How to speak multiple languages
The best ways to impress people because you're a polyglot
I speak three languages: English, Mandarin Chinese, and French, in order of fluency.
Though it’s a tie for the latter two; I speak Chinese decently but am fair at reading and writing.
As for French, nowadays I speak it just okay because I have few conversation partners and no longer live there.
But, my French reading and writing skills are still pretty solid.
As for Italian, I can make out the general context of things by listening closely. And long, long, ago, I mastered Korean basics when I worked with Korean customers.
Then there was the time I was married to a Danish man, and out of respect to him and his family, I learned and managed elementary Danish conversation.
What can I say – learning and speaking languages are a huge hobby for me.
I consider myself a parrot. Give me any sound and I can generally mimic it.
I don’t consider myself extra gifted at learning languages, though research shows I may have had a couple of advantages.
First, I played violin from three years old. Playing instruments from a young age has been linked to learning languages more easily later in life.
I also grew up in the U.S. in a bilingual household; I’m so grateful my parents spoke mostly in Chinese at home.
This gave me an edge in speaking Chinese because getting the four tones right is one of the hardest things to master; if you sound like a native then you’ll fit right in during your travels.
But get the tones wrong and no one will understand you.
Some people think you can be “good” or “bad” at learning languages. To me, anyone can do it with a little perseverance and practice.
I believe it’s a mindset; you embrace multiple languages, always have them in your orbit, and always be learning.
Nothing opens more doors and makes more eyes light up than when you make an effort at speaking someone’s else’s language.
So if you want to learn a language, then here are my general observations on how to go about it.
1. Be born into a multilingual household
2. Play musical instruments from a young age
If 1 and 2 don’t apply to you, then 3 - 5 are all you can really do to increase your chances … and it’s how I continue to practice and continue learning languages.
3. Learn the most common 1,000 words and sentence structures
There are so many online tutorials for the best language learning methods. Ultimately, it boils down to memorization, and learning common vocabulary words and sentence structures.
If your focus is on languages following the Latin or Roman alphabet, which is the foundation for English and the most popular in the world, then you’ll soon find similarities in vocabulary, phrases, and sentences.
Same goes for Romance languages like Spanish, French, Italian, and Portuguese.
If you are interested in learning Asian languages, then much of that learning is memorizing the building blocks of symbols. Even so, you’ll find similar characters in Japanese, Korean, and Chinese.
Here’s a Ted Talk where the speaker breaks down the following four tips:
Shortcut #1 - Look for similarities to your language (help you recognize patterns & understand meaning)
Shortcut #2 - Keep it simple
Shortcut #3 - Keep it relevant to your situation and needs.
Shortcut #4 - Use 30 minutes study time a day or smaller periods more regularly
Shortcut #5 - Listen to Radio, Watch Movies with English subtitles
4. Refresh with apps
I’ve tried multiple apps, but I find DuoLingo does the trick. It’s no substitute for a full language course, but it provides a great supplement and introduction for the basics and travel.
5. Force conversations native speakers
Another tool I’ve found useful is italki. I discovered it during Covid and have relied on it to learn Italian and Spanish, and maintain Chinese and French.
You can choose from professional level teachers or simple conversation partners who may charge as little as $10 to talk to you for half an hour.
For example, my Spanish teacher taught at universities and has a master’s in linguistics, and one of my Italian conversation partners was a lovely college student in Rome.
Methods vary; I’ve done everything from following textbooks and presentations to reading newspapers — it all depends on the teacher you choose.
So no matter your path, there’s no holding you back from learning and speaking multiple languages. You just have to start and see what works for you.
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Until next time,
Shindy
On Instagram + TikTok
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