When it comes to the language we hear, read, and speak every day, it can be easy for us to take advantage of all the interesting ways it's transformed since its beginning.
But when etymologists are given the opportunity to nerd out over their favorite facts, they're not shy about sharing.
So when Redditor ocddoc shared a fun question, the etymologists lurking on Reddit were quick to reply.
"Etymologists of Reddit, what is the coolest origin of a word?"
When Definitions Expand
"Etymology: 'Dashboard.'"
"The dashboard is a board on the front of a horse carriage meant to keep mud from kicking up on the passengers when the horse dashes."
"And over time it came to mean the front part of anything, even a computer interface is sometimes called a dashboard."
- Cats**t-Dogfart
"Etymology: Shibboleth was a Hebrew word for a part of a plant. But at one point, it was used to determine whether someone belonged to one cultural group or another because the groups pronounced the word differently."
"Now, it refers to words and phrases like those that 'out' someone as part of a particular group whether it's by pronunciation or understanding."
"For example, get a native German speaker to say, 'squirrel,' and they almost definitely won't be able to."
- SmartAlec105
The ABCs... and More
"The Ampersand (&) used to be a letter in the English alphabet. It came after Z in the in the alphabet."
"In the alphabet song, after you finished with Z, kids would sing: 'and per se and,' which is where the name ampersand comes from. 'And per se and' basically means 'also and as itself.'"
- marsglow
Humorous Translations
"Pumpernickel comes from the German words pumpern ('to break wind') and Nickel ('goblin'), apparently due to its indigestibility."
"Their bread is so coarse, it would make the devil break wind."
"'Their bread is of the very coarsest kind, ill-baked, and as black as a coal, for they never sift their flour. The people of the country call it POMPERNICKEL,' from ‘The Grand Tour; or, A Journey Through the Netherlands, Germany, Italy, and France’ by Thomas Nugent, II."
- MuadDave2
"In my mind, the literal translation of pumpernickel is 'fart goblin.'"
"Incidentally, I encourage one of you to make a band called 'Fart Goblin.'"
- diogenes_sadecv
'Etymology: melon. It's not particularly interesting in itself, it came from Ancient Greek, through Latin, to Old French, before finding its way to English."
"All along the way, it referred to various gourds. However, and this is the interesting bit, melons was slang for 'boobs' in Greek, and it retained this slang definition as well as its 'real' definition all the way to English."
"Usually, in etymology, you keep one definition or the other, and never both, which makes it really interesting. Also 'boobies.'"
- KaiF1SCH
"The etymology of 'tawdry' is a real ride."
"There was a 7th-century Anglo-Saxon saint named Æthelthryth. Now, nobody, not even 7th century Anglo-Saxons, wants to go around trying to pronounce that dense forest of th's, so she was commonly known as St. Etheldreda, and later, linguistically lazier people called her St. Audrey."
"St. Audrey was the patron saint of a town called Ely, and the folks of Ely held a fair every year in her name. One of the primary products on offer at these fairs was lace. 'St. Audrey's lace' was said a few too many times, and got slurred down to 'tawdry lace.'"
"Over time, the lace fell out of favor. It was mainly made by peasant women, and thus viewed as cheap, and the Puritans looked down on lace garments of any kind as ostentatious. 'Tawdry' then began to be used to describe other things that were cheap and ostentatious, and the modern definition of the word was born."
- Rromagar
"Etymology: Nimrod was originally a compliment referring to one's hunting skills (Nimrod being a biblical figure known for his ability to hunt), but the definition changed because people didn't understand Bugs Bunny was calling Elmer Fudd a Nimrod sarcastically."
- seevian
Words Formed by Fear
"The word 'bear' in many languages in Europe (including English) just means 'brown thing.'"
"There used to be a proper name for bear, but it was taboo because saying it was believed to summon a bear, who would then kill everyone. It was so taboo, it was eventually forgotten and the euphemism (brown thing) became the name."
"Ancient people were scared pi**less by bears."
"The Arctic draws its root from 'arctus,' the Greek word for bear. So it's the 'land of bears,' and the Antarctic is thus, 'the land without bears.'"
- SolarDubstep
"In eastern Slavic languages, they were so scared that even the 'brown thing' became taboo."
