111
submitted 1 week ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

Μαθαίνω ελληνικά. - I am learning Greek.

I am at the point of being able to read Greek, introduce myself, ask and respond to "how are you" and how to say "I am still learning Greek can we speak English". haha

top 50 comments
sorted by: hot top new old
[-] [email protected] 5 points 6 days ago

Currently taking Japanese classes for fun. I'm about two years in and can have very basic conversations.

Took three years of German 20+ years ago and have German friends (and read German lemmy) so can practice sometimes.

I'm terrible at all of them and not that great at English either. I tend to "vomit language" moreso than speak well.

[-] [email protected] 3 points 6 days ago

I’m learning French, when I remember to. I did not put too much effort into it until now, because I understand a lot from articles, conversations, youtube videos. It is similar to Spanish, which I learnt up to native level I guess, also mostly speaking without a foreign accent. But back to French, I find it very hard to write it, so many accents and ‘s and letters that are not read. I have what they call a “musical ear”, so I do distinguish a lot of sound variations and tones, but the writing in French is brutal.

Another language I will forever learn and not be able to get to it as with my Spanish or English is German. I mess up the articles all the time, I am sure, but I just keep going. I am perfectly comfortable reading German literature or having a conversation, but it bothers me that after so much time being exposed to it, I still make poor choices of articles.

I started at some point learning Portuguese, but I found it frustrating that it was so similar to Spanish, all the words would come in Spanish in my mind.

If I could, I would love to also know Greek, Danish, Japanese, Mandarin, Arabic and many others probably.

[-] [email protected] 2 points 6 days ago

I've been trying to learn russian but it's been hard. I mostly know how to read Cyrillic and a few words and phrases. Everything else has been pretty difficult to make it stick in my head.

[-] [email protected] 2 points 6 days ago

I'm learning Irish. My schedule is crazy busy, but I do a lot of driving for work so I listen to Irish speaking lessons. I also do this only while I'm on the road because my Irish boyfriend has no idea I'm doing this so I can speak Irish on our wedding day.

I can say things like where I've been yesterday, where I am today, where I'll be tomorrow, what are you doing, what were you doing, it was great craic, I don't know, I'd like a pint of Guinness, please.

I'll probably get made fun of for speaking the Ulster dialect (his family is all Dublin), but my favourite instructor that I've found is from Belfast and at least I'll be able to speak it. ☘️

[-] [email protected] 1 points 6 days ago

I can't learn any languages because I have ADHD

[-] [email protected] 5 points 6 days ago
[-] [email protected] 1 points 6 days ago

yeah that's what you think

[-] [email protected] 29 points 1 week ago

I'm learning Python. Not bad, but I prefer C.

[-] [email protected] 13 points 1 week ago

I have no experience in C, but I do like Python.

load more comments (2 replies)
[-] [email protected] 18 points 1 week ago

2,337 days in on learning German. My goal is to understand all of the band Rammstein's library of work without needing a translator.

[-] [email protected] 12 points 1 week ago

I just gave up Duolingo at 1770 days for French which hurt to do. I was mostly just maintaining a streak at this point and with the news of them using AI to replace their employees (even if they retracted it), I decided to quit.

I’ve switched to Babbel now which has been really good so far

load more comments (2 replies)
load more comments (5 replies)
[-] [email protected] 14 points 1 week ago

I've been learning Portuguese for well over two years now. I think I've got a pretty good handle on sentence building. The grammar of verb tense is sometimes still somewhat confusing and I think I've got a lot of words to learn still.

But if I read posts on Lemmy in Brazilian Portuguese, I kinda get the gist of it.

load more comments (2 replies)
[-] [email protected] 13 points 1 week ago

こんにちは!日本語を勉強しています!

I'm 90 days into learning Japanese. Most of that has been learning kana and I'm now working on kanji and grammar. It's very different from English but I really like the way information is conveyed. I'm struggling with grammar stuff right now pretty bad, particularly conjugation, but it'll click eventually. Also the lack of spaces is definitely something to get used to.

load more comments (12 replies)
[-] [email protected] 11 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

はい、私は日本語勉強します。(Yes, I'm studying Japanese.) I've been doing it for the past year but not consistently. I can say and understand basic phrases but I'm far from being able to hold a conversation.

[-] [email protected] 7 points 1 week ago

Japanese is a language I have on the burner to learn. I have had a full course on it for years but never got around to getting beyond basic greetings.

After I am done learning Greek, I am going to refresh and learn more French, and then Japanese is next because I love Anime and Manga and want to watch/read it as it should be.

