Hi Fediverse! I’m writing this post to ask you to share your experience on learning your native language through your fundamental education or your private life.

As a non-native English speaker but currently using it as working language, I can survive in my daily life e.g., technical terms, talks with customer services or so. But when I really try to watch movies, series or read literature books, it is so discouraging that many words, which are essential to native speakers, are strange to me. Let me show you some words that are recently added into my learning list: paranoid, cursive, intricate, ameliorate… There are thousands of them not even including words from fantasy novels or those D&D things.

I believe that a random six-year-old wouldn’t know those higher level words (in terms of comparing to ‘hello’ or ‘nice’) either. Even a native speaker acquires those vocabulary gradually. So I am curious what is your language education look like? Since when do you realize that you understand most content in your native language and what have you done before that?

I do have English as an example but any other language is also welcome. Feel free to share anything. Thank you in advance : )

  • Maharashtra
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    51 year ago

    My English is far worse than yours in terms of grammar, I never managed to learn it so well, but I had always the knack for words. Somehow I remember them and thus I build up my vocabulary all the time.

    I observed that the simple thing that helps me is to repeat the new word out loud whenever I can for the rest of the day. I don’t care about actually remembering it, mind you, I may not even recall it if I’d want to use it in a sentence, but I remember it when I see it.

    In addition, surrounding myself with the foreign language helps greatly. If I play video game, the language is switched to the one foreign to me. If I watch a movie, I skip the dubbed version, etc, etc.

    I hope it helps.