"The word is still used as a part of 'the bear's lair' name, but the animal itself is referred to as 'the-one-who-knows-where-is-honey.'"
- ofedorov
"The Croatian word for bear is 'medved,' which has two parts: med for 'honey' and veď' for 'to know.'"
- Cayenns
"Random story... 'med' was one of the first words of Slovak I learned, because I used to make mead, so 'medovina' is 'med wine' or 'honey wine' made perfect sense to me."
"So we were walking past a bar in Bratislava that had 'medved' in its name, so I asked what it had to do with honey."
"She explained that it meant bear, and had in fact nothing to do with honey."
"A short google later, I won, and she learned a little about her own language, from this stupid Englishman whose knowledge of Slovak doesn't get much further than the dinner menu."
"(I'm trying, I really am. But I thought having genders in languages was complicated. You guys have like 5000 different word endings to memorize for each and every word!)"
- wosmo
"Etymology: Nightmare. The 'mare' part of the word 'nightmare' comes from Germanic folklore, in which a 'mare' is an evil female spirit or goblin that sits upon a sleeper’s chest, suffocating them or giving them bad dreams."
"So basically the word comes from a description of sleep paralysis."
- theonlydidymus
"Malaria. Malaria is an infectious disease characterized by chills and fever and caused by the bite of an infected Anopheles mosquito."
"This word comes from the medieval Italian mal (bad) and aria (air), describing the miasma from the swamps around Rome."
"This 'bad air' was believed to be the cause of the fever that often developed in those who spent time around the swamps. In fact, the illness, now known as malaria, was due to certain protozoans present in the mosquitos that bred around these swamps, and which caused recurring feverish symptoms in those they bit."
- Back2Bach
And One Redditor Couldn't Choose Just One
"I love love love this game! Here are some of my favorite recent ones, summed up very basically."
"'Scuttlebutt" was first a nautical term for a cask (butt) of drinking water with a hole (scuttle) for drawing it out. The term came to mean 'rumor' or 'gossip' because sailors would gather to idly chat around the cask. It is the predecessor of the term 'watercooler talk' for workplace gossip."
"Before 1860, the word 'pollution' commonly meant 'semen,' specifically semen released somewhere other than during conjugal activities, or 'defilement' or 'desecration.' Also, the words 'seminal,' 'disseminate,' and 'seminary' derive from the Latin 'semen.'"
"'Meteor' comes from the Greek metéōron, literally meaning 'thing high up.' In 15th-century English, 'meteor' could refer to any atmospheric phenomena, which were differentiated by various classifications of meteors. Hence 'meteorology' as the study of atmospheric conditions, rather than just meteors."
"Classifications included: aerial meteors (notable winds and tornadoes and such), aqueous meteors (water-based atmospheric phenomena such as rain, snow, hail, dew, frost, and clouds), luminous meteors (auroras, rainbows, and other light-based phenomena), and igneous meteors (fiery-looking phenomena such as lightning and shooting stars)."
"Around 1590, the English word began to take on the more specific, fiery extraterrestrial meaning we use today."
"'Ambivalence'was first a psychological term, literally meaning 'strength on both sides.' Paul Eugen Bleuler, the psychologist who coined it in 1910, also coined the terms schizophrenia ('a splitting of the mind') and autism (from Greek autos, 'self')."
"'Feisty' ('spirited, lively') arose in 1896. Before, feist meant 'small dog,' a shortening of 'fysting curre' ('stinking cur'), wherein fyst meant 'to break wind,' supposedly conflated because ladies would blame their gas on their lapdogs. In sum, 'feisty' means 'farty dog.'"
"'Alchemy' is from the Greek khemeioa, which was either from Khemia, a name for Egypt meaning 'land of black earth,' or the Greek khymatos 'that which is poured out.' It was often used as a scientific term until the 1600s when 'chemistry' arose from it, leaving 'alchemy' with its more mystical sense."
"The word 'tabby' came to refer to cats in the 1690s due to their fur pattern, which resembles a striped silk taffeta also called tabby, originally (via French) from the name of the Baghdad neighborhood Attabiy, where rich silks were made. The area was named after the Umayyad prince Attab."
