What is your opinion? Modern English is such a hodge-podge of other languages I cannot really think of anything to compare it too.
learning one is hard, and your brain focuses on your first language like it's the basic language I don't think you understand what I asked. Adriano Celentano’s “Prisencolinensinanciusol” is pure gibberish. We use "s" an awful lot.
I guess it applies to all languages.
What would English sound like if you didn't understand it? save hide report. I thought it was gonna be really bad, like if I said "ching chong ding dong" to imitate Chinese. share. Many languages contain sounds or combinations of sounds impossible to pronounce by foreigners. English is no exception. So, if two people – one from Poland and the other from Bulgaria – use English as a common foreign language to talk to each other, and both make this mistake, they won’t probably even notice it. And "th" -- people don't always realize how rare "th" is globally so English is weird for using that sound at all. 9 comments. When there are only so many sounds, many words in different languages sound the same but denote completely different concepts, but when at the same time there are also so many sound combinations to work with, many words can also sound funny to non-native speakers. © Valve Corporation. New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast. These are the 3 most popular sports in the United Arab Emirates, Taxicab Mandarin: How to Navigate Your Way through China, 9 Surprising Facts About the Hebrew Language, Copyright © 2007 - 2020 Listen & Learn. A popular example of general confusion is the word ‘preservative’ which in many languages has come to mean ‘condom’, while in English we use it only to denote food preservative. They have become so common in all languages thanks to the Internet, Windows, and other concepts and products that travel easily across cultures and countries. Check out these hilariously sounding words and tell us – do they make you laugh your socks off too? Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. But, surprise, surprise, English is an economical language and so it makes the most of its resources. Tones are used more for emphasis or to mark a question since they don't change the meaning of any words. Brazilian here, I've heard that English sounds a lot like Dutch, Great question!
Sometimes meanings overlap to a certain extent but the word in either of the languages doesn’t reflect all the nuances of the word in the other language. All trademarks are property of their respective owners in the US and other countries. But the whole song was…
No, German sounds different, German is weird and Germany can't make good roads but whatever.
here.
It is not a rare occasion that some speakers never learn to pronounce the clear [l] creating embarrassing moments. Cookies help us deliver our Services. We hear speakers of Chinese and Vietnamese going up and down in pitch within a single word because the rising, falling, or flat tones carry linguistic meaning. For example, when a language borrows a word from English but then the original meaning changes due to various reasons (such as appearance of a new phenomenon which is denoted by this very word), learners of English transfer their knowledge and believe they have learned the word. They will draw the meaning from the context.
Check out the list of words with somewhat surprising secondary meanings. The human vocal tract is capable of producing a finite, though surprisingly extensive, number of sounds and sound combinations. Go ahead and share with us which English words you find the most hilarious, weirdest, or amusing. This thread is archived. However hard you try to learn English, there will always be exceptions to the rules to make your life harder.
Non-native speakers usually find some English words sounding weird just for their sound. English is no exception. I'd love to know this too. By using our Services or clicking I agree, you agree to our use of cookies.
In English there are a couple of occurrences of dark ‘l’ too, as in ‘walk’, ‘talk’ and others. It’s very easy to mimic other languages but I’ve always wandered how other countries interpret us. But how do we sound to foreign ears?
Having fun while discovering English (either as a mother tongue or a foreign language) is an ideal way to learn words through laughter and enjoyment. Deviations from expected pronunciation are the result from the different ways words developed – obviously, when changes in the language took place, these words were not affected or were affected in a slightly different fashion, or entered the language at a later point. I like the "th" sound, it shows the tongue, which is rather sexy! These exceptions only prove the rules, and yes, you heard that right – there are very clear rules governing English pronunciation. A few years ago they also did a sort of euro-techno remix of it. Here are some more examples: As world languages resort to a limited number of sound combinations and as languages borrow from one another all the time, it is very often the case to find words in two languages that sound exactly the same but mean something which is worlds apart. But this makes it seem like he's speaking perfect English and I'm having a stroke. Very often loan words become false friends for learners of English. It’s very easy to mimic other languages but I’ve always wandered how other countries interpret us, There was actually an Italian performer who made a song that sounded like english without using English. By contrast, European languages can have a sort of rhythm that can last the whole sentence. 100% Upvoted. Tonality is pretty important too. I'll rephrase it: what does English sound like to foreigners? Both languages sound harsh to me. What is your opinion? Some speakers of Slavic languages such as Polish, Bulgarian, Belarusian, Macedonian and others, which allow for the pronunciation of a dark [l] sound (similar to the English sound [w]), find it hard to pronounce the clear [l], as in love.
Sort by. So, if you meet a Belarusian who says that they, love your wife, don’t punch them in the face – they must be admiring your lifestyle. Español - Latinoamérica (Spanish - Latin America), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-VsmF9m_Nt8, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CG0OnKUqziA.
Now, to the non-native ear not accustomed to the correct pronunciation, this mistake usually goes unrecognized. Here are other false friends that you might want to know: There are words that we all know! Note: This is ONLY to be used to report spam, advertising, and problematic (harassment, fighting, or rude) posts. All Rights Reserved, Language Courses and Language Services USA & Canada, Tel: 1-877-566-9299 (USA) / 1-416-800-9242 (Canada), The 30 Most Untranslatable Words, as Voted by You. It sounds like you guys are speaking with a potato in your mouths.
New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast, More posts from the NoStupidQuestions community, Press J to jump to the feed. The English language is one of the most complicated to learn, so what are the weirdest quirks when learning the lingo? All rights reserved.
What does English sound like to foreigners? In British English, the consonants are more clearly pronunced, which is nice to hear. The words don’t mean anything.
Though, the "t" and "d" sound a little harsh to us, because you stress these sounds a lot. But I can clearly tell the difference between German and English, maybe because I watched a lot of English movies since a young age. American English tend to make it sound pretty flat, and nasal (it sounds a bit like a baby crying).
Hence, many quite common words appear in all sorts of context meaning the most unexpected things. As English speakers, we are among the laziest linguists in the world, waiting for everyone else to talk like us. No, I think english is a pretty unique language. What would English sound like if you didn't understand it?