Benny Lewis's Blog, page 42
March 5, 2020
11 Obscure Languages for Your Next Language Mission
What are Obscure Languages?
An obscure language is a language that isn’t well known to general language learners. These may be regional languages or languages that are difficult to learn, and as such, have been neglected by many language learners.
Obscure languages are by no means the most useful languages to learn, nor the most widespread. But learning an obscure language is by far the most rewarding.
Here are the obscure languages I think you should learn:
1. Maltese
I personally speak Maltese, a language of only 522,000 speakers. As the name implies, Maltese is spoken in Malta, with small amounts of speakers in the UK and the US.
What are the best reasons for learning Maltese?
It is so much like Arabic. Maltese is a Semitic language. Meaning that if you speak Arabic, or want to learn it, Maltese is one of the best languages to learn! And without having to learn all the Arabic characters!
There’s a lot of reading material. Maltese is an official EU language. This means that all EU-official documents must be written in Maltese, too!
It looks great on a CV. Maltese isn’t too easy to learn, it’s also one of the most obscure languages. This makes it look quite good on a CV as it shows employers that you embrace a challenge!
Where can you learn Maltese?
One of the best places to learn Maltese is Surface Languages. This is a site that allows passionate language learners to learn obscure languages online for free!
2. Breton
Breton is a Celtic language spoken in the Brittany region of France. Breton is spoken by the Bretons, a group of people descended from the Britons, who lived in Pre-Roman Britain until the Roman Empire came to Britain. Due to the widespread nature of French, Breton has become one of the most obscure languages in not only Europe, but the world.
Breton is spoken by 100,000 people!
What are the Reasons for Learning Breton?
Breton pronunciation is incredibly easy. Breton is indeed one of the easiest languages to pronounce.
Breton industry is increasing. Brittany is becoming a major service center. If a company is looking to move to France, and Paris isn't an option, Brittany is the go-to service center.
Breton music is absolutely incredible! Do you love singing, but can't play an instrument? Breton is the language to learn! Breton songs are some of the best, even if they don't have any instrument backing it!
Where can you learn Breton? One of the best places to learn Breton is Loecsen. Loecsen allows you to learn at your own pace, studying what you want to learn!
3. Occitan
Occitan is a romance language spoken in the South of France, on the border of Spain. Occitan is also spoken in Monaco, as a minority language.
Occitan is currently spoken by 1.5 million people throughout the South of France.
What are the Reasons for Learning Occitan?
Occitan is a very conservative language. Unlike French, English or Spanish, Occitan hasn't changed that much. This means that once you learn Modern Occitan, you can also understand Old Occitan!
Occitan literature is some of the best in the world! Both old and modern Occitan literature is some of the best in the world! Occitan is the reason that the west as a whole has literature like we do!
Occitan vineyards are amazing! I took a trip last year to the Languedoc Roussillon (Occitanie wine region), all of the signs, and communication was done in Occitan. It was such a good trip!
Where can you learn Occitan? The main problem with learning Occitan is the limited number of language learning resources. This also helps it remain one of the most obscure languages. One of the best Occitan-learning resources is Orbilat.
4. Catalan
Catalan is spoken by around 10 million speakers, which is more than most other obscure languages on this list. Catalan is spoken in the Catalonia region of Spain (although some would dispute that Catalonia is independent, the Balearic Islands and Valencia.
What are the Reasons for Learning Catalan?
If you're moving to Catalonia, it's the only real language used! OK, maybe Spanish is used a little bit, but as a general rule, Catalan is the go to language in Catalonia. The further away you go from major city centers, the less Spanish and the more Catalan you will hear!
Endear yourself to locals, the locals despise Anglophones (I should know, I lived there for 3 years). However, an Anglophone who has learned the language, now they are someone who the locals love!
Catalan industry is becoming one of the biggest in Europe. Whilst the rest of the Spanish economy isn't doing too well, the Catalan one is. Catalonia is becoming one of the go-to ares for mainly service-based companies.
Where Can You Learn Catalan?
Catalonia is proud of its language. So, their regional government has spent a lot of money developing several free and paid services to help you learn Catalan. One of these are Parla.cat (free) and Consorci per a la Normalització Lingüística (paid).
5. Basque
Basque is a language spoken in the Basque Country, around the Pyrenees, in both Spain and France. Basque currently has around 751,500 speakers with the majority being located in the Basque Country.
Thanks to Basque being a language isolate (no other language is like it), Basque has become one the most obscure languages! But also one of the best! (Or that may just be me!)
Why Learn Basque?
Basque is one of the most mysterious languages out there! We know very little about where the Basque people or where the Basque language came from. There are an abundance of theories, but nothing conclusive.
It is difficult, but not as hard as you'd think! Yes, there may be little in the way of similarities with other languages, but that's not the point. Think about it, you are already halfway there -- you know the alphabet, there are many loan-words from Latin and Spanish, and there aren't any genders!
You like a challenge! If you love challenges, one of the most obscure languages in the world is certainly for you! It has complex grammar and very few similarities with any language, so it's perfect for a challenge!
Where Can You Learn Basque?
Because Basque is one of the most obscure languages on the planet, there are very few resources for learning Basque. One of the best comes from the Etxepare Basque Institute.
6. Leonese
Leonese is yet another language spoken in Spain. Leonese is one of the most obscure languages in the entire world- only being spoken by between 20,000 and 50,000 people, and only known by a handful more people!
Like most other languages in Spain, Leonese too, is a romance language.
Why Learn Leonese?
The Leonese language is just so unique! Whilst Leonese shares many linguistic similarities with Spanish and Portuguese, it has many linguistic features that are unique to the Leonese language!
Leonese is not on Google translate! Most obscure languages are supported by online translators such as Google Translate. But with Leonese, this is just not the case! Neither Leonese, nor its sister language, Asturians, is on Google Translate. That’s really obscure!
Many books have never been translated out of Leonese! If you're anything like me, I love to read original work, in their original language! Thankfully, Leonese has had a string of talented authors, whose work has never been translated into other languages!
Where Can You Learn Leonese?
Whilst there is a shortage of Leonese-resources in general (both in León and on the wider web), there is one that is quite easy to use, Faceira. The only downside is that you may need to know a little Spanish in order to get started!
7. Cornish
Cornish is probably the most famous, and least obscure language on this list! Cornish is famous for having gone extinct, and then being revived. Cornish is a Celtic language spoken in Cornwall and some small towns in Devon. Despite its fame, and revival, only 3,000 people know how to speak Cornish!
What are the Reasons for Learning Cornish?
Thanks to its revival, there is so much content! This may seem rather strange on the surface, but it makes sense. The array of content in Cornish is so diverse because of its background! Whilst there are blogs and newspapers in Cornish, there are also quirky videos made by kindergartners!
Cornish music is absolutely incredible! For such an old language, there is certainly style to the language! You can find such an array of different music in the Cornish language, from rap to opera music to jazz music!
It looks great on a CV! Cornish is one of the most obscure languages on the planet. So not many people speak it. This makes you stand out, as it proves that you like a challenge!
Where Can You Learn Cornish?
Due to the fact that Cornish is one of the most obscure languages, there are relatively few resources for the language. One of the best resources for learning Cornish is KDL Cornish.
8. Hawaiian
Hawaiian isn't one of the most obscure languages, thanks to it being spoken in Hawaii, but it is indeed quite obscure in many other regards. Hawaiian is spoken by around 24,000 people, mainly on mainland Hawaii, but also the surrounding Hawaiian islands as well!
Why Learn Hawaiian?
Hawaiian is an endangered language! You heard me right, Hawaiian is considered to be on the verge of extinction! That alone is one of the best reasons to learn Hawaiian!
It sounds amazing! Hawaiian has quite a few distinctive features to it. Mainly, this is the apostrophe that is used in so many Hawaiian words (including Hawaii itself, which is actually spelled 'Hawai'i).
It's more widespread than you'd think! Hawaiian has been featured in so many TV shows- you just don't know it! Do you remember Magnum P.I.? Hawaiian was in it! Do you remember Phineas and Ferb? Hawaiian was in many episodes!
Where Can You Learn Hawaiian?
Hawaiian has recently debuted on Duolingo! This means that you can easily learn Hawaiian from your phone if you want!
9. Xhosa
Xhosa is spoken by 8.3 million people around the south of Africa.
Xhosa is an indigenous Bantu language, and in addition to being spoken in South Africa, it’s also used in parts of Lesotho and Zimbabwe.
Where Can you Learn Xhosa?
One of the best places to learn Xhosa, is actually a slightly older resource. The resource is called Unisa. It aims to take you from learning the basics to becoming fluent in it, in a matter of months!
10. Belarussian
Belarussian is one of Eastern Europe's most obscure languages! It is not as widely known as Russian is, nor as easy, but it is still worth learning!
Belarussian is native to Belarus, although only about 10% of the population use the language in their daily lives. It is also spoken in large parts of Western Russia. Belarussian is spoken by around 7 million people in Eastern Europe and Russia.
Why Learn Belarussian?
Supplement your Russian. If you speak Russian, or are currently learning Russian, Belarussian is a good 'add-on' language! Belarussian will allow you to understand Russian grammatical concepts more easily.
It sounds amazing! It may only be me, but I think Russian sounds amazing! Belarussian on the other hand, sounds even better! Just type into Google or Youtube 'Person speaking Belarussian language' and you'll see what I mean.
There are many Belarussian immigrants in Europe and the Americas! After the fall of the USSR, many Belarussians emigrated abroad. They tended to cluster in Western Europe and North America, which means that you could live near a Belarussian community who would love to practice with you!
Where Can You Learn Belarussian?
Due to Belarussian being one of the world's most obscure languages, there is a shortage of Belarussian teachers. But one of the best places to connect with them is uTalk.
11. Tibetan
Have you ever dreamed of packing up and leaving your material life for something more... spiritual? Tibetan may be one of the world's most obscure languages, but it is by far one of the best obscure languages to learn!
Tibetan is spoken in the Tibet region of China, by around six million people.
What are the Reasons for Learning Tibetan?
It has one of the easiest grammatical structures on the planet! Everything is pronounced as it is written in Tibetan, so if you see an 'a' sound, it is pronounced as an 'a'. Forming tenses in Tibetan is also quite similar to how you would form it in European languages such as French.
It's easier to get around Tibet with it. If you plan to go to Tibet, brush up on your Tibetan. Not many people in Tibet speak English.
It helps you with other Asian languages. Tibetan has borrowed some vocabulary from its neighboring languages over the years, this means that if you speak a language that is geographically close to Tibet, you probably already know some words!
Where can you learn Tibetan?
Tibetan, too, suffers the problem that so many other obscure languages suffer from -- a lack of teachers. One of the best resources is Shambhala, not only do they teach you about Tibetan, but also the culture and history behind the language as well.
So which of these obscure languages will you learn first? Do you think I left any obscure languages out? Let me know in the comments.
The post 11 Obscure Languages for Your Next Language Mission appeared first on Fluent in 3 months - Language Hacking and Travel Tips.
March 1, 2020
Numbers in Portuguese: Counting in Portuguese from 1-100+
I'll cover both cardinal and ordinal numbers (that is, both "one, two, three..." and "first, second, third..."), along with all the subtleties and irregularities that you need to know. My aim is to give you a comprehensive guide to Portuguese numbers so that, by the time you're done, you won’t have any questions left regarding numbers and counting in Portuguese.
Portuguese Numbers 1-10
If you've just started learning Portuguese, you don't need to learn how to count to a million just yet.
So let's leave the huge numbers until later, and start with the basics. The first ten numbers in Portuguese are:
1 - um/uma
2 - dois/duas
3 - três
4 - quatro
5 - cinco
6 - seis
7 - sete
8 - oito
9 - nove
10 - dez
As you can see "one" (um/uma) and "two" (dois/duas) have two versions. These are the masculine and feminine forms of the number, and they need to agree with the gender of the thing that's being counted:
comprei um limão - "I bought one lemon"
tenho dois cachorros - "I have two dogs"
você pode me passar uma taça" - "Can you pass me one cup?"
te contei duas vezes já - "I already told you two times"
Note that um/uma can mean "a" as well as "one". Portuguese doesn't distinguish between these two words like English does. So, for example, the first sentence above could also be translated as simply "I bought a lemon".
Portuguese Numbers 11-19
Ready for round two? Here's the next batch of Portuguese numbers you should learn:
11 - onze
12 - doze
13 - treze
14 - catorze
15 - quinze
16 - dezesseis/dezasseis
17 - dezessete/dezassete
18 - dezoito
19 - dezenove/dezanove
Where I've written two words for one number, it's because the first version is used in Brazil and the second is used in Portugal. So, for example, Brazilians say "dezesseis" while Portuguese people say "dezasseis".