"'Clone' as a term for the production of genetically identical individuals was coined in 1963 by J.B.S. Haldane. It was predated by the horticultural sense of "clon" or "clone," the process whereby a new plant is created using cuttings from another. Both are from the Ancient Greek klōn, 'twig.'"
"'Jargon,' adopted from French in the 14th century, originally meant 'unintelligible talk, gibberish; chattering, jabbering.' It wryly took on its current meaning, 'phraseology peculiar to a sect or profession,' in the 1650s due to the fact that such speech was unintelligible to outsiders."
"'Moxie,' (general use from the 1930s) comes from the brand name of a bitter syrup first marketed as the medicine 'Moxie Nerve Food' in 1876, then sold as a soft drink starting in 1884. The brand may be from a Native American Abenaki word for 'dark water,' from Maine lake and river names."
"And, finally, an entomological etymology! The praying mantis (Mantis religiosa) and other insects in the order Mantodea get their name from the Greek mantis, literally 'one who divines, a seer, prophet,' which in turn is from mainesthai or 'be inspired.'"
- articulateantagonist
Languages are fascinating as they continue to change with society's needs and popular culture influences. But to look back in time at the many ways a word may have changed might be the most interesting study of all.
Bilingual People Break Down The Craziest Things They've Overheard Folks Saying About Them
When I was in college, my best friend and I lived in a triple with a girl we didn’t know. We tried to be nice and welcoming, asking her to join us whenever we went anywhere, trying to find out what we had in common, and asking her about her day.
She smiled and while she rarely accompanied us anywhere, she talked to us normally and we figured we were becoming friends. We were wrong.
A couple weeks into our freshman year, we found out our third roommate was complaining about us to her family in Spanish, thinking neither of us would understand. This time, she was wrong.
This is not a rare occurrence. There are lots of instances in which bilingual people overhear people saying crazy or mean things about them in a language they think the others around them can’t understand.
Curious to hear the stories, Redditor KayJayJetLee03 asked:
“People who speak a second language - what have you overheard people saying about you when they thought you couldn't understand them?”
Flattery Will You Everywhere
"I was working as a server and a man came in who I used to work with. We chatted briefly. He was Hispanic and with his family. My Spanish is spotty at best, but his mom said something along the lines of “She could be your girlfriend” and I replied with the fact that I was married. She froze for a second and then whooped this kind of contagious laughter cackle. Poor guy was embarrassed but I was flattered!"
– BusyButterscotch4652
"My spanish is passable. I heard a little old lady saying how cute I was to her younger female companion. I assume it was her daughter. She was trying to get her to talk to me. I looked right at her and held up my hamd with my wedding ring. The daughter got beat red and granny started laughing."
"Grandma is all "He is cute and he understands spanish of course he is taken.""
"I was flattered. I love that there are people in the US that think spanish can be a secret language. There are a lot of us that have had to learn."
– GoodRighter
When You Assume
"So it was actually one of my first languages. Anyway, I was working at a pizza joint. A group of 3 Indian guys came in. They were having a conversation. Nothing about me but they were using a lot of explicit words in Hindi. [The following conversation is all in Hindi] As they were talking one of them said "Dude. Calm down. He might understand you." And the guy said "Him? Nah. He looks like he was born here (Ohio)." And then turned to me and said "You don't understand me right?" And I responded "I'm from Mumbai, dude."
"The other two freaked the fu*k out like I just made a shot from half court."
– PhreedomPhighter
Schooled
"One of the physicians I work with is lily white but speaks perfect Spanish. My favorite story is he had a pediatric patient to round on and the family all spoke Spanish only. So he calls for an interpreter as our hospital policy dictates and while waiting he greets them, he’s smiling and playing with the baby, little Spanish words here and there. The family starts talking about his hair, his clothing, how he’s probably an inept doctor, etc. He very pleasantly explains that he’s waiting for the interpreter to arrive due to our policy but is more than happy to converse in Spanish - all in perfect Spanish. The faces!"
– Immajustbrowse19
As If Waiting In Line Doesn't Suck Enough
"We lived in Spain. I was in line to pay my electric bill when a woman began complaining about me being in line. She thought I should be at the end of the line or something. I don't remember exactly what she said but she was not a fan of me or Americans in general. At one point she was pointing at me and she jabbed me with her finger. I gave her a look but didn't say anything."
