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knatti

June 30, 2026

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How I would learn a new foreign language

If I had to learn another foreign language from scratch I would..

Firstly I would like to talk about my experiences learning foreign languages. I consider myself very fortunate to have German as a native language. Since the time I was a toddler I have been exposed to an abundant amount of English content. Furthermore, German is very close to English in both vocabulary but also pronunciation and culture which made it much easier to expand my vocabulary and increase my comprehension. However there is one thing that I have had to come to terms with, which is my strong German accent. In that regard I have done some digging and stumbled upon something interesting.

Recently I watched a video by an Australian simultaneous interpreter on youtube who stressed the importance of learning the phonetic inventory of a language before commencing on any direct study. In said video, he goes on to recite a text in German, which is a language that he has studied phonetically but has no knowledge beyond that. To my surprise he pronounced almost every word perfectly and there was no Australian accent to speak of.

This leads me to believe that deliberate phonetic study at the beginning stage of learning a new language is highly beneficial in that it makes your pronunciation independent of what your native language might be overimposing otherwise and it avoids forming bad habits that are harder to fix later on.

What do you think about deliberate phonetic practice? I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments :)

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However there is one thing that I have had to come to terms with, which is my strong German accent.

In that regard I have done some digging and stumbled upon something interesting.

This leads me to believe that deliberate phonetic study at the beginning stage of learning a new language is highly beneficial in that it makes your pronunciation independent of what your native language might be overimposing otherwise and it avoids forming bad habits that are harder to fix later on.

What do you think about deliberate phonetic practice?

I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments :)

knatti's avatar
knatti

July 1, 2026

0

knatti's avatar
knatti

July 1, 2026

0

How I would learn a new foreign language


How I would learn a new foreign language How I would learn a new foreign language

Or How would I learn a new foreign language?

If I had to learn another foreign language from scratch I would..


If I had to learn another foreign language from scratch, I would... If I had to learn another foreign language from scratch, I would...

Comma after "scratch" to break clauses. ".." changed to "..." to be a standard elpsis.

Firstly I would like to talk about my experiences learning foreign languages.


Firstly, I would like to talk aboutdiscuss my experiences of learning foreign languages. Firstly, I would like to discuss my experiences of learning foreign languages.

Comma after "Firstly". "experiences of learning" is slightly more natural phrasing in UK English.

Firstly, I would like to talk about my experiences learning foreign languages. Firstly, I would like to talk about my experiences learning foreign languages.

I consider myself very fortunate to have German as a native language.


I consider myself very fortunate to have German as amy native language. I consider myself very fortunate to have German as my native language.

Added "my" for clarity.

Since the time I was a toddler I have been exposed to an abundant amount of English content.


Since the time I was a toddler, I have been exposed to an abundant large amount of English content. Since I was a toddler, I have been exposed to a large amount of English content.

Changed the beginning of the sentence to be more concise, with a comma after introductory clause. "An abundant amount" is slightly awkward phrasing. It is technically correct but it isn't likely that you would hear someone say this in conversation.

Since the time I was a toddler, I have been exposed to an abundant amount of English content. Since I was a toddler, I have been exposed to an abundant amount of English content.

Furthermore, German is very close to English in both vocabulary but also pronunciation and culture which made it much easier to expand my vocabulary and increase my comprehension.


Furthermore, German is very close to English in both vocabulary but also, pronunciation and culture, which has made it much easier for me to expand my vocabulary and increasmprove my comprehension. Furthermore, German is very close to English in vocabulary, pronunciation and culture, which has made it much easier for me to expand my vocabulary and improve my comprehension.

Replaced "both... but also" with a simple comma list for readability.

Furthermore, German is very close to English in both vocabulary but also pronunciation and culture which made it much easier to expand my vocabulary and increase my comprehension. Furthermore, German is very close to English in vocabulary but also pronunciation and culture which made it much easier to expand my vocabulary and increase my comprehension.

No need to add both since you wrote 3 things.

However there is one thing that I have had to come to terms with, which is my strong German accent.


However, there is one thing that I have had to come to terms with, which is my strong German accent. However, there is one thing that I have had to come to terms with, which is my strong German accent.

This sentence has been marked as perfect!

In that regard I have done some digging and stumbled upon something interesting.


This sentence has been marked as perfect!

Recently I watched a video by an Australian simultaneous interpreter on youtube who stressed the importance of learning the phonetic inventory of a language before commencing on any direct study.


Recently, I watched a video by an Australian simultaneous interpreter on yYoutTube who stressed the importance of learning the phonetic inventory of a language before commencing on any direct study. Recently, I watched a video by an Australian simultaneous interpreter on YouTube who stressed the importance of learning the phonetic inventory of a language before commencing any direct study.

Your original sentence was correct, changes made to make writing more concise.

Recently I watched a video by an Australian simultaneous interpreter on yYoutTube who stressed the importance of learning the phonetic inventory of a language before commencing on any direct study. Recently I watched a video by an Australian simultaneous interpreter on YouTube who stressed the importance of learning the phonetic inventory of a language before commencing on any direct study.

It's YouTube except you're writing informally. That Phonetic inventory can also be called pronunciation rules. Btw, this is so important!!! I'll have to thank Duolingo for the good advice I received when I just started learning my target language, which is speak the language [I've forgotten how they put it].

In said video, he goes on to recite a text in German, which is a language that he has studied phonetically but has no knowledge beyond that.


In the said video, he goes on to recite a text in German, which is a language that he has studied phonetically but has no knowledge beyond that. In the said video, he goes on to recite a text in German, which is a language that he has studied phonetically but has no knowledge beyond that.

To my surprise he pronounced almost every word perfectly and there was no Australian accent to speak of.


To my surprise, he pronounced almost every word perfectly, and there was no Australian accent to speak of. To my surprise, he pronounced almost every word perfectly, and there was no Australian accent to speak of.

Commas added to separate clauses.

To my surprise he pronounced almost every word perfectly and there was noI didn't hear any Australian accent to speak of. To my surprise he pronounced almost every word perfectly and I didn't hear any Australian accent.

This leads me to believe that deliberate phonetic study at the beginning stage of learning a new language is highly beneficial in that it makes your pronunciation independent of what your native language might be overimposing otherwise and it avoids forming bad habits that are harder to fix later on.


This leads me to believe that deliberate phonetic study at the beginninginitial stage of learning a new language is highly beneficial in that, as it makes your pronunciation independent of what your native language might be overimposing otherwise and it’s influence and helps to avoids forming bad habits that are harder to fix later on. This leads me to believe that deliberate phonetic study at the initial stage of learning a new language is highly beneficial, as it makes your pronunciation independent of your native language’s influence and helps to avoid forming bad habits that are harder to fix later on.

Original sentence is correct, it is just very long. Restructured here for clarity.

This sentence has been marked as perfect!

What do you think about deliberate phonetic practice?


This sentence has been marked as perfect!

I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments :)


This sentence has been marked as perfect!

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