How I Learn to Speak Any Language in 24 Hours

It takes me about 10 to 15 hours to learn the languages that I showcase in my videos, and I’ve done this with around 56 languages to date. Obviously that is not going to get me fluent, but it’s enough to have basic conversations and impress people with the little that I do know. To be clear, because you naturally forget languages over time, I do not actually speak 56 languages at any given time, but even if I didn’t forget any of them I would still speak them all at only a basic level. I only speak 3 languages fluently at the moment (English, Mandarin, and Spanish) and my English is WAY better than my Mandarin and my Mandarin is WAY better than my Spanish.

0:00 I was bad at learning languages
1:45 The problem with how languages are currently taught
3:24 Part 1: Speaking practice
4:58 Part 2: Sentence mining with Anki
8:22 Study a language with me!
10:20 Summation

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[onionslaps]

Try writing a daily journal in your target language for a week. You’ll naturally use the most relevant vocabulary to your life and learn a ton of grammar.

[cerspence]

We don't ask infants to learn to write, read, and spell before we start teaching how to speak. Makes sense.

[CraiiZeD]

My French teacher in HS was amazing, she started off class day one by only speaking French and no English at all unless it was absolutely necessary. We were all assigned French names and she made us feel comfortable with the language very quickly because she put us in a position where we had to adapt and learn by watching her and listening to her and just repeating everything she said with small conversations or little games.

[zrosix]

It’s where the myth of “kids are the fastest language learners” comes from. Children learn languages naturally while schools try to jumpstart you into the semantics of the language. If you learn a language as if you were a baby, you don’t start with the alphabet, you start with speaking and listening. Literacy should be the LAST thing you learn, not the first

[orangotango]

i feel like getting to the level of saying hi how are you im hungry its not that hard, but gettin actualy able to understand others when speaking is just hard asf

[yikebendan]

My epiphany was when I realized the key to master a new language is to remove my native language from the role of the middleman and be able to think in the target language.

[ReasontoLiveAdventures]

I am definitely going to try this approach. My Japanese used to be pretty decent, both verbal and written. But in 2010 I had a brain tumor removed from my parietal lobe. Two years later I was working in Wuxi, China. I began to have bad headaches. The school I teaching English at felt it was best I return to the US for treatment. When I got back home, an MRI revealed that the tumor a growing again and radiation was needed. Long story short, treatment has damaged long/short term memory. Now I am returning to university or an MA in international relations. So I am going to have a language requirement. Either Mandarin or Japanese are the two options for me. Sorry for being a chatty Kathy. I’ve enjoyed your channel since before the lockdowns. 🤙

[AndresGomez-ctqb]

I've had to learn a few languages for work (German, English & Japanese), and learning languages is ultimately about learning about yourself.
You know, how you retain information, what resonates with your interests and makes you look forward to it instead of it being a chore...
"The thing that anchors you discipline without it being a burdening thing you're forced to drag", is a phrase a friend told me and I thought it was fairly accurate.

[servantofaeie]

The alphabet/script is the funnest and easiest part for me. I wouldn't dare skip it. I'll gladly spend hours learning a new way to write.

[qchomes]

Your channel (you) today, compared to a few months ago and a few years ago is night and day in terms of confidence and personal growth.

[rovajaroo]

"HOW I LEARN TO SAY A FEW PHRASES OF EVERY LANGUAGE WITHIN 24 HOURS"

[PhilDancer]

This was actually very informative. I'm now using Anki which is perfect for my Mandarin practice. Turns out that I've been instinctually structuring my learning in the ways you're describing so I feel like what im doing is valid now.

[brothabarone]

So fluent and well learned in so many language as well as camera friendly you are a standout person indeed. Love your videos

[BertoPlease]

3:45 from finding your channel about a week ago, and seeing around a dozen or more videos of yours, I had a strong suspicion this was a big part of your learning experience when learning a language for a video. You usually have your default phrases you go to, especially when ordering food or buying things, and a cheat sheet is certainly a very handy way to get started, like following a script. But what always makes me respect your approach is that you don't just do the bare minimum, you do your research as well, trying to learn the unique cultural cuisine they have and such.

And yeah I fully agree that practical phrases and words are far more important to start out than all the nitty gritty details. I imagine the main thing that makes you far more proficient in learning faster is that not only do you probably pick up on patterns far more quickly, but you also just GO for it. You apply your knowledge immediately with little hesitation, and aren't afraid to make mistakes and learn on the spot. I imagine that'd be the part that scares a lot of people when intending to apply a new language, like studying for an exam for weeks/months.

Just for some context, I'm bilingual (native Spanish, English second as a pre-teen) and just started learning Japanese a few months ago, and I definitely found the process more enjoyable and easier to swallow if starting with basic, practical phrases and words. Hiragana and Katakana can be learned alongside it but there's no *need* to learn it all upfront. I took French class for 4 years; barely retained any of it. But I also partly feel like learning a language AND attending school can be a lot to handle. I'm just learning Japanese in my free time and it's stress free and I don't need to follow any curriculum and learn at my own pace

[Jeelmin]

That's a very useful and interesting video! Thank you for all these tips! 😁

[apaul]

The approach of being spoken language first makes sense for someone like Xiaoma who has great auditory memory but it is much less good for someone who is more visual and needs the written language as a support. There is also a personality component - he is obviously quite extravert and feels very comfortable speaking to strangers even when not fully understanding what they are saying. This is admirable, but not everyone is like this.

[Tech_Publica]

Dude, you are a brilliant language practicioner and learner, you don 't need to go saying such BS to get views.
You don't learn to speak a language in 24 hours. You learn how to communicate a few fundamental simple ideas in 24 hours.
Sorry but that is not "speaking the language", far from it.

[KizumaTrading]

I am from italy, I've always been interested about learning english and I felt that my level post high school was very poor. I started watching movies in English language and subs in italian. At the same time I moved to the UK, which helped to push myself speaking and interacting with people in English. Then with time, when I felt comfortable, I started to remove subs from movies and I've started to be way more fluent since then. Btw welcome to Jersey, I probably live in a building next to yours lol. See you on the waterfront.

[jasonarnold]

Well said Ari, great info and great way to learn!! 🙂

[eye]

Thank you for existing b, this is amazing to know, thank you. Eye have this on my list of things to get done.