"When it was my turn in line, I paid my bill, got my receipt, turned to the women in line behind me and said, "I hope you all have a blessed day, except for this rude one." And I pointed at Senora Jabby Finger."
"Ohmygosh, her eyes got so big. She was shocked and embarrassed and I kind of feel bad about shaming her but you really shouldn't assume people don't know what you are saying when you are talking about them right in front of them no matter what language you are speaking."
– Maxwyfe
Always Understood
"I understand Spanish better than I speak it. For reference I'm dark haired and tan, I get asked if I'm Hispanic or Latina all the time and politely tell them no I'm not."
"Over my 22 years in the service industry, I've worked with a lot of people from Spanish speaking countries, Ecuador, el Salvador, Mexico etc. My last place of employment I walked through the kitchen for the first time and all of the cooks started at me for a sec and then began talking amongst themselves. A lot of it was what they did over the weekend or who wants to grab a beer after work, nothing really nefarious."
"For weeks I listened to their conversations. When certain servers would come to the window they would b*tch about the girls they didn't like. My name was brought up one day about how one of the cooks had a crush on me and they kept picking on him for it. I pretended I didn't understand them until one busy night the cooks were all angry."
"I was angry, the bartender was angry, everyone was fuming over one thing or another. I walked over to the food window (expo window) and politely asked for a ranch dressing missing from my order. All of the cooks looked at me like I had 3 heads. I asked again but a bit more direct. After they started talking sh*t I finally yelled at them, in Spanish, that I needed a f**king ranch and I'm not waiting anymore."
"Everyone went silent, apologized and they all had an epiphany. I heard EVERYTHING they had said for the past 3 weeks about me and the other people who worked there. They all ended up showing super mad respect to me afterward and I grew a good rapport with all of them, so much so, I never had to beg or yell for ranch again"
– Novel-Command-8445
Being Bilingual Saved My Life
"I live in the UK. I was walking through London alone late one night in 2019, when I noticed two men appear out of nowhere and walk by in total silence, while both giving me a side eye. I watched their reflections in a shop window as they double-backed and started walking behind me. Nothing too nefarious, until they started speaking in German between themselves. Their conversation started with comments about me being short - generally taking the piss at first. Then they started plotting how they would pull me into the upcoming alley about 50ft further up the road. I thought I was about to be in big trouble when I looked ahead and noticed someone else waiting at the alley."
"I don’t know what came over me but I saw a light flick on in one of the houses nearby and I figured at least one person on this sleepy street was awake. So I spun around and started shouting in German and English that I understood everything they said, that I’d been on the phone to the police the whole time and that they were a minute away. Saw a fair few more lights on the street flick on - I genuinely felt bad for waking so many people. The two guys legged it. The alley way guy did too."
"I did actually report it to the police. Grateful that I did A-level German for two years."
– Rockyri
Not A Secret Language
"I was on public transportation in Switzerland and was asked for my passport by who I think were local police. I don't normally carry my passport and told them (in English) I didn't have it on me. They got pretty pushy and then started saying to each other (in German) how stupid I was. I just looked at them and said (in German) "I speak German. If you want to see my passport you'll have to ride the tram with me to where I have it.""
"Shut them up quick"
– mockbird1
Their Faces Was The Best Piece Of Art
"My dad was born and raised in Paris, France til about the age of 10, and then his family moved back to the states. Because of this, my dad was fluent in French and retained the native accent."
"Fast forward several years, my family is on vacation in Paris. One of our days was spent at the Louvre, which was going well until my disabled mother needed accommodations, which we had asked about weeks beforehand and were assured that they would be provided. On the day of our visit the accommodations weren’t given to my mom, and my dad was livid."
"We were sitting in one of the customer service offices while my dad and one of the staff members argued in English. The mistake they made was assuming my dad didn’t know French - which is something I absolutely can’t blame them for thinking. My dad was one of the most American-looking tourists of all time - imagine every American stereotype rolled into one: super loud voice, a predisposition to smiling at strangers, very overweight, and dressed in New England sports T-shirts that were likely stained."
