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Do Even English Native Speakers Feel English Is Difficult?

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Aug 19th 2012 03:46
I've heard from a teacher that even many native speakers feel a few English grammar is difficult, such as the article or the distinction between countable and uncountable nouns.
I thought before all native speakers were very good at English and they didn't make any mistake in writing or speaking English.
However, because the number of English words is uncountable and the grammar is complex, English seems to difficult for native speakers as well as Koreans to learn.

English appears to be a language which we must study forever.
nyari
Aug 19th 2012 04:02
Yeah, I often find myself double-checking my corrections on the internet.
Beth
Aug 19th 2012 04:02
Yes, I think native speakers have some trouble with english grammar. When I was in school, my teachers would make me study verb tenses like past perfect, present perfect, future perfect, etc. It was so confusing to me then, but now I am much better at. :) Good luck with your studies!
james_bu
Thank you for your correction!
Aug 19th 2012 04:10
  • I've heard from a teacher that even many native speakers feel a few English grammar is difficult, such as the article or the distinction between countable and uncountable nouns.

  • I've heard from a teacher that even many native speakers feel a few points of English grammar are difficult, such as the article or the distinction between countable and uncountable nouns.

 
  • I thought before all native speakers were very good at English and they didn't make any mistake in writing or speaking English.

  • I previously thought that all native speakers were very good at English and they didn't make any mistake in writing or speaking English.

 
  • However, because the number of English words is uncountable and the grammar is complex, English seems to difficult for native speakers as well as Koreans to learn.

  • However, because the number of English words is uncountable and the grammar is complex, English seems to be difficult for native speakers as well as Koreans to learn.

 
I agree with your teacher and the other commenters. Very few native speakers' grammar is perfect and some of the points are very hard to understand and explain.

It might interest you to know that even native speakers who write English professionally - such as journalists - make many mistakes. For that reason, the major newspapers in England have style guides, to help their journalists to get things right and to remain consistent. Here's a link to one of those guides, in case you are interested:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/styleguide
Natters
Thank you for your correction!
Aug 19th 2012 04:11
  • Do Even English Native Speakers Feel English Is Difficult?

  • Do Even English Native Speakers Feel English Is Difficult?

 
  • However, because the number of English words is uncountable and the grammar is complex, English seems to difficult for native speakers as well as Koreans to learn.

  • However, because the number of English words are uncountable and the grammar is complex, English seems to be difficult for native speakers as well as Koreans to learn.

 
English is not a language you need to study forever. The grammar all depends on how well and strict your English teacher was. When I was in Elementary school, my teacher constantly corrected my mistakes. She also explained why these mistakes were made; and after being corrected so many times, I no longer make the mistakes. Even today I think about the grammar and rules I learned in her class when I'm about to make a mistake. Some English natives learned a different way when growing up and because of this they know different grammar rules. I admit, I'm horrible when it comes to commas, or semi-colons, and run-on sentences; but that's because I never actually learned these from a strict teacher.

English is only complicated on paper in writing. Speaking it is so much easier because people don't have to worry about these complex rules, and the person you're talking to won't notice any mistakes because he/she can't look back for corrections.

My advice for you is to take a look at every correction people make on your writings and understand why these mistakes were made. Once the person who corrected them explains, then you'll be able to improve your grammar.

Don't stress though. Your grammar and English is VERY GOOD. English is NOT a language you have to study forever. You just HAVE to understand the WHY in a correction and commit it to memory. Hope this helps.
Aug 19th 2012 12:33 james_bu
“

  • However, because the number of English words are uncountable and the grammar is complex, English seems to be difficult for native speakers as well as Koreans to learn.

”
No, the OP was right with 'the number of English words is uncountable'. 'The number of English words' is a singular concept so takes 'is', not 'are'.

Of course, the OP was factually inaccurate to say that the number is uncountable, using the mathematical definition of countability, but I think poetic licence is allowed here.
madbeanman
Thank you for your correction!
Aug 19th 2012 04:12
  • Do Even English Native Speakers Feel English Is Difficult?
  • This sentence is perfect! No correction needed!
 
  • I've heard from a teacher that even many native speakers feel a few English grammar is difficult, such as the article or the distinction between countable and uncountable nouns.

  • I've heard from a teacher that even many native speakers feel a few some English grammar is difficult, such as the articles or the distinction between countable and uncountable nouns.

 
  • I thought before all native speakers were very good at English and they didn't make any mistake in writing or speaking English.

  • I thought before all native speakers were very good at English and they didn't make any mistakes in writing or speaking English.

 
  • However, because the number of English words is uncountable and the grammar is complex, English seems to difficult for native speakers as well as Koreans to learn.

  • However, because the number of English words is uncountable and the grammar is complex, English seems to be difficult for native speakers as well as Koreans to learn.

 
  • English appears to be a language which we must study forever.
  • This sentence is perfect! No correction needed!
 
Hmm while I do not think many native speakers make lots of mistakes in English all of the time I think that we realise that English can be different for many non-native speakers to learn.

Good luck!
greenbubble
Thank you for your correction!
Aug 19th 2012 04:18
  • I've heard from a teacher that even many native speakers feel a few English grammar is difficult, such as the article or the distinction between countable and uncountable nouns.

  • I've heard from a teacher that even many native speakers feel a few parts of English grammar is are difficult, such as the article or the distinction between countable and uncountable nouns.

 
  • I thought before all native speakers were very good at English and they didn't make any mistake in writing or speaking English.

  • Before, I thought before all native speakers were very good at English and they didn't make any mistakes in writing or speaking English.

    Use the time phrase at the beginning. Usually time phrases can go in the beginning or end but for this one, "before" sounds better at the beginning.

 
  • However, because the number of English words is uncountable and the grammar is complex, English seems to difficult for native speakers as well as Koreans to learn.

  • However, because the number of English words is uncountable and the grammar is complex, English seems to be difficult for native speakers as well as Koreans to learn.

 
Pretty good work! I think most native English speakers would feel English is the easiest when using it to communicate because it comes naturally. Ask any English native speaker to learn Chinese, Japanese or Korean and they think it's impossible to learn to a fluent level. Likewise, many students from Asia think English is so difficult. Why? Because of the focus on grammar. Recently I started reading English grammar and I felt so bored and it was too many rules. How could anyone realistically memorize these rules and then apply in daily communication? When I speak English, I don't think about rules, I just know how it's supposed to sound. I don't agree that English is a language you need to study forever - I actually think you can learn how to speak and write in a few months to a few years' time. The secret is using the right methods and not focusing so much on grammar.

I think the trick is to acquire English so you get a feel for it so you don't have to rely on rules.

With that said, I still have to double-check my writing (but I think that's every language not just English).
Adly21
Aug 21st 2012 00:03
The most difficult for me is explaining grammar to my friends studying English because I've never had to think about it before :) I have corrected some of their essays and second-guess myself on many occasions haha.
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I've heard from a teacher that even many native speakers feel a few English grammar is difficult, such as the article or the distinction between countable and uncountable nouns. I thought before all native speakers were very good at English and they didn't make any mistake in writing or speaking Eng


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