To help you remember these, notice that the numbers 16 to 19 are formed using the same, simple pattern. For example "dezesseis" is just the combination of dez ("ten") and seis ("six"), with an e ("and") in the middle. The only thing you need to remember is that Portuguese people change the e to an a (don't ask me why), and that dezoito is a slight exception because it drops the e entirely.
You may be wondering why dezesseis and dezessete have that extra s in the middle. Why isn't it dezeseis and dezesete? Well, it's because of the rules of Portugues spelling and pronunciation. An s is normally pronounced like the English letter "s", but when it comes between two vowels it's pronounced like an English "z". However, a double s is always pronounced like an English "s". So if you just wrote dezesete, you'd be changing the s in sete to sound like a z. By doubling it up to dezessete, you make it clear that the sete still sounds the same as if it were a separate word.
Portuguese numbers 1-100
Once you've learned the first nineteen numbers in Portuguese, it's easy to learn the next eighty. All you need to do is remember the multiples of ten:
20 - vinte
30 - trinta
40 - quarenta
50 - cinquenta
60 - sessenta
70 - setenta
80 - oitenta
90 - noventa
These aren't hard to learn, especially if you notice that all of them from 40 upwards end in -enta, and all of them except vinte have an obvious relationship with their root digit - e.g. “oito” and “oitenta”.
Now, to say a number like 43, you pick the right multiple of ten (in this case quarenta), translate the number from the units column (in this case três), and join them together with an e - quarenta e três. Unlike with dezessete, you write this as three separate words - and Portuguese people don't change the e to an a.
This pattern is the same for all numbers between twenty and ninety-nine. So all you need to know now is that cem means "one hundred" - and you know how to count from 1 to 100 in Portuguese.
Check this table if you're not sure:
1 - um/uma
11 - onze
21 - vinte e um/uma
31 - trinta e um/uma
41 - quarenta e um/uma
51 - cinquenta e um/uma
61 - sessenta e um/uma
71 - setenta e um/uma
81 - oitenta e um/uma
91 - noventa e um/uma
2 - dois/duas
12 - doze
22 - vinte e dois/duas
32 - trinta e dois/duas
42 - quarenta e dois/duas
52 - cinquenta e dois/duas
62 - sessenta e dois/duas
72 - setenta e dois/duas
82 - oitenta e dois/duas
92 - noventa e dois/duas
3 - três
13 - treze
23 - vinte e três
33 - trinta e três
43 - quarenta e três
53 - cinquenta e três
63 - sessenta e três
73 - setenta e três
83 - oitenta e três
93 - noventa e três
4 - quatro
14 - catorze
24 - vinte e quatro
34 - trinta e quatro
44 - quarenta e quatro
54 - cinquenta e quatro
64 - sessenta e quatro
74 - setenta e quatro
84 - oitenta e quatro
94 - noventa e quatro
5 - cinco
15 - quinze
25 - vinte e cinco
35 - trinta e cinco
45 - quarenta e cinco
55 - cinquenta e cinco
65 - sessenta e cinco
75 - setenta e cinco
85 - oitenta e cinco
95 - noventa e cinco
6 - seis
16 - dezesseis/dezasseis
26 - vinte e seis
36 - trinta e seis
46 - quarenta e seis
56 - cinquenta e seis
66 - sessenta e seis
76 - setenta e seis
86 - oitenta e seis
96 - noventa e seis
7 - sete
17 - dezassete/dezessete
27 - vinte e sete
37 - trinta e sete
47 - quarenta e sete
57 - cinquenta e sete
67 - sessenta e sete
77 - setenta e sete
87 - oitenta e sete
97 - noventa e sete
8 - oito
18 - dezoito
28 - vinte e oito
38 - trinta e oito
48 - quarenta e oito
58 - cinquenta e oito
68 - sessenta e oito
78 - setenta e oito
88 - oitenta e oito
98 - noventa e oito
9 - nove
19 - dezanove/dezenove
29 - vinte e nove
39 - trinta e nove
49 - quarenta e nove
59 - cinquenta e nove
69 - sessenta e nove
79 - setenta e nove
89 - oitenta e nove
99 - noventa e nove
10 - dez
20 - vinte
30 - trinta
40 - quarenta
50 - cinquenta
60 - sessenta
70 - setenta
80 - oitenta
90 - noventa
100 - cem
Note that for all numbers which end in one or two, you need to use the correct form of um/uma or dois/duas:
Somos vinte e duas pessoas - "there are twenty-one of use" (literally: "we're twenty-one people)
Li trinta e um livros esse ano já - "I've already read thirty-one books this year"
The number zero, by the way, is zero. That one's easy to remember!
"Cem" vs "Cento" in Portuguese
I told you that cem means "one-hundred", but this isn't the full story. You actually only use cem when you have exactly one-hundred of something. If another number comes after the cem, you should instead use cento:
100 - cem
101 - cento e um/uma
138 - cento e trinta e oito
Make sense?
If precision doesn't matter, and you just want to say that you have "hundreds" of something, use centenas:
Recebemos centenas de ligações - "We received hundreds of phone calls"
Numbers up to 1,000 in Portuguese
Earlier, we learned the Portuguese words for the multiples of ten, which allowed us to say any number up to one hundred.
It's time to level-up. This time, we must learn the Portuguese words for the multiples of 100. Once we're done, we'll know how to say any number up to one thousand!
The numbers 200, 300, etc. have masculine and feminine forms, meaning they must agree with the noun they appear next to. Masculine forms end in -os and feminine forms in -as:
200 - duzentos/duzentas
300 - trezentos/trezentas
400 - quatrocentos/quatrocentas
500 - quinhentos/quinhentas
600 - seiscentos/seiscentas
700 - setecentos/setecentas
800 - oitocentos/oitocentas
900 - novecentos/novecentas
As you can see, these generally follow the pattern number + centos. E.g. nine-hundred is nove (nine) + centos/centas (hundreds). The only ones that don't follow this pattern exactly are duzentos, trezentos, and quinhentos, but they're not too far off.
Separate the hundreds, units, and tens portion of any number with an e:
121 - cento e vinte e um
487 - quatrocentos e oito e sete
701 - setecentos e um
811 - oitocentos e onze
940 - novecentos e quarenta
Numbers Above 1000 in Portuguese
It's time to bring out the big guns. Mil means "(one) thousand" and um milhão means "one million". Milhão becomes milhões in the plural, while mil doesn't change. So you'd say dois mil (2,000) but dois milhões (2,000,000).
You don't normally need an e when linked hundreds and thousands, e.g.:
1,234 - mil duzentos e quatro
2,058 - dois mil cincuenta e oito
However, you do need to insert an e if the number is an exact multiple of one hundred:
1,200 - mil e duzentos
2,400 - dois mil e quatrocentos
Finally, you need an e when linking thousands and units:
2,004 - dois mil e quatro
5,009 - cinco mil e nove
Also note that when using milhões, you don't have "a million things" (um milhão coisas), you have "a million of things": um milhão de coisas.
What about numbers above one million, like a billion and a trillion? Unfortunately, this is where things start to get complicated.
Millions and Billions (Long vs Short Scale Numbers) in Portuguese
You may know that "a billion" used to have a different meaning in British and American English. To Americans, a "billion" meant "one thousand million", like it does today. In Britain and most other English-speaking countries, a billion meant "one million million" - which today everyone (in the English-speaking world at least) calls a trillion.
Similarly, "a trillion" had its current meaning in the U.S. of "one million million". Everywhere else it meant "one million million million" - that's a one with a whopping eighteen zeroes afterward.
At some point in the twentieth century, non-Americans gave up and started using "billion" and "trillion" in the American way. (We're still waiting for Americans to return the favour and stop measuring temperature in Fahrenheit.) The “old” way is called the long scale numbering system, while the modern/American way is called the short scale.
You may be wondering how any of this is relevant to Portuguese. Well, in many languages they still use the long scale system, in which a billion and a million (actually their cognates in the local language) have twelve and eighteen zeros, respectively. So, for example, in Spanish a billón means 1,000,000,000,000.
Which one does Portuguese use? Well, now it gets even more confusing! Most Portuguese-speaking countries use the long-scale system, with the exception of Brazil.
So um bilhão means "1,000,000,000" in Brazil, but "1,000,000,000,000" in Portugal or Angola.
To add yet another complication, bilhão can alternatively be spelled bilião. The former is more common in Brazil, while the latter is more common in Portugal.
Fun fact: you know how in English we have "a zillion" as a humourous way of saying "a very large number"? In Portuguese you can do the same thing with um zilhão.
Decimal Points and Commas in Portuguese Numbers
In English, we make long numbers more readable by putting a comma in between each group of three digits: e.g. one million is written “1,000,000”.
On the other hand, for fractional numbers, we separate the integer part from the rest using a dot (the "decimal point"): e.g. 3.14159.
In Portuguese, however, as in most European languages, they do things the other way around. Big numbers are split up using dots, and fractional numbers are written using a decimal comma - the vírgula da casa decimal:
A população do Brasil e 208.494.900
O valor de pi é 3,1419
You could also use spaces instead of dots to split up a large number, although this is less common:
A população do Brasil e 208 494 900
Vírgula means "comma", and a number like "2,34" would be read out loud as dois vírgula trinta e quatro.
Names of Years in Portuguese.
In English, there are two ways to say "1999". If you're talking about the year, you'd say "nineteen ninety-nine". In other cases where you're just referring to the number, you'd say "one thousand, nine-hundred and ninety-nine".
In Portuguese, to say the same of the year you just say the regular name of the number. So the year 1999 in Portuguese is mil novecentos, noventa e nove.
Ordinal Numbers in Portuguese
So far we've only looked at cardinal numbers - "one, two, three", etc.
The other thing you need to know about is the ordinal numbers - "first, second, third", etc.. Here they are:
1st - primeiro
2nd - segundo
3rd - terceiro
4th - quarto
5th - quinto
6th - sexto
7th - sétimo
8th - oitavo
9th - nono
10th - décimo
These words function like regular adjectives, meaning they need to agree in gender and number with the word they refer to:
o primeiro homem - "the first man"
a segunda pessoa - "the second person"
os terceiros países - "the third countries"
as quartas maçãs - "the fourth apples"
You also need to know the ordinal numbers for multiples of 10:
20th - vigésimo
30th - trigésimo
40th - quadragésimo
50th - quinquagésimo
60th - sexagésimo
70th - septuagésimo
80th - octogésimo
90th - nonagésimo
100th - centésimo
Then you can combine these words to get other numbers:
11th - décimo primeiro
34th - trigésimo quarto
Simple! However, when it comes to the bigger ordinal numbers, especially ones that are not exact multiples of ten, people tend to avoid them in informal speech, and instead use a cardinal number:
Hoje foi o dia sessenta e sete da minha dieta - "Today was the 67th day (lit: day 67) of my diet"
"Meia" in Brazilian Portuguese
One final thing is worth knowing. In Brazil (but not so much in Portugal), you'll often hear people saying the word meia when reading a list of numbers. This is an alternative way of saying "six", and it comes from meia dúzia - "half dozen".
It’s like how in English we often say “oh” instead of “zero”, for example when reading out a phone number. Brazilians do the same, except they replace seis with meia.
Time to Learn Your Portuguese Numbers!
Whew! Who knew there could be so much to learn about such a seemingly simple topic as numbers in Portuguese? If you think there's anything I've missed, please let us know in the comments, as I want this to be a comprehensive guide to Portuguese numbers. Until then, happy counting!
The post Numbers in Portuguese: Counting in Portuguese from 1-100+ appeared first on Fluent in 3 months - Language Hacking and Travel Tips.
February 27, 2020
Japanese Culture: 33 Things Everyone Should Know About Japan
Don’t worry, I’ve got you covered. Understanding Japanese culture can be a beast of a task, especially if you’re from the West. What is considered “rude” or “polite” is vastly different. And to truly learn the Japanese language, you must understand Japanese culture.
Japanese relies on “feeling the air” or “reading the room” to actually understand what’s being said, and Japanese is not a direct language like English. They even have a word for those who can’t pick up on subtleties -- KY or 空気読めない (kuuki yomenai). Literally “can’t read the air.”
But that won’t be you. Because this is your crash course! This is the mega Japanese culture article you’ve been looking for.
The 9 Basics of Japanese Culture
1. Bowing in Japanese Culture
Bowing is one of the key differences in Japanese etiquette. You don’t shake hands in Japan. Instead, you bow.
When bowing, don’t bow from the neck (like the British bow to the Queen), but bow by hinging at your hips. The deeper you bow, the more respect you’re showing.