"Well, one of the staff members then looked at the other one incredulously and said something snarky in French, assuming that none of us would be able go understand what he was saying. Apparently he’d said something along the lines of “Let’s tell them there’s nothing we can do to help, maybe that will get them to leave.” My dad responds, in his perfect Parisian accent, “You can do something, you’re just choosing not to.” Those staff members’ heads swung around so fast I thought they’d broken their necks."
"We ended up leaving on our own accord after that; the looks on their faces as they realized what had happened was absolutely priceless."
"The Orsay had better art to see anyway!"
– 26june2016
Just So Rude!
"I am not deaf but know American sign language fluently."
"I was at work and a woman came up with her husband. She signed to her husband "ask her where the hair dye is". I said that I was sorry but I was new so I wasn't sure but I could get my manager."
"She's signed back to him "of course this dumb bi*ch doesn't know, I'm not surprised.""
"I signed to her "this dumb bi*ch has only been working here for two days. Have some respect for people.""
"She went beet red and immediately left."
– give_em_hell_kid
Now He's Saying...
"MY wife is from Taiwan, I am from the Netherlands. We were one time in a Chinese Restaurant in Paris. There was a Dutch couple in there not too happy about the food, service etc. and discussing in Dutch. At the same time the Chinese owners were talking about the Dutch couple in Chinse. My wife and I were translating to each other what was said in Chinese and Dutch, and we had a blast since we could follow both sides."
– dubstepdaddyo
Elevator Moment
"I'm Puerto Rican but I've been told I look more Italian. Anyway, when I was 15, I stepped into an elevator in Miami and these two girls start talking about me saying I'm cute in Spanish."
"Unfortunately for them, they didn't realize that Spanish was actually my first language so I understood everything they were saying even though they were speaking rapid fire."
"I was really shy at that age so I really didn't say much until the door opened on my floor. Then I thanked them for the compliments in Spanish and walked away slowly. I could hear them giggling all the way down the hall."
ListMore5157
Kidnap Attempt
"I had a friend who was at a bar in my small town USA. This group of six white guys were speaking Russian next to her while she was with one other girlfriend. They paid no attention."
"Luckily the bartender spoke Russian and heard them all plotting to kidnap my friend and that there was a white van waiting outside for them. The bartender didn’t let my friend leave and had the bouncer kick them out. Called the cops shortly after. There was a Russian human trafficking ring in my area at that time."
Stupid Tricks
"I used to be a tour guide and families would hire me to show them the sites, sometimes for a set amount of time and other times it was more open-ended. This family had hired me for an open-ended day. The mother and kids would speak to me in English, but each other in French. I also speak French but the family wasn’t aware. The mom kept telling the kids to pretend that they were going to keep me hired into the evening, but that they were really only going to stay until right after lunch. She told them this many times like it was some weird secret. I have no idea to this day what she thought she would get by tricking me."
AudreyLocke·
I don’t think I’ll ever stop laughing at that story!
Do you have similar experiences to share? Let us know in the comments below.
Knowing another language can be so useful. I speak Spanish in addition to English, having grown up speaking it. I can also read it and write it with ease, which has made my life so much easier. As you can imagine, it has opened up significant possibilities for me on the job market, too!
But learning another language isn't easy. In fact, it requires significant time, patience, and diligence to become fluent. But what if you could avoid all that work?
People shared their thoughts with us after Redditor pretendstoknow asked the online community:
"If you could instantly become fluent in any one language right now which would you pick and why?"
"If I want to know..."
"Spanish. If I want to know another language, I might as well pick one that is going to be useful. Spanish has over 500 million speakers."
Cswbizzel
It does indeed! You make your life so much easier if you travel to Spanish speaking countries, too.
"I'd pick..."
"I'd pick Japanese cause it's meant to be hard to learn as a second language and I could watch anime without dubs and subs."
NortherlyFire
That is indeed a plus. You're probably not the only Westerner who would love that.
"I figured..."
"French, because I moved to Montreal in my 20s. I figured I'd be able to learn and practice my limited French skills and eventually become fluent, but the second my French falters the person I'm talking to just switches to English."
mallordermonster
You'd probably be better off trying your luck further east. Montreal has plenty of English speakers and it's easier for residents to switch to English with Anglophones than to keep speaking French.
