ginnunn-blog

[ginnunn-blog]

[ginnunn-blog]

Comparisons in German

entweder…oder = either…or

Entweder hilfst du mir, oder ich mache es nicht. 

weder…noch = neither…nor

Er kann weder dir noch mir helfen. 

nicht nur…sondern auch = not only…but also 

Hans ist nicht nur intelligent, sondern auch fleissig.  

[ginnunn-blog]

Some Great Resources For Dutch

Hey guys! I just wanted to make this post to compile some really great Dutch learning resources that everyone learning Dutch should use!!! (Just as a disclaimer, I relatively just started learning Dutch so my knowledge of the language isn’t very extensive but anywayyy):

1. Duolingo in Dutch: A very, very great way to begin learning Dutch or any language that they provide! Very basic yet they introduce a lot of useful grammar points and useful vocabulary! 

2.  http://ielanguages.com/dutch1.html - website for learning Dutch with grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation, and more 

3. http://www.learndutch.nu/ - website that’s really great for grammar

4. http://www.dutchgrammar.com/en/?n=Main.HomePage - website that is HIGHLY EXTENSIVE for Dutch grammar!!!!!

5. http://dutchgrammar.com/forum/index.php?sid=126aadfb83e39379d428e5b5d93ef020 - a forum where people write in Dutch and you can make an account and write too! Great for comprehension and writing!

6. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZCA2DyqYvF0 - video on Dutch pronunciation

7. http://data.wpg.be/inkijken/9789044621846.pdf - Fifty Shades of Grey in Dutch ( I KNOW I KNOW DON’T HATE ME!!!! ) but seriously just search for books in Dutch as pdf format and anything’ll come up :D 

8. interpals.net  - for finding pen pals in any language :)

9. youtube.com  - search for anything that’ll lead you to Dutch videos, even if you don’t understand it! I keep watching the same Dutch interview with Audrey Hepburn (because she’s perfect) just to hear the beautiful language that is Dutch! Listen to music, watch videos, etc, etc!

10. http://www.verbix.com/languages/dutch.shtml - a very nice Dutch verb conjugator which also supports other languages :D

11. http://ankisrs.net/ and http://quizlet.com/ - for making flashcards!

12. http://www.netflix.com/WiMovie/70307400?trkid=13752289 - IF YOU HAVE NETFLIX! This is an absolutely lovely movie, in Dutch with English subtitles, about two boys who fall in love and if you love romance and that stuff then it’s really great! The photography of the movie is absolutely beautiful, you’ll love it! Also, it’s a very slow-paced movie so the characters don’t speak very fast! Watch it!!!

Hope you guys use/like these wonderful resources! Keep learning Dutch and never listen to anyone who says it’s too hard or it’s useless!!! 

Also, if you want to practice/speak together, I’m always up for it! :D

[ginnunn-blog]

What's the difference between rendre and faire?

Essentially, (assuming that here you’re trying to translate the idea of “make”) rendre is the one that you have to use if you’re talking about an adjective.

You made my life easier.Tu m’as rendu la vie plus facile.That makes (drives) me mad!Ça me rend dingue !That makes everything harder.Ça rend tout plus difficile.

“Rendre” also has the meaning of “to hand in” or “to give out” and is a word I use a lot in school haha - les étudiants me rendent leurs devoirs, après je leur rends les corrections.

However in some cases there exists a single verb with the meaning of “to make *more adjective*” and though you could use rendre here people would tend to prefer the actual verb - for instance (r)allonger instead of rendre plus long

Finally rendre is also used in expressions such as rendre visite à quelqu’un - to pay someone a visit, or se rendre compte de - to realise.