2. Always Take Off Your Shoes at the Door, and Say “Ojama Shimasu”
In Japan, it’s rude to walk through someone’s home with your shoes on, so don’t commit this faux pas. When you enter someone’s home, in the entryway (call the 玄関, “genkan”) there will be a mat or a shelf to set your shoes on. Take off your shoes and put on a pair of their house slippers.
There’s also a specific Japanese greeting for when you enter and leave a home. When you arrive, you say お邪魔します (Ojama shimasu), which means “I’m sorry for intruding” or “I’m sorry for bothering you.” Even if you’re expected, this is the polite greeting to say. When you leave, you’ll say it in the past tense: お邪魔しました (Ojama shimashita).
3. Don’t Eat or Drink When Walking
In the West, it’s common to walk around carrying your breakfast and coffee on your way to work. But this is considered rude in Japan. If you’re grabbing a bite on the go -- even from a vending machine -- you’ll stand or sit nearby to consume it.
4. Always Give and Take Gifts and Business Cards with Two Hands
If you’re offering a gift or business card to someone else (which is a common thing to do), you’ll offer it with both hands and bow slightly. You’ll do the same thing when you receive a gift or card as well. It signifies that you’re honoring the relationship and showing it proper respect.
5. In Japanese Culture, Answering the Phone Has its Own Phrase
When you answer the phone, you’ll use the phrase もしもし (moshi moshi). This phrase stems from the humble word 申す (mousu), which means “to speak” or “to say” (like the standard word, 言う). It basically means, “I’m going to talk now.”
There is some specific etiquette for this phrase though. You’ll say moshi moshi when answering or receiving a phone call, but only if the call is from a friend or family member. For more formal calls, you can simply answer はい (hai, “yes”), following by your company name or your last name.
6. There are Tons of Onomatopoeia in Japanese
Japanese onomatopoeia is part of everyday conversations in Japanese culture. Onomatopoeia are words that describe sounds, but in Japanese, they can also describe feelings and states of being. You’ll hear them all the time, from ドキドキ (doki doki, “heart racing”) to ガツガツ (gatsu gatsu, “devouring food”) to ペラペラ (pera pera, “speak fluently”).
7. Less Eye Contact and Physical Touch
In the West, someone who looks away when talking is often perceived as a bit rude or even as lying. But in Japan, prolonged eye contact is intense and uncomfortable. So many people will look around when talking.
There’s also very little physical touch. Like how you won’t shake hands, you also wouldn’t give a pat on the back or a hug. Sometimes in Western culture, we tend to be overly “touchy.” But it will make Japanese people feel uncomfortable. Even between couples, any kind of physical touch is considered inappropriate.
8. Japanese Body Language
Body language is an important part of communicating, and it’s pretty different in Japan. For instance, if someone gives you a compliment, the appropriate body language would be to put your hand behind your head like your scratching your hair and look down shyly. Or, you could deny it by waving your hand back and worth in front of your face while saying いやいやいや (iya iya iya, “no, no, no” or “it’s not good”). Tofugu has a fantastic article with pictures about Japanese body language.
9. Japanese is a Contextual Language
Don’t take offense if someone doesn’t answer you directly. In Japanese culture, it’s rude to say “no” outright. So they often avoid answering the question. Often times, you’ll get a ちょっと... (Chotto…), which more or less means “It’s a bit [inconvenient]...” You also might hear a “maybe”, “I’ll try”, or “I’ll see.” All these most likely mean no. So, it’s important to read body language and the “air.” As a Japanese culture newbie, it’s best to take any “maybe” as a “no.”
9 Japanese Customs You Should Be Aware Of
1. In Japan, They Will Talk While You Talk
You’ll find many people interject or express agreement a lot while you’re talking. This isn’t to be rude -- it’s the opposite. You’ll get a lot of うんうんうん (un, un un, “yeah, yeah yeah”) and そう (sou, “I see”) while you’re talking to show they’re paying attention.
2. Riding the Bullet Train in Japan
Any time you hop on the bullet train, subway, or other public transportation, expect to get a gentle shove. The stations are overcrowded, so people will push and shove a bit to get where they need to go. Even the workers may gently push people into the train cars to fit more people.
3. Splitting the Bill -- It’s All Equal
Called 割り勘 (warikan), it’s typical to split the bill equally among everyone at the table, no matter where you go or how much you ordered.
4. In Japanese, There is No Equivalent to “God Bless You” When You Sneeze
If you or someone else sneezes, there’s no phrase to acknowledge it. It’s actually a bit rude to do so. If you feel like you have to say something, you can say すみません (sumimasen, “excuse me”).
5. Holidays are Celebrated Differently in Japanese Culture
While Christmas is typically the biggest day of the year in the West, it’s a romantic date night in Japan! On Valentine’s Day, the girls give chocolates to boys they like. And on White Day, March 14th, the boys reciprocate.
The biggest holiday of the year, though, is New Year’s. There are many traditions around food, cleaning the house, and bringing in luck for the New Year.
6. No Tipping!
You don’t tip in Japan for any service. If you leave money, they’ll be confused and think you forgot it!
7. There are No Trash Cans
You won’t find many trash cans while walking around. Despite that, Japan stays relatively litter-free. People end up carrying their trash around with them until they get home to properly dispose or recycle it.
8. Always Bring Back Omiyage
お土産 (omiyage) is the Japanese word for “souvenirs”. In Japan, you’ll always bring back tiny gifts for your friends, family, and co-workers when you go on a trip. Even if you only traveled a few hours away, it’s polite to bring back a small omiyage, like a good luck charm from a temple or chocolate.
9. When You Receive a Gift, You’re Supposed to Give One Back
If you receive a gift in Japan, even if it’s a birthday gift or for a wedding or baby shower, you’re supposed to give a gift back that’s equal to about 50% of the value of what you received. It’s also not unusual to receive a larger gift than you might in the West because it’s expected they’ll get half back. These gifts are call お返し (okaeshi).
6 Fascinating Insights Into Japanese Food Culture
1. Pour Drinks for Sempai
It’s very common for the “lowest” member (usually the newest or youngest) of the group to have to serve the drinks to those around them. You’ll be expected to watch for when they need a refill and pour it for them.
2. “A Beer for Now”
It’s common when showing up at dinner or a bar to immediately order a beer with the set phrase とりあえずビール (Toriaizu bi-ru). This means “I’ll take a beer for now.”
3. Sushi has its Own Culture
Sushi has a lot of history and tradition in Japanese culture. There’s makisushi (rolled sushi), nigiri (fish over rice without nori, or seaweed), sashimi (raw fish), temaki (hand rolls)... The menu can be a bit tricky to understanding if you don’t recognize the words. This is a great article for a brief refresher on sushi.
We often eat sushi “wrong” in the West. For instance, it’s more common to eat sushi with your fingers than chopsticks. And you shouldn’t put ginger on your roll, or wasabi in your soy sauce. Dip your sushi fish side down into your soy sauce (called shoyu) as to not oversaturate the rice.
4. Always Say “Itadakimasu” and “Gochisousama Deshita”
いただきます (Itadakimasu) is the Japanese equivalent of “bon appetit.” It gives thanks for the meal, and you shouldn’t start eating until it’s been said. You’ll clap your hand together in a prayer position and say, “Itadakimasu!”
After you finish eating, you’ll use the phrase ごちそうさまでした (gochisousama deshita). This means “Thank you for this meal.” You’ll say it to the person who made the food, treated you to the meal, or just to express thanks for having food to eat.
5. Slurping and Noises are Polite(!)
Slurping your noodles, munching away happily, and making frequent expressions of うまい(umai, “great”) and 美味しい (oishii, “delicious”) are polite and expected! So don’t be shy -- you can slurp away, Naruto-style.
6. Remember Chopstick Etiquette
When eating with chopsticks, don’t ever stick them straight up in your rice -- that’s bad luck! You also don’t want to cross them across your plate or rub them together. If you aren’t using them, set them on your chopstick holder, called hashi oki. Don’t know how to use chopsticks? Check out this video to learn how.
Dishes are often shared among the table, but don’t use the thinner end of your chopsticks to eat from them! Instead, flip your chopsticks around to the square end to grab food from the communal plate. This way, you aren’t “double-dipping” your chopsticks. And always grab food from the top of the plate, don’t dig or play around!
5 Aspects of Traditional Japanese Culture to Be Aware Of
1. Geisha
Geisha are one of the most beautiful aspects of Japanese culture. But many people have negative impressions about what being a “geisha” entails. Geisha are not prostitutes, but performers and entertainers. They often perform as hosts and guides into the world of traditional Japanese art and music. A geisha will dance, sing, and play the shamisen (the string instrument most people associate with traditional Japanese music). She may also write kanji in traditional calligraphy. They can still be found performing today, mostly in Kyoto.
2. Samurai, Ninja, Shogun and Emperor
In feudal Japan, samurai were the warriors that rose to power and started the shogunate. Lead by the shogun, they took power away from the emperor until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. The samurai code of honor is called the bushido, “the way of the warrior,” and many samurai were wealthy lords, known as daimyo. A samurai’s honor came from his sword, and even as late as World War II, soldiers would make banzai attacks with samurai swords.
Ninja, also called shinobi, were the Japanese assassins, spies, or disgraced samurai. They were often pitted against samurai lords in feudal Japan and developed their art of stealthy fighting known as ninjutsu. Ninja continued to fight in wars or serve as spies until the Edo Period.
The shogun led Japan for many years, until the fall of Tokugawa. During the Meiji Restoration, power was given back to the Emperor, and emphasis shifted from bushido to State-sponsored Shinto which revered the emperor as a descendant of the Sun God, Amaterasu. This lasted until Japan lost World War II, and lead to modern Japan with power resting in the Prime Minister.
With each new emperor comes a new “era.” Japan celebrates each change in era, as they recently did when Emperor Akihito abdicated. This ended the Heisei era, and his son, Emperor Naruhito, started the Reiwa era.
3. Kimono and Traditional Japanese Clothing
Kimono is an intricate piece of clothing, made up of several layers and an obi, or sash. And yukata, are the light-weight kimono-like garments worn to matsuri or “festivals” during the summer. Hakama is traditional men’s garb, that features a pleated skirt and obi. If you’ve ever seen Ruroni Kenshin, he wears a style of hakama. Zouri are the wooden sandals you often see worn with traditional Japanese clothing.
There’s also jinbei, a lightweight summer outfit that you can wear to bed, as housewear, or instead of yukata at festivals. They look similar to a yukata in style but are made up of a short-sleeve shirt and shorts. They’re usually worn by men, boys, and babies, but women can wear them, too.
4. Onsen
Onsen are hot springs in Japan. There’s many onsen due to the active volcanic activity, and they’re often outside or at ryokan (a traditional Japanese inn or bed and breakfast). You have to wash up before entering the onsen. Swimwear, clothing, or towels in the onsen are considered “dirty.” And many onsen don’t allow anyone with tattoos. (For many years, only the Japanese mafia, called the Yakuza, had tattoos.) This is changing, though, and tattoo-friendly onsen exist.
5. Religion in Japan: Shinto, Buddhism, Christianity,
Shinto is the primary, native religion in Japan, although many people follow Buddhism as well. Shintoism is a belief that godliness, or 神 (kami), exists all around us in life-giving things. For example, water has kami, because water is necessary for life. Most of the traditional shrines you see in Japan and in anime are Shinto shrines.
Buddhism is also practiced in Japan, and most people considering themselves Buddhist. Japan had a brief period of time where Christian missionaries from Portugal came to spread the faith, but today, only about 3% of Japanese people consider themselves to be Christian.
Even though religion exists in Japan, the Japanese tend to follow more of a moral code and etiquette than religious practices. But they do have many Shinto and Buddhist-based traditions surrounding death, family, and ancestors. For instance, many people keep a small shrine inside their home to honor deceased family members.
Death still has quite a stigma in Japan. 4 and 9 are unlucky numbers because they sound like the words for “death” and “agony.” Many buildings (especially hospitals) will not have a 4th or 9th floor because of this. And morticians are often looked down upon as “dirty” and “unclean” for working with the deceased, even though they follow a beautiful ritual to honor the dead upon passing. The critically acclaimed Japanese movie “Departures” is about this topic.
4 Facets of Modern Japanese Culture that Everyone Should Know About
1. Capsule Hotels
Also called pod hotels, this style of hotel became popular in Japan as cheap overnight rooms for salarymen (office workers) who work long hours. These capsule rooms usually consist of just a bed, air conditioning, outlets, and a TV. The room is the size of a bed, and only tall enough to sit up in, so you have to crawl inside. They have communal bathrooms and showers, as well as a locker area to store your things.
