Tips for Learning to Read a Foreign Language

As I’ve studied several foreign languages over the years, I’ve discovered some strategies that help.

1) Sound out the language as you are reading it.

When learning to read a foreign language we should remember that every real tongue (as opposed to a constructed language, like Esperanto) is first and foremost a spoken form of communication. Every foreign language was spoken for many years before it was written down. There’s good reason to believe that the spoken word comes more easily to us than the written page. When a person reads a foreign language out loud, it slows the pace
down, and makes the reader pay more attention to each word. It helps us distinguish very similar words, and prevents us from skipping over those little words that are sometimes easy to miss when learning to read a foreign language.

2) Make sure the text is big enough.

This may sound pretty basic, but I discovered as I was learning to read a foreign language that text sizes that are easy to read in English are harder to read in, say, Greek or Spanish. Of course, if you are having an extreme problem, the first thing you might want to do is have your eyes checked. But if that is not the problem, while you are learning to read in a foreign language you may wish to select books with slightly larger text or to use reading glasses, even if you do not usually use them.

3) Look up words, but not every word.

Of course if you are learning to read in a foreign language you want to have a good dictionary of the foreign language you are trying to learn. But contrary to popular belief, when learning a foreign language, it’s not always necessary to look up every word you don’t know. For example, if you are only unfamiliar with one word in a phrase you are reading, but the meaning is clear from the context, it may not be necessary to reach for the dictionary. Let the context be your guide. Most of us, when we are learning to read our native tongues, do not look up every word, and the same applies as we are learning a foreign language.

4) When reading a new author, go more slowly in the first few pages.

Even when we are reading our native languages, it’s easy to see that authors have favorite words and phrases and their own particular styles. As you are learning to read a foreign language you will see that the same principle applies. Once you have looked up a few of the writer’s favorite words, and once you have gotten used to his or her idiosyncrasies, it will become easier to read a text written in a foreign language.

For example in reading the New Testament in Koine Greek, I’m struck by how different the various authors can be: from the simple Aramaic-flavored Greek of the Apocalypse to the more cultured, sophisticated language of St. Paul.

5) Learn something about the culture in which the language developed.

Even in English, when the author writes about something entirely outside of our own experience, it can be difficult to understand what he or she is saying. If you study the culture of the foreign language you are trying to learn it will give the language context. When trying to read an article about contemporary Mexico in Spanish, I came across several passages about conflicts between the different ethnic groups. Because I had already read about the “conquistadors” or conquerors, it was easier to understand what was happening.

6) Take breaks.

In learning to read a foreign language, we should realize that we are learning a new skill. It is a very natural human skill, but a new skill all the same. Reading a foreign language is not as easy as reading your native tongue, and you’ll want to read shorter passages and stop more often than if you were reading your native English.

7) Read something that’s fun.

When selecting material for your study of a foreign language, remember it’s easier to keep reading a story if you’re enjoying it. We shouldn’t think of learning a foreign language as purely a chore. Get a novel that looks interesting or a book of short stories written in the foreign language you are studying. I found it much easier to learn a new language when I purchased a book that structured its lessons around a mystery story.

I think this may be the most important tip on learning to read a foreign language that I can give you. Because when we don’t enjoy doing something, we generally don’t continue with it.

And the more you learn, the more you’ll enjoy it.