Denis Hard

For me, knowing more than one language came in handy when I badly needed money but there were openings for translators all over the net. I used my knowledge of foreign languages and a made little dough that kept me going.

The 'youtube' suggestions sounds good. I remember learning 3D modeling and being quite good at it primarily from experts who posted videos on youtube. I guess learning a language is no different. If you use the right search phrases I'm sure you'll find a video that will answer to your needs regardless of whether you're just a beginner. . .an intermediate language student, etc. So, at the present [for me] I don't think it's necessary to pay for a tutor when you can get most of these lessons free online.

I'd prefer studying with friends but I live deep in the country so since I study [predominantly] online, I have no option but study alone. I don't know if there are places online where one can find an interlocutor who is learning the language you speak but is a native speaker of the language you're learning. Finding such a person would be very convenient. But until then. . .I guess I'll keep studying alone.

I guess poets are allowed to break the rules in order for them to convey their message without any hindrances. But it's not the only genre where grammar rules are flagrantly flouted. Try reading a movie script and find out for yourself. Anyway here's a poem that throws the grammar rule books out the window: http://www.writingforward.com/grammar/grammar-rules/breaking-grammar-rules-in-poetry-writing

I just read an essay about being "true" to yourself as a writer. The author of the essay claims that each person should write about things they are familiar with. That includes writing specifically about people you know, things you've experienced firsthand, etc. In brief, the author openly suggested that a white writer should write a story with white characters as the central characters. Asian writers should make their lead characters Asians. African American writers. . . Question is: should race play any role if a piece of writing doesn't integrate socio-economic related themes? If you were a writer, would you stick to writing about [for example] white characters only [if you're white?]

Alberta couldn't help noticing that her mother's hands were shaking. Could it mean that. . . "Mom?" She barely managed to get the words out.

I like the BBC RP accent. I once thought this was the universal British accent but after traveling a little bit I realized that it wasn't. Same way most non-Americans believe there's a universal American accent when in fact there are a number of them. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/09/dialect-map-of-the-us-region-aschmann_n_3245496.html

The most time I've spent in a day learning a new language is 3 hours. I guess that's because I didn't have lots of free time like I do now. So in future, probably, I could spend up to 7 hours studying because I really, really want to learn how to speak Hebrew real fast.

Boy! Hmmm. . .OK. Since it's obligatory for me to learn Hebrew, I guess I'll have to 'learn it all' [writing, reading and speaking]. But the fact that the written language has no vowels sort of scares me. It means that it'll be a long time before I'm able to either read or write Hebrew correctly. Anyway, thanks for your response.

Could be the intention of the software developers is to condition every English speaker to learn American English. After all, if you're using an American English spell checker then in future, to avoid seeing red lines all over your text, you'll use the American version of the word the next time you write. And guess what, that's the first step to "Americanization." Come to think of it, it's not so bad after all; if you want "one language to rule them all."

If someone want to deceive you [for some reason] don't you think his/her body language would also mislead you into thinking that what you're hearing is "the whole truth and nothing but the truth?" IMO, except on rare occasions, reading someone's body language is not that helpful. Trust you intuition.

There's a remote possibility that elves do exist. Myths all contain some elements of truth in them, don't they? Anyway, I read about elves in an encyclopedia that listed them [the elves] as 'disruptive spirits.' If these spirits exist in reality then it's quite obvious that they use some language to communicate with each other. So hypothetically speaking, if "Tolkien was into shamanism," he could have learned the language of the elves.

I'm looking for short-cuts to learning Hebrew. I'm not very much interested in reading 'Hebrew Literature' but would like to learn how to speak the language without having to go through the lengthy processes of learning the alphabet and stuff. Do you think it's possible for one to learn a language without going through the formalities of having to learn the basics [the alphabet, basic words, etc, etc]?

My goal this year is to learn the basics of the Hebrew. Enough to enable me talk with someone in Hebrew. From what I've read in the posts above, learning Hebrew can be quite difficult [no vowels!]. But I'll give it a shot anyway. p.s Links to some great learning resources would be appreciated.

Let the work decide the words you use. There are some articles or stories that will require simple language to achieve the purpose for which it's intended. Other complex topics would require big words to get your message across effectively. An example would be, an essay dealing with Communism would be a lot different from an essay about some other more common topic.

I keep it simple. I don't see if there's any point in using hard words which would only make you look as a cheap show-off to those listening. Anyway, what's the point of communication? Isn't it to get a message across? And how do you make sure you've got that message across? It's by using words everyone understands.

It depends on your attitude, where you are and the time you spend learning the language. If for example you meet people who speak the language you're learning regularly and get a chance to hear it used [and for you to practice using it] within two years you'll be fluent enough to speak like a native albeit with an accent.

I'd wouldn't call myself a great listener though it may appear like I"m good at listening. However, I get distracted easily because I'm always playing around with plot-lines, story twists and such in my mind so unless someone has something really interesting to tell me, I'll lose interest real fast.

Where I live it's not uncommon for someone to speak more than three languages. It's just that there are some many people from lots of different places living in small town so quite obviously kids just pick up most of the languages they hear and when they're grown up, they can speak several languages fluently. So in my case, no one gets shocked that I can speak a foreign language. It's the norm, where I live.

I've been researching some things about sight and stumbled into idioms that use the word see. See around - see someone often at a place. - used when telling someone you'd see them but are uncertain when that will happen. - for younger people: [used to end a relationship] it literally means to just see someone and not speak to them. Be glad to see the back of someone or something - be happy when someone who you don't like leaves or when something you don't like ends. Let's see - implies that you are thinking about some suggestion, something. . .whatever. Any additions?

Brit movie or just any movie in which the actors use English as the primary language? I'm an animation films buff so most certainly I'd go with one. The best of them all IMO: Monsters vs Aliens or at least that's my favorite movie. Today. Everything changes.

Before I knew it was not an English word, I had trouble pronouncing the word: "BOURGEOIS" and made a fool of myself in class reading it the way it was written. Odd that it should be pronounced as: "BOO-ZHWAH."

Google translate is totally useless. I've used it before out of curiosity but wasn't impressed with the results I got. I've just heard of Babelfish machine translation and though I'm yet to test it out, I don't suppose it would be good enough to provide accurate translations because guys, that's the truth. Human language is too complex to be translated accurately by some software.

I think we should draw a line somewhere. Communication involves more than language. If for example someone winks at you, they'd have communicated without using any known verbal language, right? So, IMO, animals do communicate but their mode of communication is different. It can be understood by the rest to mean something. For example, bees don't have any language, do they? But when they find nectar or whatever by 'dancing' they're able to pin-point to the rest of the swarm where the nectar can be found. Sorry for going off-topic but getting back to the discussion. . . Take a look at this interesting article about how animals communicate with each other. http://animal.discovery.com/animal-facts/animals-communicate.htm

Isn't English a cute language or what? Let's dive right in: Draw, o coward! Kayak? Bar an Arab. Devil never even lived. He did, eh?