2. Japanese Bathroom Etiquette
You may expect the bathroom to be the same in Japan, but be warned -- it’s a wild ride! In cities, you’ll find a Western-style toilet, but with all kinds of extra features. They often have a bidet, heated seats, and even a wash-and-dry feature. The toilet may even talk to you or make noise! Some toilets have what’s called an Otohime, or “sound princess,” to mask any unpleasant noises.
In rural areas, though, they have a traditional Japanese toilet that’s more or less a hole in the ground that you have to squat over it.
When at someone’s home, you’ll find a pair of bathroom slippers to use only in the bathroom and then remove upon exit. Like taking your shoes off when you enter the home, the same is true here. The bathroom is a separate “dirty” space and needs its own shoes.
Plus, traditional Japanese bathtubs are heavenly. They’re much larger and deeper than Western-style tubs, making them more comfortable to soak in. You’ll find a showerhead and stool where you’ll wash and rinse off first, and then hop in the tub. The reason is that most Japanese people fill the tub once, and then everyone uses the same water after them until everyone has finished bathing for the day. So you want to keep the water clean!
3. Harajuku and Japanese Street Fashion
Japanese street fashion is a huge topic all on its own. Harajuku is the main fashion hub in Tokyo, where you’ll see all kinds of haute couture. From lolita gothic style to the gyaru-style of overly tan and heavy makeup, you’ll see a lot of amazing outfits like you’re at New York Fashion Week. If you’re into fashion, Harajuku is the place to go. Some styles are a bit softer or more traditional, like mori kei or modern kimono style, but many people come to show off their looks.
4. Japanese Anime, Manga, and Video Games
Japanese animation, comics, and video games are widely popular upon all age groups in Japan. There are four main categories of topics that tend to show up over and over again: mecha, yokai,kawaii, and apocalyptic. These categories are deeply ingrained in Japanese culture.
Mecha, or robots, signify Japan’s constant technological innovation. Yokai, or ghosts and demons, are often based on Japanese folklore and fascination with the supernatural, stemming from Shino beliefs. Kawaii or “cute” culture is very prevalent in all aspects of Japanese life. From brand mascots to J-Pop stars, everything must be cute and perceived as or invoking a sense of innocence. This, in part, stems from the last category: apocalyptic.
Japan suffered a lot of pain and saw unthinkable horrors following the atomic bombs during WWII; they’re the only country to have lived through a nuclear weapon. Many Japanese people still have memories or connections to this by watching the suffering of family members or witnessing how it shaped their country moving forward. Because of that, an obsession with apocalyptic depictions in art came about as a way to work through that pain and even as an example of hope and perseverance. It’s also why an emphasis is placed on maintaining innocence because that was lost for many following the end of the war.
So while anime, manga, and video games are often light-hearted, the popular categories and features in them are deep-rooted in Japanese culture and history.
You’re a Japanese Culture Insider Now!
Japan has such a rich culture and so many intricacies. Each section of this article could be a whole college class of info! But I hope you found some interesting tidbits and helpful knowledge to help you speak Japanese like a local and have a deeper understanding of the customs.
What’s your favorite Japanese culture fact? Was there a topic I missed? Share it in the comments!
The post Japanese Culture: 33 Things Everyone Should Know About Japan appeared first on Fluent in 3 months - Language Hacking and Travel Tips.
February 23, 2020
5 Reasons Learning a New Language Can Help Your Career & Finances
That advice is solid, but such platitudes aren’t as valuable and motivating as hard facts. Here are five compelling reasons why learning another language can help your career and finances.
1. Learning a Second Language Can Help You Get Hired or Promoted
Job seekers who speak a second language often get hired more quickly and can climb the corporate ladder faster than their peers who speak only one language. As Transparent Language reports, bilingual job seekers have a better chance of getting employed and make more money than those who speak just one language.
Speaking another language lets prospective employers know several important things about you. It demonstrates curiosity about other people and cultures, as well as the ability to work hard to communicate with them effectively. It shows a flexible perspective and — perhaps most importantly — that you can commit to a demanding, complex, long-term task and finish it.
Plus, you open up your employer’s opportunities to reach new markets and customers because you can communicate with customers in different countries. CNN Money reports that knowing more than one language is one of the hottest skills for job seekers.
Once you get the job, bilingualism also means you get paid more than an employee who has the same set of skills but isn’t bilingual. Reports show the average bilingual employee earns 5% to 20% more per hour than single-language employees in the same job. With the average U.S. income at a little over $40,000, that could be as much as $10,000 a year.
Promotion chances and career opportunities are also significantly higher for people who speak a second language. A foreman or shift supervisor, for example, is better for the whole company if they can communicate with the people they manage. Upper management positions, foreign transfers, and opportunities to run global teams are given most frequently to those who have the linguistic skills to meet the challenges.
2. Speaking a Second Language is Good For Your Brain
Learning another language is good for your brain the way pushups are good for your arms and body. It’s a form of exercise that can maintain and even improve neural pathways well into adulthood and old age. Most research on the topic has yet to discover why this is so, or the precise mechanics behind it. But there are some clear signs that language learning has many positive results:
Young adults who have studied a second language test better for attention and focus than those who speak only one.
Bilingual adults with dementia develop their first symptoms about four to five years later than those who do not.
Bilingual adults recover from stroke twice as effectively as monolingual adults, and language learning has been shown to rebuild some cognitive function more quickly.
Even just a week of language learning can result in positive neurological impacts up to nine months later.
Bilingual people develop more flexible and quicker thought. They’re essentially smarter than those who never study a second language.
Mastering a foreign language isn’t easy, but it’s well worth the investment. Being smarter, having better focus, and slowing cognitive aging can have a direct impact on your career and finances. You’ll have better job performance, a stronger understanding of the context of your work, and you’ll impress your superiors more frequently.
3. It Lets You Read Industry Journals Published Outside Your Country
If you want to really get ahead in your career, no matter what industry you work in, reading the journals of your area of expertise is a prerequisite for that success. Industry journals keep you up to date on the most important trends, newest developments, and market positioning of the key technologies, practices, and players in your field. You can’t call yourself an expert without staying ahead of these changes.
Every go-getter in your office and industry will be reading the major industry and trade journals. Doing the same just keeps you on par with your closest competition — unless you’re reading the journals they’re not.
Learning a new language gives you access to industry journals published in that language, which means you’re likely to be the only one in your office to see certain things coming, and among just a handful of people in your trade to do so.
If you’d like to learn a new language but aren’t sure which one, you can use this fact as a way to decide. Research which foreign-language journals in your industry have the best reputation or are the slowest to get translated into English, then learn the language in which most of them are written.
4. It Opens Up More Side Gigs to You
The popular term “side gig” refers to second jobs with more flexibility than working part-time for a second employer. They remain one of the better ways to get a handle on your finances by pumping extra money into your life each week. You could drive for Uber or Postmates or start a dog-walking or house-cleaning service, but if you know a second language, a whole new set of doors open for you. Some examples include:
Editing translated documents
Tutoring speakers of one of your languages who wish to learn the other
Doing live phone translations for medical and legal conversations
Translating documents and speeches
Providing online customer service in multiple languages
Writing closed-captioning in your new language
Freelance writing in either language
In fact, Benny Lewis, who created the Fluent in 3 Months blog, previously worked as a freelance translator, and he explains how you can do it too here. There are lots of opportunities out there!
All of these gigs pay higher wages for bilingual people than for people who speak only one language. And many of them can be done from home with flexible hours, which is more enjoyable than driving people around in your car.
Even if your primary employer never learns to appreciate, reward, or value your second language skills, you can still make them pay off by exploring opportunities to make extra money on the side.
5. It Makes International Job Transfers Easier
Almost every industry has opportunities for international exchange, short-term assignments, or permanent transfers and they handsomely reward employees willing to make the sacrifices necessary to complete them. An international assignment can lead to a better compensation package and help fast-track your career. For some, the adventure of living overseas is reward enough.
Whatever the case for your company or industry, learning a new language helps you here in three ways. First, it makes you more likely to receive such as assignment. Few employers, choosing between candidates with otherwise similar qualifications, will select somebody who doesn’t speak the native language of an assignment location over somebody who does.
Second, when you arrive in your new country, you’ll be better able to perform your job functions if you speak the local language. It lets you communicate better with your co-workers and vendors and usually puts you in higher regard in the community. Even if you’re still only passable with the language, most cultures give you credit for having the courtesy to try.
Finally, it helps you adapt to life in your new home. Easier communication at the grocery store, with your utility company, and on the street makes the whole process less stressful. You’ll enjoy the trip more and be generally more successful.
According to research by Mercer, you should especially consider this if you work in any of the following industries, in which more than 60% of companies are prioritizing expatriate assignments: insurance, retail, energy, technology, health care, and consumer goods. But opportunities outside these industries also exist, and they’re growing ever more common as the world becomes a smaller place.
Final Thoughts
There’s one more data-driven fact you should keep in mind when considering learning a new language. Conventional wisdom holds that adults can’t learn languages as quickly or effectively as children. Lifestyle design and effectiveness guru Tim Ferriss dove deep into the research and discovered that “wisdom” is entirely untrue.
According to Ferris’s research, it’s not that children learn languages more easily than adults. Rather, it’s that adults lack the time to practice languages the way children can. That’s why language learning programs optimized for quick learning and retention, which you can use in the course of your normal life, are so valuable. They let you, as an adult, learn as quickly and retain as much as a school-age child.
You have five good reasons to get started today, and no good reasons to put it off. Now’s the best time to start.
The post 5 Reasons Learning a New Language Can Help Your Career & Finances appeared first on Fluent in 3 months - Language Hacking and Travel Tips.
February 20, 2020
Sound Cool in Spanish with these 40+ Spanish Slang Words
And here are lots more cool Spanish words so you can sound cool when you’re speaking the language.
What do I mean by “sound cool”? Well, I mean smooth-talking, slangy phrases and local lingo that only a real insider would know. Words and phrases that make you sound natural in Spanish.
Now, keep in mind that Spanish is spoken all over the world -- so these cool words in Spanish vary by region. Guay is the universal word for “cool” in Spanish taught in classes and textbooks. But the most common way to say “cool” will differ depending on which Spanish speaking country you’re in. And that’s not the only slang word that’s different by country, region, or even city!
Think about how slang works in English. Where I live now, in NYC, it’s common to say “mad good” or “deadass”. But in California, you’d hear “hella good”. In Ireland, we say “yoke”, meaning “thing” or “thingamajig”. So slang can vary quite a bit even in the same country speaking the same language. And the farther apart the regions or countries are, the greater the difference is in the dialects and choice of words.
But don’t worry -- I’ve included all kinds of cool Spanish words from all over the world. So if you’re learning Latin American Spanish or Castilian Spanish, or anything else in between, you can still learn how to sound “cool” in Spanish.
“Cool” in Spanish and 9 Other Slang from Spain
Es una pasada
In Spain, the phrase es una pasada means something is cool, interesting, great, or nice. One thing you’ll notice about slang is that gender is often disregarded. This phrase always stays feminine, even if you’re talking about a masculine noun.
Estar como una cabra
Do you know those screaming goats? They’re crazy, aren’t they? Well, that’s what this phrase means. The translation means “to be like a goat”, but it’s used to say someone is crazy.
Vale
This is an alternative way to say “yes” or acknowledge someone. It means “Okay!” or “Got it!” It can also be used as “Alright?”
Molar
Molar is another way to say something is “cool” or “appealing” and you like it. It’s a synonym for gustar (“to like”) and conjugates the same way. So, you’d use me mola… like you would me gusta.
¡Qué chulo!
This phrase means “How cool!” or “How great!” in Spain. You can often use chulo in place of bonito (pretty)... Be careful with this one though -- it has a variety of meanings. In Spain, it can also mean “conceited” and in Mexican slang, it could mean “sexy” or even “pimp”!
Venga
Venga is used as an interjection at the beginning of a sentence and said in both a positive or negative way. That means you could use it to say “Alright! Let’s do it!” or “Oh, come on.” or “For Pete’s sake”. For example, you could say Venga, ¡vamos! to say excitedly “Alright, let’s go!” Or, with a change of tone, it could mean “Ugh, come on, let’s go!”
¡Qué caña!
The word caña refers to a bamboo-like reed. But it’s used idiomatically to express pleasant surprise.
No pasa nada
This one is common to hear in Spain. The literal meaning is “nothing happens” but it’s used like “no worries” in English. Combine it with the casual hombre to say Ay, hombre, no pasa nada. (“Hey man, no worries.”)
Colega and Chaval
Colega would mean “co-worker” in any other Spanish-speaking country. But in Spain, it’s used in place of amigo for strangers and acquaintances. Chaval / Chavala essentially means the same thing, except it’s used only to talk about kids or teens.
