English... The language we never think about!

I have been taught that English is the most difficult language to learn. As Americans who speak English, we rarely think about that. For a couple of years, I was a sign language interpreter in ASL and I HAD to think about it.

ASL is a language based on the concept or intent of what we are trying to express. For example: "I like you" is signed as "you me like". "You are like no other" becomes "you other person same not". Two different signs are used for, what in English is, the same word. So let's look at some other words that can be confusing...

Are and our: You are nice. are= to be verb. ASL doesn't use the "be" verbs, so it's simply "you nice" This is our home. our=possessive. "House this (or that) ours" They're, there, and their: they're is the conjunction of "they are", again the "to be" verb. "They're funny = "they funny". There=location. "My house is over there" = "house my there". Their = possessive. "This is their dog" = "dog (point at it) theirs" You're and your: again, you're is the conjunction of "you are", so I won't be repetitive! LOL and "your" is possessive. Light and light??? Whoa! Light colors (not dark), daylight, turn on the light, this is light and not heavy, lighten up???

Now, think about all of the words we have that sound the same, but are spelled differently and have completely different meanings. OMG! Talk about something that confuses people! LOL Read and red? Lie and lye??? Seen and scene??? I could go on and on, but my head is already reeling from the impact.

English is an incredible language. I love it. There seems to be a perfect word for just about anything a person can imagine if we just look hard enough. I'm not talking about those 20 syllable words, either. Just a simple word like "cherish"... Isn't that a beautiful word? It's beyond like, beyond love. It contains respect and a sense of forever. Cherish. Wow...

I could go on and on, but I won't bore you with my ramblings. Just take a moment and THINK about what you're saying. Think about what you MEAN. Could it be said better, more concisely? It's a thing to consider while our world is becoming ever smaller thanks to the internet.

Let's all broaden our concepts of language together!

PEACE! *grin*