Verba

Hi everybody, I use that website to see the english movies with eng subtitle, plus if you click on the word that you don't know the meaning, immediately appear the meaning of that word in your own language.

What do you think about that? Could it be useful like read a book?

That's great because it is like looking at a dictionary and knowing the meaning. When you know what a word means, it naturally enriches your vocabulary; thus, learning more words in a particular language. So I think it is a useful site. But does it also have movies in other languages with English subtitles? If it has, then that would be awesome and quite beneficial to language learners, I suppose.

Hi everyone!

I just created a blog (makemeapolyglot.blogspot.com) to help others learn languages and also help myself learn as I reflect upon my language learning methods and also by writing down "Words of the Day" etc.

It would be really helpful if anyone has any tips in how I can make my blog a helpful resource for language learning ^^ Also, if anyone has any experience in using a blog to monitor your own progress, please let me know whether it has been effective for you!

Thanks

I have not yet looked at your blog so I don't really know its contents. But my two-cents worth of ideas about coming up with any how-to articles or blog is to keep it informative by not only engaging theoretical information but practical applications as well. Since immersion is a great way to learn languages, I think it will be helpful if you come up with videos that are engaging and appealing to your readers. Also, please think of activities that will make your readers or watchers apply what they have learnt or will learn from your blog. Keep it more practical than theoretical please.

Basically, a blog or writing down progress charts in learning helps because records give you an accurate information of your improvement just as school class reports give an overview of how students fare in class. You will know what your weaknesses are and where to improve in.

Congratulations with the blog! Good luck on it too! Keep it going! :-)

When writing in English it is very important to be able to use the correct grammar, spelling and vocabulary. For a writer the text can only be excitingto the reader if they use descriptive words so much so that the reader can imagine the scene that the writer is talking about.

Are there any writers here and how do you go about writing good English to engage the reader?

Hi. I do not write often but when I am motivated, I prefer to write using conversational English. I use vivid descriptions but as much as possible, I don't use fancy words too much. I, myself, like to read books. I love classic novels. What engages me to the books I read is the words used. When the words are highfalutin, I get uninterested. Even when it is about politics, economics, finance, I go for those articles that use layman's terms.

We also use the American English. Thus, it was a bit difficult adjusting to my work where British English is  used. One of the first things I learned in the company of British colleagues is the term for a sweatshirt. It is jumper to them. While is whilst to them. Review is revision. Resignation letter is referred to as a note, like, I handed in my note this morning. Fall is autumn. Movie house is cinema. Elevator is lift. Parking lot is car park. Lost and found is lost property. Chips is crisps. Gas is petrol. And the list goes on. There are loads of differences, in words, spellings and pronunciation. And of course, the accent!

This is a post from a former "grammar nazi." I just think it is mean to correct people and feel that you are superior. I would rather help people learn instead of belittling them and making them feel sad and afraid to learn.

I agree with you sillylucy! I commend you for having that attitude of wanting to help instead of humiliating others who need to learn your language. I've been working with a lot of English native speakers for five years now and there are really those who belittle other nationalities just because they can't speak your language well. I wonder how they would fare in learning other languages. They should, in fact, think in that respect. Here are some non-native English speakers who are bilinguals, who somehow survive in a foreign land speaking English no matter how difficult it is for them. While these native speakers travel to other lands, speaking their own language with the locals because they can't speak the native tongue at all. And when the natives find it hard to communicate in English, they criticize. How unfair and rude is that?

But I am not generalizing native English speakers because I have met and befriended a lot of them who recognize this skill of most non-English speakers.

What I posted here may be off-topic, but I just want to commend sillylucy. However, I can also be a grammar cop at times, especially with my own kids. I try my best to do it the gentlest way possible because I may be above par in English grammar but hey, I am just average in math!

Before my language bucket list starts with French then Mandarin. But I just find it difficult to learn French for two reasons. One was I lacked motivation since I was learning it just because. Second was I really found it difficult because the sounds aren't pronounced as spelt. Mandarin, well, it just fizzled out. Nobody in my family wants to learn it with me. :-(

I've decided now that I should not come up with a list because it can be overwhelming for me. So I'll focus first on Spanish for the simple reason that our language has a lot of Spanish-influenced words. It may be easier for me to learn. 

