DAEMONIC01's avatar
DAEMONIC01

July 8, 2025

1
Day 4: How I Failed One Language and Found Another

I learned German for over 10 years, but I can't even write a line about my name. However, I never learned English properly — and now I'm writing stuff like this. I think it's funny, so I decided to share this little but true story.

In elementary school we had to choose: English or German. But it wasn't a real choice because the school hadn't have any English teacher, so they recommended to everyone to choose German because it's really worthy in our region. They thought that's enough to us to commit ourselves to learn German. Surprise, it wasn't.

So I had to learn German for 8 years there, do my homework and prepare for tests. We had a teacher who did her job as if she had gotten her degree from her neighbor, so she couldn't even teach anything to herself, let alone to anyone else. After so many tears we finished elementary school and I went to high school, where they said, "If you learned German in the elementary school, you have to stick to it here too." So I was stuck in this nightmare. In the first 3 years I had a really bad teacher, but then we got a new one, who finally had the abilities and skills to teach German, so after another 2 years we finished high school and I was finally done with German language. Forever.

My family thought about me that I have no sense of language and I believed this thing. A few years ago, I decided to go to university, so I had to take a B2 level exam in any language. I knew German is absolutely not an option, so I chose English because I already had a pretty good vocabulary and few months to prepare. The exam wasn't easy, but due to the COVID there wasn't oral exam. After then I stopped working on my English knowledge, but I realized I have to, so I started again with a new goal. I want to be fluent and take a C2 exam within 2 years from now.

Yeah, that's my long language learning journey. I hated languages and believed I can't learn any of them because I have no sense of language, but it wasn't right. Now I think anyone can learn any language if they really want. Of course it's not easy, but I think we don't learn languages because it's easy, right? Knowing a language opens up the world for us and make us capable to get to know another culture and many new people.

introductionenglish
Corrections

But it wasn't a real choice because the school hadidn't have any English teacher, so they recommended to everyone to choose German because it's really worthywhile in our region.

They thought that' was enough to us to commit ourselves to learn German.

"that's" = "that is"

So I had to learn German for 8 years there, doing my homework and prepareing for tests.

Past tense since this happened in the past

My family thought about me that I haved no sense ofkill for languages and I believed this thingem.

"thought about me that I"

"that I" already implies the "about me" so better to remove it.

I knew German iwas absolutely not an option, so I chose English because I already had a pretty good vocabulary and a few months to prepare.

After thenat I stopped working on my English knowledge, but I realized I have to work on it, so I started again with a new goal.

You need a verb after "I have to" here.

I want to be fluent and take a C2 exam within 2 years from now.

"within" and "from now" are redundant, so you would only use one.

"2 years from now" = "you want to take an exam in 2 years"
"within 2 years" = "you want to take an exam at some point in the next 2 years"

I picked "within" as the broader option.

I hated languages and believed I caouldn't learn any of them because I have no sense of language skills, but ithat wasn't right.

"couldn't" is past tense of "can't". Since you longer believe it and you're talking about your past experience, better to use past tense.

Of course it's not easy, but I don't think we don't learn languages because it's easy, right?

Knowing a language opens up the world for us and make us capable to get to know another culture and many new people.

DAEMONIC01's avatar
DAEMONIC01

July 8, 2025

1

Thank you for the detailed correction. I don't know, how can be such a huge difference between two correction, but I'll try to take every advice I get.

araigoshi's avatar
araigoshi

July 8, 2025

259

A big part of that is that people have different standards I think.

Some people will only correct things that are completely wrong, while others will focus on what seems natural. Also what seems natural can vary between different countries that speak English. There's also stuff that's ok to leave out in speech but is expected in writing, and some people will correct only things that also aren't ok in spoken English.

DAEMONIC01's avatar
DAEMONIC01

July 9, 2025

1

Oh yeah, it's really challenging to interpret and learn from it. 😄

Day 4: How I Failed One Language and Found Another

I learned German for over 10 years, but I can't even write a line about my name.

However, I never learned English properly — and now I'm writing stuff like this.

I think it's funny, so I decided to share this little but true story.

In elementary school we had to choose: English or German.

But it wasn't a real choice because the school hadn't have any English teacher, so they recommended to everyone to choose German because it's really worthy something/it in our region.

They thought that's enough to us to commit ourselves to learn German.

Surprise, it wasn't.

So I had to learn German for 8 years there, do my homework and prepare for tests.

We had a teacher who did her job as if she had gotten her degree from her neighbor, so she couldn't even teach anything to herself, let alone to anyone else.

After so many tears we finished elementary school and I went to high school, where they said, "If you learned German in the elementary school, you have to stick to it here too."

So I was stuck in this nightmare.

In the first 3 years I had a really bad teacher, but then we got a new one, who finally had the abilities and skills to teach German, so after another 2 years we finished high school and I was finally done with German language.