"I think..."
"Welsh so I could pronounce this town’s name. I think it would be a great bar bet. Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch."
VivecaD
I... I'm not even going to try.
Welsh is fascinating.
"I like the cold..."
"Finnish. I like the cold, I like sniper rifles, my profession is forestry and I prefer distance from my nearest neighbors, I would emigrate there if I had a half decent grasp of the language."
cmdr_shadowstalker
It sounds like you'd be in heaven if you moved over there, so you might as well learn the language!
"Half my family..."
"Japanese, because half my family speaks it and it would make my life real convenient."
try-me-bitch
You should keep learning some – your family would appreciate it so much!
"It's the language..."
"Michif. It’s the language of my ancestors, the Métis, it’s hard to learn because it’s a combination of Cree and French."
ShredderDont
Did you know?
Michif emerged in the early 19th century as a mixed language, adopting a consistent character between about 1820 and 1840.
"I'm already fluent..."
"Chinese. I'm already fluent in English and near-fluent in Spanish. I've studied Latin and French, and can get the gist of pretty much any Romance language in its written form. It's kind of old hat."
nakedonmygoat
We've got someone with an ear for languages here! We see no reason why you shouldn't go ahead and learn.
"It's written..."
"Arabic. It's written right to left instead of left to right, and unless the writer opts to use the little vowel markers, you have to figure that part out for yourself. It makes my brain hurt in a good way, and I like a challenge."
nakedonmygoat
Engineers who are even halfway decent at the language stand a chance at significantly boosting their salaries, too.
"I like the sound..."
"Swedish because I like the sound and it has two tones which makes it so musical. I already speak Dutch, German, French and Spanish."
triple-negative
We have no doubt you'll become fluent in no rime. We'll check back in on yoiu in a year or two.
Knowing another language truly expands your world – those who are able to speak at least one other language are definitely setting themselves up for success!
Have some thoughts of your own? Feel free to tell us more in the comments below!
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Multilingual People Explain Which Foreign Language Was The Easiest To Learn
People become polyglots for a variety of reasons.
Some people grow up bilingual, with one language being spoken at home and another being spoken out in the world.
Others take it upon themselves to learn more languages. And every language has its own various challenges.
u/hunchbackweeb asked:
Polyglots of reddit: What was the easiest language for you to learn and why?
Here were some of those answers.
Bibbidi Bobbidi
Italian.
Just get an Italian girlfriend and download Italian language versions of RPGs you've already beaten. Congratulations, you're now qualified to eat pasta.
Slang Game
I literally learned English by watching cartoons since a really young age. I spoke a lot of russian and learning another language at the time. Then developed my vocabulary through literature. The hardest part was getting used to the slang. I couldn't understand a word my first year in England.
Cut From The Same Cloth
Hindi - I grew up in a household speaking Punjabi, but learned Hindi from watching Bollywood movies. The languages share some roots, so it was like learning Italian when you speak Spanish.
Idioma de facíl
Spanish. I'm a French speaker. Spanish is simplified French with lots of "o"s and "a"s Oh, and intonations too.
Formulas
I like Spanish, as it is not so difficult knowing if a noun is masculine or feminine.
In German or French, you need to learn the gender of each noun, word by word. Sometimes you have a clue, but it's far more difficult than in Spanish.
Even The Language Is Imperialist
English because it was omnipresent, and I feel like I just learned it by hearing it on TV all day and reading Harry Potter books because I didn't want to wait for the translation. I never felt like I put any real effort into learning it, it just sort of happened.
Of the language I actively learned I think Spanish was the easiest (relatively simple grammar, not many crazy exceptions to the rules), but it certainly helped that I spoke French already
Groupings
It depends on your native language and /or on what foreign language you already know.
Romance languages are close enough to allow you to pick another one up relatively easily. I've never studied Spanish, yet I can understand it well and can stumble my way through a basic conversation, based on my knowledge of Italian.
Ditto for Scandinavian languages. I'd probably become fluent in Swedish within a few months of practice and even the trickier Danish is much less nonsensical when you approach it as a Norwegian speaker.
English is odd... Easy to butcher, tough to master.
German, as all inflected languages, is more intimidating and definitely has a steeper and longer learning curve.
Roots
Latin. By the time you've picked up one or two of the Romance languages, Latin words are pretty easy to recognize. Sentence structure is a bit less easy, and while pronunciation may look hard at first with some words, every letter is pronounced in Latin so there are no 'tricky' letters or sounds. Of course, it's a dead language, so there's that...
Word Order
Easiest was Spanish, but most surprisingly easy was Mandarin. I am by no means fluent in Mandarin or close to it, but the sentence structure is surprisingly similar to English (both are SVO) and verbs are never conjugated, so memorizing and learning all the conjugations just isn't a thing. You of course have to learn how to mark time and tenses, but it's not as complex as for languages in which every verb is conjugated for every tense and every person.
Sure there's the tones and the characters and the measure words and all that, but on the whole was surprisingly less difficult than I anticipated.
When Things Mix Inside Your Brains
Well i have two first languages: English and Japanese.
So Italian is easy because it's alphabet is similar to English. Korean is easy because Japanese has the same grammar structure and even some similar words. Totally different alphabet and slightly more confusing honorific system, but nonetheless easy in general.
On the other hand, Spanish can be a huge pain in the butt for me sometimes because it's TOO similar to Italian. I'll mix up the vocabulary far too often lol
People Share Famous Quotes Often Misused By Not Using The Full Quotation
It's amazing how the entire meaning of a quote can change with just a few additional words. Some people like to exclude these words to make the quote fit their narrative, but these Redditors know the truth. Keep reading for an eye-opening experience.
u/olChum_69 asked: What are some famous quotes people misuse by not using the full quote?
Machiavelli
Machiavelli: "It is better to be feared than loved, if you cannot be both. "
"I want people to be afraid of how much they love me." -Michael Scott
The love of...
GiphyMoney is the root of all evil. The actual verse reads "the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil."
I like the actual verse much more. I always thought money and wealth itself isn't inherently bad, but the desire/love for it can be.
Unlucky.
"The race is not (always) to the swift".
The full quote is: "the race is not to the swift, not the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favour to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all."
The point isn't so much that persistence is sometimes enough to overcome skill, but rather that sometimes everyone is unlucky.
Richard III
"Now is the winter of our discontent."
Actual quote: "Now is the winter of our discontent made glorious summer by this sun of York."
The "now" modifies "made", not "is". Richard III is describing a good thing, that the "seasons are changing" for him and things are looking up. Basically the complete opposite of what you get by stopping half way through the quote.
If wrong, to be set right.
Giphy"My country, right or wrong."
People use it to justify blind patriotism and ignoring the bad things that their country does but forget the rest of the quote: "if right, to be kept right; and if wrong, to be set right."
Still true.
"History repeats itself. First as tragedy, then as farce."
People often forget the second part!
Nietzsche
"God is dead. God remains dead. And we have killed him. How shall we comfort ourselves, the murderers of all murderers? What was holiest and mightiest of all that the world has yet owned has bled to death under our knives: who will wipe this blood off us? What water is there for us to clean ourselves? What festivals of atonement, what sacred games shall we have to invent? Is not the greatness of this deed too great for us? Must we ourselves not become gods simply to appear worthy of it?"
-Nietzsche
The full quote is not nearly as cut and dry as the first sentence. Much more thoughtful than celebratory.
Bootstraps.
Giphy"To pull yourself up by your bootstraps" was initially meant to imply doing the impossible.
Fun fact: the original meaning is also why computers 'boot'.
In the early days when you turn a computer on, how do you ready it for reading instructions? There are no instructions running to tell it to interpret the code that will tell it how to run code to tell it...etc.. So a program is needed that effectively pulls the computer up by its own bootstraps, without the need for user input and thus bootstrapping became a term, later shortened to boot.
Rome wasn't built...
Might as well be that person who points this quote out.
"Rome wasn't built in a day [the forgotten part] but it burned in one."
Ah the classic spin on 'It takes years to build trust but only a moment to destroy it.'
Al Capone
Don't mistake my kindness for weakness.
The full quote:
"Don't mistake my kindness for weakness. I am kind to everyone, but when someone is unkind to me, weak is not what you are going to remember about me." -- Al Capone
Not necessarily misused, but I think the full quote is so much more.