Estar en pelotas
Yes, this means what you may think: “to be in the balls”. It’s a funny phrase used to describe being in your birthday suit, in the nude, or like in American English... “butt naked”.
10 Spanish Slang Words from Mexico
Chido
This is the most common way to say “cool” in Mexican Spanish. Anything can be muy chido.
Neta
This means “truth” but it’s used to say “For real?” or “Truly?” You’ll hear this one quite a bit between friends or TV.
Chavo or Chava
This is a casual way to say “kid” in Mexican Spanish. You can use it to talk about a kid, or to address someone, like Oye, chavo, “Hey, kid”.
Wey
Wey is used between friends to call someone “dude”. Be careful though -- this can be a bit rude when used to talk about strangers or acquaintances
¡Órale!
This is used as an exclamation, and literally means “Pray!” like “Pray tell!” But casually, it’s used to express amazement like “Wow”, “That’s amazing”, or “That’s crazy!”
Naco
This means someone is “trashy”, either in their behaviour or appearance. Obviously, this is a pretty negative word to call someone. If you wouldn’t use the word “trashy” to someone in English, don’t use this one in Spanish either.
Pedo
This is used in all kinds of slang phrases, although stick to using this one with friends. It literally means “fart”. But you can use it to say no hay pedo (“no problem”, “no big deal” or… “it’s no fart”). You can also greet someone with ¿Qué pedo? (“What’s up” or, literally, “What fart?”)
Padre
Yes, padre means “father” in Spanish. But in Mexico, it’s another way to say “cool”.
Buena onda
This is also often translated as “cool”. But it means something more like “good vibes”. Use this to describe someone or something that gives you a real positive feeling or energy.
Fresa
This means “strawberry.” But when it’s used as a slang term, it describes someone who is stuck up or a snob.
5 Cool Spanish Slang Words from Argentina
Bárbaro
This is one of those catch-all words. It can mean “cool”, “great”, “fantastic”. Or, it can mean “barbaric” and “cruel”.
Fiaca
This means you’re feeling “lazy”. Don’t even feel like getting up? Then you say, Me de fiaca levantarme.
Piola
Piola is another way to say something is “cool” or “amazing”. It can also mean someone is clever, friendly or calm.
Centavo
In Argentina, you would use centavo instead of dinero. Don’t have any moolah? Then you say No tengo un centavo. It literally means, “I don’t even have a penny.”
Quilombo
If something is scandalous, you say it’s quilombo in Argentina. It can also be used to say something is a “mess”.
5 Spanish Slang Words You’ll Hear in Chile
Fome
This is a casual way to say “boring” in Chile. This could be a situation, person, movie… anything.
Al tiro
This means “right away”, and you’ll hear it quite often. For instance, ve al tiro means “go right now.”
Bacán
Meaning “cool” in Chile, bacán is also used widely in Peru, Cuba and Colombia. Just know this means a variety of things in other Spanish-speaking countries, like someone is “very attractive” or your “lover”.
Todo cachete
This literally means “all cheek”, but it’s used to say something is amazing, cool or fantastic. This phrase is also used in Costa Rica.
Tinto
Are you a coffee snob who enjoys only the best black coffee? Then you want un tinto -- or Café solo, sin leche ni azúcar (“Only coffee, without milk or sugar”).
3 Spanish Slang Words from Cuba
Mate
Is half of your heart in Havana, na na na? (Sorry, I had to.) Then you’re mate. It’s a slang term to say “desperately in love”.
Chavos
This is another word for dinero, or money, in Cuba.
Mono
This word means “monkey” in most of the Spanish-speaking world, so be mindful with this one. But in Cuba (and in Spain), it’s a casual way to say someone or something is “cute”.
And to Finish… 7 Other Cool Slang Words from Spanish-Speaking Countries
Culo
This usually means “ass”, so be careful with it. But remember how in NYC they say “deadass” as a positive term? In Colombia and the Caribbean, culo is used in the same way. It’s “deadass cool”.
Pura vida
This translates as “pure life”. But in Costa Rica, it means “cool”, “amazing”, or a greeting to say “What’s up?”
Buenazo
In Peru, Ecuador, and Costa Rica, you’ll hear this phrase used to say something is “excellent”, “great” or “really cool”.
Calidá
In Guatemala, they use calidá as a casual slang term for “cool”.
Choy
Choy can be used as an exclamation, like “Hey!” But in Peru, it can also mean “Wow!” or “Cool!”
Gufiao
You’ll hear this one in Puerto Rico for “cool”. It can also be spelled gufeao -- either way is correct. Nítido is another common slang term for “amazing” or “cool” in Puerto Rico, which means “clear” or “sharp” in other Spanish regions.
Muy Guapo en Español!
Now you know plenty of ways to sound cool in Spanish! These slang terms and various ways to say “cool” in Spanish will help you understand regional variations. Plus, you’ll sound more natural no matter where you’re speaking Spanish.
If you’re looking for more ways to learn real-life Spanish, podcasts are a great place to start. SpanishPod101 is one of my go-to resources I recommend for listening and understanding everyday Spanish. From the basics to advanced conversations and slang, they cover it all!
What other Spanish words for “cool” do you know? How about other slang terms you have heard or use often? Share them with me in the comments.
The post Sound Cool in Spanish with these 40+ Spanish Slang Words appeared first on Fluent in 3 months - Language Hacking and Travel Tips.
February 16, 2020
90 Day Korean Inner Circle: An In-Depth Review
I had heard so much about the program and had often read their blog. It intrigued me, and Korean has been on my list of languages to learn for a while. But because I’ve been dedicated to learning Japanese, I never got around to trying it out… Until now!
In this review, I give the method a try for 90 days. I did have some experience with Korean, but it was pretty off-and-on. I knew some basics and phrases. Plus, I had actually learned to read Hanguel using 90 Day Korean’s free 90 Minute Challenge in the past. But, I wouldn’t say I could “speak” it beyond some set scripts I had memorized to introduce myself. I was a beginner going into it!
One of my goals for this year was to finally learn Korean. So when I got the opportunity to review it for Fluent in 3 Months, I was pretty pumped up.
Spoiler alert: I was not disappointed. And I learned that Korean is incredibly easy when you use the right method!
What is 90 Day Korean?
90 Day Korean is a text and audio based course. It’s divided into four modules, each 90 days long. Within each module is 12 weeks worth of lessons and each week contains about 10-12 lessons. It took about three to five hours to get through one week’s worth of materials.
Let me say that first part again: It’s four modules, each 90 days, or 3 months, long. So, the entire 90 Day Korean course is actually a year long. The first 90 days of the course promises:
To get you through a 3-minute conversation
Ordering at a restaurant
Getting around
Reading and writing Hanguel
Some basic chit-chat
The course focuses on three main points: allowing you to progress at your own speed, giving you clear and concise goals to reach, and focusing on the 80/20 method for learning.
So far, I’ve gone through the first 90 days of the program, in which I’ve learned:
How to count in Korean
How to introduce myself, say where I’m from, and what I do for a living
The basics of formal, social, and slang verb conjugation
How to read, write, and romanize Hanguel
How to build sentences and ask questions
How to make a request
Loads of relevant vocab for everyday situations
Dates, times, and locations
Food, weather, and other small talk
...and so many more nuanced details.
Here’s What I Like About 90 Day Korean
Having spent 90 days learning with the course, I found a lot to like about it. Here’s what I particularly appreciated:
With 90 Day Korean, You Decide the Pace
Even though they have a set method in place, they created the course to be flexible. The standard program is set to “unlock” new course material each week. A reminder is sent to your email letting you know it’s time to start your new week of lessons.
But if you decide you want to work faster or slower? You can email the team and let them know. They’ll adjust your schedule to meet your learning needs! So there’s no overwhelm about falling behind, keeping up, or restrictions of a set schedule.
You Always Know Your Goals
90 Day Korean is set up like a big, well-organized “to-do” list. At the beginning of the week, you’ll learn your goals for that week and what the lessons will cover. At the end of the week, you receive a summary of those goals you should have accomplished and what to look forward to the next week.
Plus, you have a weekly assignment to complete. These assignments are optional, but they’re super helpful. The assignments focus on implementing everything you learned that week, so you can get comfortable applying it. If you sign up for the full access plan, you can turn in your work for review by your personal learning coach.
Oh yes, you get a personal learning coach assigned to you.
Your coach will help answer any questions you have, review your work and correct any mistakes. This is an invaluable resource because you have easy access to a native speaker immediately. If you are going to choose between the course-only plan or the full-access plan, go with the full-access plan.
No Worthless Content to Memorize
One thing I hate about textbooks is how little the vocabulary applies to my daily life. But in 90 Day Korean, they use the 80/20 method to learning. In case you don’t know, it’s a psychological tool that helps you memorize things faster by only learning what you need to know. You learn the 20% of words and grammar that you’ll use 80% of the time. So you’re getting the most out of your study time, and you use what you learn so often that it becomes easy, fast.
What does 90 Day Korean Include?
Besides the features I mentioned above, you get a lot of bonus features.
You get access to:
All the course materials
An entire module of bonus extras
A community forum where you can ask questions, chat in Korean, discuss K-Pop and K-Dramas, and more
The Korean Gym (bonus activities and lessons) to strengthen your skills over a variety of different aspects
Weekly reminders and Korean language and culture news
A mobile app that works with the course material for learning on the go
And, as I mentioned, with the full-access plan, you also get 1:1 coaching with your personal Korean tutor.
It’s worth mentioning that 90 Day Korean is a monthly or semi-annual subscription. That means you either pay a per-month or per 6-month fee. Because of that, you want to make sure you put aside the time to commit to the program. You don’t want to sign up and then not use it for a month. Make sure you’re ready to learn the language and commit to it. You’ll need a minimum of 3 hours of dedicated study time each week to make real progress.
Getting Started with 90 Day Korean
You can sign up for 90 Day Korean at their website. Once you sign up, you’ll get confirmation details to access the Inner Circle Course, which is where your lessons are!
The team at 90 Day Korean is quite lovely. They send you a personalized video from a team member when you sign up. And if you opted for coaching, you get a personal message from your tutor after a few days as well . You’ll have one week of your first module unlocked to begin going through.
The directions are clear: Go through each lesson, complete the exercises, and then mark it as “Complete” at the bottom of each lesson. When you complete all the lessons for a week, you’ll also then mark the week as “complete.”
If you completed the week and have extra time or motivation, you can go through the “Extras” module, or hit the Korean Gym. One of the extras is an Anki vocabulary deck, so you can get practice with all the vocabulary you learn.
As you go through the lessons, you’ll receive a lot of opportunities to put what you learn into practice. The exercises range from simple Korean-English word matching to flashcard recognition and writing in Hanguel. The quizzes test your listening, reading, and writing skills. Each vocabulary lesson comes with printable worksheets. These worksheets encourage you to come up with mnemonic devices to remember the words.
My Experience with 90 Day Korean
As I said, I only had a little experience with Korean, so I started with Module 1, with the basics. Even if you’re more experienced than I am in Korean, 90 Day Korean is a fantastic resource for anyone getting started to an upper-intermediate range. I recommend starting from the beginning regardless. You’ll learn lots of cultural insights and tips that are helpful to know going forward. And the material is taught differently than any other course I’ve seen before.
What I Enjoyed
Honestly, this was my favorite language-specific course I’ve taken to date. The way Korean is presented to you… It’s so simple. Korean is considered one of the hardest languages for an English learner to study. And while I did have the advantage of knowing Japanese, which is somewhat similar, this course made Korean fun and easy.
There’s no stuffiness to the text. It’s fun, light-hearted, and uses relatable and memorable descriptions. For instance, they call formal, honorific speech “stuffy” and call everyday speech “social”. This resonates more with my native English brain because we don’t truly have “honorific” speech. But we do have “stuffy” speech. We also have more casual, “social” speech. This helps me better understand when to use different levels of formality, by relating it to what I already know. Easy!
There are also whole lessons that focus on rapid learning. These lessons only teach you cognates or words taken from English, so you know them as soon as you sound them out. No translation needed! There are so many of these words in Korean, that you already speak more Korean than you think you do.
There’s also a PDF guide for learning different verb endings that express different meanings of the same verb. (Like “will do” versus “want to do”, etc.) I tell you, if I’d had a resource like that for Japanese, I would’ve been speaking much sooner than I did. It was incredibly helpful.
The other thing I enjoyed about the course was how the lessons were broken up. Each lesson is short, sweet, and to the point. I hate wasting time, and there was no fluff. As a busy mom, I appreciate that.
