How to take a step in learning a language

How to take a step in learning a language

When you start learning a new language, it’s happiness . We discover a number of new words, we express ourselves quickly in the present, the past and the future, and we finally understand references that escaped us until then. For example the difference between living la dolce vita and la vida loca . And then the feeling of omnipotence comes to an abrupt end. Until then, we felt a little stronger every day, and suddenly learning takes the form of an endless succession of irregular verbs in the past perfect. Congratulations… you now know the sweet feeling of having reached a (first) level of learning!

We suspect that it does not reassure you to know that millions of people have already experienced this before you. Nor that it’s the time when most people throw in the towel (or rather their bilingual dictionary) and decide to take up the piano or calligraphy. Paradoxically, crossing a learning threshold does not depend on what one learns but on the very fact of learning.

Friends, I tell you: hang in there! The secret is motivation . Remember, when you decided to immerse yourself in this language, you had an excellent reason. You’re still not going to forfeit the first difficulty? Here are some tips to finally succeed in taking a step forward in your language learning. The next level is yours!

This is not a landing

There’s one important thing to know about milestones: the feeling of learning nothing more is usually just a… feeling . Let’s start from the beginning: when you start learning a language, you don’t know anything about it. Every word we remember becomes a small victory! A few days after starting, we are already able to greet someone and introduce ourselves . Admit it’s great! But the further we go, the more this magical feeling dissipates. New difficulties appear: the structure of sentences becomes more complex, which leads to new mistakes. Don’t be fooled by appearances: if you have reached this stage, which looks like a bleak plain, it is because you are continuing to progress!Never forget: taking a step is only a stage that you will pass sooner or later!

Keep your original goal in mind

Do you remember why you started learning this language? To impress someone who doesn’t speak French? Or to prepare a trip abroad? Anyway, this reason is necessarily excellent: to cross a threshold, it is important to define a precise goal… and to remember it! If it helps, write it down somewhere, and come back to it whenever you feel like giving up. Several studies have shown that to stay motivated, there is nothing like regularly visualizing your goal.

Make learning part of your daily routine  

Do you want to take it a step further? Here is a little trick to put in place from the start of your learning process: make your language lessons part of your daily routine . If you learn sporadically, your motivation will fail at the first pitfall. And one fine day, you will find that you have completely stopped learning this language without even realizing it. It is not for nothing that passion and perseverance are considered two determining factors in learning. Having the ability to start and then persevere is invaluable . Only a few rare geniuses have a mysterious talent for learning foreign languages .And their secret is always the same: it’s perseverance that pays off.

Give up wanting to learn everything in record time

When you immerse yourself in a new language, you may want to learn a maximum of things in a minimum of time. This method has a name: brainwashing. Bad news: our brain is not adapted to that. Consequence:  it is much more effective to devote 15 minutes a day for six months to learning than six hours a day for 2 weeks. In other words, to give the brain time to imprint the new knowledge over time . If your goal is to really speak a language, you will have to go through this. Remember that to  master the finer points of your mother tongue, it took you years; how could you go a step further in another language in just a few days?

Bonus: go to the restaurant to celebrate your successes

Admittedly, this is not advice per se. But rewarding yourself for your accomplishments can be a great source of motivation.  We will attach more attention to a good moment , like a trip or a show, than to a simple object .  The important thing is to know how to reward your efforts! So, don’t hesitate the next time you have the opportunity to take the next step: you know that a great meal awaits you!

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The 21 most common adjectives in Italian

The 21 most common adjectives in Italian

The world is full of “things”, “stuff”, and other “things” . However, these generic terms won’t help you accurately describe something in a foreign language . When you can’t remember the exact name of an object, you have to use another way to refer to it. This is exactly what adjectives are for.

Having the most common adjectives in Italian at your disposal is a great resource when you run out of nouns on your travels in Italy and want to be able to say something other than “Hello, what time is it?” “in Italian  “. Here is a guide that presents the most important Italian adjectives to know, illustrated with examples that will help you to use these different adjectives correctly, in Italian.

