 |
| Thok |
Posted: Wed Jan 26, 2011 1:25 am Post subject: -38 |
|
English, plus enough French/German to pass a language exam requirement.
In other words, English. |
|
 |