“How to become a polyglot?” or “The secret of speaking 8 languages”
Hey everybody! :) Many people often ask me “how could I manage to speak so many foreign languages?” right after they are aware of this fact. I’m always happy sending to each one a 10+ minute voice message with all secrets and tricks, but I think from now on I’m going to enjoy even more to share the link of this article :) So, what is the secret to learn languages?
There are many people who spend years trying to learn a foreign language but never succeed. I am familiar with these stories very closely. It’s kind of like going to the gym for years, but training in the wrong way. No wonder, why there is still no muscle. In fact, with the right approach, learning a language is not as difficult as it seems, I would even say — it is really easy.
I currently speak Azerbaijani (native), Russian (fluent), English (fluent), Turkish, Spanish, French (intermediate), German and Polish (pre-intermediate). I learned the last 4 independently — just with books and internet. But don’t ask why, I don’t know myself. After realizing that you are good at something — you just follow the “why not?” principle. That’s how I moved to the next languages inertially every time. And believe me, it is absolutely possible!
So, what should be considered when learning a language:
1) Use the language!
Practice, practice and practice again. This is the golden rule! And at the same time the simplest one. Just as you do 10–15 push-ups daily keeping your body in shape, it is important and necessary to keep your language skills in shape. For example, for almost 6 years, I have been reading news or articles in one of the languages I speak. Almost every day. It helps me to learn the new words. Alongside with reading I try to constantly talk with the native speakers so that I don’t forget the languages. You can devote 15–20 minutes to this daily. That is, learning a language is not a process that will end at some point. The language should be used regularly!
2) Don’t study grammar! Get acquaintance with it.
This is the second golden rule! I know, it may sound a little weird. But believe — the time you spend on grammar (at least for the languages I listed) should not exceed 2–3 months! (working for one hour a day). It is necessary to understand how the grammar works, but not to memorize anything. The part that needs to be learned by memory will stuck into your brain by itself eventually while you use the language.
NEVER TRY TO MEMORIZE EXCEPTIONS! THIS IS THE BIGGEST MISTAKE! Irregular verbs, idioms, etc. — these things that are remembered not by mechanical memorization, but by using them, seeing them every time, and hearing them every time. So never try to memorize them. You won’t remember it when it is necessary to use it anyway :) While doing tests-based tasks are useful, it’s not recommended to spend much time on them. Rather than learning the language, try to use it (first rule). Then everything will be great! :)
And of course the important part is feeling the language. “Get plunged into the language.” When you want to say something, never think about how to mechanically build the correct sentence structure in your head! Speak no matter how you speak. Yes — with mistakes! Let the natural flow of talking take the control. Speak intuitively, not mechanically — feel the language!
3) Build an artificial environment for yourself. Make a friend with native speakers.
Lets say you try to learn English. Imagine you are in the USA. You don’t even know a word. But every day, when you go out in the street, you see English words everywhere: on shop windows, on billboards, on walls. Even if you don’t know the meaning of the words, they will stick in your mind. Of course, this was easier than sitting at a desk and learning words from a dictionary. For example, I learned a lot of English words from the PC games I played since childhood. But not everyone is lucky enough to live in the USA. :) Therefore, create an artificial environment for yourself. Create a Virtual USA. (Or Mexico, if it’s español :))
For example, when I was learning Spanish, I subscribed to many Mexican pages. Every day, different statuses in different genres appeared in front of me in Spanish. And I read and translated each one. I even wrote comments and participated in discussions in Spanish. In this way, I met new people, corresponded and spoke in that language for hours. When I couldn’t say any word while speaking, I always looked for that word in the translator and wrote it down. At the end of the conversation I already knew a lot of new words. (more on words later).
Arguing with a native speaker is also nice way to learn a language (although, not the most pleasant one :D). For example, I had a religious debate with an American when I didn’t speak English well yet. The process was so interesting that my mind was not on what I said rightly or wrongly, but on the topic. That’s why I spoke more naturally, even with mistakes.
If you can’t find anyone, you can talk to yourself. I’m serious. Try to tell a story in your life in the language you learn. Just while you are walking, bathing, sitting idle at home. Look up the words you don’t know in the translator. Try to write your statuses in that language. Or just some articles for yourself, like “how did you spend today” or any other topic you like. This will strengthen your grammar and reveal new words you don’t know.
For the correct accent - sing karaoke. When I was a child, I used to sing raps of Eminem, and since the rap was fast-paced, I had to simultaneously sing and digest what I was singing. It helped me to quickly read and understand the text of books, articles, and news. In general, when reading text, I would recommend to read aloud.
4) How to learn the new words?