[ginnunn-blog]

WHY GERMAN IS A BEAUTIFUL LANGUAGE

Arschgeige  -  assviolin  -   a heavy insult Fußhupe   -   foot horn   -   a small dog Egal wie dicht du bist, Göthe war Dichter.   -   No matter how drunk you are, Goethe was a poet   -   Pun: “dichter” also translates to “more drunk” fuchsteufelswild   -   foxdevilswild   -   really angry Nacktschnecke   -   Naked snail   -    slug Glühwürmchen   -   glow wormies   -    fireflies Streichholz   -   stroking wood   -   match Schadenfreude  -   damage happiness   -   the pleasure you feel when others suffer Fahne   -    flag   -   breath smelling of alcohol Kummerspeck   -   misery bacon   -   the fat you gain through comfort food Glückspilz   -   luck mushroom   -   a person that has a lot of luck Scherzkeks   -   joke biscuit   -   hoaxer Fernweh   -   far away-ache   -   the desire to go somewhere far away Gänseblümchen   -   goose floret   -   daisy Flachwichser   -   flat wanker   -   a heavy insult Flugzeug   -   fly thing   -   airplane Wasserschildkröte   -   water shield toad   -   turtle Ich fress einen Besen!   -   I will devour a broom!   -   exclamation of incredulousness Vollpfosten   -   full pole   -   a heavy insult Handschuhschneeballwerfer   -   glove snowball thrower   -   basically an anon troll Flachzange   -   flat pliers   -    a heavy insult

[ginnunn-blog]

—- Fan submission, thanks 4ntti!

[ginnunn-blog]

So I found this cool website for learning ancient languages

go wild

[ginnunn-blog]

hello! here is your reminder that 

"penn" is a historical Welsh term for "hill"

"hyll" is Old English for "hill"

Anglo-Saxons would hear a hill referred to as “penn” by the indigenous Welsh population and assume that this was the name of a place, which they would then call Penn Hyll

Over time this would be shortened to “Pendle”

In conclusion, Pendle Hill is a name meaning “Hill Hill Hill”

[ginnunn-blog]

reading a language: wow i'm fluent

writing in a language: ok this could be better

listening to a language: why

[ginnunn-blog]

All right, so, I have two notebooks full of stuff I copied out of Welsh language books when I was living there for two years. Every so often, I take them out and look at them, because I love the Welsh language with an unhealthy ferocity (I love all languages, really, but I love Welsh the best because genetics). So I was looking through them over the weekend when I stumbled upon the following exchange: "Beth sydd ynot ti?" "Mae cath ynof i." ("What's in you?" "There's a cat in me.") This is far weirder than anything I've ever seen in any other language resource ever, and yet I don't remember batting an eyelid at it at the time I copied it from the book. Seriously, Welsh language books, what the hell are you. And then I found: "Oedd cyrn 'da fe?" ("Did he have horns?") Which, I guess, is useful if you're asking someone if they saw an qunari. I don't think there's many of them in South Wales, but having not lived there, I guess I don't know. I don't even know any more.

[ginnunn-blog]

[ginnunn-blog]

For those of you who are disappointed that Duolingo doesn’t offer a course in Mandarin: I present to you LearnYu!

LearnYu is essentially Duolingo for Mandarin Chinese!

Like Duolingo, LearnYu is tailored to meet the individual user’s needs and goes at a pace that works for them. It focuses strongly on building your conversational skills and does not present you with new material until you have learned what you’re already working on.

And just like Duolingo, it is FREE.

Please signal boost this and spread it around, and consider donating just $1. There need to be more learning resources like this.

[ginnunn-blog]

[ginnunn-blog]

[ginnunn-blog]

"Common phrases" section of the new Dutch course

[ginnunn-blog]

I am doing OK with German right now. I accidentally on purpose downloaded a Danish words app for my phone. I want to learn Dutch, but also Afrikaans. The only problem I can see with this is that I will become horribly, horribly confused. (Though a plus side of being better at German now is that I can kind of understand written Dutch because many of the words are similar. But yeah, mostly I foresee much confusion for myself if I indulge this IN ANY WAY AT ALL).

[ginnunn-blog]