My Review Period Ends

I have just spent the past three months reviewing four languages simultaneously. For sure knowing things in one would often help with the others.

As I have documented rather extensively, I was often confused. But I could also sometimes guess at vocabulary in one language based on my knowledge of it in another, without actually having learned it. For example, knowing Venezia (meaning “Venice” in Italian) helped me guess correctly that it would be Venecia in Spanish. Maybe that’s not the most exciting example in the world, but there have been numerous such experiences that I just can’t recall right now and that were quite helpful.

What sometimes pained me over recent weeks is when I would drill myself on words from one language to next. You know, like how do you say “horse” in four languages? Or “sofa”? Or “rug”?

I have gradually learned that for me at least, doing that kind of switching/vocabulary self-quizzing can be harder than if I just launch fully into a language in conversation, where my brain kind of relaxes into the vocabulary. Trying to switch around, translating sentences in quick succession into multiple languages, sometimes led me to smash into mental brick walls, thereby causing me to believe that I remembered and knew less than I really did.

There is no reason to demoralize oneself unnecessarily!

Language Learning as Weight-Loss Strategy?

On a random note, I just noticed the other day that “lavatory” and lavar (Spanish for “to wash”) are etymologically related. I don’t think I considered it before, in part because I do not associate lavatories with cleanliness. The World English Dictionary informed me, via Dictionary.com, that “lavatory” has 14th-century origins and derives from the Late Latin word lavātōrium, which in turn comes from Latin lavāre for “to wash.”

I sometimes wonder if language learning increases your metabolism. Lately I have lost weight. Maybe it had to do with studying four at once?

I can test that theory by seeing if I gain it back when I switch back to studying a single language at a time, starting tomorrow. This is the end of the review period. I am going back to new languages (new for me, anyway).

Next up: Portuguese!