Victor Leigh

Another fun way to learn a language is to read comics in that language. If comics are hard to come by, you can always search for cartoon video clips in that language on Youtube. I learned a lot of my English from reading comics like Beano and Dandy. I wonder if those comics are still in circulation.

Here are some words related to birds but do not contain the word 'bird' itself.

Preen - this is taken from the actions of a bird when it cleans its feather, sort of like dressing up. When you say a person preens, you mean that he is showing off, sort of like a bird does when it cleans itself up to show off.

Strut - this is another action of a bird which describes how a bird walks with straightened legs, high steps and a aloof demeanor. So when a person does the same thing, you can that he is strutting.

It depends on the language. But in Asian langauges, writing becomes a real challenge, I actually failed college because of that!

Yes, writing in Asian languages can be a real challenge unless they are using an alphabet similar to English. In this respect, you may not have much problem in learning to write Malay or Tagalog because they use the same alphabet as English. Thai is a totally different kettle of fish altogether.

Google Translate is a real joke, it can only help on a very basica level, it's not even clse of replacing a human translator. So never have him doing complex translations, because it can't.

That's right. I only use Google translate to translate single words. Whole sentences will come out as gibberish. I know because I have tried translating from English to Thai and I know both languages well.

I started learning English when I was 9 years old. Right now I English is the language that I'm the most fluent in, other than my native language of course. I highly recommend learning a language from an early age as it will make it a lot easier.

Not necessarily true. I learned Thai when I was already 40. Went to night class to study it. Now I speak Thai like a native. Can read Thai, too. Can't write Thai too well, though. It all depends on your interest and the opportunity. If you are really interested and you have the opportunity, you can learn any language you want at any age.

The three characters refer to a long list of sayings which the Chinese, in the olden days at least, memorize. The list of sayings form the basis of the Chinese personality. It starts on a very positive note which says,

"Man is basically good."

I have not had the chance to memorize the whole list but the first two lines have been drummed into my head by my grandmother.

I'm pretty sure the two idioms I've mentioned below are self-explanatory:

'The early bird catches the worm'

'The birds and the bees'

The first one is self-explanatory but the second isn't. It takes a bit of thinking and explaining to find out that talking about the birds and the bees has nothing to do with aviary or apiary. It's about the process of reproducing human beings. In other words, talking about the birds and the bees is talking about sex.

When I was teaching kiddies how not to speak Engrish, I found that one easy way to get them to open their mouths and start saying things in English is to teach them to sing songs in English. It's a lot of fun for them and when they hear their own voices saying English words, it gives them the confidence to learn more.

Is there anybody who's learned language has taken over their native in proficiency and now thinks using the new language almost exclusively? Most here seem to have their native as their most proficient.

It's interesting to me that people who are fluent in multiple languages will also think in multiple languages depending on the situation, that's something few can relate with.

Well, for me, it's not so much as having a learned language taking over my native language. It's more like using a learned term because it fits the situation better. Take, for example, the Thai word 'tiau'. It can be variously translated as 'fun' or 'holiday' but that doesn't tell the whole story. When a Thai invites you to 'tiau' at his house, he means just come and visit for fun. You can't really say that in English without getting convoluted. So when I want to pay a social visit to my friends, I think of the word 'tiau' because it's more appropriate.

That's quite a list.  Not only do many of these words sound funny, but what I also like is that they are so descriptive.  It's a shame they're not used more often.

Out of that list here are some of my favorites:

"Abibliophobia - The fear of running out of reading material."

Yes, I think especially back in the pre-Internet and pre-Kindle days that would be a huge fear.  You could find yourself somewhere and run out of books and magazines to read!

"Batrachomyomachy - Making a mountain out of a molehill."

This is a fun one, too.  Who knew there was a word for this!

 

"Goombah - An older friend who protects you."

"Tatterdemalion - A child in rags."

I think these are great, too.  They sound like fairy tale characters.

The whole list really is a gem.  So many words and  all are so vivid and descriptive.  It really reminds us of how many unusual words there are in the English language, especially ones that fall out of use.

I've been enjoying this thread.  It's fun to see all the new responses.  I've shared some of my favorites previously, but here's another one: 

Onomatopoeia

I've always thought that "onomatopoeia" was a funny sounding word, and it's perfect for its meaning i.e. words that attempt to imitate sounds phonetically.

Yes, I like that last one. The English language doesn't have too many words which reflect their meaning in their pronunciation. The Chinese language has lots of such words. A sneeze is called 'hatchoo' and a cat is called a 'meow'.

I find English words with double meanings rather hilarious. Like the band Pussy Riot. Makes you visualize rather salacious images. Same with tongue twisters like this one:

If a woodchuck would chuck wood, what wood would a woodchuck chuck?

