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JohnSword

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Posts posted by JohnSword

  1. I don't think it's an antithesis. 'Propose' and 'dispose' aren't antonyms. 'Propose' in this case means to put forward an idea or a plan, while 'dispose' is to decide what happens. Doing some further reading, this proverb is actually a translation from "The Imitation of Christ", and puts forth the notion that God ultimately decides a man's success or failure no matter what. As such, I would say my answer is a) hypothesis.

  2. From my personal experience, reading does help tremendously in improving one's language skills. I read I used to be an avid reader in high school, and always received good grades for my English exams. Essay-writing was easier for me because I have a wider range of vocabulary to fall back on.

    Of course, doing the love for reading also makes language-learning an enjoyable experience. As such, you're more likely to find success.

  3. I took a quick look at Wikipedia, and it says that a native language is "the language(s) a person has learned from birth or within the critical period, or that a person speaks the best and so is often the basis for sociolinguistic identity."

    As such, it's quite normal for a person to not be that good at his native language if he hasn't used it for a period of time. For example, if a person's native language is Chinese, but he works in an English-speaking environment.

  4. As someone has mentioned before, the best way to get accurate translations is to find a person who is well-versed in both languages. Of course, such a person might be hard to find.

    For me, I would do my translations on Google Translate first. Thereafter, I would look at the context and determine whether a translation is accurate. If not, I would try the various forums, where native speakers are always more than happy to help me.

  5. If a person is really keen to learn a language, nothing will stop him. This is especially true in this day and age, when one can easily gain access to a multitude of online language resources.

    At the same time, I agree that people who socialize more are able to pick up a language quicker. You don't have to be a party animal though. A good idea is to start an interest group and practice the language together.

  6. I agree it's hard to understand anyone who talks too fast, even if that person is speaking my native language. Believe me, I've had my fair share of such experiences while working in customer service.

    At the same time, I don't think such people really meant to be rude. It has probably become a habit for them over the years.

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