The Linguist - Page 4 of 74 - For people who love languages, or would but were discouraged...

11Aug

11 Aug 2020

Chinese Grammar is Not Difficult

The first thing about Chinese is that it’s not as difficult as people say. It has certain difficulties. I would say difficulty number one is the characters. It’s a lot of work, but it’s a matter of staying with it and doing it every day; finding a system that works for you. I think […]

04Aug

4 Aug 2020

Ser Vs Estar in Spanish

Learning Spanish

Every language has some issues, often grammar issues, that cause learners difficulty. In the case of Spanish, one thing that gives people special trouble is the existence of two forms of the verb “to be”. Both ser and estar translate into English as “to be”. Ser vs estar, here’s how to get them straight. […]

28Jul

28 Jul 2020

Learning Japanese Verb Endings

Learning Japanese

Today I want to write about Japanese verbs and Japanese verb endings, but first I want to make a confession. I write these blog posts based on topics that cross my mind for whatever reason. I write them without an awful lot of planning because I find that, when it comes to language […]

22Jul

22 Jul 2020

How Many Words Do We Need to Speak a Foreign Language?

Learning Techniques

It is tempting to believe that we can just acquire a small number of very useful words and sort of get a jump start in a language. I have never found that to be the case. Of course we need to learn key words like “I”, “you”, “he” and “she” and the like, or “where”, […]

14Jul

14 Jul 2020

Tips to Help You Learn Mandarin

Learning Techniques

I studied Chinese in 1968. At the time I was working for the Canadian Government, the Ministry of Trade and Commerce’s Trade Commissioner Service to be exact. Canada was preparing to recognize the People’s Republic of China and decided that they needed to train some officials in Mandarin. I was sent to Hong Kong to […]

07Jul

7 Jul 2020

Learning Languages is a Subconscious Process

Learning Languages

Learning languages is essentially a subconscious process. I saw these words in a LinkedIn post from a group I belong to that includes language teachers. The topic of discussion was how grammar instruction and error correction don’t have as much impact on language learning success as is traditionally imagined. This is a concept that leading […]

02Jul

2 Jul 2020

5 Astuces Pour Vous Aider À Apprendre Le Japonais

Français

Si vous allez apprendre le japonais, vous devez décider pourquoi vous voulez apprendre la langue. J’ai appris le japonais car mon travail m’y a emmené en 1971. J’y ai vécu pendant 9 ans, principalement pendant les années 70. J’ai appris au Japon, immergé dans la langue, seul, surtout en écoutant, lisant et utilisant le japonais […]

30Jun

30 Jun 2020

Comprehensible Input and Compelling Input (CI)

Techniques

What is CI? What is meant by comprehensible input in language learning? Stephen Krashen uses this term, as well as the term compelling input, to refer to the kind of language exposure we need in order to learn a language. The term CI, in language learning, can apply to both. What do they mean? Comprehensible […]

25Jun

25 Jun 2020

Кто такой полиглот

русский

Будучи полиглотом, т.е. человеком, который говорит на многих языках, мне нравится пользоваться этими языками: мне нравится сам процесс. Но тут присутствует элемент шоу. А ты лучше меня? Или я лучше тебя? Некоторым людям нравится этот элемент в процессе изучения языка. Мне кажется, многие из нас, на самом деле, очень рады слышать, когда кто-то говорит лучше […]

23Jun

23 Jun 2020

English Grammar 101

Learning English

In order to speak English well you need to learn how words are used and how they come together to form phrases and sentences. Only a lot of listening and reading can help you learn this. You need to train yourself to notice how the words are used when you listen and read.

I speak 20 languages