[-] [email protected] 6 points 1 week ago

That's cool being to speak and understand multiple languages. I started learning it because I think it sounds neat when people speak it. Plus, I want to go there one day for a visit and I don't want to be a typical 外人 (Foreigner) haha

load more comments (2 replies)
load more comments (14 replies)
[-] [email protected] 11 points 1 week ago

I’ve been learning Dutch, since the Netherlands seems like a nice place to go if I ever have to flee the US. Thinking about joining some Dutch communities here so I can get more “natural” language exposure.

load more comments (1 replies)
[-] [email protected] 8 points 1 week ago

I’m about a month into learning Mandarin Chinese. I expected the character set to be the challenge but really it has been the inflection and intonation that I’ve had the hardest time with so far.

load more comments (2 replies)
[-] [email protected] 8 points 1 week ago

I have pretty much been studying a language every day for the past 4 years, 3 years with Japanese and now 1 year with German.

load more comments (1 replies)
[-] [email protected] 8 points 1 week ago

I'm learning English. I think I can manage. I'm reading more and faster than most native speakers.

Meine Muttersprache ist Deutsch.

load more comments (6 replies)
[-] [email protected] 8 points 1 week ago

I've been learning Japanese for a long time now. The funny thing is that I started at the wrong end by learning kanji first and then moving onto grammar and vocabulary in that order. Avoid what I did unless you want to be proficient at reading it without understanding it!

Although not all is lost, because I'm getting used to reading news and Wikipedia articles without much aid or effort anymore, and spoken Japanese is slowly getting easier. Understanding it is still proving to be a bitch from time to time but that's on me!

Btw, does anyone know of great websites to read Japanese? I browse Gigazine.net quite a bit and many news outlets, but I'd like to mix it up and move away from politics and news in general. I'm still a bit shy about online forums, but maybe I should do that next.

[-] [email protected] 1 points 1 day ago

Kanji first sounds pretty good to me. You didn't feel like it worked well?

I went through Genki I with Kanji mostly sidelined, and I felt like I wished I'd known Kanji better first. Having to look up how to write every character is a drag, and I don't think using kana is a much better alternative.

You say you could read but not understand... I feel like that's a step up from the reverse! (That being, "I'd totally understand thus if I could read it") And I find that learning Kanji now is making it way faster to remember vocab.

I guess the lesson is just that it's all important, skipping or putting off any of it doesn't work so well.

[-] [email protected] 4 points 6 days ago

I know you said transition away from news sites but Easynhk.com is always a staple

Twitter is honestly great since there's so much variety, not to mention there's a lot of artists who'll post full chapters of manga. You just have to curate who you follow to avoid musk stuff.

I'd also say just watch some YouTube videos. It's a good way to practice listening and most YouTubers will personally subtitle their videos as well so you can follow along while reading. A particular favorite way for me is to watch videos of Japanese people travelling/living in America/English speaking places. It's fun seeing their experiences with everyday stuff for us; a channel I watch a lot is called Kira Kira USA. They post videos frequently, use a lot of day to day Japanese, and get to see viewpoints from the various family members.

Good luck!

[-] [email protected] 2 points 6 days ago

Thank you for that! Kira Kira USA sounds a lot like what I'm looking for. I really liked Miku's Real Japanese Pocast so this is right up my alley. Hehe

[-] [email protected] 3 points 6 days ago

For reading practice, I like using satori reader, the full service is paid but it has really nice grammar breakdowns and i like being able to click on words to see their definition/readings

[-] [email protected] 1 points 6 days ago

Thank you! I'll check it out.

load more comments (1 replies)
[-] [email protected] 8 points 1 week ago

Tried learning Spanish in school but I never really had a reason to stick with it or keep going. Recently started relearning some vocab and grammar and phrases because there are places I'd like to visit that would be much easier with even just some basic phrases and books I'd like to read in the author's original words and phrases.

load more comments (6 replies)
[-] [email protected] 7 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

I'm learning Japanese. On and off for years, but mainly the last couple. I'm still only at the advanced beginner stage, trying to work on my Kanji, reading, and listening.

Also learning Spanish, but I feel like I'm in a better spot with it. I took classes in school and have a decent foundation, just need way more practice. It's on the backburner since I'd rather build on my Japanese.

For fans of this thread/topic, check out [email protected] . They have a weekly thread for progress and a few active folks. Lemmy also has more specific language learning communities that could stand to be more active.

load more comments (5 replies)
[-] [email protected] 7 points 6 days ago

I started learning Swedish yesterday. My native language is Dutch. I started by reading a pronunciation guide, but (and this is so childish) I had to put the book away for laughing so hard after reading the Swedish word for meatballs: köttbullar.

