g2narat

When I speak Spanish they often times do not know where I am from . They think that I am from Cuba. When I am actually American. I love when this happens. It makes me feel like I am doing great with the language.

Ah yes! It's definitely a good sign! It must mean that you've got the diction and pronunciation perfectly! I also enjoy it when people think I'm a native of the language I'm speaking.  :grin:

I have another Filipino one. This one is pretty tough: Usong usong isang isang salu-salong nagsisi-usyosohan ang mga aso sa asosasyon sa Ascuzena.

It roughly translates to: The dogs are busy sharing and chatting at a dog association in Ascuzena.  :grin:

Oh I have another one! Pang-ilan . Isn't it annoying that it's so difficult to translate a Filipino sentence that contains the word "Pang-ilan"? Pang-ilan is used when you want to know the order of a person when it comes to rank or chronology. Like if you want to ask a person if he/she is the eldest, or second, or youngest among siblings, you can simply ask "Pang-ilan ka sa magkakapatid?" It's a very handy word but unfortunately, it doesn't have an English equivalent.

Oh really? I want to get the Hebrew one as well in the future!  How is it going?!  Did your husband like it?  Is he already learning something?  Did it come with a CD?

I ask because most of the for dummies language courses come with a CD, at least the ones I have bought, but I know that a few of them don't.  Did your husband order the course online?

Oh, I didn't know there's an online course. I've read the "for dummies" series before but not about languages. I like the way they teach. Do you think it's possible to take the online courses even without buying the books? It sounds so interesting!

Oops! I made a new thread about this exact same topic too! Sorry, I didn't notice this thread. (If you want to see that post, it's here: http://linguaholic.com/study-tagalog/tagalog-words-with-no-direct-translation-to-english/)

Anyway, I can think of tons of words actually. I won't say the word kulit anymore since that's what I posted in the other thread. How about the word sayang? It means to feel remorse for something that almost happened but didn't. I don't think there's a direct translation for that.

Have you noticed how some Tagalog words just cannot be translated to English? Take the word kulit for example. You can't really use just one word to translate it. For those that don't know what kulit means, it's trying to get your way by being annoying or repetitive. Think of the annoying orange that keeps on asking the same question over and over. That's what we Filipinos would call makulit. Can you think of other examples?

Actually there are a few Filipino words that are not spelled the same way you hear them like "ng" (read as nang) and "mga" (read as manga - not the same as in mango fruit).

By the way, "ng" is equivalent to the English "of".  "Mga" on the other hand, indicates that a noun is plural.  Ex. Girl = Babae while Girls = Mga babae.

But I agree with you when you say that it's harder to speak Filipino than to spell it.  :grin:

Oh yeah! I forgot about those! Thanks for pointing out the exceptions. These are actually quite handy to remember. You have to admit though, that spelling words exactly as you hear them is more the rule and not the exception. 

How tragic it is to have lost such a great author.  :cry: Her writings were always so inspirational. She had a way with words that is just so moving. If you haven't read her works, I suggest you do.

Hmm, I am so impatient. I just cannot wait for an episode every week of the Game of Thrones series. This is why I have started reading A Song of Ice and Fire series. I am liking what I've read so far but I'm also a bit disappointed. I thought it would be more of a literary challenge than it is. But I'd still say it's pretty good. What did you think of it?

I'm not sure if everyone is familiar with the concept of book study guides so I'll try to explain that first. Book study guides are books that are meant to be used while reading or after reading a certain novel. They try to simplify or clarify anything that might be too complicated in the original novel. Sort of a walk-through for novels. Do you like reading those or do you prefer to figure things out yourself?

I love Night Vale!

Though for me, I also tend to zone out while listening to audio books - but sometimes, depending on the audio books, they could really bring life to the book it was based on. Take World War Z, for example. Although I've already read the book, when I discovered an audio book available, I really wanted to try and see how they would depict the situations - because unlike other books that are either in pure first person or third person in narrative, World War Z is a collection of "interviews" regarding stories during the zombie apocalypse. For me, this was the most interesting aspect of the audio book - because somehow, I actually really felt the characters make a mark.

That sounds interesting! I haven't read world war Z yet. Maybe I'll try going straight to the audio book. It might not keep my attention for long enough if I know what's going to happen next. I like that it's a series of interview. Sounds like a book perfect for an audiobook.

I don't agree with that idea at all. While I do believe that it's important to be able to relate to your characters, we are all human beings. As a human being, it doesn't matter what gender, religion, race etc. your character is as long as he/she has feelings that you can relate too. What that writer doesn't realize is that it's not the experience that readers will relate to (if that were the case then fantasy and science fiction novels wouldn't have as many fans), but rather the emotions that comes with the experience.

I hope they meant that J.D. Salinger is best known for one book. But such mistaken phrasing is common in a lot of things.

From what I've read, though, actors still get more inaccurate rumors and lies about them than authors do.

