• Zephorah
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    3 days ago

    One of my multilingual friends called English the mixed playdoh version of French and German.

    • Ricky Rigatoni@retrolemmy.com
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      3 days ago

      I hate it honestly. The french spent centuries ruling England and messing up our language just for the rest of the world to make fun of us for it as if it’s our fault.

    • Whats_your_reasoning@lemmy.world
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      2 days ago

      One time in high school, I dissociated so hard that I temporarily couldn’t understand spoken English. Tbf, I did it intentionally just to see if I could (as nerds do when they’re bored in gym class.) It was very interesting. English sounded like a softer German with French pronunciations, which tracks. I thought it sounded pleasant. I still want to know what non-Native English speakers think, but it was fun to listen to English “from the outside” for a few minutes.

      If you're curious,

      I was on the loud, busy bleachers with many other people. I decided to concentrate on the sounds I heard, and only on the sounds, without attempting to understand anything that was said. At some point it’s like my comprehension disengaged and I was in a sea of meaningless chatter. It should be noted that I am neurodivergent, so perhaps it was easier for me to concentrate on pure sensory information? Who knows. I sure don’t.

      If anybody else has had this experience, I’m curious what it was like for you, too.

      • Valmond@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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        1 day ago

        Haven’t tried.

        There was an italian singer that made an “american” song with made up words, it was a huge hit apparently. Like in the sixties or something, might give you the feeling of it too.

    • wander1236@sh.itjust.works
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      3 days ago

      Don’t forget the ancient Latin that a bunch of scholars pulled in during the 1600s because the French descendants weren’t fancy enough.