21 Italian adjectives you need to know

1. Altro/a – Other

Examples:

  • Mi può portare un altro asciugamano, per favore? – Could I have another towel, please?
  • Desidera qualcos’altro? – Can I get you something else?

2. Tanto/a – So much, so many

Examples:

Ma cosa faresti con così tanti soldi? “ What would you do with that much money?”

Ti auguro tanta felicità per l’anno che verrà! – I wish you a lot of happiness for this new year!

3. Poco – Few, not many

Examples:

  • Normally mangio pochi carboidrati. – I normally eat few carbohydrates.
  • Mi piacciono solo pocket cose. – I don’t like a lot of things.

4. Molto – A lot, very, very much

Examples  :

  • Mangiare molta frutta e verdura fa bene. – Eating lots of fruits and vegetables is good for your health.
  • Luana la mattina ha semper molta fretta. – In the morning, Luana is always in (lit. has a lot of) the emergency.

5. Stesso/a – Even

Examples  :

  • Lo stesso tragitto – The same path
  • Dobbiamo fare lo stesso tragitto. – We must leave (lit. do) in the same way.
  • Dal lavoro a casa prito ogni sera lo stesso treno. “ I take the same train home from work every night.

6. Primo/a – First, first

Examples:

  •  The train for Milan at 7.55 am leaves from platform 1.
  • Il primo tempo – The first half

7. Ogni – Each/All

Examples  :

  • Abbiamo lavorato ogni giorno. – We worked every day.
  • A ogni morte di papa – Every thirty-sixth of the month (lit. “every time a pope dies”)

8. Tall – Tall, fat

Examples  :

  • La tavola non è abbastanza grande per otto persone. – The table is not large enough for eight people.
  • He has a big nose. – He has a big nose.

9. Bello/a – Beautiful, beautiful

Examples  :

  • Non è molto bello ma è davvero simpatico! “He’s not very handsome, but he’s really nice!
  • Per la gita abbiamo ottenuto un bello sconto. – We got a nice reduction for the trip.

10. Nuovo/a – New, new

Examples:

  • Anno nuovo, vita nuova! – New year, new life!
  • Un cappotto nuovo – A new coat

11. Certo/a – Certain, sure

Examples:

  • Noto un certo disfattismo. – I notice a certain defeatism.
  • The città vecchie hanno un certo fascino. – Old towns have a certain charm.

12. Vero/a – True

Examples:

  • He’s a real techno fan.
  • In May, the garden is a real marvel!

13. Buono/a – Good

Examples:

  • This wine is as good as it is expensive.
  • Exercise is good for the body and the mind.

14. Italiano/a – Italian(s)

Examples:

  • Marco è italiano. – Marco is Italian.
  • Mi piace qualche regista italiano. – I like some Italian directors.

15. Ultimo/a – Last, Last

Examples:

  • It’s the last Wednesday of the month.
  •  Yes, I understand. I will take the last bus.

16. Vecchio/a – Old, old

Examples:

  • Spero di diventare molto vecchio. – I hope I will become very old.
  • The ho guardato aunt volte! Ma è un film vecchio, vero? – I’ve seen it so many times! But it’s an old movie, isn’t it?

17. Piccolo/a – Small

Examples  :

  • They are likely to offer (will offer) a small contribution.
  • Il piccolo paese pittoresco ha solo venti abitanti. – The picturesque little village has only twenty inhabitants.

18. Giovane – Young

Examples  :

  • The groom looks very young.
  • Our youngest roommate is 33 years old.

19. Alto/a – High, tall, high

Examples:

  • Carlo is tall.
  • This rent is not high.

20. Diverso/a – Different

Examples  :

  • It is possible to divide these variants into different families.
  • It is normal that you and I have different ideas.

21. Lungo/a – Long, long

Examples  :

  • Un lungo viaggio – A long journey
  • Infinite Jest di David Foster Wallace has oltre 1000 pages: è un libro lungo. – David Foster Wallace’s Infinite Jest is over 1,000 pages – it’s a long book.
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