Introduction:

German and English are both members of the West Germanic branch of languages, which is part of the Germanic branch, which is part of the Indo-European language family. Although they are linguistically similar, German has a reputation among English speakers as a difficult language to learn. Learning German may be intimidating, enjoyable, and frustrating all at the same time. It is a test of patience and determination, but it is not always as difficult as it appears. Every language is distinct from the others. These distinguishing characteristics can make them easier or more challenging than others. Let’s look at all of the factors that make German difficult to learn for English speakers, how to overcome these challenges, and why it’s a simple language to learn.

• Because there are probably 500 different ways to phrase the same thing.

German has a large vocabulary. This is owing in part to its remarkable capacity to invent new terminology through Wortbildung, or the construction of words. Different words and nouns can be linked with one or more suffixes as a creative activity. Furthermore, the 18th-century French cultural dominance tainted the German language and impacted the articulation of certain concepts. Even if you’ve been studying German for 10 long years and know five distinct ways to ask “How are you?” You may be sure that one day a native speaker will approach you and employ the sixth method that you were unaware of.

• You Need to Learn Long German Words

It’s terrible to come face to face with a big word like “viertausendeinhundertsiebenunddreißig.” It’s the linguistic equivalent of the monster from Frankenstein’s novel. This is due to German’s usage of “compound words.” It combines words to express a new notion, which frequently results in grotesquely long words. There are no hyphens or spaces.

• Learning German Genders Can Be Frustrating

Genders are not a problem for English speakers. However, German does. German is divided into three genders, making it even more difficult to grasp. It’s probably why the Foreign Service Institute rated it as more difficult than French, which has only two genders.

German has three genders: masculine (der), feminine (die), and neutral (das). Some genders are self-explanatory (der Mann – the man), while others (das Mädchen) are less so. And, depending on the situation, these items in front of Genders may alter. As a result, German gender grammar isn’t helpful to you in some instances.

• German spoken language is different from the written one.

Yes, this is probably the most fascinating, if not also the most frustrating, aspect of German: no matter how well you know all of the possible grammatical rules, the gender of thousands of nouns, sentence structure, and so on, you will almost certainly be unable to understand anything from your first conversations with a German, especially in informal situations.

The written form of German is quite impressive but you have to practice more speaking German to use it properly.

• German Sentence Structure can be different from English

The structure of German sentences is far more liberal than that of English. The SVO (subject-verb-object) structure of English is well-known. Meanwhile, German is frequently SVO, but it can also be SOV. Especially if there’s a link between them. Let’s look at few examples to see what I mean:

Mary eats an apple. – Mary isst einen Apfel.

The subject is Mary, the verb eats, and the object is an apple. The same elements of the statement follow each other in German. This is because it is a simple sentence. But consider the following sentence, which has conjunction:

I can’t go to the cinema, if I have no money. – Ich kann nicht am Kino gehen, wann ich kein Geld habe.

The subject is “I” (ich), the verbs are “can” (kann) or “have” (habe), the objects are “cinema” (Kino) and “money” (Geld), and the conjunction is “if” (wann). In each of these sentences, the object comes before the verb, as you can see. This is because the German sentence structure is far more adaptable. If you did it the other way around, however, it would sound weird.

• False Cognates Can Be Confusing to Learn

A false cognate is a word in the target language that has the same or similar spelling as your native language. In German, the word “gift” is an example of this. Many English speakers believe that giving someone a “gift” in German is a pleasurable experience, but they are mistaken. In German, the word “gift” implies “poison.”

There are a plethora of other examples like this. Because German and English are so similar, it can be as aggravating to believe you know a word only to be proven incorrect. However, they are frequently unexpectedly different from what you expect, so you’ll be fast to learn from your mistakes.

• Conclusion

It may appear difficult, but learning German is not as difficult as it appears. To succeed, you merely need the correct language learning methods. And for this purpose, the Multibhashi learning platform acts as a key role in your learning. You can opt for a demo class in German and believe me, you will love it.

So, what are you waiting for? Go get started.