How many languages can you bluff your way in?

[complexnumber]

I was wondering about the linguistic skills of MN users.

So here's a scale: (for English speakers and obviously flawed, just for fun)

1. Fluent; can explain the rules of Cricket to a non-English speaker

1. Fluent: Understand the political situation by reading National papers

1. Relaxed: Can converse with strangers on the street

1. No problem catching the right bus or giving the right taxi directions

1. Can understand and retort to unwanted attention in local language.

1. Can say 'hello', 'yes', 'no' and 'thank you'

1. Can order 5 beers at a bar, (but not 4 nec. beers)

1. Point, wave and shout...

Should I include a -1 for those languages that you really should have learnt... but didn't.

Personally I do not get a particularly good score;

English 8
French 5
Spanish 6
Hausa 5
Zulu -1
Setswana -1
Arabic -1

Gives me a total of 21.

I doubt if that will me hard to beat

Me-
English 8
Thai 5
Arabic 7
Swiss German -1
Dutch/Flemish-not necessary, everyone speaks English.

I should point out, those scores were from when I lived in those places. If you asked me anything more tricky than hello goodbye if god wills it to be in Arabic, you'd be stuffed.
DD was fluent in Thai, sadly, apart from quiz shows on the sat telly she had no opportunity to practice and now remembers nowt.

Good lord, if explaining the rules of cricket are a fluency criteria then I'll even flunk English. ;)

I'm afraid I don't get your scale, is it upside-down?

I think:

English 8
French 8 (but only by rehearsing the rules of cricket I'm not really fluent) and Reunionnais creole 6, which deserves a special mention for deflecting unwanted attention
Welsh 4 (surprisingly)
German 4 but only by missing out 1 below catching the right train, I rock at German trains
Dutch 3
Italian 3
Spanish 3
Arabic, Russian, Polish, Swedish, Greek, Gujarati 1

so all of you, native english speakers, can only point, shout and wave in english

English 1 (but I can't explain the rules of cricket in any language)
French 1
Creole 5
German 4
Italian 5
Spanish 7
Dutch 7
Gaelic 6

I can bluff quite well as I have a good ear and can reproduce accents v well, even if I can hardly say anything. It's dangerous, though, as people have been known to think I can speak a language when I actually can't really...)

(I have followed the order in the list, not as you and others applied it, in response to LeMousquetaire's jibe)
(what does 4 nec. beers mean?)

English 1 - but no idea about the rules of cricket
German 2
French 6
Dutch 6 - and, most importantly, can read the menu
Czech - 7 - but can only order one beer - so would have to make several trips to the bar.
Italian 6
Mandarin chinese 4 - can give directions to taxi driver - but as by tones are a little dubious - s/he may not be able to understand me. However, this is not by fault
Can point, wave and shout in all other languages, so clearly am linguistically very gifted!

English 1
French 1
Arabic 3
Spanish 5
Italian 6
Dutch 7
Portuguese 7
Cantonese & mandarin 8

Comprehension of many above to almost fluent though

English - 1
French - 4
Dutch - 4

English 1 but cannot explain rules of cricket because I am not interested in cricket
German 1
Dutch 1
French 3
Italian 3
Spanish 5
Arabic 6

so that is 20 points in total, but I must say, I don't understand your scale ...

English 1 - no cricket rules though!
Spanish 1
Catalan 3
Portuguese 4 or 5

English 1
German 1
French 4
Italian 5
Welsh 6 (although I couldn't do 7 ie ordering drinks in a bar)
Spanish 6
Polish 5/6
Czech 6
Greek/Russian 8 - I'm lost when it's a different script.

English 1
French 1
Spanish 2
German 4
Russian 4
Azeri 5
Italian 5
Mandarin 6
Thai 6
Polish 6

Would probably have different scores for understanding, rather than speaking....

English 1
French 1
Italian 1
Spanish 1
German 2
Catalan 2
Russian 6

English 1
French 2/3
German 6
Spanish 4
Portugese 6
Norwegian 6
Italian 6 (including hand gestures)
Korean 4/5
Greek 6

English 1
Spanish 1
Catalan 1
Italian 2
Portuguese 2
German 3
French 3
Norwegian/Swedish 3
Mandarin 4

English - 1
German - 2
Romanian - 2
French - 2
Polish - 3
Dutch - 3 (but probably 2 for reading)
Spanish - 3 (again, 2 for reading)
Russian - 4
Hebrew - 4
Italian - 5 (probably 3 for reading)

I can also read a menu in any Slav language and Hungarian.