Learning English language as second language is quite hard because of irregularities, contradictions and vague rules. Only native speakers can comprehend the complex rules as they are too difficult to be passed on.
Learning a new language can always be challenging but not impossible. It surely needs dedication and conviction. Learning English can be quite tough but necessary as it is a universal (for some second) language and a survey shows that from 450 million to 1 billion people speak English.
How is English hard to learn as second language?
Learning English can be challenging as there are many inconsistencies, complexities, and rules that didn’t make much sense and have to be remembered as it is which is quite challenging for non-native learners.
Order of the words:
The native English speakers know a certain order of words which is quite complex and tricky to explain. The order is not backed by any logic but the natives just know the right order. This makes it quite troublesome for non-native learners because they do their best to come up with a grammatically correct sentence but somehow the order doesn’t fit in. For example the sentences “a fascinating little book” and “a little fascinating book” the natives inherently know that the order of the first sentence makes more sense but it is quite difficult to explain to learners.
Words with conflicting meanings
There are certain words in the English language that has entirely contradictory meanings. When such words are used in a sentence it becomes quite challenging to understand the real meaning of the sentence. For example, the word grounded means both sensible and punished. So in the sentence “Chloe is grounded” it becomes extremely difficult to understand the true intent and underlying message. Such words with conflicting meanings often result in miscommunication and misinterpretation.
Stressing certain words
Stressing certain words while speaking English changes the entire meaning of the sentence which is quite difficult for non-native speakers to even identify. If you stress different words of the sentence each time then it completely changes the underlying meaning and message intent of the sentence. For example in the sentence “XYZ STOLE pencils” and “XYZ stole PENCILS” the emphasis or stress upon words is changed which changes the meaning. The former sentence means that the person is shocked that XYZ can steal something while in the latter sentence the person is shocked that XYZ stole something as petty as pencils.
Pronunciation (is english hard to learn)
Pronouncing words is a bit of a challenge when the syllable in the word doesn’t match the phonics sounds. For example in the word Psychology the syllable P is silent, in Philosophy and Symphony the syllables ‘PH’ is pronounced with a sound of ‘F’ which is contradictory to what phonics taught us.
The Singular Plurals Challenge
There are many words in the English language that are called out with the same singular and plural word which doesn’t make much sense. For example Deer, Fish, Sheep, Aircraft, Spacecraft, and others. There is no specific reason as to why we have to write 3 fish instead of 3 fishes but we can write 3 cats or 3 dogs. You kind of has to cram these rules.
Tips and Tricks (is english hard to learn)
Some certain tips and tricks will speed up your English learning.
- Watch movies or seasons in the English language.
- Read English novels to enhance sentence formation learning and vocabulary.
- Communicate in English. Studies show that writing and speaking are two entirely different things. While writing you get time to think it through and even edit your sentence but while speaking you have to be abrupt and instant which pushes you to learn quickly.
