Teach me your language I teach you mine

[purplethistle]

^ I have never heard of the phrase. I've only heard of tigers or zebras showing their stripes meaning that ones true nature/character has come to light.

 

[Birkin]

thanks for your help. i think it must be something like that, it is used with elephants in a figurative meaning then.

 

[Birkin]

meaning of the expression "to have a deal to answer for" please ?

 

[Birkin]

nevermind, i think i got it , this thing of translating random chapters is like walking with a blindfold in your eyes

 

[YoninahAliza]

So it looks like I'll be required to take a language at my college and they offer French, Spanish, German, or American Sign Language. However, I already know a bit of ASL and even though I love it I don't think it'll be useful in my chosen career path. So I'm thinking I'll take French instead one in part because I love anything French related (and I want to be able to finally read Vogue Paris! ), secondly because it'll be more useful career wise, and lastly because my mom will be able to help me out a little bit because she used to be pretty fluent and even lived in France for a little bit. That said, I was wondering if anyone has advice for other resources to help me learn the language. Because I've studied ASL and Hebrew before but I've always been a bit shaky when it comes to languages. Thanks

 

[Alvedansen]

^i'd like to know that myself. i'm currently trying to refresh my french to get into an advanced course next year.

these two pages seem quite nice, though
http://www.bbc.co.uk/languages/french/mafrance/flash/#
http://faculty.virginia.edu/ajmlevine/grammar/a_grammarindex.html

 

[Niusity]

I was learning french when I was little but I forgot almost everything that I've learned so to refresh my memory I've begun to watch extr@ french it really helpled me. Well, you of course need to learn some basic rules but french is a really difficult language and this series will really help you to have a good pronunciation, to learn the most basic words and understand it better.

 

[Andrea.RL]

Im probably very late, but tough girl would for me be femme forte.


As for the current french conversation, it wouldnt help if i explained how i learned since its one of my maternal languages. My cousin came here for a few months and started off buying the vacation learning books for kids, you know those books your parents make you go through to keep practising while on holidays. she just bought one of each year from first grade sixth and learned the basics that way.

Otherwise, ive been starting italian and have basically bought a few books to learn the basics, a dictionnary and usually just read magazines and fashion websites in italian. oh and watch movies in italian sometimes with subtitles mostly not (plus there are amazing italian movies)
You could do that as well... (there are some cult french movies old and new, and you said it yourself there's vogue paris...)

 

[Lax89]

When I was teaching French at Arizona State, they told us that The University of Texas at Austin had the best resources for French learners http://www.laits.utexas.edu/fi/. Alvedansen and YoninahAliza you might want to check that website.

I've got one question for Russian speakers. How do you say "Can I take a picture with you" ?

 

[oh me]

^ mozhno s toboy sfotografirovatsya? (that word is really hard to spell, so just say "sfotkatsya")

 

[Lax89]

Spassiba ! Thank you oh me
Posted via Mobile Device

 

[Chanelle]

how to say in french:

"Chanelle the beauty" ?

Chanelle is my name

 

[ckgirlbr]

Chanelle, la belle, I believe.

 

[Chanelle]

Chanelle, la belle, I believe.

thanks ,

 

[Alvedansen]

hey guys, i need some help with spanish
i need to translate this sentence and i have a problem

me preguntas por las costumbres en Espana.

would that be "You've asked me about the customs in spain" ?
but why is the spanish sentence in present tense? i mean, we haven't learned a past tense yet, but this way it doesn't make any sense, do i misunderstand something?

 

[alonsoJonathan]

the way you write "me preguntas" can be confuse. i dont think you can tell if it is past tense or present tense.

it can be like "did you ask me about the customs in Spain"
or also "have you ask me about the customs in Spain" or just as simple as
"ask me about the customs in Spain" (like you telling someone to remind you)
it will be better if you have wrote "preguntame" (ask me)
or "me preguntaste" (did you ask me)

i donno is kind of confuse sorry for my not soo much help :l

 

[Birkin]

the translation would be "you ask me about the customs in Spain" , the sentence is kind of weird because you tell to the other person what he has just asked you/has to ask you , so it's not the kind of thing you would say in real life, it's like the type of sentence without much sense sometimes used to learn the verb tenses i think.

 

[Alvedansen]

thank you guys so much
i just wasn't sure, i thought maybe the sentence meant something completely different, but the way you both explained it makes perfect sense now =)

 

[*ana*]

Is "hop, skip and a jump away" a common (informal) expression to mean a close distance? Is there another (better) one?
TIA.

 

[dorien]

@ana

very outdated i would say
never used it, nor have i heard anyone else say it

would be like "it is just a stone's throw away"

no one speaks like this

we usually give distance in time
"5 minutes away, by car"
or "three blocks away"

@Alvedansen

me preguntas por las costumbres en Espana

you are missing the questions marks
to be certain it is an affirmation or a question
¿Me preguntas por las costumbres en España?

Are you asking me about the customs in Spain?

Me preguntas por las costumbres en España
You ask me about the customs in Spain.