You want to travel the world?
You have your eye on a great job opportunity?
You want to add a new useful skill for your resume?
Well, learning a new language is the way to get all of the above!
And it doesn't have to be hard. But still, for some reason, there's one question that is extremely popular among my students:
'What are the easiest languages to learn?'
So I've decided to write this article and share it with them instead of talking about it over and over again.
Don't get me wrong; I totally understand the need to ask this question.
Life is short. We want it all, and we want it now.
Even if you choose the easiest language to learn in the world, you still cannot become fluent at that exact minute.
But some factors can speed up the process.
For example, some languages are easier to learn if you are a Spanish speaker, or Arabic speaker, or an English speaker.
First things first, let's start with the key factors that make a language easy so that you can successfully choose the best language to learn.
5 factors that can make a language easy to learn
Few recent studies have discovered that these factors can help you determine which language is the easiest to learn for YOU.
- Your interests – the easiest language to learn is the one you love
- Your native language – which language is related to your own?
- Your second language – use to your advantage the knowledge you already have
One by one, you can apply these tips and make your decision on the new language you’ll start learning.
But that’s not all!
On top of these three factors, we will give you two bonus tips to be 100% sure you are choosing the right language for yourself.
Here are 5 tips for choosing the easiest language to learn.
#1 Your interests
It all comes back to you, the learner.
"The future depends on what you do today."
Mahatma Gandhi
Don’t think of that as a bad thing, though! That is the best thing ever because it means there are no limits to what you can do or learn if you try and work hard enough.
Have you ever heard someone say:
Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life?
Well, picking a language you’ll start learning comes down to this too.
If you love it, you will learn it.
The easiest languages to learn are definitely those that we enjoy.
If you choose a good tutor whose methods fit your interests and needs, then you will be a fluent speaker in no time. Most importantly, you will always want to learn more.
What part of the world triggers your imagination the most? Do you maybe want to know more about China and the Chinese language? Or you are curious about Arabic, and why they call it the hardest language to learn?
With languages, there is always more to acquire.
There are so many different cultures and traditions that can help you widen your perspective and be a better individual.
The choice is yours!
#2 Your native language
Apart from your motivation, your native language can also help determine which language is the easiest to learn for you.
If you are a French native speaker, you will maybe learn Spanish faster than a Serbian native would.
But a native Serbian speaker would find Russian words very familiar.
What's the reason behind this?
It goes back to language groups. Every language has its family and related languages.
For example, if your native language is German, you could focus on other Germanic languages such as Dutch or English.
You'll notice a lot of familiar words, similar origins, cognates, and expressions - which is precisely why you will find it easier.
Sometimes your native language can indeed make it harder to learn a second one, especially if they are too similar.
Too much resemblance can sometimes be overwhelming.
However, these difficulties usually disappear with time, and eventually, you realize that your mother tongue helped you a lot.
#3 Your second language
In case you already know another language beside your own native language, I would suggest that you pick a language that belongs to the same group.
Unlike with your mother tongue, you had to learn the second language.
You didn't grow up to it, but you worked hard and learned the grammar, sentence structure, words, verbs conjugations, etc.
By acquiring your second language, you made it easier for yourself to learn the next one.
My friends and I grew up to Mexican telenovelas (they were quite popular in our country in those days), so we got used to Spanish already at a young age. When we started learning French and Italian in high school, they all sounded very familiar, and we got confused quite often by the similarities.
Sometimes it felt like we are learning the same language but with different pronunciation.
I must admit, it was much easier because you don’t feel lost in the language. You already understand some words, and you can make some connections.
On another hand, sometimes you may forget a word in Spanish but remember a word in French, so instead of 'hablar,' you say 'parlar' – very funny if you happen to make that mistake in front of Spanish native speakers.
Bonus tip #4 Available resources
You thought things through, and you have your mind on top three choices that are the easiest for you.
Do yourself a favor before you start learning: Double check if there are enough resources out there to support you.
Why is this important?
Well, one grammar book and a few pieces of literature are not enough anymore to learn a language and be a fluent and confident speaker.
You have to think about other things, such as native speakers online, podcasts, movies, TV shows, radio shows, audiobooks, quizzes, exercises, and many more.
These are all useful resources that will benefit your learning journey and help you be surrounded by the language all the time - which leads us to our last key factor.
Bonus tip #5 Surround yourself with the language
The best way to learn a language is to be constantly surrounded by it.
When choosing the easiest one, go online and check what your options for music, movies, TV shows, podcasts are.
For example: If after these four factors, your final decision is to learn Spanish, you should also explore their cinema.