Forever.

My family thought about me that I haved no sense of language, and I believed this thingem.

A few years ago, I decided to go to university, so I had to take a B2 level exam in any language.

I knew German is absolutely not an option, so I chose English because I already had a pretty good vocabulary and a few months to prepare.

"Few" would indicate that the number of months was small.
"A few" would indicate that there were several months.

The exam wasn't easy, but due to the COVID there wasn't oral exam.

After thenat, I stopped working on my English knowledge, but I realized I haved to, so I started again with a new goal.

I want to be fluent and take a C2 exam within 2 years from now.

Yeah, that's my long language learning journey.

I hated languages and believed I caouldn't learn any of them because I thought I haved no sense of language, but itI wasn't right wrong.

By adding the "thought" again after "believed" earlier in the sentence it reinforces the idea that this was only your belief, not the reality. Without it, I almost forgot that it was just your opinion.

Now I think anyone can learn any language if they really want to.

🤷‍♂️

Of course it's not easy, but I think we don't learn languages because it's easy, right?

"I think" is unnecessary because you are making a truth claim.

Knowing a language opens up the world for us and makes us capable tof getting to know another culture and many new people.

Feedback

Your C2 goal in 2 years is very achievable! 'Tis really too bad about the German, and it was interesting reading about thine experience with that language especially considering that I am learning that language right now. How didst thou have thy vocabulary in English that was able to help thee for the exam for the university? And thou art saying that one must speak a foreign language to get into a university in Europe? That's interesting.

DAEMONIC01's avatar
DAEMONIC01

July 8, 2025

1

Thanks again! It's a bit frustrating that everyone interprets my writing differently. You found only a few mistakes, while others find many. Languages are so relative, and I hate relative things, I do better with facts. :D

Anyway, I get my vocabulary from passive learning. Games, movies, TV Shows, browsing, etc. My vocabulary is growing since I was a child.
I can only tell you about my country, Hungary. I don't know about other countries. Although you can get into a university in Hungary, but you need a certificate about a foreign language (at least level B2). This requirement was recently changed, so now each university can define its own requirements, so there are courses you can apply for without a B2 certificate and some you can't. This applies to the bachelor's degrees. For a master's degree you definitely have to get a B2 certificate.

Day 4: How I Failed One Language and Found Another

I learnstudied German for over 10 years, but I can't even write a linsentence about my name anymore.

I suggest to add "anymore," as a precision that, of course, during the 10 years of active study, you were able to write a basic sentence, but it has been so long that you don't even remember that -anymore-.

However, I never learned English properly/formally—and now I'm writing stuff like this.

This is just a personal opinion, but em dashes (—) are virtually never used by English natives, this does not even exist on our keyboards. It's usually a sign that a text came directly from an AI like ChatGPT. But it is not grammatically incorrect to use. However, if you wanted to sound natural, using a regular dash (-) is advised.

When you say you never learned English properly, it implies you learned English, but poorly/incorrectly. From the rest of your text, it sounds like you might mean that you never had English classes. If what you mean is the latter, use "formally."

I think it's funny, so I decided to share this littleshort but true story.

In elementary school, we had to choose: English or German.

But it wasn't a real choice because the school hadidn't have any English teachers, so they recommended tohat everyone to choose German because it's really worthyhighly valued in our region.

They thought that' was enough tofor us to commit ourselves to learning German.

Surprise, it wasn't.

So I had to learn German for 8 years there, do my homework and prepare for tests.

We had a teacher who did her jobtaught as if she had gotten her degree from her neighbor, so she couldn't even teach anything to herself, let alone to anyone else.

Better to use "taught" than "did her job" to be clear

After so many tears, we finished elementary school and I went tostarted high school, where they said, "If you learned German in the elementary school, you have to stick to it here too."

So I was stuck in this nightmare.

In the first 3 years, I had a really bad teacher, but then we got a new one, who finally had the abilities and skills to teach German, s. So after another 2 years, we finished high school and I was finally done with the German language.

Forever.

My family thought about me that I haved no sense of language skills, and I believed ithis thing.

"About me" is redundant and unnecessary here.
I'm not 100% sure if I understood your meaning, but if you mean to say your family thought your language-learning skills were poor, this is how I edited it.

A few years ago, I decided to go to university, soand I had to take a B2 -level exam in any language.

I knew German iwas absolutely not an option, so I chose English because I already had a pretty good vocabulary and few months to prepare.

The exam wasn't easy, but due to the COVID, there wasn't no oral exam.

After thenat, I stopped working on my English knowledge, but then I realized I have to continue, so I started again with a new goal.

This is fine, but it leaves your readers wondering why you "have to" keep studying English. Is it because school or work requires it of you? If it just your own personal requirement, change this to "I realized I need to"

I want to be fluent and take a C2 exam within 2 years (from now).

