Problem
I was writing my previous post service on the nutrient from B & K, chopped liver, common salt beef sandwiches, in addition to cheesecake, in addition to wondered how I would inquire for these foods (or explicate what they were) when speaking to mortal who spoke a unusual language, inwards a eatery or supermarket inwards England, America, Europe or Asia.
Answer
I know that the easiest matter to produce when travelling is to acquire into McDonald's or Starbucks in addition to scream for to the bill of fare inwards McDonald's or Burger King or the display cabinet inwards Starbucks.
Story
I lead maintain managed to order, alongside some difficulty, in addition to assistance from a friend inwards Hong Kong whose girl was Chinese.
However, afterward I ordered past times pointing, the serving staff asked me, inwards Cantonese:
'Small or large?', and,
'Would y'all similar fries alongside that?', and,
'Is that all?' in addition to instructed,
'Pay at the till!'
I was flummoxed. I had to inquire my friend to interpret, in addition to when his express Cantonese was inadequate, to telephone telephone a bilingual fellow member of staff.
Learning Food Names
I decided the quick agency to acquire what I desire inwards a supermarket or eatery alongside to a greater extent than choice, would go to larn the words for one-half a dozen of my favourite foods, inwards fact, if I could purchase or guild i dish which I liked, that would go a success.
All I had to produce was to listing my favourite foods, or indeed whatever one-half a dozen foods, inwards one-half a dozen languages.
Revise that every day, or whenever I was bored or had time. Or continue it at the dorsum of my diary for when I was travelling or inwards a restaurant.
It would go certain to print the waiters or serving staff that I knew a dyad of words. Also it would print friends in addition to acquaintances.
Most important, I could role the words for all sorts of scenarios. For example, pointing to a nutrient in addition to asking, 'What's that?' Then agreement the answer. Or asking, 'Where is ...'
Or, if y'all lead maintain a friend who knows how to ask, 'Where is ...?' but they don't know the unusual linguistic communication discussion for liver, or asparagus or raspberries, y'all tin provide the vital word.
Translation Using Google
How would I discovery the words? That's easy. Use Google translate. It mightiness non ever go accurate translating long sentences alongside ambiguous words sub-clauses in addition to metaphors, but it should go exact when it comes to translating Irish Gaelic patato in addition to sandwich. (Although chips in addition to crisps crusade problem inwards translation from British English to American.)
Single Words
My kickoff idea was that I would take all the German linguistic communication words first, which I would produce when learning or writing well-nigh learning German, in addition to therefore the Italian, in addition to therefore on. If I typed the words i past times i in addition to deleted them, that would accept forever.
My minute idea was to type i discussion inwards English. I started alongside liver.
Photo of chopped liver past times Angela Lansbury. Copyright.
Then I added chopped liver.
Translating Lists
My tertiary idea was that I did non demand to acquire i discussion at a time.
I could type all 10 words inwards English linguistic communication inwards the left mitt box, in addition to therefore switch languages inwards the correct mitt box.
Notebook
So I made a listing of one-half a dozen favourite foods downwards the left mitt margin of a large A4 notebook. I assume that y'all tin acquire into McDonalds in addition to most places in addition to role the discussion Beef or beef burger. I started alongside the discussion Liver.
Across the go past times I wrote left to write some languages I am learning or desire to learn:
German, French, Spanish, Italian.
What well-nigh the linguistic communication I demand most inwards Singapore? Chinese. Let's stick to simplified Chinese. Add Malay/Indonesian, the following countries.
Whilst I am scrolling downwards the list, accept a expect at:
Arabic, Danish, Dutch, Esperanto, Hebrew, Japanese, Latin, Malay, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish. To finish, minute fourth dimension around, I add together Finnish.
You mightiness lead maintain unlike findings, depending on your kickoff in addition to minute languages in addition to which languages y'all similar or discovery easy. But it was at i time clear to me that I stood no gamble or recalling the Chinese, Japanese, Korea, Philippine linguistic communication Tagalog, Russian, in addition to Vietnamese. The Finnish in addition to Esperanto did non relate to anything else either, nor did they examine easy.
I had forgotten Portuguese!