Speaking of which, I started this course while I was on maternity leave with my second baby. Even though I had a hit-or-miss start because of new mom sleep deprivation and whatnot, the course was easy to jump back into whenever I could. I was also surprised by how much I consistently remembered, even with “mom brain.”
When I first started the course, the app was going to be on my “negatives” list because it was a bit glitchy and I couldn’t really use it. But, they fixed the app about a month in, and it’s awesome. It’s easy to navigate and I’m so glad the course is mobile-friendly. I’m always on the go, and I rely on my phone for all my learning.
I’ll be honest, I didn’t fully use all the extras, such as the community, as much as I would’ve liked. (Again, re: new baby.) But when I did use these features, even just creeping on the boards, I enjoyed the conversations and helpful info.
The other thing that’s awesome: they have a whole module dedicated to talking about real interests. K-Pop, culture, TV, etc. This is so often overlooked in courses, but it’s the real meat of what people want to discuss! I can’t wait to get to that module.
What Could Be Improved On
There wasn’t much I thought could be better -- this was a well thought out, amazing course. But there’s one major point I thought could be a bit better.
Some lessons I felt should be taught sooner, and there needed to be a “basic phrases” lesson in week one. In week one, you learn countries and occupations, which is great. But you don’t learn basic sentence structure until week two and three, and “yes” and “no” isn’t even until week five. Basic phrases, called “Xpress Phrases,” are taught in week four.
I knew most of those phrases already, and I think 90 Day Korean assumes most people do, even beginners. But, I still think moving that lesson to week one would be far more helpful. Using the Fluent in 3 Months approach which founder Benny Lewis established, means I want to speak from day one. It’s hard to do that if you don’t know basic phrases or sentence structure for 2 - 5 weeks!
Otherwise, they provide you with everything you need to get started speaking Korean and succeed.
90 Day Korean Conclusion: How’d I Do, and Do I Recommend It?
So, the first 90 days of the program promises a 3-minute conversation. Did I meet that goal?
Yes, I did!
I actually happened to meet a Korean woman working out at the gym. I overheard her on the phone one day speaking Korean, so the next time I saw her, I struck up a conversation. I was able to introduce myself, say how long I’d been studying for, and ask her a few basic questions. It wasn’t flawless, but I was very excited to be chatting and understood!
Overall, I would highly recommend 90 Day Korean. I’m still working on mastering and finishing up some “extras,” and then I’ll be moving on to the next module to further my skills. But I can happily say I have a comfortable grasp of the basics of the language now.
If you decide to go for it, make sure you dedicate time and consciously choose to make it a priority. But if you do, I have no doubt you’ll see results and be surprised at how easy it was to learn Korean.
If you’d like to join the 90 Day Korean Inner Circle, you can do so here.
The post 90 Day Korean Inner Circle: An In-Depth Review appeared first on Fluent in 3 months - Language Hacking and Travel Tips.
February 13, 2020
“I Love You” in Portuguese — Plus 50 More Romantic Portuguese Phrases
If you plan on travelling to a Portuguese-speaking country, perhaps you too will find love on the road. Or maybe you’ve already found a Portuguese speaking lover! In either case, it’s good to make sure you know all the words and expressions below, so you're never unsure how to say "I love you" in Portuguese.
"Love" in Portuguese
"Love" in Portuguese is amor, a masculine noun. It's a cousin of English words like “amorous”.
To the object of your affection, you could say: você é o amor da minha vida - "you are the love of my life."
You might send messages com amor (with love), or tell someone they're your amor verdadeiro - "true love". "To make love" is fazer amor.
So maybe tomorrow morning you can greet your Portuguese-speaking lover with bom dia, meu amor - "Good morning, my love" in Portuguese.
"To love" in Portuguese
We've covered the noun “love”. The verb "to love" in Portuguese is amar, and it conjugates like this:
eu amo - "I love"
tu amas - "you love" (informal in Portugal, not used at all in Brazil)
você ama - "you love" (formal in Portugal, used in all situations in Brazil)
ele/ela ama - "he/she loves"
nós amamos - "we love"
vocês amam - "you (plural) love"
eles/elas amam - "they love"
For the sake of completeness, it's also worth knowing vós amais, an antiquated way of saying "you (pl.) love". You'll never hear it in speech anymore, but it might turn up in old-timey writing.
With amar under our belts, we can learn this essential phrase:
"I love you" in Portuguese
To say "I love you" in Brazilian Portuguese, say eu te amo. Or better yet, drop the eu, as it's optional: te amo.
Portuguese people tend to use a different word order to Brazilians, especially when it comes to pronouns. So, while te amo is still acceptable in Portugal, amo-te can be used as well. Brazilians would almost never use amo-te, except perhaps in very formal writing.)
To say "I love you too" in Portuguese, i.e. in response to a te amo or amo-te, you can say te amo/amo-te também, or simply eu também.
Or maybe you want to make things sound more intense. Te amo muito means "I love you a lot".
Te amo muitíssimo is even more emphatic. It's a great way to say something like "I love you so much" in Portuguese.
To say "I'm in love with you" in Portuguese, say estou apaixonado por você (change apaixonado to apaixonada if you're female).
As you may know, Portugese has two words for “to be”: ser and estar. It’s a complicated topic, but the basic idea is that ser is used for permanent, non-changing states while estar is used for temporary conditions. So actually, if you’ve been madly in love with someone for a long time, it makes more sense to say sou apaixonado/apaixonada por você instead of estou.
"Beautiful" in Portuguese
There are a few ways in Portuguese to tell someone that they're beautiful.
First off, you could describe someone as bonito (for men) or bonita (for women). This is roughly equivalent to calling someone "pretty" in English.
A stronger word is lindo or linda, which means "beautiful". The noun lindeza means "beauty".
Then there's gostoso/gostosa, which literally means “tasty”, but is a common gíria (slang word) in Brazil for saying that someone is… well, tasty. Tell someone they’re gostoso if you think they’re hot.
The English word "sexy" is also used in Portuguese, with the exact same meaning.
Finally, there's tesudo or tesuda. This word doesn't have a direct translation, but if someone is tesudo then it means they make you feel tesão; that is, sexual desire.
Note that tesudo/a is a rather suggestive word. If you tell a girl you just met that you find her tesuda, don't be surprised if she slaps you in the face!
"Cute" in Portuguese
Another word worth knowing is fofo/fofa, which means "cute". Use it to describe people, animals, children, or anything that makes you go "awwwwwww".
"I miss you" in Portuguese
There's a famous word in Portuguese that has no direct English translation. Long-time Fi3M readers may know it, as it's been mentioned a few times before.
That word is saudade, plural saudades. If you have a saudade for something, it means you feel a deep longing or yearning for it. You miss it!
So to tell someone you miss them in Portuguese, say eu estou com saudades de você - "I have (lit: am with) saudades for you"!
"Heart" in Portuguese
"Heart" in Portuguese is coração. Make sure to pronounce the "-ão" ending correctly, with a nasal sound; this is often a difficult one for learners of Portuguese.
Like in English, and in most languages, Portuguese has a lot of heart-related expressions about relationships and love. A warm, generous person is said to have a grande coração - big heart - or even a coração de ouro - heart of gold. If you want to win someone's affections, you can try to ganhar o coração - win their heart. Or if your attempts to ganhar o coração are unsuccessful, you may be left with a coração partido - a broken heart.
If something is very important to you, you can say that you feel it do fundo do meu coração; "from the bottom of my heart".
So next time you see your Portuguese-speaking love interest, let your true feelings be known: te amo do fundo do meu coração - "I love you from the bottom of my heart."
"Sweetheart" in Portuguese
Portuguese has many terms of endearment - cute, affectionate names by which you might address a loved one, like "sweetheart" or "darling" in English.
One common term of endearment is querido (said to a man) or querida (said to a woman.) While it literally means something like "desired", think of as like the English word "sweetheart"; it's the kind of thing a husband might say to his wife (or visa versa.)
Another nice term of endearment is bem. Or to keep things simple, address your loved one as amor. I already told you what that one means!
"Boyfriend/girlfriend" in Portuguese
Your "boyfriend" or "girlfriend" in Portuguese is your namorado or namorada. To remember it, think of the English word "enamoured".
In the early stages of your relationship, you might say that you're saindo com the other person; "going out with them". Once things get more serious, and they "officially" become your namorado or namorada, you say that you're namorando com them. (Com means "with".)
"Fiancé/fiancée" in Portuguese
Are you ready to pop the question to your namorada? If so, get down on one knee and say você quer casar comigo? - "will you marry me?". Hopefully he or she will say yes, in which case you're no longer namorados (boyfriend/girlfriend) but noivos (fiancés/engaged.)
If you speak Spanish, beware of the false friend here. In Spanish your novio or novia is your boyfriend or girlfriend, but in Portuguese the cognates noivo and noiva (note the slightly different spelling and pronunciation) mean "fiancé" and "fiancée" respectively. (Your "fiancé/fiancée" in Spanish is your prometido/prometida.) Make sure you don't mix these words up!
On the day of the casamento (wedding), the words noiva and noivo are still used to refer to the bride and the groom. Portuguese doesn't have separate words for “bride” and “groom” like English does; you’re still just “fiancés”.
"Husband/wife" in Portuguese
So now that you're casado (married), what should you call each other? Easy: "husband" in Portuguese is marido and "wife" is esposa. No amigos falsos this time: both words are exactly the same as in Spanish.
Enjoy having an aliança (wedding ring) on your finger. Parabens (congratulations) on your marriage!
“Love” in Portuguese is a Beautiful Thing
As the Beatles sang, tudo o que você precisa é de amor. Well, actually they sang "all you need is love", but I like how it sounds in Portuguese. Hopefully I've given you all the words you need to catch and keep that special someone. Learning another language is, after all, a great way to broaden your potential dating pool.
February 9, 2020
5 Steps to Learn Japanese Anywhere in the World
“Japanese is the hardest language in the world.”
“I’m too old to learn a language.”
“I don’t have time to learn a language.”
“I can’t afford to take Japanese classes.”
“I can’t move to Japan.”
I provide a lengthy rebuttal to the first belief in my Fluent in 3 Months guest post Is Japanese hard? Why Japanese is easier than you think , and Benny slays the second in his post Why adults are better learners than kids (So NO, you’re not too old) . For great tips on creating more time for language learning, see his post How to make time if you are too busy .
But what about the last two objections: the high cost of classes and the infeasibility of moving abroad for most people? If you don’t take Japanese classes, you will forever speak like Tarzan, right? And everyone knows that you can’t reach a high level of fluency unless you live where the language is spoken. Right?! Luckily, but both of these are widespread myths, not concrete facts. And if you let yourself believe them (as many would-be learners do), you will create a self-fulfilling prophecy and never reach fluency in Japanese.
Can language classes help? Sure. Is living in Japan advantageous? Of course. But in today’s internet-connected world, neither is a requirement for success. With a little creativity, discipline, and intelligent use of technology, you can reach conversational fluency in Japanese without ever setting foot in Nihon or spending a single yen on classes. Read on to see exactly how.
Primary Principles
Before we get into the details of how to learn Japanese anywhere in the world, I want to first establish a few primary principles for success in independent language learning.
Fluency in Japanese Depends on Attitude, Not Aptitude or Latitude
I’ve interviewed nearly fifty of the world’s best language learners for my podcast The Language Mastery Show , including polyglots, linguists, missionaries, and more in an effort to understand how they manage to acquire multiple foreign languages while so many fail to learn even one.
Most non-polyglots assume that the answer is natural talent. And yes, there certainly are a small number of outlier intellects in the world (e.g. Daniel Tammet) who can go from zero to basic fluency in a matter of weeks. The truth, however, is that nearly all of the polyglots I’ve met and interviewed have brains and abilities just like you and me. The common denominator turns out to be attitude, not aptitude; psychology, not ability. Though their preferred methods differ, the hyper-successful language learners I’ve met all have one thing in common: they have a positive attitude and truly believe they can learn any language if they do enough of the right things for a long enough period of time.
As Benny puts it in his book Fluent in 3 Months: How Anyone at Any Age Can Learn to Speak Any Language from Anywhere in the World :
“…where you are isn’t what decides whether or not you’ll be successful. Attitude beats latitude (and longitude) every time. It’s more about creating an immersion environment, exposing yourself to native speakers, and doing everything you can in that language.”
Fluency Requires Only Two Basic Ingredients
So what are those “right” things that polyglots do? Simple: they get ample doses of the two basic ingredients of language acquisition: exposure and practice.
That’s it. Specific details vary from polyglot to polyglot, but the broad strokes are the same for everyone: getting all kinds of input (listening and reading) and a metric ass-ton of output (speaking and writing).
