How many years do you think it would take an adult to become fluent in a second language? When...

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How many years do you think it would take an adult to become fluent in a second language?

When their first language is English and they are learning German.

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Cynthia · F

There is, of course, that ancient axiom that life is too short to learn German. Having spent 5 hours every week through six years of school learning it, I agree with that sentiment! I was never fluent, despite having spent several months living in Germany (great time, lovely people, weird language)

lauriethecolourful · F

@Cynthia Hahaha. I think there are two types of people in the world. People who hate the German language and people who love it. I fall into the latter category. 😍 I love how complicated it is. :)

elVato · 46-50, M

Have you looked into the 'Common european framework of reference for languages' - some online resorces may give you an idea where your fluency level is. 2-3 years should give you good working knowledge, but you'll need some sort of full immersion to gain any sort of fluency, and then there's retaining it.

lauriethecolourful · F

@elVato I agree 100% I think that once I make the move to Germany, things will begin to improve. I have looked into the framework from a few different language schools, but I was a bit dubious about whether or not someone REALLY became fluent in that time frame. I will be fine. I just have to keep at it. :)

thepreposterouspanda · 36-40, M

I'm not sure, but I think probably two to three years, depending on how often it's spoken. I'm hoping to get back into my German learning soon as well. :)

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thepreposterouspanda · 36-40, M

@lauriethecolourful Oh yeah, I love it! I was actually a German language and culture major in college before I got sick in 2010. I've been dealing with that since then, but I've been accepted into school for January, so we shall see!

lauriethecolourful · F

@thepreposterouspanda That's wonderful. I'm glad you are taking care of your illnesses and jumping back into university. Not many people could do that.

thepreposterouspanda · 36-40, M

@lauriethecolourful I'm stable enough now (I hope) that I'll be able to focus on my studies without it getting in the way too badly. :) I'll always be disabled at this point, but at least I've gotten good at it. 😅

Dlrannie · 31-35, F

It's totally dependant on the persons effort to learn - the best thing to do is to live in the country of the language you wish to learn

lauriethecolourful · F

@Dlrannie I'm pretty dedicated to learning German. I think I have already come a long way from where I started. But you are correct, once I move to Germany, my pronunciation will get a lot better and I will be able to expand on my vocabulary. :)

Dlrannie · 31-35, F

@lauriethecolourful I'm sure you will - if you can learn to do your thinking in the language rather than mentally translating from English then you will crack it quickly. It's how I deal with the 3 languages I speak

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