Learning English.

[RAHSTYLES]

I find it hard to learn a new language and I have heard that English is a hard one to learn. Do the members find this to be true.

[nikolic993]

I can't say much from personal experience, because I was immersed in English via TV shows, cartoons, movies, and I read books and recited poems since I was kid. I always thought that English was easy to learn because I learned it without a problem, but looking at it from a different perspective, I believe it is hard. The basics are easy, but if you want to master it, you are gonna have to try really hard. It takes time to master phrasal verbs, proper use of tenses (e.g. has spoken, had spoken, had been speaking, have been speaking), infinitive and gerund, and to differentiate between finer shades of meaning.

[Onfroi]

I was taught English by some really great teachers, and from experience the hardest part for me is Speaking the language, in fact I'm still having trouble with that, I confuse tenses and forget basic rules sometimes. But English grammar is very easy

[Rosa]

English happens to be my native language so it's natural for me. However, when compared to the other languages I study, i'd say it seems like an easy language to learn. Someone learning English may have an opposite opinion.

[Baburra]

I think for the most part, any language that you are completely unfamiliar with are all equally difficult. The only thing that would really make it easier is if the language were somehow similar in one way or another to your own language, but otherwise since you are starting from scratch it surely will be a challenge.

[gmckee1985]

Being a native speaker of English, I find it pretty hard to gauge how hard the language is to learn for people from other countries and those who speak different languages. For me it was pretty easy to pick up and that seems to be the case for most people. I think if you just study hard and actively practice speaking the language you won't have much of a problem learning it. I don't think it's very hard to learn in comparison to other languages, so I wouldn't worry too much about it.

[RAHSTYLES]

Thank you for the replies. I guess it depends a lot on the person learning.

[beccagreen]

I don't think English is that hard to learn. I mean sure I'm born in an English speaking country so I might be wrong but I have friends and relatives that didn't find it hard to learn the language without any formal introduction.

[dostava]

I think English is easy to learn, but a bit more difficult to master. A student will probably quickly pick up basic sentence patterns and vocabulary, but it is harder for him/her to know all the possible combinations, what with the abundance of tenses and their secondary usage.

German is in my opinion the other way around: difficult to pick up, but easier to get really god at once one masters the basic grammar.

[sidney]

Since I was immersed in English ever since I was born, then it's natural for me to say that I did not have any difficulty learning English, because it is widely used in my country aside from our national language which is Tagalog. But if you were not immersed in a certain language, then naturally it is gonna be hard to learn it as an adult.

[Muthoni]

Learning English is not difficult at all. Our English teacher taught us to think in English and then translate into our mother tongue or any other language. That has still remained with me after all these years.  Practice talking in English as much as possible and you will keep getting better at it.

[BillyIdol]

I've heard the the same thing, but it's hard for me to say, because my mother tongue is English. I think it would depend on how fluently one was achieving to be. English can be confusing because it has so many words and terms for the same thing, not sure how that compares to other languages, as I've only learned the basics so far.

[pcgamer]

I find English the easiest to learn of them all. But its got something to do with fact that I was taught English since my childhood.

[maryannballeras]

Learning English can be easy or hard, depending on how you work on it.  Aside from learning English through lessons, another thing that will help you is exposure -- through listening and reading  You can watch English movies or drama series and by doing so, you will know how words are being said in application.  You can also read English books and novels to enhance your vocabulary.  When you're done with all this, you should start speaking in the language constantly to get fluent in it.

[Determined2014]

I find it hard to learn a new language and I have heard that English is a hard one to learn. Do the members find this to be true.

For some reason , I find that, it is much easier to learn English, once you master the alphabet and master how they are pronounced then you will have a much easier and fun time learning English.

[Traveler]

At least the grammar is relatively easy, right? But I understand learners of English get frustrated with pronunciation (though, rough, dough, through, etc.) And prepositions can be strange, depending on your native language. It always depends on your interest level and native language though.

[Bee]

I think a great way to learn English is by listening to some English songs! Maybe some of you already think that it is a very simple method to learn English.Firstly, you need to pick the song. I suggest you to pick the slowest one, some sort like ballads, slow rock, pop ballads or any slow song, especially if you pick your favorite song. It will motivate you to learn more about it. Next thing to do is play the song and listen to it very carefully and lets see if you can grasp some lyrics of the songs by your ears. Then write the lyrics that you got from the songs to make sure every single word that you got there.

[AExAVF]

I found it easy for me to learn English since I'm a native speaker, and learning the language became a snap when I entered school.  Once you are already born with a fairly decent command of the language, speaking it will be easier than if you don't have prior knowledge.  Watching English movies will also reinforce your learning.  I also have a comprehensive English handbook for professionals and students.  The handbook provides the most basic rules in English, from spelling and punctuation to grammar.

[NikkiDesrosiers]

As an English native speaker - I have heard that English is one of the hardest languages to learn for someone who is not born into it. I think it is because we have rules in our language that don't make sense, words that get added constantly and you have to consider the fact that our language has evolved so much over the years -- our language does not work like most others - so I can see how it would be hard for someone else to pick up.

[celebritea]

As an English native speaker - I have heard that English is one of the hardest languages to learn for someone who is not born into it. I think it is because we have rules in our language that don't make sense, words that get added constantly and you have to consider the fact that our language has evolved so much over the years -- our language does not work like most others - so I can see how it would be hard for someone else to pick up.

I agree! English is my first language, but it's an EXTREMELY nuanced and nonsensical is certain aspects. I commend people who learn English, especially later in life. I don't think I'd do so well leaning English if it wasn't my first language.

[takibari]

First, are you learning English as a Foreign Language or as a Second Language?

In the former, you basically are trying to learn English from scratch and the language is NOT widely spoken in your country. Whereas, in the latter, English is widely spoken/used in your country that you are constantly exposed with it, without you necessarily trying to learn it.

That said, for learners who are studying English as a FOREIGN language, then you can say that it has its many challenges, and it takes a serious student to be able to learn it fast. On the other hand, if you're studying English as a second language, it's a bit easier to learn due to constant exposure.

[Krrizal]

I consider English my second language because even now, ten years after first coming to America, I still struggle with it. It has many rules and exceptions that I find difficult to remember or grasp. I cannot explain why, but speaking English for a long period of time exhausts me, and I begin to revert back to my mother tongue Visayan.

[Verba]

It is not hard for me because it is the medium of instruction in our school. I remember being fluent in it even in lower primary. Our alphabet now even follows the American alphabet so it is quite easy for us.

I have a friend who's a Japanese who said that she found it hard to learn it. She went to UK and that's where she learned it. She's married to a British and there were times during their first years together that she would just cry in frustration when she couldn't communicate what she wanted to tell him. That's especially true when they fought.