Oh. I think she has a point there. That's why it is difficult for other nationalities to speak other languages well because of this mouth structure rationale. Like for me, I think my language is a bit soft to speak. We have a sing-song intonation. Thus, I find it hard to pronounce some Arabic words because you have to say them hard. There are sounds that you have to speak firmly or harshly. When they talk, they seem to be fighting, but they aren't. In fact, they are engaged in a cheerful discussion. :-)

Wow! Thanks for this. I've browsed the site. It looks interesting and not so intimidating. A conversational language is, for me, much more useful than the textbooks kinds of language learning. But I hope it is not too colloquial and can be used for decent conversation.

But do we have to pay for it? It says free trial download. So it must be free for some time then we pay after the trial period is over. Am I right?

While English is widely spoken in my country, and I believe I have fair grasp of the language, I ,however, feel small when speaking to a native speaker. I often tell people, I have no problem with the language. My comprehension level is excellent, FOR SO LONG as we are talking about the WRITTEN word. I don't know why my speaking skill shrinks when talking to Americans or any other English-speaking foreign national. I can keep up with what the American is saying, I just lose the ability to respond, haha!!

Hi Takibari. I know what you mean. It is because we, non-native English speakers, just lack the confidence to speak English and we know they can express themselves much better which is a given. Lol! Truth is they are not too conscious of their grammar and spellings just as we are not of our own language. Yes, they know what terms to use for some words we do not even know the english equivalent of. But come on, that's their language. They should know! Lol!

British English is quite a bit different in terms of the way Americans speak it. It is so different in fact, oftentimes on websites there are options for the American or Brit version. The spellings are different as well. Examples (with American English first) Color/Colour. Rumor/Rumour. Specter/Spectre. Saber/Sabre. Three out of the four examples came up wrong in spell check. That gives you an idea of the differences.

Yes, you are right. I've been in a British institution for 5 years now and there are still new terms, spellings and pronunciation that I'm discovering. Our country is more exposed to the American English so it took me a while to really adjust to their English. There are British with really strong accent that even they cannot sometimes understand each other.

The very first thing that I learned which baffled me was how they call a sweatshirt or sweater. It's jumper to them. A British English teacher I know cannot explain why they call it that. Anyway, there are still loads of differences. I must say that during my first couple of years, I had a difficult time speaking and understanding some of the accents. But writing is much easier since they even ask me for the correct spelling of some words and the correct grammar to use. And that's where I heard and saw in writing the could of, would of, should of...

Have you ever been asked by some one to translate a short movie, music video, or newspaper to check you English level? :frozen:

I get used to it so many times, and i have no reason why they want to do that. In my situation, my friends ask me to translate a movie which they are watching without watching subtitle. They ask me to look at somewhere and translate what people say in the Television. I understand 100% what people say on TV but i could not translate very well cause i have to listening what they are saying on Tv while translate to my friends. They checked what i tranlated with the subtitle wether it is correct or not correct!. I feel very disapointed cause its not easy to do it, and they do not understand what I explain.

It really makes me stressful. :cry:

How's about you guys? have you ever been on that case?

I do for my daughter, but not to check my English level. She really does not understand what was said in our native tongue. Although she understands some of the words, she cannot understand everything that's being said. Thus, she has to ask me or her dad what it meant in English. Sometimes though, she tries to do it on her own which is a good thing to do because she's trying to learn our native language. So I encourage her to do that.

You find a person, a he or a she, and you are really attracted him/her. The only problem is that he/she speaks a foreign language. I won't specify a language, because it has to be a language that you don't speak. If there is a chance for a relationship, will you pursue it? Will you gladly learn a foreign language for your partner? Do you think you can communicate well, and have a good relationship?

If you love someone so much, I think it will be enough motivation to learn his/her language. Even though it will be tough to learn the language, perhaps I will try my best to learn it. First, that's a way for us to communicate better aside from English, the universal language. Second, it will be for my own protection in case we fight and he's already planning something bad against me, I will know. Lol!

I know several couples of different nationalities who can understand, if not speak, the languages of their spouse. They are so eager to learn each other's language especially about words of endearment. :-)

It's fairly safe to say all of us here are eager to be at least bilingual, but if you had to say, what do you think is the best number of languages to know?

