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Languages

Nosferatu Man

Nosferatu Man

New Member
OK, I haven't been a member too long, but I have learnt quite a lot in a short space of time.

I've noticed that there are lots of people on this forum who don't come from 'English speaking countries', and I've also noticed that they have very good English and that they probably speak it fluently.

Audience participation: I was just wondering how many languages you can speak (including your mother tongue) and which languages they are.

I, personally can speak one language (English - if you couldn't tell), but I can also speak German and French sparingly.

Also, I'm just wondering what you actually think about languages. Do you think they're worth learning, do you enjoy learning languages or do you wish that everyone spoke the same language?

Thanks
 
I am only fluent in English, though I also speak basic French and Spanish (having learnt French at school and Spanish at College and University).

I would love to be fluent in other languages, though I guess it would make things easier if everyone spoke a common language :) (I hate actually speaking a foreign language - always have done :eek: )
 
I speak English to a high level having had almost twenty-six years' experience. :)

I've done four years of German and two years of French at school. I'm returning to university part-time next month to continue my German studies.

I'm currently also trying to learn Russian and can speak, at the moment, basic phrases. I can read and write Russian Cyrillic but I can't translate that much yet.

Over the years I've picked up bits and pieces of other languages such as Danish, Japanese, Polish, and Chinese. Nothing to survive on should I go there (although the Danes speak good English) but I play darts in Polish and only realise when I shout out my score to whoever has the chalk and the confused face :)
 
my native language its spanish
also speak english at a fairly good level, i lived in toronto for a season when i was 17, am aware after all this time my grammar its not as good as it should be, but works for me.
now im learning some portuguesse thanks to a brazilian girl i meet in msn, everyday im more fluent at writing and reading it, but our phone calls are a pointer at how bad my speaking is, but its getting better.
i also would like to learn german or french
 
Abulafia said:
mr michel, the BBC Languages might be helpful with the basics of either French or German.
Click to expand...

thanks for the tip
by the way, where are you from? i assumed you were british

a note to nosferatu, in case you havent dig deep enough in the forums, im from mexico
 
I speak English, but have had a year of French and a couple of years of Spanish. Unfortunately, I rarely use them, so my knowledge of the languages is slowly fading.

That gives me an idea. Maybe I'll check with the library and borrow some foreign language tapes/CDs/videos for a refresher. I work with a guy whose first language is Español, so I could practice with him.
 
i speak english fluently but spent 4 years learning german in highschool. my german is pretty dusty because i never use it (definitely not fluent.) i intend to learn spanish and japanese (in that order) simply because i want to. i am somewhat embarrassed that i can only speak one language, although it is common enough in north america.
 
German for 5 years, French for four - my French was always crap though, somehow I managed to get through the exams and get an A at GCSE without understanding one bit of it. I think my year was the one they let you take dictionarys into one part of the exam. My Germans far better (which ain't saying much) and I'd quite like to further my studies in that; alas, I can't see me having any time in the immediate future :( Interferes with quality layingabout time.

Did anyone elses school go through a short phase of speaking Backslang? :D
 
I'm fluent in Dutch, my English and French are pretty good, My German's very basic and I have some notions of Spanish and Russian. I'd love to be able to speak more languages, but dammit, that's it.

Unless you count ancient Greek and Latin, but I'm rusty in those and it's a passive knowledge.
 
Nosferatu Man said:
OK, I haven't been a member too long, but I have learnt quite a lot in a short space of time.

I've noticed that there are lots of people on this forum who don't come from 'English speaking countries', and I've also noticed that they have very good English and that they probably speak it fluently.

Audience participation: I was just wondering how many languages you can speak (including your mother tongue) and which languages they are.

I, personally can speak one language (English - if you couldn't tell), but I can also speak German and French sparingly.

Also, I'm just wondering what you actually think about languages. Do you think they're worth learning, do you enjoy learning languages or do you wish that everyone spoke the same language?

Thanks
Click to expand...
I'm english, I studied french but I'm not very good at french.
I think diffrent languages are useful to learn because if you go to another country or meet someone who is from another country and asks you a question in their language then you will understand them ;)
 
I'm fluent only in English, but I remember bits of French, German and Mandarin Chinese. It's my fantasy that when I retire, I'll have enough time/money to get fluent in those languages plus others.
 
I speak French to a fairly good (but by no means fluent) standard, Spanish to a similar level, a few bits of German picked up from my sister and our regular holidays in Switzerland and Austria, have a year's experience of Japanese, and am studying Classical Greek and Latin as well.

Oh, and English. Obviously.
 
My first language is BSL (British Sign Language) and second language is English. I love to learn Italian language one day.
 
Kaz said:
My first language is BSL (British Sign Language) and second language is English. I love to learn Italian language one day.
Click to expand...


Kaz, I must tell you that one of the best theater pieces I've ever seen was a Brecht play in which each of the characters was shadowed by a signer doing ASL. It added a wonderful dimension to the play. (My boyfriend at the time was an ASL instructor.)

Novella
 
For years I thought I spoke English but I've come to the realization that I speak American. There's a British monkeyhumper I know that sends me things I can't make heads or tails of. :p

Other than American, I took some Spanish and know bits of German from an exchange student that stayed with me for a school year.


RaVeN
 
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