Just A Thought: How "Jacked-Up" Is English To Native Speakers Of Spanish?

[Shaving_CHENG]

For my wife the hardest thing is English pronunciation of vowels; there are 37 different vowel sounds for 5 vowels (excluding the y and h). She is from Chile; Spanish, and I believe Romanian, Italian, Portuguese, French, have 5 sounds for 5 vowels. It's a tough transition, one that costs native speakers as well.

People are also challenged by the volume of words in English and the little understood English subjunctive tenses.

 

[Joe Cromwell]

Here in Spain, they either learn English from teachers/courses with a neutral, slightly "BBC English" British accent, or from a generic American accent. So When they're confronted with a bloke like me who has a hybrid South London (pronounced "Saahf Lunnon")/Surrey Suburbia accent (for those of you who aren't familiar with those accents, think Michael Caine/Bob Hoskins and you'll have a fair idea of what I sound like) they are absolutely lost and usually don't understand a word I say! That said, I've met a fair few Americans who have a hard time understanding me! And because of my melodious accent, I have a hard time getting people to accept the fact that I am actually... French.

Moreover, as a translator I've often been pulled up by Spanish clients who say that my spelling isn't correct, and I have to explain to them that I use British English, which doesn't use the same spelling as American English, which they to be the acceptable form of English.

 

[Haggises]

Go ghoti.

 

[Gorigoitia]

I am a certified 'Native Level' english speaker. English is not as difficult to learn as french or german, at least for me as a native spanish speaker.

 

[drocu]

I am a certified 'Native Level' english speaker. English is not as difficult to learn as french or german, at least for me as a native spanish speaker.

I find your experience interesting. I'm American and found that learning Spanish, German, or Latin was much easier and intuitive compared to American English (I'm not well versed in any of these, just took a few classes growing up). I feel that English has far too many exceptions especially when it comes to pronunciation.

 

[Haggises]

English pronunciation is difficult I agree.
But, for me, not as difficult as learning 16 different forms of the word "The".