Useful phrases Duolingo has taught me this week

[booboo57]

Trying Duolingo for the first for our upcoming Italian trip. This week I have learnt to say :
They are not forks
The horses drink the milk.

I wanted to learn how to order a g&t and teach my husband how to ask for the bill.

@SomethingPunny Thanks for clarifying!

The "theatre of the absurd" play The Bald Prima Donna by Ionesco is inspired by the playwright's English textbook, with a similar effect.

MRS. SMITH :
There, it’s nine o’clock.
We’ve drunk the soup, and eaten the fish and chips, and the English salad.
The children have drunk English water.
We’ve eaten well this evening.
That’s because we live in the suburbs of London and because our name is Smith.

MR. SMITH: [continues to read, clicks his tongue.]

MRS. SMITH:
Potatoes are very good fried in fat; the salad oil was not rancid.
The oil from the grocer at the corner is better quality than the oil from the grocer at the bottom of the street.
However, I prefer not to tell them that their oil is bad.

That's very interesting. I know the play :)

@ICriedAllTheWayToTheChipShop on the Spanish course it tells you the grammar and verb stuff on the ‘tips’ bit of each section. I’ve found it really good.

@BringMeTea Juan comes manzanas. Yo como manzanas.

Mi fiesta de cumpleaños es el Sábado

No! Juan Come manzanas!!!

I notice it pronounces gracias with two 'ess' sounds rather than a th and then an s

gracias rather than grathias

Why si that, when we were in spain recently they definitely say grathias

I've had conversations with my DD on this point. She learned Spanish in school for three years and always scoffed when I said 'grathias'. I never learned Spanish, but we used to have Spanish students staying with us when I was a teenager and they were from 'Tharagotha' (Zaragoza).

@Loadedforest fuck me I haven't even got that! Thank God it never came up. Feliz compleanos!

It is a difference between Spanish as spoken in South America and Spain. In Spain they use the 'th' sound. I don't know much about Spanish as it is spoken in the US but I guess it is more likely to follow the pronunciation used in Latin America as Spanish speaking communities have their roots there rather than in Spain.

I picked up my few bits of Spanish in South America so use that pronunciation!

I've not had any of these types of sentences in Esperanto but I wish they would make up their mind if it is Sofia or Sophia

I’m gutted Duolingo don’t do a European Portuguese course. I daren’t try there Brazilian Portuguese course in case I get interference.

Duolingo taught me how to say "I only have two things: a pair of pants and a luxury plane" in Vietnamese, and I can tell you that I ABSOLUTELY intend to get myself into a situation where this knowledge comes in useful at least once before I die. It might not be the best website for holiday phrases but it's sure as hell inspiring me to live my best life.

How do people with aphantasia (ie me) manage in Japan?

I think they work well in tandem. Duolingo is good for grammar and Memrise is good for vocabulary.

Another question if someone knows

I have just done a lesson and had to write what I heard in spanish and write it in english

She said Ella es una mujer - she is a woman

But she pronounced Ella as AJ, so I thought it was someones name and she was saying AJ is a woman

Does anyone know why she is pronouncing the double L sound as a J sound?

This confused me too @bellac11 i googled it and it said that sometimes ll is pronounced with a j

storylearning.com/learn/spanish/spanish-tips/spanish-ll-pronunciation

Because the woman on the Spanish lessons has the most difficult accent/voice! She also manages to mumble and speak fast which is a weird accomplishment.

In Latin you get a lot of drunk parrots destroying bridges with fire.

I'm finally learning Gàidhlig (Scottish Gaelic) and there are some howlers. "Don't worry, Una is stealing underpants again" and "this mince is brilliant!" were particularly stand out

I’m leaning German with duolingo. Specifically, I’m learning to insult people and their homes. If somebody invites me round I’ll be sure to tell them that their carpet is old, the bedroom is dirty and dark and their shirt is ugly. I’m sure I’ll be invited back!

I also can’t tell you how many times I’ve had to say Meine Eule malt nie. (My owl never paints)

I'm enjoying this thread so much, I'm considering taking up Duolingo again 😅

IT HAS KLINGON!!!

Some super useful Latin phrases include many drunk parrots, stuffed peacocks and cheese - Marcus smells greatly of cheese, I collect dolls and bones (serial killer warning), Mother visits graves daily and sacrifices, my drunk parrot is not the worst Marcus - and the only useful one, I would like red wine and olives. I assumed there was no need for proper ‘I’d like two pizzas and where’s the nearest bank’ because it’s a dead language but clearly Duolingo’s taking the piss globally.