Do you like Almodovar? What are your thoughts on Spanish thrillers?
If you are anything like me and you absolutely adore their cinematography, then your Spanish skills will blossom even faster.
Include their podcasts into your daily routine. Watch movies before you go to sleep. Speak with your native Spanish tutor regularly.
Trust me on this, and you'll be able to watch Penelope Cruz without subtitles in no time!
5 easiest languages to learn for English speakers
We can now agree that we are on the same page when it comes to the easiest languages to learn – it depends on many factors, and you will try to have all of them in mind during your selection.
Now we have come to the more scientific part where we will bring you the 5 easiest languages for English speakers (assuming that you do speak English having successfully come to this part)
Spanish
Worldwide spoken, Spanish is our number 1 language to start learning.
So many people across the world are choosing to learn Spanish. It is one of the Romance languages which all contain a lot of words similar to English, like correcto, imposible or capital. Also, the pronunciation is quite easy and straightforward.
Above all, it's one of the most interesting and beautiful languages in the world!
It is considered to be very easy to learn for native and fluent English speakers. Why? Because it is much more simple! (telling time in Spanish is not that simple, though, but everything else, piece of cake!)
Spanish grammar has clear and outlined rules as well as sentence structure. Although they look quite a lot, you will have an easier time learning Spanish for sure.
Dutch
Dutch is a Germanic language, just like English, so naturally one of the easiest languages for English speakers.
Many people have described Dutch as a mix of German and English, due to similarities in the vocabulary. However, we haven’t put German on our list as their grammar is tricky and harder than Dutch and English grammar.
Dutch has adopted similar vocabulary as English, so you will probably know a lot of words during your lessons.
Most of my friends who speak Dutch say that 'if you think it is hard, it will be hard for you'. So my best advice is to forget what everyone else told you before you choose the language you want to learn.
Norwegian
Once more, a Germanic language has found its place on our list.
It is Norwegian, and the shared vocabulary between English and Norwegian can be very helpful.
Also, the good thing about Norwegian is that there are a lot of different accents in their country, meaning different acceptable ways to pronounce words. For non-native speakers, this is great news as they will have more confidence to speak and practice.
Swedish
The last Germanic language on our list is Swedish.
As previously mentioned, and similarly to Dutch and Norwegian, Swedish has a big number of cognates that it shares with English. Attacha means to attach – The similarity to English is uncanny! And who wouldn’t want to know IKEA’s language?
Around 9 million people worldwide speak Swedish which gives you a lot of options if you decide to take on this language. The language has its rules and fewer irregularities than English.
A lot of Swedish people speak English very well, which proves how similar they are. This only proves that the easiest languages to learn are those that have similarities to your native tongue.
Italian
One more Romance language on the list - Italian!
It is not as spoken widely as Spanish; however there are still more than 60 million people using it on a daily basis.
The pronunciation is not that hard, the sentence structure similar to Spanish, and it’s the language of food!
Learning Italian is easier for English speakers mainly because of cognate words such as Qualità — Quality or Università — University.
Italian phrases such as Grazie, Prego and Bongiorno are popular worldwide.
For these reasons, it is one of our five easiest languages to learn.
Conclusion
Our tips will help you make the final decision on which language you want to take on.
Of course, don't feel pressured because you can always change the language you are learning! Life is too short to be learning something you don't like.
The purpose of self-improvement is to make your life better.
What will make you happy?
What will bring new value to your life?
Ask yourself those questions before asking which language is the easiest to learn.
The most important thing to remember and to live by is:
Always follow your gut!
It knows what your head hasn't figured out yet.
Ready to enhance your language proficiency? Here are some excellent options for online education:
Start with Babbel for engaging, well-structured lessons that are designed to be both enjoyable and easy to incorporate into your everyday life, helping you progress quickly in language acquisition.
If you're seeking comprehensive language training, Udemy’s extensive courses range from fundamental to advanced topics.
For those who prefer a tailored approach, Preply offers the chance to interact with native speakers, greatly improving your speaking skills. Enjoy a 50% discount on your first Preply session by using this link.
Good luck and Justlearn!
What is the easiest language to learn?
The easiest language to learn is the one, that is related to your native language.
How to choose which language to learn?
The easiest language is the one you enjoy learning.
Is it better to choose a language to learn from one language group?
Yes, you will find many familiar words, similar origins, cognates, and expressions.
Is it easier to learn another language if you are fluent in English?
By acquiring your second language, you made it easier to learn the next one.
How to become a fluent and confident speaker?
You have to talk to native speakers, listen to podcasts, radio shows, audiobooks, watch TV shows, movies.
