To ask if you've learned how to speak Arabic as a second language? Is it really difficult?

[Arabicnewbie]

I've started learning on duolingo and it's just sounds atm.

It's totally different to any other language I've tried to learn. I know some French a little Spanish and some Greek.

Is this an impossible task? I'll be honest I'm not a natural at language learning.

I have a reason to learn.

Not impossible at all. Duolingo is a bit crap for it, but maybe do it to get some basics
i am a bit old school but I would suggest you can get some text books like “mastering Arabic” and go through those as well.
is the reason because of being in a relationship with an Arabic speaking person, because if so you’ll also want to learn more colloquial Arabic and what you’ll learn in books or duo is more like formal

I live in an Arabic speaking country and have had lessons but it is very hard. Mainly because there are so many variations - for example, the Arabic spoken in a Gulf country is very different to the Arabic spoken in Sudan or Morocco or Lebanon.

I speak fluent Spanish and decent French and consider myself quite 'good' at languages but Arabic has proven to be incredibly difficult - I know some words and can generally get the gist of a conversation but that's it - I can't recognise any written words. My primary school age kids have been learning in school for several years and they know things like numbers, animals, colours etc, but they also struggle.

Another one to have tried learning and really struggled. I would say I can read words but remembering how to build sentences I really struggled with.

I would very much recommend finding an online tutor on Preply though. Especially if you are looking to learn a specific dialect as opposed to MSA.

I’ve lived in the Middle East as the wife of a Gulf national for almost 50 years and I can vouch for Arabic being an extremely difficult language to learn even in an immersive situation.

I am learning and would advise you to get off Duolingo, it’s worse than useless.

Mastering Arabic is a good course as a pp mentioned (if you want to speak Egyptian dialect) but the absolute best way is to identify which dialect you want to learn and then get a tutor on preply or similar.

Good luck! I am making some progress but it’s slower than I’d like. My strength in life is reading and writing, but as the dialects aren’t the same as the written language me liking reading books isn’t as helpful for listening or speaking as it is in French or whatever.

Thanks all.

Not me but dc is in a relationship with a Lebanese person. So I'd be better off learning their dialect?

But if those good at languages struggle I don't hold out much hope.

Duolingo seems like a con to me. Someone I know did DL French diligently for YEARS, rising through the ranks til they thought they were pretty good conversationally. Went to France and could barley order a baguette or understand what the waiter was saying.

I wonder if it just has fabulous marketing.

V. little experience of Arabic. Sadly, similarly to Chinese the written language has never resolved itself in to recognisable marks.
Totally support the uselessness of duolingo. Have abandoned it in several languages due to it not offering any useful info/phrases. Norwegian is all about coffee with cream/milk - I don't drink coffee and my Norwegian friends tell me that no Norwegians drink anything other than black coffee.
Likewise, tried some Greek but it's all about pink carrots at the mini market ... How will that be remotely useful?

I have very close Lebanese family from my cousin who married into the Lebanese culture and I’ve never met a Lebanese who doesn’t also speak English. In fact the ones I’m know speak Arabic, English and French.

My hairdresser for eg is also Lebanese as are his staff and everyone working in the Salon speak at least Arabic and English. The Middle East is full of Lebanese expatriate workers and it would be a very rare one who isn’t bi-lingual and I’m only mentioning this to really get the message across about it being quite unlikely you’d need to learn Arabic because your DD has a Lebanese boyfriend. How does she manage to talk to him?

I’ve done Duolingo Arabic.

i can now “read” Arabic letters in the sense that i know what sounds they make. The course doesn’t have any speaking in it at all and stops at quite an easy level.

i would not consider myself capable of conversing in Arabic.

by contrast I have been doing Duolingo Spanish and German for a couple of years and can manage on holiday in Spain and speak at quite a low level (I do have decent French however and the languages are very similar).

German is more of a challenge but I can do simple conversations (although my German friends laugh at my accent, they do know what I am saying)

so - European languages it’s ok although you’d ideally supplement with watching tv shows in the language etc.

They're fluent in English.

I lived in Beirut and learned Arabic as I worked there and had to shop etc.
French got me by in East Beirut but Arabic is needed in West Beirut. Although most of them speak English.
If you are learning, Lebanon is Levantine Arabic which is very different from Gulf Arabic.