Multilingual and Polyglot Wannabee Thread! MK I

*Fala-o, if I remember correctly (although if natives happen to be native and correct, please stamp on this with the right answer ).

You can only use 'Lo' after an infinitive in Portuguese, que yo sepa.

lool

On the subject of Craven College...

What is your friend 21stCenturyPhantom doing now? I remember her religiously looking for a A-level German course


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Oooh I thought she was a lady! (Just like I thought 'constantmeowage' was a cat!) xD So I guess I am
It's such a shame, he probably won't be in a class next year! But he said that he is no stranger to distance learning...so it's all good

Three more weeks till I start my beginners evening class, Ich freue mich schon darauf!




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Really? that's quite funny

J'avais eu un chien? I feel silly now

That's pluperfect: "I had a dog". Imperfect: "I used to have a dog" should be "j'avais un chien". That is, of course, assuming that one can use the imperfect tense the way I'm using it in French; as "I used to have" !

That said, I don't think my previous suggestion for how to get a U is actually bad enough. The "sympathetic native speaker" would understand part of it, even if thought it was an attempt at "I utilise having a dog to". That's three words out of five! Got to be worth at least an E.

That's pluperfect: "I had a dog". Imperfect: "I used to have a dog" should be "j'avais un chien". That is, of course, assuming that one can use the imperfect tense the way I'm using it in French; as "I used to have" !

That said, I don't think my previous suggestion for how to get a U is actually bad enough. The "sympathetic native speaker" would understand part of it, even if thought it was an attempt at "I utilise having a dog to". That's three words out of five! Got to be worth at least an E.

I didn't know whether to have the "eu" or not!

U.

J'être *name* , j'avoir *age* années?

Perhaps?

I'd just be worried about passing on bad linguistic habits if my offspring picked up a foreign language from me. I hate helping people, not because I don't want to (I really do like helping people and stuff), but I'm always 99% I'm completely wrong and I don't want to feed them lies and stuff, so they're better off not listening :P

They wouldn't know that you have to have avoir for age!

I was meant to use etre again

Yes, I had plans about how I was going to teach my children languages, but now I have them, it turns out I'm terrified of permanently impairing their ability to manage an authentic accent! So they watch foreign language DVDs with me, instead. Linguaphone videos are really good; they naturally imitate the people on the video. One toddler started producing a wonderful "Bonjour"!

I sometimes try to speak German, but I have to panic and consult a dictionary half-way through every sentence, in case I'm using the wrong gender!

It's actually quite difficult to make a bad example!

It's pluperfect yes, but that is 'I had had a dog' (which I think you knew but typed wrong admittedly).

I would translate 'I used to have' as simply 'j'avais', as you have done. The 'used to' feeling is generally conveyed together with 'when I was young/as a child' etc.

Edit: And yeah, I was going to suggest that your example was too correct. Word for dog - check, gender of chien - check, made an effort to say something at all - check.

Dammit, you're right, I did leave a word out. *smacks self*

I What about out loud. They could turn it into: Shay (because people get confused between je and j'ai out loud) you-teel oone sheen.

I think that could pull it down to U to F territory.

Or, or, or.... How's this one? I nicked it from an MFL teacher thread.

J'ai poubelle malade.
I have bin ill!

Tu as les jeunes?

Ils sont très mignons!

Maybe they do have an ill bin?

I saw a bee fly.
Je une scie un abeille le mouche.

Him! Are you letting your preconceptions of language students get in the way?

I think he's preparing for his GCSE Spanish and German right now, but he told me the numbers of applications for A-level aren't looking good for next year.

Tu recevras les mauvaises notes!

I think you have cracked it!