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November 30, 2011
Want to sound like you’re better at French than you actually are? Skip the usual lessons in your French language software for the meantime and memorize these phrases instead. You’ll sound like a bonafide froggie with these in your vocabulary stock.
“Ça m’a fait très plaisir!” Pronounced as “sah mah feh treh pleh-zeer,” this translates to “I really liked that” in English.
“On y va!” Pronounced as “oh nee vah,” this is a good follow-up to the previous phrase after everyone agrees to drink with you. It means, “Let’s go.”
“Tu cherches midi à 14h.” Pronounced as “tew shehrsh mee-dee ah kah-tohrz uhr,” this translates directly to “You are waiting for noon at 2PM.” Makes no sense? Yep, the French use it when talking about someone who’s off the mark (hence, the nonsensical statement), such as during an argument.
“Mais je rêve!” Pronounced as “meh zhuh rehv,” this is what you say when something fantastic happens. It literally translates to “But I am dreaming.”
“Passez-moi un coup de fil!” Pronounced as “pah-say mwa an koot feel,” this translates to “Give me a call.”
“Prenons un pot!” Pronounced as “pruh-nohn aN po,” this is what you tell friends when you invite them for a drink. The literal translation is “Let’s take a pot” but a swig of alcohol is what it actually refers to.
November 29, 2011
Visiting Russia? Most guides will tell you what you need to do, such as memorizing survival phrases from your language software or bringing gifts every time you visit anyone. Here, we focus on those things you should never do.
- Don’t joke about someone’s parents. Russians can laugh about anything — race, gender, appearance, religion and many other subjects that could be taboo where you’re from. Except parents. Nobody makes fun of Russian parents.
- Don’t dress down. Russians dress up more than most Americans, even for simple activities. If you don’t want to be the most underdressed person in the room, get yourself correct before leaving the hotel.
- Don’t let air out. Both mouth and bottom are unacceptable in public. In case you slip, don’t try to salvage it with a joke. Instead, keep your head down and bask in your shame.
- Don’t go Dutch. Unlike Western Europeans, Russians don’t go Dutch. Either one or the other pays. Usually, it’s you since you’re the tourist supposed to be sinking money in their country.
- Don’t leave your shoes on. Many Russian homes are decked in rugs and they don’t step on it with dirty shoes from the street. Take them off before entering someone’s home.
November 26, 2011
I’ve never given a single presentation that required Powerpoint since graduating college. As such, it remains one of the unused programs in my Microsoft Office Suite. Until, that is, I discovered how well it could serve as a language study aid.
Don’t worry, there’s nothing that requires an unusually deep knowledge of Powerpoint here. Simply put, I use the slides and the presentation system to create my own vocabulary tests similar to flash cards.
Powerpoint slides actually work better than flash cards, at least for me. Why? Because I don’t have to put answers to the card on the back. I can just have it on the next slide or keep it hidden in the same slide until I hit a key to reveal the answer. Plus, with the ability to insert graphics, clip art, animations, sounds and other multimedia elements, you can come up with some downright creative slides.
If you’re looking for Powerpoint games to base what you’re going to do from, you can try searching for some online. A lot of websites actually offer educational Powerpoint games for download, especially for vocabulary learning. While there’s the usual flash card sets, I’ve also come across more creative ones like Jeopardy, Hollywood Square and Bingo, all tweaked for vocabulary learning. Most of what you’ll see will likely be for English words, so just copy the slides and replace them with vocabulary items for your target language.
November 25, 2011
Many people who try their hard at Mandarin complain that it’s too hard. As such, it’s become part of popular culture to declare the language as just being plain too complex to learn. Is it such a valid concern, though?
True, written Mandarin is probably one of the hardest languages to get a grip on. I have Chinese friends who went to Chinese schools for elementary and high school (but live in Western countries) who remain barely proficient in the written form of the language. Imagine how that will go for someone exposed to the language and those thousands of characters in its alphabet for the very first time.
Spoken Mandarin, though, is another story. According to many language experts, spoken Mandarin can prove easier than to learn than most European languages. While that may be simplifying it, Mandarin does have an uncomplicated grammar structure. Plus, the basic word order in Mandarin is the same as in English: subject-verb-object. Among the many qualities that make it less complex for second language learners include:
- The lack of a necessary subject-verb agreement.
- The absence of plural form for verbs.
- The absence of conjugations.
- The absence of verb tenses.
- The simple numbering system.
- The simple conditional sentences.
- The simple prepositions.
November 23, 2011
They say your motivation for studying a language is just as important as the quality of your learning materials. How motivated you are will often define the amount of effort you will put into the work that’s necessary to achieve your goals.
The same holds true when you’re planning to learn Russian. The more meaningful your reasons for wanting to learn, the more likely you’ll do all that’s necessary to achieve fluency.
If you’re planning to deal with people from former Soviet countries for your profession, then learning Russian will be very important. While many Russian speakers who do business with Americans are likely to learn some English, it’s prudent to do your due diligence as well.
For vacations or trips to any of the same places, it will be wise to learn, at the least, some survival Russian phrases. Even if you end up encountering people who are willing to speak with you in some mangled form of English, they will appreciate any effort on your end to speak even the most ridiculous form of Russian. Your interactions will end up so much more relaxed that way.
In many Western European countries, Russian is considered a “chic” language, so that can add extra motivation if you plan on visiting those places. Imagine: the cool American with the Russian flair. That’s you, by the way.
November 21, 2011
Many language learners I know start off learning the basics from a language software before enrolling in a class where they can have more interaction time. Personally, I find this approach a smart one — it’s like reading up on your textbooks before the semester begins.
Enrolling in a class also nets you another benefit: you end up meeting a bunch of new people interested in the same thing. Even if you enroll for only one course that lasts several weeks, you can make friends there that eventually become resource persons and practice partners for your future language training efforts.
Before class ends, try to bond with some of the classmates you find yourself sharing things in common with. Get to know their goals with regards to the language (are they aiming for fluency or just enough for a 6-month work stint abroad?) and make arrangements for keeping in touch. A lot of students are interested in forming practice groups that meet every week or two. Too often, though, no one speaks up to get things started on that end.
The best way of keeping in touch I’ve seen, especially to get more people involved, is to maintain a group list (like a Yahoo Groups or something similar). From there, the entire class (or, at least those who sign up) can keep in touch, updating each other on what’s going on with their own language efforts. You can also use that to set meetings, deciding on times, places and agendas.
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