You could leave off the end here and still be understood

Yeah, that's my long language -learning journey.

I hated languages learning and believed I caouldn't learn any of them because I haved no sense of languagekill for it, but ithat wasn't right/true.

"True" fits here better because you could describe this as factual: you DID have the skills to learn another language (English). Right and wrong are often used in contexts where facts cannot be used to make the call. (He wasn't the right man for her. She said I spilled the soup, but that's not true).

Now I think anyone can learn any language if they really want to.

Of course, it's not easy, but I think we don't learn languages because it's easy, right?

"I think" is unnecessary here and sounds unnatural in this placement

Knowing another language opens up the world for us and make us capable to get to know another culture and many new people.

Feedback

Great job.
Even if your German is poor, I'm sure what you did learn still carries value.

DAEMONIC01's avatar
DAEMONIC01

July 8, 2025

1

Thank you for the detailed corrections. As I see, I have a lot of things to work on for more natural expression. Maybe I should read more to pick up more natural examples.

You're right, even if my German is poor, I'm sure I learned things that I use everyday life without even realizing it.

araigoshi's avatar
araigoshi

July 8, 2025

259

> This is just a personal opinion, but em dashes (—) are virtually never used by English natives, this does not even exist on our keyboards. It's usually a sign that a text came directly from an AI like ChatGPT. But it is not grammatically incorrect to use. However, if you wanted to sound natural, using a regular dash (-) is advised.

This depends what computer you use. Macs and iPhones will replace --- with an em dash, and on my Linux computer I can type a em dash with (right windows)--- . Some programs do it on other devices too (I think google docs does it?)

I want to be fluent and take a C2 exam within 2 years from now.


I want to be fluent and take a C2 exam within 2 years (from now).

You could leave off the end here and still be understood

This sentence has been marked as perfect!

I want to be fluent and take a C2 exam within 2 years from now.

"within" and "from now" are redundant, so you would only use one. "2 years from now" = "you want to take an exam in 2 years" "within 2 years" = "you want to take an exam at some point in the next 2 years" I picked "within" as the broader option.

Yeah, that's my long language learning journey.


Yeah, that's my long language -learning journey.

This sentence has been marked as perfect!

After so many tears we finished elementary school and I went to high school, where they said, "If you learned German in the elementary school, you have to stick to it here too."


After so many tears, we finished elementary school and I went tostarted high school, where they said, "If you learned German in the elementary school, you have to stick to it here too."

This sentence has been marked as perfect!

So I was stuck in this nightmare.


This sentence has been marked as perfect!

This sentence has been marked as perfect!

In the first 3 years I had a really bad teacher, but then we got a new one, who finally had the abilities and skills to teach German, so after another 2 years we finished high school and I was finally done with German language.


In the first 3 years, I had a really bad teacher, but then we got a new one, who finally had the abilities and skills to teach German, s. So after another 2 years, we finished high school and I was finally done with the German language.

This sentence has been marked as perfect!

Forever.


This sentence has been marked as perfect!

This sentence has been marked as perfect!

My family thought about me that I have no sense of language and I believed this thing.


My family thought about me that I haved no sense of language skills, and I believed ithis thing.

"About me" is redundant and unnecessary here. I'm not 100% sure if I understood your meaning, but if you mean to say your family thought your language-learning skills were poor, this is how I edited it.

My family thought about me that I haved no sense of language, and I believed this thingem.

My family thought about me that I haved no sense ofkill for languages and I believed this thingem.

"thought about me that I" "that I" already implies the "about me" so better to remove it.

A few years ago, I decided to go to university, so I had to take a B2 level exam in any language.


A few years ago, I decided to go to university, soand I had to take a B2 -level exam in any language.

This sentence has been marked as perfect!

I knew German is absolutely not an option, so I chose English because I already had a pretty good vocabulary and few months to prepare.


I knew German iwas absolutely not an option, so I chose English because I already had a pretty good vocabulary and few months to prepare.

I knew German is absolutely not an option, so I chose English because I already had a pretty good vocabulary and a few months to prepare.

"Few" would indicate that the number of months was small. "A few" would indicate that there were several months.

I knew German iwas absolutely not an option, so I chose English because I already had a pretty good vocabulary and a few months to prepare.

The exam wasn't easy, but due to the COVID there wasn't oral exam.


The exam wasn't easy, but due to the COVID, there wasn't no oral exam.

This sentence has been marked as perfect!

After then I stopped working on my English knowledge, but I realized I have to, so I started again with a new goal.


After thenat, I stopped working on my English knowledge, but then I realized I have to continue, so I started again with a new goal.

This is fine, but it leaves your readers wondering why you "have to" keep studying English. Is it because school or work requires it of you? If it just your own personal requirement, change this to "I realized I need to"

After thenat, I stopped working on my English knowledge, but I realized I haved to, so I started again with a new goal.