Learning vocabulary is one of the most important parts. First of all, let me note that the desired word in any language can be known in two ways:
1. You know the word, but you don’t use it. Simply because when you try to use it, you don’t remember it. But when you read or see it somewhere, you instantly remember and understand. Most of the new words are remembered like this.
2. You know the word and use it. Simple.
And so…
1) The best way to learn words is to use them regularly. I see them every day. For example, I take 5–10 minutes every morning while drinking tea and look at the translation of unfamiliar words that I have noted down. I continue this for about 10 days, even if I already know the translation of the words. On the 11th day, I remember all the words like I remember my password from Netflix. Eventually try not to peek to the translation, but remember the meaning of the word just by looking at the word itself. I must admit that the majority of the information will be forgotten in a month or two, unless you come across them again. And for every next occurrence the neuronal connection will be strengthened. Until you remember it just in a sec! :)
If you already speak the similar language, you don’t necessarily need to learn words by memorization. “Make conversions”. For example, when I don’t know a word in Spanish or French, I find the English one and try to “Spanishize” it. Let’s say I forgot how to say “rapidly” in Spanish. I just add “-mente” to the end of the word and get “rapidamente” — fantastic! (or I add “-ment” and get “rapidement” in French). Such “translations” sometimes works with nouns. For example, “adaptor” would be “adapteur” in French. “Moderator” — “moderateur”. Now you know French! Tell me, how will the “actor” be? — you got it right! — “acteur”.
Actually, I’ve revealed a something like a formula for these 3 languages. It doesn’t work with every noun, but you can try at least.
Most of the English words ending with “ly” is “ad” in Spanish and “té” for French.
Liberty — libertad — liberté
Oscurity — oscuridad — oscurité
And et cetera.
So be creative, risk making mistakes, and use words as you know them!
2) Be extremely greedy for the words. If you see a word that is unfamiliar to you, write it down immediately. Don’t miss a word! Read many articles, news daily. This helps you to both fortify what you already know and to discover the words you don’t know. Don’t open the dictionary! Learn in context! If, while watching movies, even a word in the subtitles is not familiar, write it down immediately. For example, I once saw an unfamiliar word on someone’s shirt in the subway. I immediately recorded it on my phone and looked it up in the translator when I got home . It was probably 10 years ago, but I still remember that word. It was — “vague” :)
3) Watch movies, videos often! Seeing the word in context and hearing it at the same time makes it much more likely to be remembered. For example, is the verb “astonish” better remembered just by seeing it in a dictionary, or by Steve Jobs staring at a computer and saying “I was astonished by that magic…” with the epic music at the background? :)
4) Listen to songs, read news. Media is the best instrument for learning words. Listen to songs, memorize the words. It is easier to memorize words with a song. I’m sure you still remember the lyrics of the songs you listened to as a child. Read poems. Read news, articles. Read, read, read again! :)
5) Enjoy what you do
This is one of the most important nuances. Probably, this should have come even first. If you have no desire and no intention to learn a language — stop right now and don’t waste your time with energy. Because, the presence of enthusiasm is very important and a big factor. When I took an English course, our teacher was a truck-driver from California named Judy. She told us that we can help you only 20% in learning English, the remaining 80% is up to you. That is, they push, you go. If you lie lazily on the floor, no matter how much they push you — you will not achieve any result. You will just crawl a little, and fall again onto the ground. But if you stand up and move forward with the impetus given instead, of course you will succeed soon! So, if you don’t have passion - nothing else matters. If you have a passion - nothing else matters. Attendance at the course is generally not required. For example, I didn’t take any courses for the languages I studied other than English — I learned them from the internet and books. Because I had a passion! Enthusiasm is very important. I repeat — if you don’t have a passion, either generate a passion or don’t waste your time in vain. Also, once you know one language, it will be much easier to switch to another and it will motivate you a bit. Because many languages with the same root have the same grammar and different syntax. (For example, switching from Spanish to French was kind of like switching from Java to C#.)
Speaking of the courses…I don’t have any specific recommendations on which course to take. The main thing is that only English (or whatever you learn) is spoken in the course you attend, and the language is taught with interactive fun rather than behind-the-desk style. In general, I avoid studying at a desk as much as possible, and I recommend that you do the same. Work, learn in the meantime: while waiting for the bus at the stop, going somewhere on the subway, standing in line at the store, etc. For example, in the processes I mentioned above, I always turn on the phone, read an article or news in any foreign language, and learn new words. And that’s how I learned most of the words I know. Although we don’t pay much attention to it, we have a lot of time in between and let’s try to spend it usefully. Also, you will be informed about the latest news :)
That’s it :)
So I think I have shared the main points. Hope the mentioned rules are applied for almost any language to learn. Don’t hesitate to ask questions. Good luck! :)