Personally, I believe if one has a knack for languages, by all means s/he should learn as many as s/he can manage. I have a friend who is very good at learning languages. Her native tongue is English but she knows about 4 more and she teaches 2 of these 4 languages. She learns really fast. She soon plans to take another foreign language so that she can also possibly teach it in the future.

The French teacher of my child can speak English, German, Russian, French of course and Romanian because she's from Romania.

I've read about a person who learned 40-72 languages. So I think there is really no limit as to how many a person can learn. But it is all dependent on the ability to learn languages. See this link especially the last paragraph there: [ftp=ftp://mentalfloss.com/article/49138/how-many-languages-it-possible-know]http://mentalfloss.com/article/49138/how-many-languages-it-possible-know[/ftp]

Besides English, in your opinion, what language is most valuable to learn? What are your reasons for choosing that one?

In my opinion, Spanish is probably the most valuable language to learn because it is so common in the US now.  In fact it is difficult to find a job in some industries if you do not know some Spanish. I even found advertisements for hotel housekeepers, entirely in Spanish!!! Obviously they do not think anyone who is not hispanic would bother applying there.

Hi. I believe it depends on your own personal needs. Like what you said since Spanish is so common in the US then that's the best for you to learn. If it is especially needed to land a job, then that's enough motivation to learn the language.

So I will go for personal reasons in learning a language. I won't cite any particular language as it is entirely up to the learner which one is or will be the most beneficial to him/her in the future. Say, if s/he's migrating to China, then the language or dialect of the place where s/he will live in will be the best option for him/her.

One perfect example is my colleague's son who will study in Germany next school year. Right now, he's taking German language lessons and will take the so-called C2 level test to pass the requirement at the German University he will enroll in.

So, would you use a language learning app or a real life teacher if you wanted to learn a language, what are the benefits. Personally, I think a real life teacher because they get to explain stuff to you, unlike where in a language learning app (in some, like duolingo) you just kind of go through with the words and don't learn (as in remember) what the words are. It feels like a vocabulary test you did if you were in Elementary School, they had you remember a list of words, and then right after you'd forget them, because it was only for that test. Opinions?

For me, I also go for a real-life teacher because I can always ask what I want. If there are things that seem confusing to me, s/he can explain it so there is an interaction. The interaction is already learning in itself. You will see the facial expressions, body gestures, hear the proper accent and feelings that go with the spoken words. I think all these help a lot too in language learning and comprehension.

I have not really used a language learning app, but I am guessing it is going to be programmed of course. So there is no flexibility. I cannot ask if I need to and I cannot clear out any confusions.

It's not as annoying or rampant as it used to be - but it is one of my biggest pet peeves. Do you have friends or colleagues who fell in this category?  :emo:

Well, sorry to say but it is annoying for me. I even find the beki talk more amusing than Jejemon. It sounds like childish talk to me. You know, like a mom or dad baby talking to their kids. It's gibberish talk. It's like you can never really talk seriously to someone talking like that. And you can't take him/her seriously as well.

I've had to learn another dialect when all I knew was Tagalog. It was easier than learning a whole new language in the sense that some words are the same. It can get a bit confusing though as some words are the same but mean different things. I was wondering if the experience is similar for those who had to learn Tagalog from other dialects...

It was not so difficult for me because I learnt Bicol, my parents' dialect when I was still in grade school. It was interesting also for me and I like their diction and intonation. Perhaps that made me learn it faster. I asked my grandma to teach me and to write to me in Bicol which I really enjoyed reading. Although, I cannot speak Bicol because I was never confident to speak it, I can understand it really well. I don't want to sound too trying hard with the accent, that's why I refuse to speak it.

It has never happened to me. But if in case it would, I would feel awkward to ask because they would know I was eavesdropping. I, myself, don't want people being nosy in my affairs. You know, just looking or staring at me and my family. I hate that! Sometimes, I want to tell them off that staring is rude. But I haven't gotten the guts either. However, I show my annoyance. So I'll not try to do it to others even if I don't mean any harm.

I have never dreamt in another language. I don't know why but I'm guessing it's because I am not that involved in learning another language. Thus, I cannot really have a dream like that because I do not know what to say and how to say the language in my dream. I can't just guess the words! Lol!

Even when I was trying to learn French and Arabic, I never even dreamt about our class and what were taught. Once I got home, I forgot the new words taught that day. That's why I have to be truly motivated to learn another language, perhaps, when it's needed in my new job for instance. Then, I shall dream about the language!

