this post was submitted on 12 May 2026
23 points (96.0% liked)

Language Learning

961 readers
3 users here now

A community all about learning languages!

Ask / talk about a specific language or language learning in general.

Sopuli's instance rules apply

  1. Remember the human! (no harassment, threats, etc.)
  2. No racism or other discrimination
  3. No Nazis, QAnon or similar whackos and no endorsement of them
  4. No porn
  5. No ads or spam
  6. No content against Finnish law

Other active Lemmy language communities:

Other communities outside Lemmy:

Community banner & icon credits:

Icon: The book cover of Babel (2022 novel by R. F. Kuang)

Banner: Epic of Gilgamesh tablet (© The Trustees of the British Museum)

founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
Lazycog@sopuli.xyz
emb@lemmy.world
23
Are there words that you know in the second language, that you don't know in your native language? (lemmy.dbzer0.com)
submitted 1 week ago by Gumus@lemmy.dbzer0.com to c/languagelearning@sopuli.xyz
12 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

Can you think of a word or a thing that you know the name of in a second language, but don't know in your native language? And I don't mean grammatical constructs, past tenses and stuff like that. I mean nouns, names of objects, verbs, etc.

My examples (Czech native, English is my second language):

  • Some tools, since I watch a lot of makers: auger, router, mill (as in a milling machine)
  • A lot of math/physics/programming terms: algebraic constructs (groups and the whole hierarchy), sub-atomic particles and terms from quantum theory... So many original english terms in IT are generally used "as-is" that I don't even know if some of them have a czech equivalent. I know some do, but I'd never use them in a conversation.
  • Some exotic animals, but I can't think of any right now...

I know I could easily find the translations. However, I don't usually get into a context where such words would appear in other language than English. And it feels like I've mastered the language when there's a thing I fully understand the meaning of, while only learning abou it in English without the need to translate.

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[–] nosebleed@lemmy.dbzer0.com 6 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Native English speaker, second language Norwegian. Going back to visit friends and family is a mindfuck. I get brainfarts mid conversation where I only come up with the Norwegian word and not English. I have to pause mid conversation and look like a dumbass grasping for words.

Hobbies I learned here in Norway for sure. Also words referring specifically to grammar I mostly only know in Norwegian. Was never taught grammar in school growing up in my native tongue which would have otherwise helped a whole lot learning a new language. European birds I mostly only know the names of in Norwegian.

I feel like I have enough room for one and a half languages haha. Swedish and Danish are also competing for space. With how often I visit Sweden I have started to confuse the genders of nouns in Norwegian even more than I usually do.

[–] Auster@thebrainbin.org 2 points 1 week ago

ESL and learning Norwegian, and the impression I get is that the two languages are at the same time close and far enough that I could easily mix the two if I had to switch them on the go.

Reminds me of Portuguese and Spanish, which I have to make a physical effort to switch between the two, and still according to a friend, I sound Valencian when trying to speak Spanish. "<.<