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I never understood why the Hindi word for brother-in-law, "saalaa", doubles as a casual, not quite swearing insult. I thought maybe it was because there's codified hatred for in-laws in many cultures.
I just figured out a much more plausible theory. The Hindi swear word equivalent for "mother****er" is "bhenchod". Sister-****er.
ಠ_ಠ
(If you know better, please correct me!)
first week back
the first half of this week was so productive for me! I finessed my language studying schedule and have decided to focus on French, Spanish and Korean and then passively study Chinese and Irish (and by that i mean studying them when i feel like it rather than reaching a weekly goal lol).
the past 3 days tho i didn't study at all but this week and getting back into studying my languages went a lot better for me than i expected so i'm happy either way :-)
im coming back
i think most people unfollowed me, which is fair i haven’t posted in like 4 years lol but one of my goals for 2023 is to be more active in the language learning community to help me stay motivated with my language studies!
Polyglot Punishment
Did you hear about the french chef who committed suicide? He simply lost the huile d’olive.
CEFR test
Hey guys, if you wanna check your language level of English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Swedish, Norwegian (bokmål), Arabic, Arabic (Syria), Turkish or Danish, here’s the CEFR test! It does take a lot of time (for me it took more than half an hour), but you can test your grammar and vocabulary, reading and listening comprehension so it’s definitely worth it! read more about the test here
Language Learning Book Masterpost
About 120 pdfs of language learning books - let me now if there are any problems :)
Afrikaans
Teach Yourself Afrikaans
Colloquial Afrikaans
Arabic
Arabic - An Essential Grammar
A Reference of Grammar of Modern Standard Arabic
Albanian
Albanian grammar
Colloquial Albanian
Bengali
Teach Yourself Bengali
Bulgarian
A Short Grammar of Bulgarian
Teach Yourself Bulgarian
Catalan
Teach Yourself Catalan
Colloquial Catalan
Cantonese
Routledge Grammars - Basic Cantonese - A Grammar and Workbook
Routledge Grammars - Intermediate Cantonese - A Grammar and Workbook
Colloquial Cantonese
Chinese
Routledge Grammar - Basic Chinese - A Grammar and Workbook (2nd ed)
Routledge Grammar - Intermediate Chinese - A Grammar and Workbook
Using Chinese Synonyms
Using Chinese - A Guide to Contemporary Usage
Chinese - A Comprehensive Grammar
Modern Mandarin Chinese Grammar - A Practical Guide
Chinese Language(s): A Look Through the Prism of the Great Dictionary of Modern Chinese Dialects
Czech
Czech - An Essential Grammar
Danish
Danish - An Essential Grammar
Danish - An Elementary Grammar and Reader
Teach Yourself Danish
Colloquial Danish
Dutch
Routledge Grammar - Basic Dutch - A Grammar and Workbook
Routledge Grammar - Intermediate Dutch - A Grammar and Workbook
Dutch - An Essential Grammar (second source)
Dutch - A Comprehensive Grammar (second source)
Colloquial Dutch (second source)
Colloquial Dutch 2 (second source)
Hugo in 3 Months Dutch
Hugo Advanced Courses Taking Dutch Further
Teach Yourself Beginner’s Dutch
Teach Yourself Dutch
Teach Yourself Dutch Grammar
English
English - An Essential Grammar
A Student’s Introduction to English Grammar
Colloquial English
Finnish
Finnish - An Essential Grammar
French
Using French Vocabulary
A Student Grammar of French
The Syntax of French
