Why is it hard to learn English?

The language features grammatical rules that are often broken, an alphabet that can confuse people who are used to a character-based system, and spelling and pronunciation irregularities that perplex even native speakers.
Takedown request   |   View complete answer on unitedlanguagegroup.com


What is the hardest part about learning English?

Here are some of the best responses and the biggest pitfalls for English learners...
  • Sentence structure. The big red dog NOT the red big dog. ...
  • Phrasal verbs. How do you feel about phrasal verbs? ...
  • Vowels. Vowels. ...
  • Latent letters. Moved to the states when I was 7 years old. ...
  • Exceptions. ...
  • Pronunciation. ...
  • Idioms. ...
  • Homonyms.
Takedown request   |   View complete answer on indy100.com


Is English considered hard to learn?

It's often said that English is one of the hardest languages to learn. Given the fact that many of the words we use in English stem from Latin and Ancient Greek words – in common with many other European languages – what is it about English that has attracted this reputation for being so fearsomely difficult?
Takedown request   |   View complete answer on oxford-royale.com


What is the hardest language?

1. Mandarin. As mentioned before, Mandarin is unanimously considered the toughest language to master in the world! Spoken by over a billion people in the world, the language can be extremely difficult for people whose native languages use the Latin writing system.
Takedown request   |   View complete answer on leverageedu.com


Is English the hardest language?

So, is English the hardest language to learn? No. English can be difficult, but if you didn't grow up speaking them, these languages are harder: Mandarin: That tone system is difficult to master if your language doesn't have something similar.
Takedown request   |   View complete answer on wordcounter.net


Comparison: Average Age For Everything



Why is learning a language so hard?

But, why is it so hard to learn a foreign language, anyway? Put simply, it's hard because it challenges both your mind (your brain has to construct new cognitive frameworks) and time (it requires sustained, consistent practice).
Takedown request   |   View complete answer on ef.edu


Which language is the easiest to learn?

Top 9 Easiest Languages to Learn
  • NORWEGIAN. Grammar, syntax and word order are all similar to English thanks to shared North Germanic roots. ...
  • SWEDISH. ...
  • DANISH. ...
  • SPANISH. ...
  • PORTUGUESE. ...
  • ITALIAN. ...
  • FRENCH. ...
  • ROMANIAN.
Takedown request   |   View complete answer on masterstudies.com


What age is best to learn a language?

They concluded that the ability to learn a new language, at least grammatically, is strongest until the age of 18 after which there is a precipitous decline. To become completely fluent, however, learning should start before the age of 10.
Takedown request   |   View complete answer on scientificamerican.com


Why is it that no language is superior to one another?

Because this is the language that contains cues to their culture and heritage, there are no languages that can be considered superior or inferior to another language.
Takedown request   |   View complete answer on studycorgi.com


What is technically the best language?

English came out on top, but not by much. Most of languages grouped pretty closely together, however, Japanese lagged behind the rest. Interestingly, the languages that conveyed the least amount of information per syllable, like Spanish, Japanese, and French, tended to be spoken at a faster rate.
Takedown request   |   View complete answer on realclearscience.com


What is the most superior language?

English is by far the most powerful language. It is the dominant language of three G7 nations (USA, UK and Canada), and British legacy has given it a global footprint. It is the world's lingua franca. Mandarin, which ranks second, is only half as potent.
Takedown request   |   View complete answer on weforum.org


Can a child learn 4 languages?

She might ask for a “bacio” in Italian and might count in English. Don't worry if you child switches between languages, it is their way of saying 'hmmm'☺. A child can grow up learning 3-4 languages from very early on (0-5).
Takedown request   |   View complete answer on thebilingualadvantage.com


Is Spanish faster than English?

Per the results, Japanese is the fastest spoken language from the 17 languages that they studied. Spanish is in second place with around 8-9 syllables spoken per second, whereas, English is in eight place with around 6-7 syllables spoken per second.
Takedown request   |   View complete answer on holalearnspanishinfo.com


Can you learn a language at 17?

A new study from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology suggests that children remain skilled at learning the grammar of a new language up to the age of 17 or 18, the time at which many students graduate high school.
Takedown request   |   View complete answer on edweek.org


What language is closest to English?

The closest language to English is one called Frisian, which is a Germanic language spoken by a small population of about 480,000 people. There are three separate dialects of the language, and it's only spoken at the southern fringes of the North Sea in the Netherlands and Germany.
Takedown request   |   View complete answer on rosettastone.com


Can you forget a second language?

Until the age of about 12, a person's language skills are relatively vulnerable to change. Studies on international adoptees have found that even nine-year-olds can almost completely forget their first language when they are removed from their country of birth.
Takedown request   |   View complete answer on bbc.com


What language is easiest for English speakers?

Of these, Spanish and Italian are the easiest for native English speakers to learn, followed by Portuguese and finally French.
Takedown request   |   View complete answer on cnn.com


Is Chinese or English harder?

It's official: Chinese is more difficult than English. The Chinese need both sides of the brain to grapple with challenges of Mandarin, but English speakers listen with only half their minds on the job.
Takedown request   |   View complete answer on theguardian.com


Is English harder than Japanese?

To sum up, Japanese and English are quite different. However, no language is really harder than any other language.
Takedown request   |   View complete answer on aesmuc.de


Is Spanish or English harder to learn?

Spanish. Social media informalIy tells me there's an overwhelming consensus: English is WAY harder for Spanish-speakers to learn.
Takedown request   |   View complete answer on spanishmama.com


Who invented English?

English is a West Germanic language that originated from Anglo-Frisian languages brought to Britain in the mid 5th to 7th centuries AD by Anglo-Saxon migrants from what is now northwest Germany, southern Denmark and the Netherlands.
Takedown request   |   View complete answer on en.wikipedia.org


What is the 3rd hardest language to learn?

  • 1.1 1. One of Top 10 Hardest Languages To Learn – Arabic.
  • 1.2 2. Mandarin Is Really Hard to Learn.
  • 1.3 3. Japanese Comes In The List Of Top 10 Hardest Languages To Learn.
  • 1.4 4. Hungarian Is Beneficial But Hard to Learn.
  • 1.5 5. Korean.
  • 1.6 6. Top 10 Hardest Languages To Learn – Finnish.
  • 1.7 7. Basque.
  • 1.8 8. Navajo.
Takedown request   |   View complete answer on thelanguagedoctors.org


What is the hardest language to learn if you don't speak English?

What are the most challenging languages to learn for non-English speakers? Dutch, German, French, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish, Romanian, Japanese.
Takedown request   |   View complete answer on justlearn.com