Maybe that was the original idea. That J.D. Salinger had one well-known book. The "fact" that got passed around though, was that he only wrote one book. Anyway, with regards to actors, I agree that a there's a lot of false rumors about them too. But at least they have a team of publicists to correct them and they can even speak for themselves. A lot of inaccurate stuff about authors are about dead authors though... So they can't really correct the wrong info... 

I think all types of books are worth reading. Graphic novels may not be the best language studying material, but they are definitely worth reading because it's a part of culture. So in a way, when we read graphic novels in a different language, we're actually studying their culture.

That's a nice way of looking at it. I agree that graphic novels are definitely part of a culture. In a sense, you are getting more than just learning words. I understand what you mean by them not being the best study material though.

I've read all the books. I'd suggest you read the first one, and maybe the second. That's all. No point wasting your time with the others. The style is unique. He gets your attention with his dry, sardonic humour, but once the style grows on you - there's no point.

Oh thanks for the honest opinion! I guess I have to see how dry and sardonic his style is. I've read a couple of books with that kind of style and I usually enjoy them. I think I'll give it a try then... at least the first book. Thanks again!

First of all let me apologize for inserting some celebrity news in this post. It's just that Emma Watson graduated with a degree in English literature and there are so many comments on the internet about it. I can't believe so many people are saying how useless her degree is. I mean, she's an actress, what do they expect her to take? It seems to me that her degree is pretty relevant to her line of work. What do you think?

Oh, how fun! I know a lot of people mentioned that your quiz is too easy. I still think it's a good quiz for beginners. It's a chance to make beginners learn more and smile at the same time. Good for you for doing this. 

I'm not really around foreigners enough to observe if they can guess where I'm from based on my accent, but I guess if they're around Filipinos most of the time, then they would notice that our accent is quite neutral when speaking in English.

Oh you're right about the neutral accent of some Filipinos. But some of us do have an accent though. There is such a thing as a Filipino accent when talking in English. Rex Navarete is a comedian that makes fun of the Filipino accent a lot. It's all good-natured humor though and he does exaggerate. 

Hey, that's a pretty interesting idea.

I've never heard this tip before, but it definitely seems like it'd be a great way to learn words that a student is personally invested and interested in.

It would be pretty tedious looking up conjugations and word translations for every new word you wanted to use, though, so I wouldn't recommend trying this until the student has a pretty decent grasp on the language already.

Ah good tip! It would definitely be too much for a new student. I guess I should clarify that this should be for someone who wants to hone his/her skills after learning the basics. Thank you for pointing it out! 

Here are a couple of links that I hope can show audio books and other audio media in the best way:

a dark retelling by Neil Gaiman of the folktale of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves.

Welcome To Night Vale episode 33, a radio show host who lives in a Twilight Zone type town makes a mundane discovery that turns out very very strange. Yes, the weather report is really always a musical guest star.

Learning to listen is just as valuable in language learning and appreciation as the written form of the language 

Ooh. These seem interesting! I'm going to give them a go. Thanks for your suggestions! I have never been a fan of audio books. I've tried a couple but just couldn't stick with them. Maybe these will make me change my view on audio books!

I've read all the trilogy and it's good. Very good.

The plot catch you with her dynamisim. I can't stop to read until finish.

I love the actors who the production choose. They're too similar to the Roth's characters.

I'll waiting this movie and I recommend this saga.

Ooh! Thanks for the recommendation. I just watched the movie yesterday. I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised. I didn't think I'd like it but it was pretty good. And since I'm so impatient with stories, I'm out to get the book so I know what's coming next.  :grin:

Here's something that irks me. There are so many wrongly attributed quotes and wrong facts about authors on the internet. I know this isn't something that affects authors alone, but it seems that writers tend to get a lot more myths than actors.

Here's an example: I often see on the internet that J.D.Salinger only wrote one book. I know most people are only familiar with Catcher in the Rye but that is not the only book he wrote.  :doubtful:

Have you noticed this too?

What is with all the love surrounding “The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy”?? Is it really that good? I haven't read it even though I was given a copy as a gift because I just never found the time to start it. Now I have a few weeks off, I just might start reading it. I want to know if it's worth my time though. Have you read this book? What did you think of it?

Do you see a point in learning a lot of languages. I think that it may at times be useful, but overall it does not really add a lot in terms of life value to me.

It's not the most important thing but it's quite an enriching experience. Learning a new language makes you learn not just the words but also the culture. For example, when you learn Filipino, you learn that the word "po" is placed in every sentence when talking to someone older. By learning that, you sort of learn how much respect for elders is valued in the Philippines. So for me it's a pretty good life experience even if it's not essential.

I'm not one to dictate how others should speak, but for some reason whenever I hear someone in real life utter internet phrases and terms, I cringe. I honestly can't pinpoint what it is about this that bothers me so much, but it just sounds so unnatural and forced. Anyone here share the same sentiments, and do you have any specific examples of ones you particularly hate hearing uttered in the physical world, or does it not bother you one bit?

It only bothers me if it's overused. Like, if someone uses it as some sort of catch phrase then I find it annoying. I know someone who says "WTF" all the time and it's pretty annoying. I don't mind if it's used naturally in conversation though.