Colloquial French 2
German
Routledge Grammar - Basic German - A Grammar and Workbook
Routledge Grammar - Intermediate German - A Grammar and Workbook
German - An Essential Grammar
Using German Synonyms
The Structure of German
Gujarati
Teach Yourself Gujarati
Colloquial Gujarati
Greek
Greek - An Essential Grammar of the Modern Language
Colloquial Greek
Hungarian
Hungarian - An Essential Grammar
The Syntax of Hungarian
Colloquial Hungarian
Hebrew
Modern Hebrew - An Essential Grammar
Colloquial Hebrew
Icelandic
The Syntax of Icelandic
Colloquial Icelandic
Irish
Routledge Grammar - Basic Irish - A Grammar and Workbook
Routledge Grammar - Intermediate Irish - A Grammar and Workbook
Colloquial Irish - The Complete Course for Beginners
Irish Grammar - A Basic Handbook
Italian
Routledge Grammar - Basic Italian - A Grammar and Workbook
Using Italian - A Guide to Contemporary Usage
Using Italian Vocabulary
Modern Italian Grammar a Practical Guide
Colloquial Italian
Colloquial Italian 2
Indonesian
Indonesian - A Comprehensive Grammar
Indonesian Reference Grammar
Icelandic
Teach Yourself Icelandic
Korean
Routledge Grammar - Basic Korean - A Grammar and Workbook
Routledge Grammar - Intermediate German - A Grammar and Workbook
Using Korean - A Guide to Contemporary Usage
Korean Grammar for International Learners
Colloquial Korean - The Complete Course for Beginners
Latvian
A Short Grammar of Latvian
Teach Yourself Latvian
Colloquial Latvian
Lithuanian
A Short Grammar of Lithuanian
Teach Yourself Lithuanian
Colloquial Lithuanian
Norwegian
Norwegian - An Essential Grammar
Colloquial Norwegian
Polish
Routledge Grammar - Intermediate Polish - A Grammar and Workbook
Polish - An Essential Grammar
A Grammar of Contemporary Polish
Colloquial Polish
Portuguese
Portuguese - An Essential Grammar
Using Portuguese - A Guide to Contemporary Usage
Portuguese (Brazilian)
Colloquial Portuguese of Brazil
Colloquial Portuguese of Brazil 2
Russian
Routledge Grammar - Intermediate Russian - A Grammar and Workbook
Using Russian - A Guide to Contemporary Usage
Using Russian Vocabulary
A Comprehensive Russian Grammar
A Reference Grammar of Russian
Colloquial Russian 2
Romanian
Romanian - An Essential Grammar
Colloquial Romanian
Serbian
Serbian - An Essential Grammar
Teach Yourself Serbian
Spanish
Routledge Grammar - Basic Spanish - A Grammar and Workbook
Routledge Grammar - Intermediate Spanish - A Grammar and Workbook
Spanish - An Essential Grammar
Using Spanish Synonyms
Using Spanish Vocabulary
Using Spanish - A Guide to Contemporary Usage
A Student Grammar of Spanish
Modern Spanish Grammar A Practical Guide
The Syntax of Spanish
Swedish
Swedish - An Essential Grammar
Teach Yourself Swedish
Colloquial Swedish
Thai
Thai - An Essential Grammar
Teach Yourself Thai
Colloquial Thai
Turkish
Turkish Grammar
Turkish - A Comprehensive Grammar
Urdu
Urdu - An Essential Grammar
Welsh
Modern Welsh - A Comprehensive Grammar
The Syntax of Welsh
Colloquial Welsh
me too always open!
Reblog if...
… your chat is open to talk about cultures, languages, social topics, or anything you want to talk about with new international friends!
Hi Essi! Could you make a list of some vocabulary list topics?
Greetings and basic phrases
Colours
Shapes
Numbers and counting
Measurements
Telling time
Question words
Basic adjectives/verbs
Personal pronouns
Family members and relatives
Daily routine
Weather
Seasons: winter, spring, summer, autumn
Events of the year: new year, easter, birthday, halloween, christmas, etc.
