After looking at several different languages to study, I've decided to focus on German. I have plenty of spare time on my hands and I'd like to work in Germany when I leave my current job.
I have heard that German is pretty tough to learn - especially in terms of grammar.
I can't take language lessons as they just don't exist out here. Has anyone here had any particular experience in learning German, and can anyone suggest a good self-study course?
I hear that the Teach Yourself course (which was quite good when I was learning Norwegian) is not much cop for German. So, any ideas? Ta!
I think it depends on how you think
If you have a logical mind, German is quite easy to learn because the grammar rules are all very rigorous. I always struggled with French but German I found pretty simple.
^ this
German grammar is WAY fun. Once you get your head round the rules it all seems to fall into place and is strangely satisfying. I miss learning German :'(
It's so logical!
Eg, aeroplane is Flugzeug - literally flying engine(I think), and bra is Boosenhaltestelle - breast holding support. Genius! If you're a logical person, it should be quite easy to learn. I love love love German, it's so structured, like doing equations with words.
haltestelle means bus stop or station
well bra actually is Busenhalter --> Breast Holder;
no idea how hard it is to learn German, as it is my native language, but i know that I struggled with the grammar for years and years when I was in school!!!
my sister boyfriend who is Scottish and moved here a few months ago, thinks it is horrible to learn! But he will manage somehow!
yeah you're right.
i like german 'cause it's logical.
i mean i did maths and german alevels.
maybe tougher than
the romance languages as there are 3 genders instead of 2, and the cases make it tricky to write with correct grammar. I may be able to dig out a few websites that were useful when i was learning if you're interested
there's a book
called 'Complete German Course' by someone called something Russon which is a really good grammar&language guide for german
its a bit more of an old fashioned style language book than those teach yourself things are but its really comprehensive and the explanations are good
I brushed up on my languages with this:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Learn-Your-Car-Complete-Language/dp/1591252091
and found it really helpful. Surprisingly, you don't actually need to have a car to complete the course.
Someone I used to know took evening classes
and learned it pretty quickly!
I know about ten German words and most of them are colours, if that helps.
Like people have said
the grammar rules are rigorous so once you've learnt them you probably won't have any trouble with forming sentences, although you should keep in mind that there are a lot of different rules for everything.
What could be a problem is the pronounciation, as it isn't phonetically accurate and there are sounds that might be difficult for you to pronounce (like different kinds of "ch").
It's a nice language though.
the "ch" thing is hard too.
took me ages. also rolling the "r"s.
hello!
german is GREAT. my main problem is i'm really self conscious when it comes to speaking and i lack confidence.
i've done it since school, and i won the german prize for alevel 'cause i started about a year and a half behind everyone else, but 'cause it's so logical and even the long words can be broken down, i picked it up pretty quick.
the teach yourself things might not be as good because the phonetics and intonation are important, you might want to look at a night class as well. i'd be happy to help if you have any trouble understanding anything, but at the beginning it wouldn't be a problem.
i've tried learning french and spanish, but german is by far the easiest to pick up.
^THIS^
And pretty much what everyone else said re: it being logical. I mean, their word for Wednesday is translated literally as "Midweek".., says it all really!