Try saying that at high speed. My students always fall over laughing when I do that.

In my opinion Google translate is wildly inaccurate. It's good for viewing web pages from a foreign country, but Google translate should not be trusted if you are doing school work, or something where you need the the translation to be 100% accurate. I would suggest you buy a program for that type of use. Remember that you get what you pay for.

You have a point there. So what do you recommend as a paid translation software? If it has a free trial, I would like to take it for a spin. Personally, I doubt if any software can translate properly, paid or otherwise.

Ughh Speaking. For me I've been studying German for the past 2 years and yet I can't speak really well because of the pronunciation and the fear of making a mistake while talking! I can ready and write well and even listen but not speak!

Have you tried singing songs in German? I was told that the Germans have got songs for just about everything. Drinking songs, jogging songs, marching songs, etc. When I teach the kids how not to speak Engrish, I teach them via singing. It's helps them to get over the mental block of vocalizing in a foreign language.

Of course, I think in English. True, I didn't learn to lisp in English from my mother's lips but English is what I use when I dream. Likewise, English is what I use when I think.

Oh yes, the English language is riddled with funny words. Just, take for instance, the very word 'funny'. Just saying "That's funny" is rather ambiguous because you can either mean 'funny peculiar' or 'funny haha'. When I was in school, my teacher (English language teacher, of course) told my class a story about a foreigner arriving at an English airport (Heathrow, presumably). When asked if he had anything to declare, he thought for a while, then announced,

"Yes, I have a cow in my box."

The puzzled immigration officer looked at the luggage the foreigner was carrying but could not see anything big enough to carry a cow, even a very small one. After a long, convoluted conversation, the immigration officer comprehended what the foreigner was trying to say.

You see, the foreigner learned his English only part way. He learned that 'bough' was pronounced to rhyme with 'how' so he surmised that 'cough' should be pronounced like 'cow'. The box was simply his way of replacing the word 'chest' with one of its synonyms which, among others, included 'chest'. What he was trying to tell the immigration officer was that he had a cough in his chest.

That's how funny the English language can be. Yes, that's both 'funny haha' as well as 'funny peculiar'.

I believe that a language is the product of a people's history, culture and psychological make-up. So to understand a people, I need to first learn their language, not just to communicate with them but more to get inside their heads, so to say, and be able to understand how they think and how they view the world around them.

Well, for me, practically from the first day in school! At my parents' home, we speak Cantonese. They sent me to an English kindergarten. So from my very first day at school, I began to learn a second language, English, which has now become my first language.

I am fluent in a few languages so when I use Google translate, I can immediately see what's wrong with the translation. However, when I need to navigate my way around a website in a language I know nothing about, then Google translate is good enough to help me find my way.

For me, it's writing. That's because writing involves a lot of supporting skills. Like now, when I am learning Arabic. The Arabic script goes from right to left. That's the first hurdle. Then the Arabic letters change form according to their place in a word. That's pretty confusing for someone like me who's totally at home with English.

You are right, Denis Hard. That's assuming that you are learning a language for use in communications. If you are learning a language just to pass exams, then go the way of the parrot. That, unfortunately, is how many Thais learn English - just to pass exams. I have even met one teacher who has been teaching English for more than a decade and he couldn't hold a conversation in English. Sad but true.

I think the hardest part of learning English is to enunciate the words like most American people do. I have a little accent when I speak English because English is not my native language. I try to speak as close as American people, and I have learned to say each word slowly so people can understand me better.

It's not that difficult once you know where to look for the correct pronunciation. There's something called phonetic symbols. Altogether there are 44 of them. Just get hold of any good dictionary and you will find the phonetic symbols written after the word. The key to the phonetic symbols can be found in the contents page.

btw why do you want to use the American pronunciation? Myself, I prefer the British pronunciation. I mean I make an effort to speak Queen's English.

Interesting addition. I am curious about the medals, though. Where can I find more information about how each medal is earned?

Good idea. Except for the name. Perhaps if you call it Study Buddy, then it's meaning would be all the more obvious. Myself, I can do with a Study Buddy for Arabic. Anyone?

I am in favor of streamlining the forum by reducing the number of sub-forums. Yes, it's possible to reduce the clutter by collapsing the sub-forums but that's not really making any change - it's more like sweeping the dust under the carpet.

The Malay language is mainly spoken in Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei. These three countries are members of Asean. Asean is a growing economic bloc in South-East Asia. People traveling to this region can get by with English but if they have a grasp of Malay, it would be handy.

So is anyone interested in Malay?

This is one old man hailing from Thailand, the nearest place to heaven next to paradise. I have been living here for more than two decades already. Hmmm, maybe that's longer than some of you have been living on this lonely planet. Well, I did say I am an old man. Already 60 this year. That's old, right?