Life events and stages of life
Food and beverages
Herbs and spices
Cooking and baking
Dietary requirements and allergies
Flavours
Asking for and giving directions
Physical appearance
Clothes and accessories
Makeup
Beauty and fashion
Fabrics and patterns
Materials
Body parts
Personality traits
Feelings and emotions
Places and buildings
Types of houses
Furniture and objects around the house
Containers
City
Countryside
Animals and insects
Hobbies
Arts and crafts
Tools
Music
TV and tv-shows
Movies
Books and literature
Popular movies/series/etc: Harry Potter, Game of Thrones, Twilight, Star Wars, Disney, Pokémon, Studio Ghibli, Moomin…
Sports
Games
Transportation
Cars and driving
Traveling
School, studying, and stationery
Work and occupations
Diary/bullet journal
Post and email
Culture
Science
Nature
Natural disasters
Environment
Elements
Countries and continents
Bodies of water
Space
Compass points
Languages and linguistics
Profanities and insults
Relationships
Friendship
Flirting
Love
Sex
Sexual orientation and gender identity
Religion
Fairytales and mythology
Zodiac signs
Computers and other electronic devices
Social media & different platforms (tumblr, facebook, twitter…)
Cleaning and hygiene
Health and illnesses
Money
Shopping
Camping
Names
Politics and elections
Royalty
Circus
Partying
Alcohol and drugs
Bullying
News
Terrorism
Refugees
Military, army & war
Synonyms and antonyms
Pairs and opposites
Idioms and proverbs
Tongue twisters
Loanwords
Abbreviations
Slang
Irregular verbs
False friends
Advanced vocabulary
Weather Vocabulary in Spanish and French
Nouns
Weather – El clima – La météo/ le temps
Temperature – La temperatura – La température
Forecast – El pronóstico – La prévision
Sun – El sol – Le soleil
Wind – El viento – Le vent
Cloud – La nube – Le nuage
Snow – La nieve – La neige
Rain – La lluvia – La pluie
Storm – La tormenta – La tempête/ l’orage (m.)
Thunder – El trueno – Le tonnerre
Lighting – El rayo – L’éclair (m.)
Heat – El calor – La chaleur
Cold – El frio – Le froid
Ice – El hielo – La glace
Hail – El granizo – La grêle
Humidity – La humedad – L’humidité (f.)
Adjectives
Sunny – Soleado - Ensoleillé
Windy – Ventoso - Venteux
Cloudy – Nublado – Nuageux
Rainy – Lluvioso - Pluvieux
Stormy – Tormentoso – Orageux
Hot – Caliente – Chaleureux
Cold – Frio – Froid
Icy – Helado* – Glacé
Humid – Húmedo – Humide
Dry – Seco – Sec
Frozen – Congelado – Gelé
Slippery – Resbaladizo – Glissant
*Can also mean very cold
Verbs
To shine – Brillar – Briller
To rain- Llover – Pleuvoir
To blow – Soplar – Souffler
To burn – Quemar – Bruler
To freeze – Congelar – Geler
To check the weather – Revisar el clima – Vérifier la météo/ le temps
To fall – Caer – Tomber
To slip – Resbalar – Glisser
To hail – Granizar – Grêler
To predict – Predecir – Prévoir
Want to learn something new in 2022??
Absolute beginner adult ballet series (fabulous beginning teacher)
40 piano lessons for beginners (some of the best explanations for piano I’ve ever seen)
Excellent basic crochet video series
Basic knitting (probably the best how to knit video out there)
Pre-Free Figure Skate Levels A-D guides and practice activities (each video builds up with exercises to the actual moves!)
How to draw character faces video (very funny, surprisingly instructive?)
Another drawing character faces video
Literally my favorite art pose hack
Tutorial of how to make a whole ass Stardew Valley esque farming game in Gamemaker Studios 2??
Introduction to flying small aircrafts
French/Dutch/Fishtail braiding
Playing the guitar for beginners (well paced and excellent instructor)
Playing the violin for beginners (really good practical tips mixed in)
Color theory in digital art (not of the children’s hospital variety)
Retake classes you hated but now there’s zero stakes:
Calculus 1 (full semester class)
Learn basic statistics (free textbook)
Introduction to college physics (free textbook)
Introduction to accounting (free textbook)
Learn a language:
Ancient Greek
Latin
Spanish
German
Japanese (grammar guide) (for dummies)
French
Russian (pretty good cyrillic guide!)
I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again but it is absolutely an example of civilizational inadequacy that only deaf people know ASL
“oh we shouldn’t teach children this language, it will only come in handy if they [checks notes] ever have to talk in a situation where it’s noisy or they need to be quiet”
This is my mother fr! For example, if I say the American version of an English word, or if I ‘ma però’, or if I mix up any language/sentence structures of any of the languages she knows, she will IMMEDIATELY correct me and point out why I was wrong 🥲. Like sorry Im dyslexic while you have multiple language degrees lol.
Linguists are like vampires but instead of drinking your blood they harass you about a weird irregularity in your speech that no one else would have noticed.
"listening to music in your target language is the best way to learn it" they said "it'll be fun" they said but now i'm listening to smells like teen spirit in classical latin with weird instrumentals in the background.
I want to be fluent in french so bad.
