English reigns as the official language in over 50 countries and serves as the global lingua franca for international commerce, diplomacy, science, and technology. Yet, despite its widespread use, mastering English presents a formidable challenge for learners around the world. Why is English so hard to learn? Let’s delve into the multifaceted reasons behind the notorious difficulty of the English language.
One of the most charming aspects of any community is its welcoming nature. Think about joining a new group – people often inquire about your background, your family, and how you’re settling in. These initial conversations help build connections and find common ground. In diverse communities, this curiosity extends to cultural and even spiritual backgrounds, reflecting a genuine interest in understanding each other better. This natural human curiosity extends to language as well. We’re fascinated by accents, different names, and the stories behind them. This inquisitiveness becomes particularly relevant when considering the journey of international individuals immersing themselves in a new environment where English is the primary language.
Imagine being surrounded by a language you’re still learning, navigating daily life, education, and social interactions almost entirely in English. This is the reality for many international students, who bravely embed themselves in new cultures, often far from home. Learning English, and then studying in English, is an immense undertaking that requires not only intellectual effort but also considerable courage and resilience.
It’s unfortunate that phrases like “broken English” sometimes surface when describing someone’s early stages of language acquisition. We wouldn’t say a toddler’s “broken walking” as they learn to walk. Instead, we recognize it as a developmental process. Similarly, individuals navigating the complexities of spoken English deserve admiration for their bravery and intellect, not labels that diminish their efforts. English stands out as an exceptionally challenging language for non-native speakers, often cited as second only to Mandarin/Cantonese in difficulty.
As native English speakers, it’s easy to overlook the intricate hurdles the language presents. Consider the minefield of homophones like ‘see’ and ‘sea,’ or the frequently misused possessive apostrophe in ‘its’ versus ‘it’s.’ Then there’s the labyrinth of verb tenses – a staggering nine in total. And we haven’t even touched upon the bewildering world of idioms and the often-opaque realm of jargon.
Like any living entity, language is in constant flux; it’s organic and dynamic. Languages that are no longer in common use, like Latin, remain static because they are no longer evolving through everyday conversation and adaptation. However, languages actively spoken are continuously changing. A quick glance at an old dictionary reveals this evolution. Words like “spaceship,” “computer,” or “television” simply wouldn’t exist in dictionaries from a century ago. Conversely, some words fade from common usage over time. When was the last time you heard someone described as “gruntled” (the opposite of “disgruntled”) in everyday conversation? Or referred to a naive person as a “sillytonian”? Some archaic words persist only because they are embedded in sayings or idioms. When do we use “kith” without “kin,” and when is a “shrift” anything other than short?
While English isn’t the most spoken language globally – with Chinese boasting over a billion speakers – it firmly holds the position of the world’s second language. This prominence can be attributed to a confluence of historical factors, including the British Empire’s vast global reach for centuries, the invention of the printing press, colonialism, the spread of Christianity, the rise of democratic ideals, the global influence of rock’n’roll music, and the dominance of Hollywood cinema. The advent of jet travel has further contributed, making international travel more accessible and leading to English becoming a common language for both travelers and hosts across many parts of the world.
So, let’s break down further just why English is so hard to learn. Building on the points touched upon, here’s a more comprehensive list of challenges:
- Homophones: Words that sound alike but have different meanings and spellings (there, their, they’re).
- Inconsistent Punctuation: Subtle rules and variations that can drastically alter meaning.
- Numerous Verb Tenses: A complex system compared to many other languages.
- Archaic Words and Phrases: Lingering remnants of older English that can confuse learners.
- Idioms and Jargon: Figurative expressions and specialized vocabulary that are culturally and contextually dependent.
- Organic Language Change: Constant evolution makes it a moving target.
- Implications and Inferences: Meaning often relies on unspoken context and subtle cues.
- Nuance: Fine shades of meaning that require deep understanding.
- Enormous Number of Synonyms: While offering richness, it also creates choices and potential for error.
- Multiple Denotations for a Single Word: Words with various meanings depending on context.
- Affixes and Infixes: Prefixes and suffixes that modify word meaning and grammatical function.
Source: ‘The Elements of Eloquence: How to Turn the Perfect English Phrase’ by Mark Forsyth
But how did this linguistic puzzle box come to be? Why, for instance, are there so many ways to pronounce the seemingly simple vowel combination “ough” – as in cough, rough, plough, through, slough, though, hiccough, thought, thorough, and lough? Why is the plural of ‘house’ ‘houses,’ but the plural of ‘mouse’ stubbornly refuses to be ‘mouses’? How can anyone possibly keep up?
The answer, surprisingly, isn’t as convoluted as the language itself. The core reason Why English Is Hard To Learn lies in its diverse parentage. English is a linguistic melting pot, with words originating from a multitude of sources and formed in various ways. Let’s explore these origins, drawing on the insights of Bill Bryson, author of ‘The Mother Tongue: English and How It Got That Way’:
- Words Created by Error: Language isn’t always meticulously planned; sometimes, mistakes become enshrined in common usage. Examples include “buttonhole,” which evolved from “button-hold,” and “shamefaced,” derived from “shamefast.”
- Words Adopted from Other Languages: English has liberally borrowed words from across the globe. “Shampoo” hails from India, while “ketchup” traces its roots to China.
- Words Sprung from Nowhere: Some words seemingly appear without clear etymological origins, almost as if spontaneously generated. “Jaw,” “dog,” “jam,” “big,” “niblick,” “sound bites,” and “gloomy” are just a few examples of words with obscure or writer-invented beginnings.
- Words Changing Meaning Over Time: The meanings of words are not static; they shift and evolve. “Garble” originally meant “to sort out,” while “tell” once signified “to count” (think of a bank teller). “Nice,” coined around 1290, initially meant “foolish” but traversed a spectrum of meanings over centuries, from “wanton” to “extravagant” to “thin.” Only around 1769 did it settle into its modern sense of “pleasant and agreeable.”
- Words Formed by Adding and Subtracting: English employs affixes and infixes to create word variations, enabling flexibility in parts of speech (“sincere” to “sincerity”) and the creation of opposites (“happy”/”unhappy”). Truncation also plays a role, giving us shortened forms like “lab,” “gym,” and “exam.” Furthermore, speakers frequently fuse words together to create compounds like “airport,” “lighthouse,” and “flowerpot.”
This heterogeneous ancestry is the root cause of English’s rule-heavy yet exception-laden nature. And that, in essence, is why English is hard to learn. Take the common example of plurals. The standard English plural of “octopus” is “octopuses.” However, “octopus” originates from Greek, and its Greek plural form is “octopodes.” Modern usage of “octopodes” is so infrequent that many mistakenly create the incorrect plural “octopi,” applying Latin pluralization rules where they don’t belong. English is replete with words that have Greek or Latin etymologies, but these origins have become somewhat blurred and interchangeable in common usage.
Another thorny example arises with the plural of “cactus.” Its original Latin plural is “cacti,” yet native English speakers are naturally inclined to use “cactuses,” adhering to the standard English pluralization rule of adding “-es” after an “s” ending. Both “cactuses” and “cacti” are considered acceptable today. Notably, “cacti” remains the more prevalent plural form, illustrating how language organically evolves and usage shapes its trajectory.
So, the next time you encounter someone grappling with the intricacies of English, remember to extend patience and understanding. After all, native speakers have had the lifelong advantage of immersion from birth. Consider this: someone who is bilingual has already successfully mastered one language. How many languages do you speak?