After thenat I stopped working on my English knowledge, but I realized I have to work on it, so I started again with a new goal.

You need a verb after "I have to" here.

Now I think anyone can learn any language if they really want.


Now I think anyone can learn any language if they really want to.

Now I think anyone can learn any language if they really want to.

🤷‍♂️

So I had to learn German for 8 years there, do my homework and prepare for tests.


This sentence has been marked as perfect!

This sentence has been marked as perfect!

So I had to learn German for 8 years there, doing my homework and prepareing for tests.

Past tense since this happened in the past

We had a teacher who did her job as if she had gotten her degree from her neighbor, so she couldn't even teach anything to herself, let alone to anyone else.


We had a teacher who did her jobtaught as if she had gotten her degree from her neighbor, so she couldn't even teach anything to herself, let alone to anyone else.

Better to use "taught" than "did her job" to be clear

This sentence has been marked as perfect!

I hated languages and believed I can't learn any of them because I have no sense of language, but it wasn't right.


I hated languages learning and believed I caouldn't learn any of them because I haved no sense of languagekill for it, but ithat wasn't right/true.

"True" fits here better because you could describe this as factual: you DID have the skills to learn another language (English). Right and wrong are often used in contexts where facts cannot be used to make the call. (He wasn't the right man for her. She said I spilled the soup, but that's not true).

I hated languages and believed I caouldn't learn any of them because I thought I haved no sense of language, but itI wasn't right wrong.

By adding the "thought" again after "believed" earlier in the sentence it reinforces the idea that this was only your belief, not the reality. Without it, I almost forgot that it was just your opinion.

I hated languages and believed I caouldn't learn any of them because I have no sense of language skills, but ithat wasn't right.

"couldn't" is past tense of "can't". Since you longer believe it and you're talking about your past experience, better to use past tense.

Of course it's not easy, but I think we don't learn languages because it's easy, right?


Of course, it's not easy, but I think we don't learn languages because it's easy, right?

"I think" is unnecessary here and sounds unnatural in this placement

Of course it's not easy, but I think we don't learn languages because it's easy, right?

"I think" is unnecessary because you are making a truth claim.

Of course it's not easy, but I don't think we don't learn languages because it's easy, right?

Knowing a language opens up the world for us and make us capable to get to know another culture and many new people.


Knowing another language opens up the world for us and make us capable to get to know another culture and many new people.

Knowing a language opens up the world for us and makes us capable tof getting to know another culture and many new people.

Knowing a language opens up the world for us and make us capable to get to know another culture and many new people.

Day 4: How I Failed One Language and Found Another


This sentence has been marked as perfect!

This sentence has been marked as perfect!

I learned German for over 10 years, but I can't even write a line about my name.


I learnstudied German for over 10 years, but I can't even write a linsentence about my name anymore.

I suggest to add "anymore," as a precision that, of course, during the 10 years of active study, you were able to write a basic sentence, but it has been so long that you don't even remember that -anymore-.

This sentence has been marked as perfect!

However, I never learned English properly — and now I'm writing stuff like this.


However, I never learned English properly/formally—and now I'm writing stuff like this.

This is just a personal opinion, but em dashes (—) are virtually never used by English natives, this does not even exist on our keyboards. It's usually a sign that a text came directly from an AI like ChatGPT. But it is not grammatically incorrect to use. However, if you wanted to sound natural, using a regular dash (-) is advised. When you say you never learned English properly, it implies you learned English, but poorly/incorrectly. From the rest of your text, it sounds like you might mean that you never had English classes. If what you mean is the latter, use "formally."

This sentence has been marked as perfect!

I think it's funny, so I decided to share this little but true story.


I think it's funny, so I decided to share this littleshort but true story.

This sentence has been marked as perfect!

In elementary school we had to choose: English or German.


In elementary school, we had to choose: English or German.

This sentence has been marked as perfect!

But it wasn't a real choice because the school hadn't have any English teacher, so they recommended to everyone to choose German because it's really worthy in our region.


But it wasn't a real choice because the school hadidn't have any English teachers, so they recommended tohat everyone to choose German because it's really worthyhighly valued in our region.

But it wasn't a real choice because the school hadn't have any English teacher, so they recommended to everyone to choose German because it's really worthy something/it in our region.

But it wasn't a real choice because the school hadidn't have any English teacher, so they recommended to everyone to choose German because it's really worthywhile in our region.

They thought that's enough to us to commit ourselves to learn German.


They thought that' was enough tofor us to commit ourselves to learning German.

This sentence has been marked as perfect!

They thought that' was enough to us to commit ourselves to learn German.

"that's" = "that is"

Surprise, it wasn't.


This sentence has been marked as perfect!

This sentence has been marked as perfect!

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