"I love languages and learning languages and learning about other cultures through languages I love learning langugaes..." - me, trying to motivate myself to study while struggling with a language I'm willingly learning
Vivamus, moriendum est | Let us live, since we must die
Exigo a me non ut optimus par sim sed ut malis melio | I require myself not to be equal to the best, but to be better than the bad
Vive ut Vivas | Live to live
In girum imus nocte et consumimur igni | We enter the circle at night and are consumed by fire.
Flectere si nequeo superos, acheronta movebo | If I can not bend the will of Heaven, I shall move Hell | Aeneid, Virgil
Neutiquam erro | I am not lost
In Omnia Paratus | Ready for anything
↠ Latin Phrases
I’ve been collecting these phrases for a while. Now, I’m finally posting them!
In absentia lucis, tenebrae vincunt | In the absence of light, darkness prevails
Dulce periculum | Danger is sweet
Non ducor duco | I am not lead; I lead
Cogito ergo sum | I think, therefore I am
Lux brumalis | The light of winter
Alis propriis volat | She flies with her own wings
Bibere venenum in auro | To drink poison from a golden cup
Est quaedam flere voluptas | There is a certain pleasure in weeping
Ut incepit fidelis sic permanet | Loyal she began, thus she remains
Si vis pacem, para bellum | If you want peace, prepare for war
Luceat lux vestra | Let your light shine
Vidi Vidi Amavi | I came, I saw, I loved | Julius Caesar
Astra inclinant, sed non obligant | The stars incline us, they do not bind us.
Sic semper tyrannis | Thus always to tyrants | Marcus Junius Brutus
Aeternum vale | Farewell forever
Curae leves loquuntur ingentes stupent | Slight griefs talk, great ones are speechless.
Fortuna vitrea est; tum cum splendet frangitur | Fortune is glass; just when it gleams brightest it shatters | Publilius Syrus
Hinc illae lacrimae | Hence these tears | Terence
↠ Latin Phrases
I’ve been collecting these phrases for a while. Now, I’m finally posting them!
In absentia lucis, tenebrae vincunt | In the absence of light, darkness prevails
Dulce periculum | Danger is sweet
Non ducor duco | I am not lead; I lead
Cogito ergo sum | I think, therefore I am
Lux brumalis | The light of winter
Alis propriis volat | She flies with her own wings
Bibere venenum in auro | To drink poison from a golden cup
Est quaedam flere voluptas | There is a certain pleasure in weeping
Ut incepit fidelis sic permanet | Loyal she began, thus she remains
Si vis pacem, para bellum | If you want peace, prepare for war
Luceat lux vestra | Let your light shine
Vidi Vidi Amavi | I came, I saw, I loved | Julius Caesar
Astra inclinant, sed non obligant | The stars incline us, they do not bind us.
Sic semper tyrannis | Thus always to tyrants | Marcus Junius Brutus
Aeternum vale | Farewell forever
Curae leves loquuntur ingentes stupent | Slight griefs talk, great ones are speechless.
Fortuna vitrea est; tum cum splendet frangitur | Fortune is glass; just when it gleams brightest it shatters | Publilius Syrus
Hinc illae lacrimae | Hence these tears | Terence
↠ Latin Phrases
I’ve been collecting these phrases for a while. Now, I’m finally posting them!
In absentia lucis, tenebrae vincunt | In the absence of light, darkness prevails
Dulce periculum | Danger is sweet
Non ducor duco | I am not lead; I lead
Cogito ergo sum | I think, therefore I am
Lux brumalis | The light of winter
Alis propriis volat | She flies with her own wings
Bibere venenum in auro | To drink poison from a golden cup
Est quaedam flere voluptas | There is a certain pleasure in weeping
Ut incepit fidelis sic permanet | Loyal she began, thus she remains
Si vis pacem, para bellum | If you want peace, prepare for war
Luceat lux vestra | Let your light shine
Vidi Vidi Amavi | I came, I saw, I loved | Julius Caesar
Astra inclinant, sed non obligant | The stars incline us, they do not bind us.
Sic semper tyrannis | Thus always to tyrants | Marcus Junius Brutus
Aeternum vale | Farewell forever
Curae leves loquuntur ingentes stupent | Slight griefs talk, great ones are speechless.
