sayitwell

I usually dog ear the page of the book that I am reading where there is a word used that I do not know the meaning of. I then go back to that page after I have finished that session of reading and look each of the words up on the dog eared pages. I then write the definitions out on paper and use it as a reference.

I live alone and I tend to not speak for days at a time. I'm always e-mailing, texting and typing out my thoughts. I think I once went an entire two weeks without saying anything but for "Hi" and "thank you" etc. How long have you gone without verbal communication?

It is absolutely possible! When my Mother was in her mid 40's she learned French. She did not become completely fluent but she learned enough to get by during her trips to France as well as communicate with a penpal in France. Never give up. Remember, people are living much longer these days. The new middle age is really 55 - 65.

I agree with the other posters. It is "an" not "a". This is one of those rare instances where you use "an" instead of "a" even though a vowel does not follow as the first letter of the next word. I find it funny that Obama always says "a". It's like he never learned the rules of English grammar.

I grew up in America but I attended public school all the way up until college. For some reason my high school offered English composition in the 11th grade which made no sense. We were learning basic grammar and punctuation at the end of high school. What were they thinking? That should have been taught in middle school or at least the first year of high school.

The world would benefit if we all spoke the same language. I'm shocked it has not happened yet. The reasons why we'd benefit are self explanatory. I don't even care if it is a new language, a hybrid language that combines aspects of every language in existence or if it is actually English. We just need common ground to communicate and we need it soon. It would help workers unite and end economic oppression. Imagine a global union of laborers. We have nothing to lose but our chains.

It has to be the writing component of the language. You can easily look up the translations of words when reading a foreign language text but it is much more difficult to express yourself in the written form without making a mistake in tenses, conjugation and grammar. I think that speaking is probably the second toughest because it demands that you think on your feet very quickly. I remember dreading my French final exam in college because it was a verbal exam. Reading is definitely the easiest component of language.

I agree with the original poster. I don't understand why there are so many synonyms in existence for such simple words like "doctor". I really felt that my college professors were overdoing it with the use of synonyms while lecturing in front of the class. I swear, they were just trying to fill up time so they would repeat the same words and concepts over and over but in a different form (meaning different words) just to fill the class time allotment.

Metamorphosis used always be a tongue twister for me for the longest time. Honestly, there are not that many that I use in everyday speech that present pronunciation difficulties. Another would have to be surreptitiously. I used to have trouble saying the word "extravaganza". That is a funny sounding word.

I am also always messing this up and having my spell checker correct it. I can never remember which is the proper way to spell the word. It is the same with traveling and travelling. I never remember which is right! I also have the problem with words with two letters at the end. Like student marshall. I always thought it had two L's but there is only one l in student marshal. Imagine having to remember how to spell those German names that have double N's at the end. Ugh.

Well this is an incredibly interesting topic. I can't say that I have tried to learn a fictional language but I respect those that do as there is not much that makes a real language better than those developed in fiction creations like movies, books, plays etc. Spin: Has anyone tried to create their own language? Have you tried to spread it to your friends?

Yes, I met an international student from France while in college. She really enjoyed conversing with me in French because so few were as skilled as I was at that point in time. Most college age kids are not fluent in two languages so I sort of made her feel a sense of "home" while she was in America. We really didn't have much in common besides our common languages. She taught me a lot of French expressions and idioms that I did not know.

There are so many that I do not know where to begin. The word "couture" is nice sounding. It means "sewing". "decollete" means to show one's neck. That always struck me as a beautiful word with a sweet meaning. I love the expression "comme ci comme ça" meaning that one feels "so so". I like the word "fantastique" meaning fantastic. I have fun saying it in French.

I would give Spanish a shot just because a lot of the job ads in my city require or favor applicants who speak English and Spanish. I would consider learning chinese because that would help me advance my career. I think Latin would be fun to learn as most of the roots of English words stem from the Latin language. One of the big advantages to learning Spanish is being able to spit game at the mamcitas as they call them. Imagine the edge you'd have in picking up Spanish/Mexican chicks if you could speak their native tongue!

I am sorry to say that it has not come in handy at all for me aside from hitting on girls that know French or like how the language sounds. French does have a romantic flair to it. I've probably used my knowledge of French half a dozen times since learning it in High School and College. I guess it sort of came in handy in college as my university demanded that I take a foreign language. My high school credits advanced me far enough to only have to take 2 semesters of the language in college.

A lot of the slang words in the United States are derived from pop and hip hop music. "Swag" is one of the more popular words amongst the youth. It means confidence in one's self. Kids are also saying "for real" all the time. I hear a lot of "f'real" as an abbreviation of the phrase. The phrase "PAWG" is also gaining steam. It is sort of a demeaning phrase as it means "phat ass white girl". Yeah, I didn't make it up so don't shoot me!

Je ne veux pas de mais which means "no buts about it!" is a very authoritative and cute one to me. I also like Avoir un faim de loup meaning "i have the hunger of the wolf" that, to me, is so funny to hear someone say. it's sort of like "i could eat a horse" in english And finally La goutte d'eau qui fait déborder le vase meaning "the drop of water that will make the vase overflow". Sort of like "the straw that broke the camel's back" in english.

You begin keeping a word bank of your favorite words. It's pathetic, I know. You are translating words from one language to another in the middle of your dreams. :amazed: You continue pen pal relationships with foreigners just to practice your language skills.

I was about 13 years old when I began to study French. My parents chose the language for me over Spanish. Looking back, I wish I had studied Spanish because that is a growing language that has some utility to it. Very few people in the world speak French. It does sound beautiful in comparison to Spanish but that does not justify learning it as a second language. In fact it was an incredible waste of time as I never used it in any sort of conversation outside of the classroom.

My first word was "ya" or so my parents claim. So I was trying to say "yes" to be precise. My second word was "nah" but I meant "no". I was responding to my parents at the time about eating apple sauce and yogurt respectively. I wish I had something more unique to offer but I'm telling you the truth. I hope someone posts something really interesting in this thread like "i want more" as their first words or "i'm walking". I'm looking forward to the responses.

Nice thread idea. I think the word "sessions" sounds funny. It makes me think of devious activities but also piques my interest. I also like the word "amicable". That one sounds so curious to me that it makes me smile and giggle. "Ostentatious" also sounds hilarious when said out loud.

Ilove the word anomie. It means to lose all sense of community, identity and importance. Hence the phrase anomic suicide. I also like the word nihilist. It means to lose faith in the sincerity, honesty and dignity of surrounding people and social structures. Both words accurately describe the general populace's attitude toward life in the 21st century as well as the feel of life in a global capitalist economic system.

"Hunker down" is a reference to battening down the hatches while out at sea during a storm. It means to secure all items on deck and head to the lower level of the ship. The one that really gets me, as well as George Orwell, is "toe the line". Most people think the proper phrase is "tow the line", when in reality the origins of the actual phrase are from old english people expressing how one should not overstep a boundary. Toe the line means to use tact and caution to avoid breaching a barrier.

I think the Internet has caused this phenomenon. Twitter, texting and facebook all encourage the use of short words with few characters. The result is pathetic abbreviations with a high amount of misspellings. My pet peeves are "their" "they're" and "there" and "it's" versus "its". Really though, there are a million more common spelling errors. Part of the problem is reliance on spell check. And the fact that hardly anyone reads anymore.

"Don't throw the baby out with the bath water." That one has a certain wisdom to it that always spoke to me. I also like "a blessing in disguise" and "a slap on the wrist". "Fuel to the fire" is another one that presents graphic imagery which really resonates with me.