This is certainly the million-dollar question that concerns everyone who wants to learn this beautiful language. Spanish is actually the third most widely spoken language in the world (after Chinese and English). Did you know that in the USA, for example, there are more Spanish speakers than in Spain itself? Wherever you live, you can be sure that there is a Spanish-speaking community somewhere nearby. The total number of people for whom Spanish is a native language worldwide exceeds 425 million. There are 20 countries in which Spanish is an official language. With this post, we will try to give you an honest answer about how difficult (or easy) it will be for you to learn Spanish…
Learning a new language is like marathon running in Olympic disciplines. The task is not easy. It requires some talent, a lot of 'training' (practice), and serious dedication. It won't be easy, that's clear. But how difficult will it really be?
That's exactly the right question. You want to know if you should invest your time and energy in something that will be as difficult as one of the most challenging Olympic disciplines?
Unfortunately, there is no right answer to this question. But if you succeed, the benefits and satisfaction for you will truly be great. Just like winning an Olympic title! Spanish will open many doors for you, both professionally and personally.
We will highlight several factors that make Spanish both easy and difficult to learn. The final decision, of course, will remain yours. We hope to be at least a little helpful in making this decision.
How difficult will it be for you to learn Spanish – it depends entirely on you!
Before we even touch on Spanish, there are a number of personal factors that will affect the ease with which you will master the language.
One of the best indicators of how quickly and easily you will cope with Spanish is whether you already know a second language. Knowing a second language makes learning a third (and fourth, fifth…) language much easier.
This is especially true if you have already learned another Romance language, because much of the structure and many of the words are similar for this group of languages.
If you don't know any other language besides your native one, then it will be a bit more difficult for you to start from scratch.
In addition, it will be easier for you to learn Spanish if you have access to a Spanish-speaking community. Practicing the language with other people is important for the learning process. Having Spanish speakers around you will give you the opportunity to immediately use your newly acquired language skills.
Of course, a frequently repeated cliché is that languages are learned more easily at a younger age. Children more easily memorize new languages because of some specifications of the brain during growth. Children learn a foreign language as if it were their native language. Older people, however, have other advantages at their disposal, such as discipline, strategic thinking, and concentration.
Another piece of good news is that if you have already studied Spanish in school, then you have laid some foundation and it will be easier for you to continue. However small that foundation is, it will make things easier for you.
Is Spanish difficult to learn?
Spanish is a complex language. Some aspects of the language are more difficult to learn, while others make things easier. Especially if you have already studied another language and particularly English, for example.
Let's take a look at some of the challenges you will face.
3 reasons why Spanish is not difficult to learn (especially if you already know another Romance language).
If you know English, say, because of the kinship of Romance languages, you already know many words. The two languages share many words that look the same and have the same meaning. Such as adoptar (to adopt) and participar (to participate). Similar English-Spanish cognates make Spanish easier to learn.
Once you could tell what a cognate word means by looking at it, you already have a good vocabulary for a good start to your studies.
Still, you should be aware that there are also false cognates. These are words that look cognate but have different meanings. Such as sopa, which means soup, not soap. It's easy to fall into this trap. So learn the false cognates as well to avoid such confusion.
The structure of sentences is similar to that in English.
Spanish and English have very similar sentence structure. And that's already half the battle won. There are only a few differences (such as the order of adjectives, for example). Both languages use the matrix: subject, verb, object.
There are languages that use completely different word order. So the similarities here mean one less difficulty along the way.
Spanish has many rules and patterns to follow
In Spanish, there are many rules and patterns that really work. And the more of them you master, the closer you will be to learning the language. Watch for these patterns during your lessons – this will greatly facilitate your learning process going forward.
For example, verb conjugation or sentence construction – are quite consistent throughout the language. You just need to learn the pattern.
Patterns are everywhere. You will quickly notice, for example, that nouns ending in –o – are often masculine, while nouns ending in -a – are often feminine.
So watch for similar patterns – they will facilitate your lessons.
TO BE CONTINUED…