Fortuna vitrea est; tum cum splendet frangitur | Fortune is glass; just when it gleams brightest it shatters | Publilius Syrus
Hinc illae lacrimae | Hence these tears | Terence
It’s so exciting to be studying another language and then realise that you understood a complete sentence. And then another complete sentence. I realise they’re very basic sentences, but it’s just fun.
That’s a screenshot of the Sahlawayhi stories, level 2 on LingQ.
Overall, the Sahlawayhi stories were exactly what I needed in a graded reader and I'll read more in this series: the level is good and there's a lot of repetition. However, I could have done without all the racism and sexism in the last story. The way the male characters talk about Thai women was pretty gross. I'll reread the first three stories for more practice.
Sahlawayhi 2 is much the same as the first. Most of the stories are good for practice though one is about suicide. The repetitive vocabulary is very helpful, though.
La fille qui rêvait d'un bidon d'essence et d'une allumette est excellent. Idéal pour apprendre le français, et donne moi envie de vivre dans un monde dirigé par des femmes.
*Sometimes YouTube videos are mainstream media, so if you regularly watch YouTube videos but only ones that are breaking 3M+ views, I would count that as mainstream entertainment media.
‹‹ Ό φίλος άλλος έαυτός ››
‹‹ The friend is another me. ›› said Phytagoras, showing a relationship of deep harmony between two persons, an unbreakable love and woven between the souls that melt inevitably.
Ancient greek world and its language descrive three different faces of love, all of them classifications that, according to Greeks, happen in human world: Ἔρως, Άγάπη, Φιλία (Eros, Agapee, Philia).
Eros means physical and passionable love, where it shows the desire to possess the other one and bases on a continuous give and receive.
Agape is, instead, celestial love, pure, bright that raises humans. A cosmic love that drive to desire the good for others before ours, that pushes to love every person beyond the fact that he/her/h* can deserve our love. It is, then, a love that sublimes, that makes you fly high, that asks for nothing in change because, as Kahlil Gibran said: "Love is enough for love" A disinterested love, trascendent and far from all selfishness. Near to charity, in fact, agape becomes God's love for the men, and from the men to God. It's a model of a relationship lighted by reciprocity, understood as overcoming of selfishness.
At the end, there's Philia, the friendship, brotherly love. A human love made of pure affection, attraction and sympathy, characterised by a feeling of joy that you can feel staying with the other. A love knows how to lull, confort and protect.
Greeks were very wise to distinguish every kind of love in a maniacal way.
here down different types for saying "I love you" in ancient greece.
Ψυχὴ καί Θανατος (psyche kai thanatos) would whisper uninhibited greek women during sex. The translation loses his meaning (You're my soul and my death), but along with aspirates and assonances, they made it a powerful aphrodisiac.
Διαπετομαι, "fly" or, as we say today, "cum". "To make love" can be translated with κατεύδειν.
Σοι φλήγω, "glow of love for you". It's a clue of strong passion, generally led by Eros. Then the fault is Eros': Ἔρως επὴ μοι κατεθεχατο τοχα καί ιὺς, for "Eros sharpened me with arches and arrows), but these are better for poetry than in the bed.
Τιτροσκώ συ πὸθω means "I'm pierced by desire for you". It means the moment of excitement before love.
Ση πειρώ, in military words can mean being pierced from side to side with a sword, then it specialized also in erotc sense, with the meaning of "I'm pierced of love for you".
The Theocritus Χος ιδον ος εμανην "As I saw you, I god mad" like the formula for "since I first saw you".
Μαινόμαι επή σὸι, "I'm crazy for you".
Σιουναρπαζεις, e.g "You stole my soul" express the strenght and the speed of amorous ignition that in an all-encompassing way hit the loved one.
But fortunately Love is not only pain and absolute passion: ιανεις καρδιαν , means "You warm my heart".
Σ'ηρώ is exactly our "I love you": commonly, less recent, more polyvalent: if instead of common feelings, you can say Σ'αγαπώ; in more carnal and heroic way (only Homer and Archilochus used it) you can say Σ'ηραμαι.
Σοι τερπομαι, means "I'm happy when I'm with you", to a friend, a son or a dear, you can name them with Σε φιλώ, e.g "I love you".
Νειλοθερής
Toasted by the sultry Egypt’s weather
συμμετεωροπολέω
I go through celestial regions along with.