justusforus

I think there are differences in level and inflection that may be consistent among certain languages but it does depend on the speaker.'' As to the click song, that was truly a treat and yes definitely a novelty I was not accustomed to.

Visualization and repetition are the keys. Cute video makes the point to make any visual relevent to you. Had to laugh when he stopped to turn off the phone!

Personally I picked up more Spanish from music than I realized. Once I started the study, some things were second nature and yes I can credit a few favorite songs.

I went to public school in the Midwest and in 9th grade the offerings were Spanish, French and Latin. I opted for Latin which helped in grad school but said then "When will I need Spanish?". Moral of the story, ended up in law school in California and wished I had opted for Spanish.

America may be a melting pot, but I see in industry and business the bias towards the English language. There are some cracks in that wall as I was surprised to learn a neighbor child (elementary) was studying Spanish and Chinese. "Chinese???" I asked and was told by the precocious little girl "when I am your age, I will need it in business". I was floored.

when you look up a word and then get excited by the Greek, Latin and other languages the word derived from. Sort of reminiscent of the father in "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" ("Give me a word and I will tell you the Greek word it came from")

As the story goes, my first word was "dingee" which was supposedly my trying to pronounce what the older kids kept calling me. They were teasing me for being the youngest and were saying "dinky".

When you practice your new language with a friend, then revert to your native language searching for the words and whisper "how do you say"?

Wow, never really though about that. I think some we are so used to slip right by.

When I was in grade school my parents connected me with a young pen pal in Italy who was learning English. It was great fun and an experience for me too. In those days we communicated by post cards. I enjoyed getting the scenes of Italy and seeing the foreign stamps. My pen pal lasted years and she thanked me and said she learned and enjoyed the experience.

I agree that some slang in the US comes from music or pop culture but some I have no idea how they have spread so fast. "Sick" does not mean ill health when used in slang. I have a classic car and the young valet who parked it said "this is really sick". I told him I knew that meant "cool" (dating myself) and that it was a compliment. He just smiled. "Seriously?" may not be slang but it is used often times not to ask if the person is serious or meant what they said or did but more so like a "I can't believe you just...(fill in the blank)" An example would be a little child runs through the house and knocks over a vase. "Seriously?" is a reaction that I have heard from young and now quite a few older (parents I noticed) use it too.

I think "another one bites the dust" can refer to someone dying but I think it is also used when someone fails at something (if a man is rebuffed when he goes up to talk to a woman or a competitor fails like knocking over the bar in a high jump). Also "The apple doesn't fall far from the tree" (children often have character traits of their parents) I also loved the stick and old women one, never heard it.

I would add that often times this slang phrase is used in the context of gossip or in a way to cast an aspersion on something. If a woman says this phrase to another female friend about a man sitting in view (who is wearing a bad hair piece or an awful suit coat) it is a request to look, but I doubt it is done out of being impressed or excitement.

I think Laura M has made a good suggestion. It is interesting to note that you said after about 5 minutes, you become more fluent. I have two thoughts based on this as your own self diagnosis. Perhaps by being concerned with your speed, you are hampering your own progress. I say this as once you "get going" you are less distracted with time and acknowledge you are more fluent. Perhaps if you allow yourself that concept, that I may be slow in the beggining, you will concentrate more on the task and less on timing yourself. We are our own worst critics sometimes. Also, practice, practice, practice seems to make anyone more proficient regardless of the task.

Never realized there were so many and you all have actually told some new ones on me. I can only think of two more without repeating: zoned out of it (but that can have a general meaning without and substance connotation)

This is a paraphrase of a quote attributed to Mae West (without any bawdy language) "If you can't handle me at my worst, you surely don't deserve me at my best". It is one of my absolute favorites.

Thank you Laura M, those are good examples of how oxymorons can bring up more than the simple definition of paired words. You make a good point as well about "cruel joke". I usually find them amusing or a sort of social commentary, but yes that is chilling.

Yes and I have often wondered when literally translated by a non native speaker how much confusion these may cause.

Yes. I find that the give and take in forums is an education in itself. There is always an opportunity to learn something new or as you said brush up or even realize a mistake you may have picked up over time.

An oxymoron is paired words or a phrase that has seemingly contradictory meanings when the words are examined separately. Many think of "jumbo shrimp" or "pretty ugly". There are simple oxymorons that may be funny (jumbo=very large and shrimp=tiny or small) but many have an underlying social or political commentary underlying the analysis. Some examples include "military intelligence" and "deafening silence". Some are not true oxymorons, but "civil servant" is an example that is sometimes used in criticism of government employees (neither civil nor willing to serve). I would welcome your favorite oxymoron and any "translation" you feel is required. Think hard!

I am justusforus, a self proclaimed nerd, philosopher and always willing to share the "world according to me". I am educated in the law but love the outdoors and am a cowgirl in my spare time. Studied years of Latin (ok give me a break) but it clearly is a help in law, medicine and other areas of study. Many people realize there is a "strict" Latin (in religious context) and also Latin has been poked fun at. Fun...really? Try this for starters - "Semper Ubi Sub Ubi" If you have figured it out Semper = Always, Ubi =Where, Sub = Under and yes....it is "where" and not "wear" but a real Latin geek would laugh! Hope to enjoy the site and contribute!

[move][/move] Words to live by and some of my favorite quotes: "Happiness is not having what you want, but wanting what you have" "We do not stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop playing"