Can you speak foreign languages?

Freefaller said:
I used to speak A/S level Arabic - but having not spent much time over the last 10 years in the middle east I haven't had the opportunity to use it. I know enough to be polite, ask for directions, count etc... but that's it. :(
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I've also found that Arabic seems to have evaporated out of my head, whereas since living in French speaking countries it seems to be sticking well enough that I can still watch French TV/read the paper and can still follow most of a Spanish film.
 
IceBus said:
I've also found that Arabic seems to have evaporated out of my head, whereas since living in French speaking countries it seems to be sticking well enough that I can still watch French TV/read the paper and can still follow most of a Spanish film.
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Yeah immersing yourself in the culture is the best way of picking it up and learning it, and get used to it.
 
Freefaller said:
Yeah immersing yourself in the culture is the best way of picking it up and learning it, and get used to it.
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Unfortunately getting jobs in the real Middle East (i.e. not Dubai, where apparently most people speak English at you) doesn't seem too easy at the minute.
 
English is my first language. Foreign languages that I speak are:
Punjabi - fluently
French - working knowledge
Farsi - beginner
Turkish - beginner

P.S - peterattheboro who are those people in your sig?
 
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French & Urdu - advanced, Spanish - conversational, german - beginner, small amounts of Norwegian (used to be advanced as a kid) cantonese and Bosnian.
 
I'm not very good at speaking foreign languages as I tend to panic and mumble but I can understand French and German fairly well. I can normally have a reasonable guess at Italian (especially if written instead of spoken).

I know a little a little Japanese, enough to shop, obtain food in a restaurant, find the right train and the usual pleasantries at least.
 
Robbo said:
I wish I could speak Norwegian but it's so hard :(
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I don't bother trying to read it, the words look like they cannot be pronounced. Stick to learning how words sound and reading/writing should come naturally. But like I said, I just know enough to get by, but I'm getting better!!!!!
 
When someone says they can speak a language I expect them to have basic conversation in that language. It needs to go beyond than ordering food at macdonalds.
 
Draeger said:
Russian. I studied it at secondary school and when I joined the Army back in 1988 they spotted it and offered me a trade as an EWOP in the Royal Signals.

Fascinating language, country and culture.

I'm a bit rusty in it now having not used it for many years but I can still read and write it and hold a basic conversation. Thinking of going back to brush up on it at some point.
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I've always had trouble with Russian. I've been learning for about 5 years and still can only just mumble very basic sentaces. Also stutter a lot and go uuuuum, eeeeer between almost every word. My nan was Russian so I thought it would come easy to me, but apparently that's not how it works :p
 
I used to speak fluent German when I was wee. Now I can only speak basic German, pigeon French, Czech/Slovak,Malay, Scots and Doric. My step father's second language is English, first being Gaelic. My step uncle is a "famous" Gaelic TV presenter.
 
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