ProfanityIn Dutch, the word "kut" means "cunt". It isn't as profane as the English word and is also often used for the well-known genitals. The guide explained that Swedish "ö" is pronounced like Dutch short "u". After this I opened my Swedish story book and the first picture had the word köttbullar in it. I then heard myself very carefully enunciate what in Dutch sounds like "cunt balls". Couldn't stop laughing.

Today I will make a second attempt. I hope I can keep it contained to a short chuckle.

[-] [email protected] 2 points 6 days ago

Thank you for sharing this absolutely hilarious story. Gave me a hearty laugh in the morning. haha

Good luck getting passed it! I know I wouldn't be strong enough. haha

[-] [email protected] 7 points 1 week ago

A few years ago I considered learning Greek. Abandoned the plan because Greek has the triple whammy:

  • quite a hard language, with tricky grammar and different alphabet (phonetics easy tho)
  • only spoken in one small country - not very useful (tho good for general culture - 6% of English lexicon comes from Greek)
  • the locals all speak English (coz tourism) so you'll have trouble getting a chance to progress

So: good luck.

[-] [email protected] 6 points 1 week ago

I found the alphabet and grammar easy to understand personally, which is why I am able to read before I can do basically anything else.

Greek is spoken in Greece and numerous other countries because of the Greek diasporas in the world.

Coming from a Greek family, while the locals may speak English they generally prefer to and appreciate speaking in Greek especially in Greece.

Thank you for the well wishes.

[-] [email protected] 7 points 1 week ago

I’m learning swedish, and have been on and off for almost ten years now. I can read a book in swedish on my kindle thanks to the built in dictionary, but it is so rare that I can talk to someone in swedish that i almost never do it. Listening to Swedish people in real life gets confusing fast as well, as I am just not used to the different pronunciations and the speed i need to process stuff at

[-] [email protected] 6 points 1 week ago

That is one of the harder things I have noticed about learning language in general. There is always a clear difference between how a language "should be spoken" and how it actually is in practice with native speakers.

[-] [email protected] 6 points 1 week ago

I've been doing a few Duolingo lessons a day in Japanese for a couple years now. At the rate I'm going it'll be a decade before I'm even slightly able to understand the language, but I don't mind - it's already been well over a decade since I first tried to learn it, so as long as this pace is sustainable, I'll still be a lot further along than if I'd tried too hard, gotten burned out, and quit for a decade again.

load more comments (1 replies)
[-] [email protected] 6 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

I'm learning Esperanto because everything I do has to be esoteric. I understand the fundamentals of the language and my pronunciation is perfect i'd say. I've been learning for a few months and I can read and write basic sentences. I also want to learn Spanish (mostly to flirt) but it's hard to find the time. I'd also like to learn Indonesian, German and Afrikaans.

Edit: I'd also love to learn Polish but it's so fucking hard.

Edit 2: Oh and Finnish. I really like languages and I get excited about them.

[-] [email protected] 1 points 6 days ago

everything I do has to be esoteric

👑

load more comments (12 replies)
[-] [email protected] 5 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

我的汉语越来越好,写,说,简单的没问题,但是比较复杂还要多的练习。其实说最近练习地不周到。

[-] [email protected] 5 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

Am I learning a new language? No.
How far along am I? About halfway.

load more comments (1 replies)
load more comments
view more: next ›
this post was submitted on 30 Jun 2025
111 points (96.6% liked)

Ask Lemmy

33151 readers
1709 users here now

A Fediverse community for open-ended, thought provoking questions


Rules: (interactive)


1) Be nice and; have funDoxxing, trolling, sealioning, racism, and toxicity are not welcomed in AskLemmy. Remember what your mother said: if you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all. In addition, the site-wide Lemmy.world terms of service also apply here. Please familiarize yourself with them


2) All posts must end with a '?'This is sort of like Jeopardy. Please phrase all post titles in the form of a proper question ending with ?


3) No spamPlease do not flood the community with nonsense. Actual suspected spammers will be banned on site. No astroturfing.


4) NSFW is okay, within reasonJust remember to tag posts with either a content warning or a [NSFW] tag. Overtly sexual posts are not allowed, please direct them to either [email protected] or [email protected]. NSFW comments should be restricted to posts tagged [NSFW].


5) This is not a support community.
It is not a place for 'how do I?', type questions. If you have any questions regarding the site itself or would like to report a community, please direct them to Lemmy.world Support or email [email protected]. For other questions check our partnered communities list, or use the search function.


6) No US Politics.
Please don't post about current US Politics. If you need to do this, try [email protected] or [email protected]


Reminder: The terms of service apply here too.

Partnered Communities:

Tech Support

No Stupid Questions

You Should Know

Reddit

Jokes

Ask Ouija


Logo design credit goes to: tubbadu


founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS