Effective Tips for Understanding Multiple Languages at Once

A new language is something fun and interesting to learn. But you have to dedicate your time to learn it. Learning a new language doesn’t only involve new words, but a whole vocabulary. It doesn’t involve phrases alone, but whole sentences. In short, a new language requires hard work to be understood by the people who speak it. Below are some ways to do it.

1. Pair more and less familiar languages

If you are more than familiar with a particular language and you plan to study one more, try to pair the most familiar with a less familiar language. For example, you can study Korean and Japanese together, Korean being the most familiar and Japanese the less familiar one. The two are somehow alike in sound and sentence construction, so you might find it easy to learn the two languages at the same time.

2. Plan how much time to spend on each language

You have to set a goal if you want to learn a new language. The time to start and the duration of your study should be expressed. This will serve as your course outline and this is useful when it comes to learning multiple languages at the same time. It is also best that you concentrate on one language at a time. It is much more effective compared to switching from one language to another in a day. The other languages can wait for their turn.

3. Practice multiple languages by translating between them

To be a pro when learning two languages at the same time, you can try to translate between the two. Of course, you have to cut off your links with your native language first. An example would be translating the Korean language into French and vice versa. This will exercise your mind to think and your tongue to move. This exercise might just help you to learn faster and take on more different languages too.

4. Keep it fun

Learning does not have to be boring, especially when it’s a new language. Always keep it fresh and interesting like looking up for videos of language tutors, to give you another way of learning aside from the usual book-reading. You can also hire a local to take time and converse with you in the language you are learning. Make it an easy language learning activity always.

5. Make it the norm

To effectively put into your head the new language you are learning, you have to include it in your everyday activities, even your daily conversations. You can open your language book while in the bathroom. While waiting for your dinner to bake, you can listen to your audio files. You can also do some studying while commuting to and from work. In this case, making the most out of your free time coupled with some practice makes pronunciation, grammar and vocabulary perfect.

6. Change your environment when switching languages

Try to change venues with each language you’re learning. For example, you learn Russian in a coffee shop and you study Dutch in a pastry shop. A new environment will always give you a fresh start. Don’t interchange the two, especially if you have gotten used to it, the languages you’re learning might get jumbled too.

7. Reward yourself

Rewarding oneself is a means of increasing morale. If you can memorize a long and difficult word, reward yourself. If you have memorized a full sentence, do it. This also motivates you to learn and study with more dedication. You have to understand that you are human and you make mistakes every day, and learning a new language is no exception. So, give yourself a break. You’ll be glad you did.

Learning two languages or more at the same time is the quickest way to be multilingual. But, it’s definitely more effective if you learn one language at a time. That way, you will appreciate it more and learn and speak it the way it’s supposed to be spoken, and with heart.

Guest blog by Andy Bell

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