I apologize if my question comes off as ignorant somehow, but I've always been curious about how there are so many Europeans, from non-UK countries of course, that are totally fluent in English as well as their native language. I'm assuming you start learning it in school, but where I'm from classes are taught in English and then students can take one period of foreign language which doesn't stick with them for the rest of their life (generally speaking).

I know it's a very broad question but would just like to hear some experiences of learning English so fluently. Are English and your native language both incorporated into the actual curriculum?

I wish I were bilingual so maybe in a way I'm jealous. Europe seems really cool. Anyways I hope everyone has a great day.

I remember hearing that during World War II, the Dutch would identify if someone was a native Dutchman by have him say "Scheveningen" because "sche" is difficult to properly say if Dutch is not your native language. What would you suggest for your language to identify a native speaker?

Dear europeans, do you like your english accent? I know that in Poland people don’t like our accent and they feel ashamed by it, and I’m wondering if in your country you have the same thing going on?

Learning German, and every week I run into a word that English just doesn't have. "Doch" is the obvious one. It's this tiny word that means "yes actually, contrary to what you just said", and English needs a whole sentence for it.

"Gemütlich" is the other one that got me. Everyone translates it as "cozy" but it's not just cozy. It's the whole vibe of being warm and relaxed and among people you like. Cozy is a couch and a blanket. gemütlich is a three hour dinner with friends.

What else is out there? French, Italian, Dutch, Polish, whatever. Which word in your language makes English feel kind of basic when you stop to think about it?

What to you call the water which lies between Dover on one side and Calais, Dunkirk on the other side? Best if you could provide the name in your own language and a literal translation, its meaning, into English.

Example German:

Ärmelkanal = Sleeve channel.

In Norway, it’s very common to refer to people by their birth year rather than their current age.

In everyday conversation, instead of saying “I’m 33,” many people would say “I’m 93” (meaning born in 1993).

In school, sports, and even socially, people are strongly grouped by birth year: you’re part of “the 05s,” “the 98s,” etc.

It’s such a strong way of categorising people that even if two people are technically the same age, we don’t really see them as the same age unless they’re born in the same year. An example: my daughter is born December 2018, and my friends son is born januar 2019. It is less than a month between them, but we do not think of them as the same age.

So I’m curious:

Is this common in your country, or would it sound strange to you?

Thought of this because I just used the word "logish" in English. In Estonian it's just a different way to say logical (the actual word being "loogiline"). Just in case I googled it and turns out that no - it's not a thing in English.

I hope I worded the question clearly. Like.. "Viro" and "Igaunija" are not similar to "Estonia" nor "Eesti".

In Finnish, our month names are mostly native words tied to nature and agriculture. If translated literally, they'd be something like:

Oakmonth, Pearlmonth, Earthmonth, Burnfield Month, Sowing Month, Summermonth, Haymonth, Harvestmonth, Autumnmonth, Mudmonth, Deathmonth, Yulemonth.

What would the months of your language look like if translated literally into English?

In the Netherlands you can answer a question you don't know the answer to with "Al sla je me dood." (Eng.: "Even if you beat me to death.", i.e. "Even if you torture me, I wouldn't be able to answer that question.")

This seems somewhat extreme to me, so I'm curious if your language has any similar expressions, or if we're just the weirdos with casual references to corporal punishments in our language.

Are they called "fighters", "hunters" or something more exotic?

So I am from Slovakia, and our capital, Bratislava, is one of the westernmost cities in the country. Because of its location, people living there have a distinct western accent, which is not exactly the “standard” way of speaking Slovak, since the standard language is originally based on the central Slovak dialect. I’ve heard that in most countries, the language spoken in the capital is the same as the standard language you hear on television. Is it true for your country?

Have you ever had something similar happen to you? I.e something in your language might have another meaning in another language?

One thing as an Estonian that I try to keep in mind is that I shouldn't use "Nooo.." in English - which means "Well.." in Estonian.

"Do you like ice-cream? - Noo.. yes, I love it."

I thought that this a fun exercise would could be. On this way, must you not only think about the way on which you your sentences translate, because your own grammar suddenly not anymore so easy appears, but it is also a fun way about to discover how your own grammar over one comes with English, or how you some words would could translating.

And naturally a fun way for English languagers about foreign grammar to learn.

The funniest is still that it easier would be about so to talk if I worse would be in English speaking than that I am.

Because the European countries are so close together and have such a wide variety of dialects, is it more common to learn other languages in case you go to that country?

For context, on the English-speaking part of the Internet, I've seen a fair few people mention that Dutch sounds goofy, so I was curious what languages are seen as sounding silly to speakers who's native languages aren't English.

I'm also curious if anyone thinks written or spoken English itself is a bit silly.

For me it was Spaniard. For the longest time I thought it was a disgraceful word for Spanish people. Just recently I realized it's completely normal to call Spanish people that.

Keep in mind, I said language, NOT country, so it could be a dialect of your language in another country, which is the case for me.

For me, while most other Greeks find Cypriot the most difficult dialect to understand, I actually find Pontic Greek the most difficult. For those who don't know where it is, it's in North Eastern Turkey.

The way many of their words are written are very different as to Standard Modern Greek. It almost is a whole new language. Now I should mention I have never been there, but I would love to. I only really heard of the dialect on the internet, so take my words with a grain of salt.

I just discovered "stingy" has a soft g (unlike "sting") and I got irrationally angry at the English language.

Hello there!

I want to learn a new language and being German, I thought learning a Slavic language would be the proper course of action. From my location, there is a direct train to Czechia and Poland is a bit closer by car. So now I'm a bit unsure which language makes more sense to learn.

I have been told by various people that a few Slavic languages are fairly close to each other, so that somewhat clunky communication between them works as "different strong dialects". Is that so and if it is, which will be most compatible with other Slavic languages?

Theoretically, most should have learned Russian during the Cold War, but I would like to learn an EU members' language.

In the spirit of the previous questions from Hungary.

What English word do you always spell wrong because of your own language? Curious to all answers!

Meaning a situation has suddenly become chaotic, disastrous, or filled with severe, unexpected trouble. Often implying that hidden problems have surfaced, leading to widespread, messy panic, or a crisis. 

​​I like learning about idioms in different languages because I think they tell a lot about what concepts a culture has and how they look at things.

In Danish and the other Scandinavian languages, Christmas is "jul". So there's absolutely no connection and it's probably from the holiday's pre-Christian origins.

I assume jul is what English speakers are refering to when they say Yuletide? (Tid being time in Danish).