Using English on TBBS

[Kestra]

Just curious about those of you for whom English isn't your first language. Is it strange to "speak" in English to others here on such a frequent basis? Were you very fluent in it before joining TBBS, do you use it frequently in RL? Are there ever times where it is difficult or you really wish everyone spoke a different language?

Also please don't turn this into an American-bashing thread!

 

[backstept]

why would it be an American-bashing thread?
the Britons invented this cumbersome language

english is my first and only language. If I wanted to become a polyglot and joined a non-english forum I would find it a little strange at first to be communicating in a non-english language, but the more I got into it I think I'd enjoy it more and more, and it even might propel me to visit other countries where said non-english language is spoken.

 

[creek_chub]

I assume the OP thought it would turn into an American bashing thread due to the misconception that Americans have bastardized the English language. Most people forget that England's English has had the same amount of time as American English to evolve and become something different from the English that was spoken at the time of the split.

 

[Spot's Meow]

I've always wondered this as well, not just for this BBS but also for people who have emigrated to English speaking countries. I took four years of French and I remember that when I had a penpal in France I enjoyed writing the first two letters to her, but after that it became a nuisance to me to have to decode everything she wrote and to have to look up every sentence I wanted to write. I think that when most people begin to learn a new language they work from a viewpoint of having to translate everything into their natural language, whether they do it on paper or in their head. I've heard that at some point you no longer translate everything and you are able to "think" in both languages, but I certainly didn't come close to that.

 

[Shaytan]

Just curious about those of you for whom English isn't your first language. Is it strange to "speak" in English to others here on such a frequent basis?

At first yeah, but not anymore. It's a good exercise

Were you very fluent in it before joining TBBS,

No and I'm still not fluent, obviously But I've learned a lot. I also don't try to be fluent, being able to communicate efficiently is good enough for me, I was never a specialist of the English language.

do you use it frequently in RL?

No, except occasionally to help tourists.

Are there ever times where it is difficult or you really wish everyone spoke a different language?

I can use a lot of nuances and concept in French that I can't express in English because I don't know the vocabulary or simply because the nuance doesn't really exist in English (a language carries the way a particular culture thinks) , so yeah, it's sometimes difficult.

Also please don't turn this into an American-bashing thread!

Can I blame the British instead ?

 

[sojourner]

Can we use this thread to bash posters that have no excuse for their terrible english? The ones that can't even manage to use a spell check or type something that is coherent even though english is supposedly their first and only language?

 

[lurok]

Can I blame the British instead ?

Non. Besides, many Anglais cannot use English properly. The literary expression of many non-native English speakers would put many Brits to shame

 

[Lookingglassman]

Tengo loco mano en los pantelones

 

[auntiehill]

Can I blame the British instead ?

Non. Besides, many Anglais cannot use English properly. The literary expression of many non-native English speakers would put many Brits to shame

^Indeed.

And Shaytan, your English skills are remarkable. There are native-speakers, here and in the "real world," who have the most dreadful language skills in their own native tongue, and not only do they NOT care, they seem proud of the fact.

I applaud anyone who masters a second (or third or fourth) language as well you have.

 

[scotpens]

. . . Also please don't turn this into an American-bashing thread!

What, here? That's for TNZ!

I assume the OP thought it would turn into an American bashing thread due to the misconception that Americans have bastardized the English language.

I assumed it was because of the perception of Americans as provincial boors who expect everyone in the world to understand English if you speak it slowly and loudly enough.

 

[Gov Kodos]

I suppose it's time for Prof Higgans to expound:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EAYUuspQ6BY&feature=related

 

[lurok]

I assumed it was because of the perception of BRITS as provincial boors who expect everyone in the world to understand English if you speak it slowly and loudly enough.

Fixed

 

[Kestra]

I wish I hadn't put that line in. Can we get back to the original topic? Please? I'd love to hear about more experiences.

 

[Count Zero]

Is it strange to "speak" in English to others here on such a frequent basis?

No, but it isn't the first place on the net where I post in English. There are just so much more sites, forums and the like in English than in my mother tongue that it just happened when I started to explore the net in 1998.
I don't think it ever felt strange, but then again, English always came naturally to me, I never had to really study for it.