On the other hand, the practiced tidings was that the words inwards Castilian in addition to Italian were similar to each other. They were also similar to the French.
The Danish, Dutch, Swedish in addition to Norwegian were similar to or the same equally each other. They were almost the same equally the English.
TRANSLATING LIVER
First, Europe (and USA)
English - liver
French - foie (easy, equally inwards foie gras)
German - leber (sounds in addition to looks similar, similar letters, similar vowels, similar consonants, same divulge of syllables)
Danish+Dutch+Norwegian+Swedish - lever (only the kickoff vowel changed, in addition to 4 languages merely the same!
It may go a challenge for me to scream back the German, Danish, Dutch, Norwegian in addition to Swedish. But I'm pretty certain that if I were to acquire into a supermarket or expect at a menu, something would acquire click inwards my brain, I would expect at the words leber or lever in addition to think, 'That's liver!'
Europe in addition to USA - Spanish+Italian
English - liver
Spanish - higado
Italian - fegato
Now, Asia - Chinese+Malay+Indonesian
English - liver
Chinese simplifed - gān
Malay+Indonesian - hati
I don't mean value I'll ever scream back Chinese for liver is gān, fifty-fifty though it looks similar gain weight. It is slow to scream back that the a has a horizontal business higher upward it. When y'all depress the alphabetic quality a alongside your left middle finder, in addition to jibe it downwards to acquire the popular upward symbol on the vowel key, the a alongside the business is the final inwards the listing in addition to to select the symbol y'all simultaneously hitting the cardinal for 8, alongside the pointing finger of your correct hand, in addition to 8 is the lucky numbe for the Chinese (and Singaporean Chinese).
Malay+Indonesian The Malay in addition to Indonesian discussion hati is easier to pronounce. I mightiness role a painting exhibit remembering device, such equally imagining a go past times lid roofing a bowl of liver.
However, I withal lead maintain a much higher gamble of remembering or recognizing the European (and American continent) languages.
That made me think, if my dream was to produce a flat course, a masters, a PhD, or merely some report for fun, which linguistic communication would give me quicker success in addition to to a greater extent than feel of achievement? I should concentrate my unloosen energy on Castilian + Italian, or Dutch + Danish, or Swedish + Norwegian. Or German+Dutch, or German+Danish.
Looking at the maps of the world, if y'all alive inwards America, your best languages for holidays in addition to go are Castilian in addition to Portuguese, which ties upward most of South America.
If y'all similar eating out inwards restaurants, or ordering inwards food, your best languages are Italian in addition to French. Italian is practiced for Italian restaurants, H2O ice cream bars, in addition to pizza places.
French, Castilian in addition to Italian acquire y'all merely about the Mediterranean's northern coast equally y'all drive downwards from England. Good for cities, civilisation in addition to beach holidays.
Language Lists - nutrient vocabulary
Let's accept the kickoff word, liver. That's a fairly unusual food. If I were to brand a listing of ten, or a few every day, internationally recognised foods, they would go - a lot to a greater extent than than 10 but perhaps lead i of 2 from each grouping or 2 or 3 groups:
Rice / Irish Gaelic patato / pasta / bread
Water, juice, beer, wine
Hm - perhaps I should laid upward for the following question, the server replies offering a selection of juice.
Orange juice, apple tree juice, lemon juice, mixed juice
How well-nigh some fresh fruit in addition to vegetables?
apple, orange, banana, grape
cucumber, tomato, lettuce, peas, beans corn
(These are practiced for me, salubrious friends in addition to vegetarians.)
For primary meals, tiffin in addition to dinner out, I shall desire to buy:
beef, chicken, lamb, fish
no shellfish, allergy
salt, sugar, no salt, no sugar
Frankly, at tea time, or on a budget, I am probable to desire to guild or buy:
biscuits, chocolate biscuits, cheesecake
chocolate cake, rice pudding, H2O ice cream, fruit pudding.
I'll seat upward my nutrient translation listing inwards the following post.
Author, Angela Lansbury, go writer, photographer, instructor of English linguistic communication in addition to other languages.
I lead maintain several to a greater extent than posts on learning languages. Please part your favourite posts.