leviramsey Posted July 2, 2011 VT Supporter Share Posted July 2, 2011 Bullshit! Never liked French. :winkold: Tbf I'm not over keen either. French is way down my list of languages to learn. I found that learning French really enhanced my understanding of English grammar, etymology, etc. Not that 4 years of French in high school does me any good when I go to Quebec... having to resort to using English to get a sandwich at a Subway off an Autoroute in Quebec is a humbling experience. (In my defense, my education was generally in Parisian French...) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leviramsey Posted July 2, 2011 VT Supporter Share Posted July 2, 2011 Must admit, I can't see much use in French for an American resident (unless they have much doing with French Canadians) - Spanish would be more obvious. For a Brit, though - those of us who DON'T hate the French - France is our nearest neighbour, and a popular holiday destination (it is for me, anyway). If one is a New Englander: * French (or some rough facsimile thereof) is still spoken in pockets (large numbers of Quebecers came south to work in the textile mills (they were, after all, the "niggers of the North") of New England. * Crossing the border to Quebec means that one can buy booze at 18 * Les jeune-filles Quebecois est tres chaud (once one gets over that you're likely dating within the division (except on the odd chance that she's a Nordique)) Meanwhile the bulk of Spanish speakers are Puerto Ricans around here... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NurembergVillan Posted July 2, 2011 Moderator Share Posted July 2, 2011 When I learned German, living over there, I watched a lot of DVDs in English the German subtitles on and also dubbed into German with English subtitles on. Speeded my progress up massively, and boosted my film knowledge at the same time! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyh29 Posted July 17, 2011 Share Posted July 17, 2011 I'm thinking of enrolling for a language class in September torn between Arabic and Mandarin at the moment ... As i'm not that good at languages and paying attention when being given instruction , should I start with French where I've already got a very limited understanding from my schoolboy days and thus will make progress faster ..or should i take the plunge on Arabic ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CarewsEyebrowDesigner Posted July 17, 2011 Share Posted July 17, 2011 Mandarin; better for buisness, no? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyh29 Posted July 17, 2011 Share Posted July 17, 2011 I don't do a lot of business in china ... Would be more for something to do and could also use it on my travels as well Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xann Posted July 17, 2011 Share Posted July 17, 2011 I don't do a lot of business in china ... Would be more for something to do and could also use it on my travels as well Strangely Chinese may become useful in Africa in years to come. We've got a friend from Rwanda staying at the moment. China is into Africa long term. There's thousands of Chinese there now, building new roads and transport infrastructure, millions more may follow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjmooney Posted July 18, 2011 VT Supporter Share Posted July 18, 2011 As i'm not that good at languages and paying attention when being given instruction , should I start with French where I've already got a very limited understanding from my schoolboy days and thus will make progress faster... ?Tony. Considering. Learning.... French.... :shock: :shock: :shock: :shock: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjmooney Posted July 18, 2011 VT Supporter Share Posted July 18, 2011 I found that learning French really enhanced my understanding of English grammar, etymology, etc.Ah, now, for that you want Latin. I did Latin for five years at school and I didn't enjoy it at all at the time. Couldn't see much use for being able to translate "Beware, o farmers, lest you will have been overcome by the barbarians" into a dead language. But now, barely a day goes by when I don't consider some English usage - particularly the precise meaning of words - in the light of my memory of Latin vocabulary. What does lachrymose mean? Tearful, weepy. From the Latin lacrima, a tear. That sort of thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyh29 Posted July 18, 2011 Share Posted July 18, 2011 As i'm not that good at languages and paying attention when being given instruction , should I start with French where I've already got a very limited understanding from my schoolboy days and thus will make progress faster... ?Tony. Considering. Learning.... French.... :shock: :shock: :shock: :shock: know thy enemy and all that ..besides think how satisfying it could be to insult them in their own language :winkold: China is into Africa long term. There's thousands of Chinese there now, building new roads and transport infrastructure, millions more may follow. was the same in Tonga and a few of the other Islands out that way i visited funnily enough , everything is being built by the Chinese there as well would be quite amusing to think that Chinese could take over from English as the universal language Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leviramsey Posted July 20, 2011 VT Supporter Share Posted July 20, 2011 I found that learning French really enhanced my understanding of English grammar, etymology, etc.Ah, now, for that you want Latin. I did Latin for five years at school and I didn't enjoy it at all at the time. Couldn't see much use for being able to translate "Beware, o farmers, lest you will have been overcome by the barbarians" into a dead language. But now, barely a day goes by when I don't consider some English usage - particularly the precise meaning of words - in the light of my memory of Latin vocabulary. What does lachrymose mean? Tearful, weepy. From the Latin lacrima, a tear. That sort of thing. You get most of that from French, though (if not the ultimate source, of course) and Latin grammar is a total mindfuck. Ben Franklin was of the view that the proper progression was English -> French -> Latin. So there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
villa89 Posted August 10, 2011 Share Posted August 10, 2011 HA! Buy programs? Really? People still do that? I've got Rosetta Stone, full French. Completely free. Thanks PirateBay. How are you getting on with it? I recently acquired* Rosetta Stone french levels 1-3 and have started using it. Its strangely addictive. *This does not constitute an emission of guilt on my part in anyway. Any software downloaded to my PC may, or may not, have been done so intentionally or done by a rogue trojan horse than has since mysteriously disappeared. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chappy Posted August 10, 2011 Share Posted August 10, 2011 A tip I can give is be patient. I'm doing a German degree and just spent 9 months over there, I'm still not fluent. That isn't just me being slow btw! Slightly OT but our system is terrible for teaching foreign languages. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
privateer Posted August 11, 2011 Share Posted August 11, 2011 I don't do a lot of business in china ... Would be more for something to do and could also use it on my travels as well Strangely Chinese may become useful in Africa in years to come. We've got a friend from Rwanda staying at the moment. China is into Africa long term. There's thousands of Chinese there now, building new roads and transport infrastructure, millions more may follow. I'm not long back from Africa and can confirm this is true. The Chinese are currently in the process of slipping the continent the Rohypnol before they rape the **** out of it for decades to come. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LondonLax Posted August 11, 2011 Share Posted August 11, 2011 As i'm not that good at languages and paying attention when being given instruction , should I start with French where I've already got a very limited understanding from my schoolboy days and thus will make progress faster... ?Tony. Considering. Learning.... French.... :shock: :shock: :shock: :shock: I recon Tony is really a massive Francophile. He is like one of those extream homophobes who turn out to be secretly gay. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BOF Posted June 19, 2012 Moderator Share Posted June 19, 2012 Watch the video. If you have time, watch it from the start too. Very impressive. Duolingo. It's not fully released yet though.This has just gone live. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
b23avfc Posted June 19, 2012 Share Posted June 19, 2012 Pretty interesting. Looking forward to Chinese appearing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Voinjama Posted June 21, 2012 Share Posted June 21, 2012 Back in the UK now. But I can tell you learning from tapes wont help you that much. When you go out there to whatever country at first when the people are talking to you, you will be like WTF, I dont understand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Voinjama Posted June 22, 2012 Share Posted June 22, 2012 I am about to commit the cardinal sin. Before getting fluent in German, I am going to start learning Spanish. I just feel it is a much more useful language. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BOF Posted June 22, 2012 Moderator Share Posted June 22, 2012 Try the site referred to in my previous link then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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