Were you very fluent in it before joining TBBS, do you use it frequently in RL?

Yes, I've always been pretty good at it. I also read a lot in English and watch plenty of TV series and movies. However, I don't get to speak it often, only occasionally to foreigners and when I'm abroad. Which is a pity, really.

Are there ever times where it is difficult or you really wish everyone spoke a different language?

Yes, sometimes a language has come up with a perfect way of expressing something and you have to improvise when using another. But that's also true the other way around. There are a number of English words I really like which don't have an appealing equivalent in German, e.g. sophisticated.

One thing that bugs me - not so much on this board but rather when reading good English literature - is the realisation that my English will in all likelyhood never be as good as my German. My vocabulary will never be as broad and versatile in English.

This struck me recently when I watched a snippet of an old British quiz show called "Ask the Family" where the candidates had to come up with words that have different meanings the host would read from a card. I felt really dumb watching that. Now I know how less educated people must feel. I sometimes have similar problems with wordplays.

 

[trampledamage]

I'm always incredibly impressed by other people's language skills - especially since all I can remember of French is how to ask for a cup of tea

 

[creek_chub]

I suppose it's time for Prof Higgans to expound:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EAYUuspQ6BY&feature=related

That's not the attitude of any linguist I've ever met. Including myself.

 

[Gov Kodos]

I suppose it's time for Prof Higgans to expound:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EAYUuspQ6BY&feature=related

That's not the attitude of any linguist I've ever met. Including myself.

Please tell me you're kidding, please.

 

[iguana_tonante]

Well, I learned English as a foreign language in school, but while adequate to get reasonable grades, my skills were quite limited. I improved it somehow during college since most of the textbooks were in English, but I still lacked both idiomatic expressions and conversational skills.

In fact, while I have been reading this board for a long time, I joined here explicitly to improve my English: interacting with native speakers on a daily basis sounded like best way to get a feeling of the "real" language, instead of what you learn on textbooks. I must say, people here were very kind with this foreigner during my early days!

So, after so many years, it has become pretty natural for me to use English: in fact, I often catch myself translating my thoughts from English to Italian, instead of the other way around, which is kinda neat to me. I use it a lot in RL, too, since I work in collaboration with a lot of people from different countries.

Still, it can be difficult for me sometimes, especially when I try to explain complicated stuff, or I get mixed up in my verbal tenses. I know I make a shitload of mistakes, and my sentence structure is still recognizably foreign. Obviously, it would be much more easier for me if you all speak Italian (or, to level the field for everybody, Latin). But I am very fond of the English language, and I appreciate the opportunity to use it here: I would have never learned such an brilliant array of insults in any other place!

 

[lurok]

I wish I hadn't put that line in. Can we get back to the original topic? Please? I'd love to hear about more experiences.

I think we'll get back to that anyway. I dip into quite a few tech threads, and there you have feedback from every corner of globe with no major problems. The impression I've got is learning English spoken language not a problem per se...rather like Japanese spoken language (which still mastering). The issue is more written language, which is weird and makes no sense...let alone reducing to aspects like irony and sarcasm...

 

[BlobVanDam]

I have so much respect for the people on forums with English as a second language. I know many of these people don't think they know English very well, but you know what? I rarely if ever can tell that English isn't their first language. It completely slips my mind that people from these countries don't natively speak it. That is a testament to their language skills, rather than to my ignorance

I've always felt that the big difference is that when you learn a second language, you really need to have a firm grasp of the way the sentences are constructed, so you don't make the silly inexcusable mistakes that English speakers often do. I think a lot of English speakers make the mistake of assuming that because they speak the language, they can write it, but the sad fact is that it highlights how poorly some people speak the language, or how little they understand what they're really saying as a sentence, even if the meaning is 100% understood. My main example is with homophones (I just googled it, so pardon me if that's the wrong term). I see too many people confuse basic words that sound the same. I don't think ESL folks make these mistakes because of the nature in which they've learned the language.

So huge respect to all of you, because you put many native English speakers to shame!