For me, I have to be interested to learn something, not only a language. Then immersion or being able to apply what I learnt is another tip. I cannot possibly learn just by studying the words. I need to apply them by communicating with a native speaker.

All the other ways, like watching television, listening to music, reading books will help me but not as much as the first two tips above.

The "Kh" sound in Arabic.  I tried, I really, really tried but I couldn't do it. I was taking Arabic classes and the teacher finally told me to quit trying because I was just never going to get it. 

What?! That's mean for her to do. I also couldn't pronounce it well but the Arabic teacher never told me to quit or that I was hopeless. If I couldn't get it right, she just carried on teaching and she even gave me a list of Arabic words with the English translation for me to learn them really well. I never did try hard enough though. :-(

But the hardest language for me to pronounce is French. The French teacher of my daughter said it is because their alphabet is pronounced differently from the English alphabet. And their words are not spelt as they're pronounced. It is just too far-out.

My friend taught me one. Though I can't say if it's correct or not. "Mabuti po" or I'm fine. It's something he says when I ask him 'kamusta kayo' or 'kamusta tol'.

Lol Oddvision! Your friend is teaching you to be respectful. Or he's being polite to you. :-) Po is a sign of respect in the Philippines. You use it when you are addressing older people or an authority figure but may not be older than you. If it's just a friend, just say Mabuti naman (I'm okay/fine/all right) to his question Kamusta ka? or Kamusta 'tol? If you're asked with the latter question, you can just say Mabuti 'tol or Mabuti naman 'tol.

Filipinos are naturally polite. Westerners and even other Asians address one another by first name regardless of the status. Filipinos do not. They say those polite words like po, opo (yes), ho, oho (yes), ate for someone older than you or an older sister or older female cousins, kuya for older people or older brother or older male cousins.

I guess it's understandable that neighboring countries learn each other's languages easily. A perfect example of this is my Indonesian friend who didn't take any formal classes to learn Tagalog. He's only been in the Philippines for a couple of months but he can already converse well. It helps that a lot of the Indonesian and Tagalog words are the same like anak, sukat, tali, sakit to name a few. Have you or a friend had a similar experience with a neighboring country?

True! I had officemates before who were Indonesians and they told me that we had a lot of common words. We used to ask one another what words we call certain things and indeed, we have a lot in common. I found out that before the Spanish colonized the Philippines, we shared a lot of ties with them such as economic, historical, cultural and even genetic.

We also share the same words with Malaysia. When my family and I went there, we noted some of these similar words like our bato (stone) is batu to them, pinto (door) is their pintu, payong (umbrella) is payung to them, lambot (soft) is lembut to them and many other similar words.

One thing I have found that has varied in travels is peoples opinions of accent. I personally love a good accent but some find it to make the speaking of the language inaccurate. The English language has so much variety in accent that I don't think one can really claim to pronounce certain vowels the right way. My name is said in several different ways depending on what country one is from. I think my favorite accent is probably a Scottish one. What about you? Do you have a favorite accent? Or do you feel if a person is a fluent speaker they should not have one?

I have two Scottish friends and they both have different accents. But one thing is sure, I have a hard time understanding them both. Lol! I don't understand why we all click and share fun times together. They do listen when I whine and vice-versa. I like their jokes about the Scottish hating the English even though one of them is married to an English man. Lol! Anyway, I'm biased to them so I think I like their accent. Even though I sometimes don't understand what they're saying. Lol!

Oh! Thanks! It helps immensely! Kamusta kayo definitely sounds a lot better than telling my close friend kamusta tol. I'm just happy to have a way I can ask him how he is in his own language. You say I can use this with addressing a lot of people at once? Is this something you could use formally like at a meeting too or is it more like a family get together-related sort of word?

Yes Oddvisions, you can use Kamusta kayo? in addressing a lot of people at once. You can use it in meetings or family gatherings. It's considered conversational still in this time and age. It is casual too but more formal than Kamusta 'tol?

As regards your close friend, well, you can use Kamusta 'tol? I mean he's your close friend so it's the same as saying How are you bro? Or if you're not very comfortable with each other yet, then just say Kamusta ka? Ka is a pronoun that refers to only 1 person whom you consider a peer or as an equal and not an authority figure.