To paraphrase the Jewish philosopher Hillel the Elder, “the rest is commentary.”
But this is one case where the commentary matters. Simply knowing you need something and actually getting it are two very different things. Many language learners never get sufficient exposure and practice even after years of language study or even years spent living abroad:
If you follow the language learning methods used in traditional schooling, it’s unlikely that you will ever get the quantity or quality of exposure and practice you need to reach fluency. This is why so many emerge from years of language study unable to communicate. But don’t blame yourself. The traditional academic approach―reading grammar rules, memorizing vocabulary lists, and taking tests―is simply not an effective way to learn languages for most people since the vast majority of time is spent learning about the target language instead of immersing learners in it.
And even living in Japan won’t necessarily provide the exposure and practice you need to reach fluency, especially if you surround yourself with other English speakers and let Japanese-speaking friends or romantic partners do all the heavy linguistic lifting for you. I’ve met many expats who’ve lived in Japan for years (and some even decades!) who can’t order an ocha to save their life.
Though these facts may be hard to accept, deep down everyone knows they are true. The cold hard truth is that we get better at what we practice. Taking classes makes you better at . . . taking classes and passing exams. Having your English-speaking Japanese girlfriend or boyfriend order for you . . . helps them get better at English. If you want to learn how to understand and speak Japanese, then you have to actually listen and speak. If you want to learn how to read and write the language, you have to actually read and write. Instead of wasting your precious time, money, and energy on safe, peripheral activities that feel like learning, learn Japanese for real by directly practicing the skills you want to master.
The good news is that you can now immerse yourself in Japanese and practice all four language skills anywhere in the world from the comfort of your home, your office, your car, your devices, or even your bathroom! Instead of traveling to an expensive language class or hopping on an airplane, you simply need to design an immersion environment right where you are. This approach―which I call “Anywhere Immersion™”―is more fun, more convenient, more effective, more affordable, more natural, and far more personalized than the traditional classroom and textbook-based learning.
How to Create a Japanese “Anywhere Immersion” Environment
The basic goal of “Anywhere Immersion” is to flood yourself with opportunities to hear, read, speak, and write Japanese throughout your day. You want to make Japanese the default instead of having to constantly choose to seek it out or select materials in Japanese over those in your native language. Instead of relying on fickle willpower and motivation, you instead rely on the power of convenience and momentum.
As Khatzumoto of All Japanese All the Time puts it:
“Make sure that Japanese is visible and audible in your life. Perpetually, prominently, repeatedly, more-often-than-not, visible and audible. Ask yourself: ‘What am I seeing? What am I hearing?’”
Step 1: Create a Japanese Immersion Environment at Home
They say that home is where the heart is, but I say, home is where the best immersion is! Though you can immerse yourself in Japanese anywhere you happen to be, you have the most choice and control in your house, apartment, room, cave, secret lair, or wherever you happen to call “home.” Here are some ways to optimize your home environment for Japanese exposure and practice throughout your day:
Include only Japanese content in your “watch next” queues: Whether you use Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, YouTube, DVDs, etc., make sure to include only Japanese videos (ビデオ), anime (アニメ), TV shows (テレビ番組), and movies (映画) in your queues. Remove any content in your native language to ensure that Japanese input is the default choice when you have a hankering to plop down on the couch to watch something.
Place paper flashcards on your nightstand: This ensures that Japanese is the first thing you see in the morning and the last thing you see at night. Moreover, sandwiching sleep in between review sessions helps solidify memories and improve retention. Why paper you ask? While digital flashcards have their advantages (e.g. automatic spaced repetition), paper still has its place in the modern world: it’s faster, more tactile, eliminates potential digital distractions (e.g. clicking over to Instagram), and won’t blast your eyes with blue light (which can negatively affect your sleep if studying before bed). When possible, I recommend making your own flashcards based on authentic content you’ve read or listened to, including example sentences to model usage and collocations, and adding some simple drawings (stick figures are fine) to further increase comprehension and retention.
Practice writing kana or kanji as you shower: Instead of spending your bathing time zoning out or scaring the cat with your singing, use the time to practice writing out the three Japanese scripts: hiragana (平仮名), katakana (片仮名), or kanji (漢字, “Chinese characters used in Japanese”) on the steamed up glass or wall. And if you do want to work out the golden pipes, make sure you’re singing in Japanese. My go-to tune for shower karaoke? Ue-wo muite arukou (上を向いて歩こう, “I Look Up As I Walk,” also known by the unfortunate and somewhat racist title of an earlier age, “Sukiyaki”).
Place Japanese reading material in the bathroom: As the beloved children’s book says, “Everybody poops.” So we might as well capitalize on our time in the “throne room” and get some useful Japanese input while doing our business. Any Japanese text is fine, but I recommend manga (漫画, “Japanese comics”) since you can get through a few pages quickly in each go. Moreover, the visual context and use of furigana (振り仮名, “hiragana reading guides next to kanji) makes them easier to understand than many other forms of Japanese reading input. And hey, it’s more interesting than reading the back of a shampoo bottle...
Label household objects in Japanese: Use sticky notes or removable labels to tag various objects around your house. Use Tuttle’s Japanese Picture Dictionary or the Japanese version of Google Images to find the Japanese terms you need. Depending on your level, you can write the words in romaji (ローマ字, “Romanized Japanese”), kana (i.e. hiragana or katakana), or kanji. Writing out the labels provides some useful writing practice as you create them, in addition to the subsequent reading practice you get each time you walk by the object. Just don’t put a Post-It on the cat; they don’t like things stuck to their fur nor do self-important felines like being pigeonholed with “labels.”
Change the language on your devices: Changing the display language to Japanese on your computer, TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, etc. provides useful, contextual Japanese reading input each time you use the device. Likewise, changing the input language for Google Home, Alexa, Apple HomePod, etc. provides chances to practice speaking, too! See Step 4: Create an Immersion Environment on Your Devices below for step-by-step instructions.
Step 2: Create a Japanese Immersion Environment While Commuting
Most people spend more than 150 hours commuting to and from work each year (the equivalent of 19 workdays!). This doesn’t even include all the extra time we spend running errands, attending classes or sports practice, traveling to and from social engagements, etc. While cars, buses, trains, or bicycles might not be the ideal language learning environment, we might as well leverage all of these otherwise wasted hours acquiring Japanese. Here are a few suggestions depending on your mode of transportation:
Car or bike: Since you will need to keep your eyes on the road and your hands on the wheel or handlebar, audio-based resources are your best option when commuting on two to four wheels (or one wheel for you unicycle riders out there). The car can actually be a great place to practice listening and speaking Japanese aloud (assuming you’re commuting alone or don’t mind annoying your fellow passengers). Same goes for riding a bike, though you may get some stares from passers-by. There are many great audio-based courses available today, but I recommend starting with one of the following three: 1) Michel Thomas, 2) Pimsleur, or Glossika.
Bus or train: Since you will have your eyes and hands free, use your time on public transit to listen to a podcast such as JapanesePod101, read a manga like One Piece, text with native Japanese speakers using HelloTalk, or look up new words you encounter using a dictionary app like Nihongo or Japanese.
Step 3: Create a Japanese Immersion Environment at Work
Most people spend between 40 and 50 hours a week at work, so this is a big chunk of potential time for Japanese immersion if you play your cards right. But how can you possibly get Japanese exposure or practice if you don’t work in a Japanese speaking environment?
Talk to a Japanese tutor online during your lunch break: Talking to a Japanese tutor a few times a week is the single most important Anywhere Immersion activity of all. If you only take action on one suggestion from this post, make it this one! Websites like iTalki allow you to work with Japanese language teachers and tutors no matter where you live. You can either do a free language exchange where you split the time between English and Japanese, or pay for a Japanese tutor for a ridiculously low amount of money given the quality and personal one-on-one attention you receive. I recommend scheduling your sessions during your lunch break so that they happen at the same time each week (meaning you are more likely to show up and make consistent progress).
Take meeting notes in Japanese: Instead of wasting away hours of your day in pointless meetings, why not transform the time-suck into a useful chance to practice vocabulary and writing? Use whatever Japanese words and structures you know to write out meeting notes, ideas, follow-up tasks, etc. Don’t worry about writing every single word in Japanese or using perfect grammar; just write as much as you can in the language and then make a note of what words or structures you want to look up later or talk over with your tutor.
Study flashcards or listen to a Japanese podcast during breaks: Skip the watercooler or coffee shop and instead work through a few flashcards in Tinycards or take a short walk as you listen to an episode of Nihongo con Teppei. While each session may not represent a big chunk of learning time, the little scraps can add up to a significant amount of time over weeks and months.
Step 4: Create a Japanese Immersion Environment on Your Devices
According to RescueTime, the average smartphone user spends 3.25 hours every day on their device, and the top 20% spend 4.5 hours! Holy shiitake mushrooms! This is a serious chunk of time! But instead of beating ourselves up about it, why not leverage the time for language learning with one simple tweak: changing our device display language to Japanese. This way, each time we unlock our phone, tablet, or laptop, we’re exposed to meaningful, contextual Japanese input. And assuming we’re are already familiar with how to navigate our devices, we can easily guess and internalize new words and phrases with minimal effort.
Here now are instructions for changing the display languages on the most popular operating systems to Japanese (and back to English if need be):
iOS: To change the display language to Japanese on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch: Open Settings. > Tap General. > Tap Language & Region. > Tap on the language next to iPhone Language. > Select 日本語 (Japanese) from the list. > Tap Done and then Change to Japanese. > The screen will then turn black and display 言語を設定中 until the process completes. Your phone interface will now be in Japanese, as will any apps that support the language. To switch back to English: Open 設定. > Tap 一般. > Tap 言語と地域. > Tap on 日本語 to the right of iPhoneの使用言語. > Select English (英語) or your preferred language from the list. > Tap 完了 and then 英語に変更. > The screen will then turn black until the process completes.
Android: The exact steps may differ slightly depending on what version of Android you’re using, but here are the basic instructions for changing the display language to Japanese on Android devices: Open Settings by swiping down from the top of the screen and tapping the gear icon. > Tap General Management. > Tap Language & Input and then Language. > Tap Add a Language. > Tap 日本語. > Tap Set as Default. Voila! Your Android is now in Japanese! To switch back: Open 設定. > Tap 一般管理. > Tap 言語とキーボード. > Tap 言語. > Drag English (or your preferred language) to the top of the list. > Tap 適用.
macOS: To change the display language on macOS to Japanese: Click the Apple icon in the upper left corner of the screen and then select System Preferences from the dropdown list. > Click on Language & Region. > Click the + icon in the lower left below the list of currently installed languages. > Select 日本語 (Japanese) from the list of options and click Add. > Click Use Japanese on the dialogue window that pops up. > Restart your computer to make the changes take effect. Your entire operating system will now be in Japanese, as will native macOS apps like Pages, Keynote, Photos, and any third-party apps that support Japanese. To switch back to English: Click the Apple icon once more and select システム環境設定 from the dropdown list. > Click on 言語と地域. > Drag English (or your preferred language) to the top of the list. > Click the red circle in the upper left to close settings. Click on 今すぐ再起動 when the dialog box pops up to restart your computer.
Windows: Here’s how to change the display language to Japanese on Windows (note that the exact steps may differ slightly depending on which version of Windows you’re running): Open Settings. > Click Time & Language. > Click Language. > Click Add a preferred language in the Preferred languages section. > Search for Japanese (日本語) and select it from the results. > Click Next and then check both the Set as my display language and Install language pack boxes. > Click Download and then Back once it’s finished. > Select Japanese (日本語) from the Windows display language menu.
Step 5: Face Your Fears & Overcome the Resistance
You now know a number of ways to immerse yourself in Japanese whether at home, at work, commuting to and fro, or using your devices. And as G.I. Joe taught us when we were kids, “Knowing is half the battle.” But what about the other half? Knowledge can be power, but it remains nothing but potential energy until acted upon. You have to take action to get results. Knowing in your head that talking to your tutor will help your Japanese is a far cry from actually jumping on Skype and talking with him or her. The problem is that we often fail to act because of fear and what author Steven Pressfield calls “The Resistance” in his book The War of Art, an evil force that sabotages our efforts and keeps us from reaching our loftiest goals:
“Resistance is not a peripheral opponent. Resistance arises from within. It is self-generated and self-perpetuated. Resistance is the enemy within.”
Fear and Resistance are especially common blocks to speaking in Japanese. Real-time, real-world communication can be messy and unpredictable. You don’t have the option to “pause” the conversation like you can watching anime or stop to look up an unknown word when you’re face to face with a living, breathing human. It’s far easier, safer, and more comfortable to stay in one’s little “input bubble” and study Japanese alone. I totally get it! And have been there myself. But the truth is that “easy,” “safe,” and “comfortable” are not adjectives that describe how the world’s best language learners acquire languages. Sure, they engineer their learning environments for maximum fun and convenience, but they also constantly push themselves outside their comfort zones to speak with native speakers, apply what they’re learning, and make (and learn from) mistakes. If you want to make your fluency dreams come true, you too must do the same.
