Why I Like The English Language

I actually like the English language. I've been talking it all my lifestyle, but it's not till I became an English instructor, teaching English as a foreign language, that I really started out to recognize how it functions and to appreciate both its richness and its versatility.

I feel that, at an elementary level, English is simpler to find out than some other languages. A beginner can type great basic sentences with no realizing a lot of complex grammatical varieties. English verbs don't have a lot of various endings to memorize just before one particular can express the simplest of thoughts.

Another sturdy level is that English does not, as a rule, have masculine and feminine nouns and there are no changing kinds for adjectives to sluggish a learner down. For instance, in French you must memorize a range of verb endings and match adjectives to nouns ahead of you can verbalize even the easiest suggestions, but a novice does not require to examine English for lengthy aheadof currently being in a position to build good fundamental sentences.

English has a blend of vocabulary with Germanic roots and vocabulary with Latin or French roots, allowing speakers of several European languages to understand and understand numerous English phrases. Despite the fact that from time to time the meanings are no longer the same in the two languages, they are often even now similar enough to serve as an aid to comprehension and to assist a learner get the gist of texts.

Once English learners have reached a far more innovative stage, they turn into subjected to further structures that reveal some sudden complexities in the language. For instance, the makes use of of the current ideal tense can be fairly confusing. On the other hand, English verb types permit for a great aspect of subjectivity and stage of view in expressing attitudes in direction of activities. Take into account "I've just lost my glasses" and "I lost my eyeglasses an hour in the past." The two are very good, but your alternative of one or the other displays your mindset toward the situation. Do you want to emphasize the consequence of dropping your eyeglasses? If so, then decide on the former, the present ideal tense. If you choose to emphasis on when the eyeglasses ended up lost, then use the latter, the past easy tense.

English can be wonderfully expressive. Simply because it has accumulated vocabulary from many various languages, there are much more words to decide on from than some other languages offer. You can talk about a matter at length without at any time repeating your self or overusing a certain term. You can choose from an array of words with similar meanings to locate the most excellent match in meaning and connotation to fit the assumed that you want to express.

Confident, you can basically stroll down the street, but you can also stroll, march, amble, trot, mosey, shuffle, skip, run, race, promenade, lope, slink, fly, zip, crawl, gallop, whiz,zoom, or careen down the street. A cursory glance reveals that the English segment of my bilingual dictionary is significantly greater than the French portion. The enormity of English vocabulary makes it possible for for precision and economy of expression. Tips and directions can be concisely stated. When viewing multilingual indications and gear utilization manuals, the English version is routinely shorter than that of a lot of other languages. To consider a simple example, in French it requires 4 words, "sautez a cloche pied," to express what English does in just 3 letters: "hop."

English quickly absorbs new phrases from other languages and cultures. Just believe of "salsa," "smorgasbord," "taboo," "wampum," and "pajamas," for starters. When required, English also appears to revel in inventing fully new lexicons of words, this kind of as for new technologies like the Web. Internet is complete of colorful and amusing imagery from "the web" to "spidering" and "click on on the mouse," allow alone this sort of silly sounding phrases as "googling," "blogging," and "WIKI." It is a riotously "living" language and this versatility has helped English turn into these a extensively used international language.

I also love English because colorful wordings and vivid imagery abound in equally aged and new expressions. I photograph tall sailing ships and Errol Flynn films when I listen to a person say, "She handed her exam with flying shades." Think of other expressions, also, such as "That makes my pores and skin crawl," "It sent shivers up and down my backbone," "He's obtained his head in the clouds," "She's full of get up and go," and "They are head more than heels in love."

English even has a strong sense of whimsy, and so lends by itself to delightful combos of alliterative phrasings like "the complete kit and caboodle," or "footloose and fancy-totally free." It is also chock total of amusing words that are specifically for youngsters. Believe of "choo-choo train," "pup dog," "kitty cat," or "do the hokey pokey." Exciting-loving authors have additional to the festivities by sensation no cost to invent their very own phrases, just for the pleasing sound of them, from Edward Lear's "Dong with the Luminous Nose" to Dr. Seuss's "Sneeches with stars on thars." J. K. Rowling has invented an entire vocabulary of her personal to use in the magical entire world that she has created for Harry Potter. The so-known as "language of Shakespeare" has contributed significantly literature and poetry to the globe, plus other beautiful expressions of ideas via the abstraction of phrases. As somebody who writes tales for youngsters, I am also fond of simple jingles and enjoyable types this kind of as Mom Goose rhymes.

Now that I am an English instructor, I try to unlock numerous of the mysteries of the English language for students who have other languages as their mom tongues. In carrying out so, I've taken a a lot closer appear at the language myself, in all of its complexities and inconsistencies, all of its principles and abundance of exceptions to its own guidelines, in its huge vocabulary and subtleties in shades of meanings. Every time feasible, I check out to give my students the logic behind the grammar, so that they can gain a deeper understanding of the believed processes behind our a lot of approaches of searching at time, rather than just have college students randomly memorize principles.

To place English into standpoint and make allowances for its numerous idiosyncracies, I try to briefly clarify the heritage of English and the numerous historical influences that have affected it, from a sequence of early invasions of the British Isles, by people this kind of as the Romans, Saxons, Vikings, and Normans, to later British Empire constructing around the globe, and then to America's melting pot of cultures and languages from the planet about. With every single new group has come an infusion of new vocabulary. Some element of comprehension of that historical standpoint can explain to students the two the richness of expression and vocabulary that English possesses, plus the maddening inconsistencies in English spelling and pronunciation. I'm no authority on other languages and I am not stating that English is the greatest language in the world but, as I've taught English to other people above the decades, my personal appreciation of it has grown immeasurably and I've actually come to enjoy it.

English language software