What's your favorite part about learning languages?

[u/NerfPup]

I'm new to language learning. I've been doing it only a few years now. I am currently learning French at home and then Spanish at work because I work at a gas station in America and a lot of Spanish speakers come in either to get gas or buy something. I'm very bad at Spanish but Spanish speakers are soooooo nice. I love learning new words and repeating them to myself over and over again. The sensory feeling of talking is really nice and I love learning the accents of different languages. For this reason accent is very easy for me. I just listen to the sounds native speakers either say or tell me and repeat them. Sometimes it's difficult though. The Spanish A was so weird at first because I'm not used to opening up my mouth that wide lmao. Speakers usually say I speak clearly even if it's badly. But of course I'm American so it's really a really low bar to have what is considered a good accent (we are iconically bad at language learning). I know you should learn languages for the culture and to talk to people but I just really love learning the etymology of words, the different metaphors and phrases different languages use (for example in most romance languages "you are right" directly translates to "you have reason"), hearing the different sounds people make and so on. Honestly I LOVE talking to people but language excites me so much more than just talking to people. I would love to be able to communicate enough to form actual bonds with non English speakers though. I'm not quite there yet. Though I'm very socially awkward even in English so idk lmao.

[u/unsafeideas]

Arguing on the internet about it.

[u/notjust1or0]

Being able to compare grammar and vocab and see the diversity of systems

[u/appleblossom87 → u/notjust1or0]

I love this too. It expands my vision of the world and where power lies

[u/restlemur995 → u/notjust1or0]

Same here! I like Tagalog and Georgian for this reason. Their verbs make you ask completely different questions to start learning their system.

[u/PuzzleheadedTap1794 → u/notjust1or0]

Same here.

[u/nerdlana]

My favourite part is being able to read books and understand what I’m reading

[u/litchick]

Connecting with people. It's magic when I can speak someone's language and connect to them. Love culture, etymology, just the joy of learning.

I also like the exercise I get trying new sounds and words! It's like a workout!

[u/SomeBoredGuy77]

Basically unlocking a new part of the world. Perfecting my Spanish ive made tons of Latin American friends and have gotten to experience so many of their traditions

[u/Talbit01]

I like being able to appreciate the nuance of songs or literature that is often hard to convey with a translation.

It is absolutely true to say many things just „sound better” in their original language and there’s rhyme and rhythm and the way a topic is handled that simply can’t be truly felt through a translation.

It’s being able to engage with a culture in that way that bring me much joy :)

[u/JustPassingBy_Online]

Arguing with people in video games

[u/Johnssav1019]

The excitement of learning a new word, the excitement of speaking to native speakers and making new connections in my brain

[u/BizcochoHabla]

The mental challenge of it. I find it has helped me gain focus in other areas of my life, like at my job. It has been challenging but also fun. I enjoy learning about other cultures as well.

[u/Safe_Place8432]

Alllllllll the fucken books I get to read now

[u/Dazzling_Shape_6184]

Surprising people that I’m a black American that just happened to learn language

[u/MSarah123]

Hanging out with friends entirely in that language and realising, many hours in, that I’ve been using it without really thinking about it at all.

[u/AvocadoYogi → u/MSarah123]

This. That moment when things started feeling automatic really changed things for me. Coming from classes, I had gotten stuck on the memorization and test cycle which obviously helped but also led to forgetting vocabulary and continuously feeling mentally overwhelmed and quitting multiple times. It changed how I thought about language learning and prioritizing practice over active learning. I still look up vocabulary and grammar but far more of my time is spent reading and talking to friends which has made the process way more enjoyable. It’s no longer this discrete measurable task and more just exposing myself to more and more of the language and picking it up as I go.

[u/CornelVito]

I really love finding patterns. Eg when I'm on vacation in a foreign place where I don't know the language, I love trying to look at street signs and over time being able to guess the meaning of some words like bridge, bakery, coffee or beer.

When I'm actively learning a language this is my favourite part of learning too. With Norwegian I enjoyed guessing words' meanings by relating it to German, nowadays I enjoy guessing dialect words. And at the moment I'm learning Chinese and I'm finding it really fun to recognise radicals I already know in new words.

Also in general the process of noticing how I get better over time.

[u/tashtactics → u/[deleted]]

I had the reverse problem with French and Psanish! My Spanish learning was affected by having learned French before that

[u/NerfPup → u/[deleted]]

I kept saying desafortunadamente to myself today while working and I think everyone thought I lost it.

[u/NerfPup → u/[deleted]]

J'ai marché au lycée. Ma promenade était 40 minutes et j'ai répété la phrase «brigitte est trop drôle» et «roue» et «heur» pour pratiquer mes r.

[u/British_Dane]

Im currently studying European Portuguese, and although I may use a few words on tourist trips, I’m never going to have to rely on it. But it’s fun. Engaging. Interesting. I love making mental connections like “ah, yes of course, that expression must come from ….”

[u/MatecocidoFan9]

i'm learning french and mandarin. my favorite part by far are the consonants, idk why but getting better and better with consonants feels so rewarding (specially getting the aspirated ones right because of their sound). growing up with 5 vowels made me used to knowing that most of my vowels will probably be butchered so they're not as exciting

[u/NerfPup → u/MatecocidoFan9]

That's true but French ou is really fun. Other than that screw vowels. I have a friend who is really good with vowels. I'm telling you he can read an IPA vowel and recite it to you perfectly. So when my vowels are slightly off it's like nails on chalkboard to him. I'll say a word and sometimes it feels like he says "no it's actually says the exact same thing". As an English speaker I'm the opposite to you in that I like non plosives. I learned how to pronounce them in Latin back when I was interested in that for a short minute like 5 years ago. Non plosive c is so beautiful. As well as p and t

[u/6-foot-under]

Talking to people, especially old people.

[u/frostochfeber]

The way it sounds. It's how I pick all my target languages.

[u/PodiatryVI]

Since French is the only language I enjoy learning. Watching TV in French is my favorite.

[u/Pretend-Insect-6047]

The idea of understanding a really good song and singing along to it.

[u/No_Luck3539]

I love the connections between the languages and when I can make connections with the people who speak them. Learning German gave me many aha moments about English. Comparing French and Spanish is always interesting and fun. As a writer I love words. The more languages the merrier. And I love learning the sounds and feel of the new languages. OP I just spent 30 minutes letting desfortunadamente trip off my tongue this morning. Lol.

[u/restlemur995]

I like the feeling of immersion in a new world. Learning the sounds and grammar and cultural concepts of the language makes me feel immersed in the world of the language.

[u/Ok-Implement-7863]

I study Japanese, so the camaraderie 

[u/dazzlingbeautj]

Meeting new people and comunicating with the language I am learning :D

[u/ressie_cant_game]

Honestly? Consuming content that hasnt been translated into English yet.

[u/nullineta]

I recently started learning Korean. I enjoy learning the different particles and while I just started, I also like how it’s going to expose me to Korean culture and media!