So how can we overcome our fears and kick Resistance in the nether regions? Here are three methods I have found to be particularly effective:
Name your fears: As the great sage philosopher Yoda once said, “Named must your fear be before banish it you can.” Before we can conquer our fears, we must first define what they are. We can’t fight something if we don’t even know what it is or where it lives.
So what scares you most about learning and practicing Japanese? We are all unique individuals, and what scares the kimono off me might not intimidate you in the slightest, and vice-versa. That said, there are some common language-related scenarios that induce anxiety in many people. Do any of these fears sound familiar? “I’m afraid of not understanding (or not being understood by) native speakers.” “I’m afraid of not being able to express my thoughts and feelings.” “I’m afraid of making mistakes, looking foolish, or committing a linguistic or cultural gaffe.” “I’m afraid of making a bad first impression or offending someone.” “I’m afraid of ordering the wrong food, getting on the wrong train or bus, etc.” “I’m afraid of wasting money or being swindled.” “I’m afraid of doing poorly on a placement test critical to one’s academic or professional career.” “I’m afraid of not landing a Japanese-related job or losing a business deal.” Whatever the fear, identify it clearly and write it down on paper. Miraculously, the simple act of writing down our fears often takes away much of their power. Our fears feed off of uncertainty, ambiguity, and nebulousness, so putting pen to paper can shine the light of certainty, clarity, and specificity, which are all toxic to fear. But even after writing them down, some fears will still remain sufficiently strong to block action and progress. For these, we need to proceed to the next step.
Take baby steps: Instead of giant leaps, we should take “baby steps” like Bill Murray’s affable character Bob in What About Bob? “Baby step to the elevator. I'm in the elevator. AHHHHH!!!” “Baby step on the bus… Baby step on the bus…” “Baby step to 4 o’clock… Baby step to 4 o’clock…” The movie took the baby steps concept to the extreme for comedic effect, but this shouldn’t discount the life-changing power of incremental change.
Breaking our fears down into tiny, manageable chunks allows us to gradually build the confidence and competence we’ll need to face even greater fears. Each micro-exposure to fear and challenge makes us that much stronger, that much more antifragile. The key is to choose a small enough step that you can easily manage it today. If it’s too big of a jump, you will find an excuse to put it off. But if the step is just outside the ring of your current comfort zone, it will be easier to take action and build the confidence you’ll need to take a slightly bigger step tomorrow. And then an even bigger step the next day. Before you know it, you will have strengthened your change muscles to the point where you can easily “lift” extremely uncomfortable and unfamiliar experiences without breaking a sweat. While others are panicking, you will be calm, collected, and enjoying the moment.
Build courage and competence: Once you’ve identified your fears and broken them down into manageable baby steps, the final step is building your confidence and competence through sufficient practice. Many people put off action until they feel confident enough to act, but this is actually ass-backward from how the universe works. As Tim Ferriss puts it, “You do not think your way into confidence. You act your way into confidence.” The hard truth is that no amount of thinking or studying will ever produce confidence. Somewhat paradoxically, we can only attain confidence after taking the very actions we wish we had the confidence to take in the first place. In other words, we get the courage to jump once we’ve already jumped! It’s also important to note that our fears never really go away. In fact, you may notice an interesting phenomenon each time you speak with a native speaker: you still feel the same fear as before, but it doesn’t both or control you as it did before. It no longer stops you from taking action. The bad news is that we can never escape fear, but the good news is that action makes us braver, empowering us to act and practice despite our fears.
So what steps are you going to take toward fluency in Japanese today? Don’t wait for the “perfect” time or conditions (they won’t come). Don’t wait until you feel “ready” to start communicating (few ever do). Just start putting one foot in front of the other and before you know it, you will have climbed Japanese mountain and reached your fluency goals. Happy trails!
Want more like this? Then check out Master Japanese. This epic guide is by far the most comprehensive book we've seen on learning Japanese. It's written by John Fotheringham, the author of this guest post. He’s a passionate, hard-core Japanese learner, and you can feel it in every page.
The post 5 Steps to Learn Japanese Anywhere in the World appeared first on Fluent in 3 months - Language Hacking and Travel Tips.
February 6, 2020
Stop Saying the Same Thing! 80+ Spanish Synonyms to Spice Up Your Speech
When you first start learning Spanish (or any language, for that matter), it can be easy to fall into a vocabulary rut. You’ve memorised the most common words, and you can get your point across… but it’s not the exact way you would’ve said it in your native language. You want to say something is “striking”, but you don’t know that word, so you say “pretty”. You want to say you’re “irritated”, but instead say “angry”. The meaning is somewhat close -- but not exactly what you wanted to say.
Of course, saying anything in your target language is a fantastic first step. Speaking from day 1 is the way to succeed at speaking in Spanish. But, at some point, you need to take the time to grow your vocabulary and learn synonyms! This way, you can say things in Spanish in a more natural way, like you would in your native language. Your speech will flow easier, and you can express yourself on a deeper level.
Tips for Expanding Your Vocab with Spanish Synonyms
Before we get started, I wanted to share some tips to memorise these new words. Plus, how to keep the momentum going from here on.
When learning Spanish synonyms, try to create a story or thread that connects each new word with the common one you know. If you learn them as a set, it will be easier to memorise them. One way to do this is to create a memory palace. You weave the vocabulary into a place or a story. Then, when you go to say “pretty”, you’ll also remember the words for beautiful, striking, gorgeous, cute, and more. That way you can recall fast the word that has the nuance you’re looking for!
You can also use alliteration or rhyming as a memory hack. Using words that have the same first letter, or sound similar, can help you remember the new vocabulary. In English, this would be something like “pretty princess” or “irritated iguana”... The sillier, the better!
Now, we’re talking about Spanish synonyms. But learning synonyms and antonyms in pairs is an excellent way to expand your vocabulary, too. So with any new vocab lists you put together, look for opposites you could add.
Also, make sure to change the word endings to match the gender. For instance, I listed bonita below, which is feminine, but you can also say bonito for the masculine form.
Spanish Synonyms to Spice Up Your Descriptions
Let’s start with some descriptive words, the words we use to talk about characteristics or personality. How about we start with that word I kept using as an example above? “Pretty” in Spanish is bonita. But we could also say bella for “beautiful”, or belleza sorprendente for “striking beauty”. How about linda (“lovely”) or guapo (“handsome”)? Someone could be atractivo (“attractive”), fascinante (“bewitching”), or even radiante (“radiant”).
If someone is “nice”, we can say simpático. But we could also use agradable, amable, bueno, which all mean “nice” or “kind”. We could even say encantador (“charming”) or amistoso (“friendly”).
But what if they’re ”mean”? Then they would be desagradable. We could also describe them as “unpleasant”, or antipático, or ruda for “rude”. There’s also malo for “bad” and difícil for “difficult”.
How about that word we all too often say we are: “busy”. That’s ocupado in Spanish, but you might say you’re “swamped” or inundado. Maybe you’re absorto, or “absorbed” or “engrossed” in your work. Or what you really want to say is your work is abrumador -- “overwhelming”. If you’re feeling cansado (“tired”) from work, you could say agotado (“exhausted”) or desgastado (“worn out”).
On the opposite side of that, if you’re not busy, then you’re libre (“free”). You could be feeling perezoso, “lazy”, or tranquilo, “calm” or “chill” in Spanish.
In English, there are many ways to say “cool”. In Spanish, “cool” is guay. But you could also say something is estupendo (“stupendous” -- used much more often in Spanish than English), increíble for “amazing”, or genial for “great”. If you’re describing someone, you could also use suave to say someone or something is “smooth”.
Spanish Synonyms for Expressing Deeper Emotions
When you want to express your emotions in Spanish, you’ve got to know more than “happy” and “sad”! If you’re feeling happy, you could say feliz, but it’s more common to say contento (“content”). You could also say you’re feeling bien, which is “good”, or maravilloso for “wonderful”.
Sad is triste, but let’s spice it up. Maybe you’re melancólico or “gloomy” like old Eeyore from Winnie the Pooh. “Lonely” in Spanish is solitario, while “unhappy” is infeliz -- easy to remember if you know feliz is “happy”.
I talked about that “irritated iguana” earlier. Well, “irritated” is irritado. If you’re fed up, you’re estoy harto. And for furiously angry, you’re feeling furioso.
If you love someone or something, you’re enamorado or “enamoured”. You could also feel passionate about something, apasionado. But the opposite is odio, or “hate”. You can also detesto (“detest”), or despreciar (“despise”).
Spanish Synonyms for Greetings and Replies
Hola and sí can get old, fast. So why not change it up? Instead of ”hello”, you could say ¿Qué tal? for “What’s up?” You could also use ¿Cómo andas? to say “how are you?” as a greeting. For a casual “hey!”, you could just say ¡Oye!
And instead of sí for “yes”, how about vale for “okay”? Or, use Vale, suena bien for “Alright, sounds good.” You could also use vale as a response to ¿Cómo andas?, as well as bien (“good”) or más o menos (“so-so”).
Instead of no, you could say por supuesto no for “of course not”, or claro que no for “clearly not”. You can say “No way!” like ¡De veras! (“No way!” as a surprise), or ¡De ninguna manera! (“No way!” as in, “No way I’m doing that!”).
And if you’re unsure, say No lo sé… for “I don’t know…” or tal vez or quizá for “maybe”.
Spanish Synonyms for Everyday Things
Are you using the same words to describe the nouns around you? For instance, I’m sure you learned that “clothes” in Spanish is ropa. But you could also say vestido!
Another common word we learn early on in our Spanish journey: libro, or “book”. But sometimes, we want to be more specific. If you’re reading a novel, you could say novela. If you want to talk about the story, we would use historia.
Even “languages” can be said in different ways. We can use idioma, lengua, or even habla to talk about “speech” and “language”. And “travel” could be both viaje or recorrido.
What about your job? A job is trabajo, but you can also say ocupación for “occupation” or “profesión”. And if you’re heading out to the “office”, both oficina or despacho would work.
Certain job titles, too, can have synonyms. “Doctor” could be both doctor or médico. A student could be estudiante or alumno. A writer could be called escritor or autor (“author”).
Spanish Synonyms for Everyday Actions
Verbs are easy to get hung up on. Do you stick to the same few to get your point across? It works -- but, you could more accurately describe your actions if you only knew the right words!
Let’s take to study for example. That’s estudiar in Spanish, but what if we’re not studying right now? What if we want to say we’re “learning” something? Then we would want to know aprender. The meaning is almost the same, but the nuance is different.
Or how about “to see” versus “to watch”, “to look”, or “to notice”? When we “see” something, the verb is ver. But mirar is to look or watch, and notar is to notice something. Again, almost the same meaning. But there’s a much clearer meaning to “I noticed” instead of “I saw”.
To “go” is ir. But we could also use viajar for “travel”, recorrer to “roam”, moverse for “move” or llegar to arrive. We could even say we “wander” (vagar) or “explore” (explorar) to give our action a more adventurous tone!
Let’s look at one more. We talk a lot about speaking from day one around here. But how else can we talk about talking? You know hablar is the verb to “talk” or “speak”. But we could also say charlar for “chat”. How about comunicar for “to communicate” or decir for “to tell”?
Get creative with how you express yourself. Just because the basic, most common verb will do doesn’t mean you have to stick with it forever!
Stop Saying the Same Thing in Spanish
Take these Spanish synonyms and spice up your speech. Any time you find yourself saying the same word all the time... Well, look up some synonyms to change it up. Not only will it help you expand your Spanish vocabulary faster, but you’ll sound more natural. You’ll be able to express yourself in a concise way like you would in your native language. Then, add them to your SRS flashcard app so you don’t forget them!
What other Spanish synonyms have you learned to change things up? What words do you find yourself repeating often? Share with me in the comments!
The post Stop Saying the Same Thing! 80+ Spanish Synonyms to Spice Up Your Speech appeared first on Fluent in 3 months - Language Hacking and Travel Tips.
February 4, 2020
The Best Online Dictionary for Language Learners: Google Image Search
Google image search!
Whether you're looking for an online Spanish dictionary, French dictionary, German dictionary, Chinese dictionary, or an online dictionary for any language, Google image search would always be my first choice.
Let me explain why:
There is a huge problem with almost every single online dictionary you will come across. The translation is always wrong! Yep. Demand your money back!
