There is no doubt that German is a difficult language to learn. Those who have studied it for years–and there are thousands of such people in the U.S.–will tell you that it takes many years and much perseverance to even approach fluency (ein gutes Deutsch sprechen).
One factor that contributes to this difficulty is the fact that German contains words with more than one possible meaning, depending on context. Consider the sentence Der Hund kommt herein (“The dog enters”). Clearly a different word must be used when specifying what kind of “dog” in involved: ein Pudel oder ein Dackel or some other breed.
Another factor contributing to the difficulty in learning German is that it has a complex grammar with many exceptions to what most learners expect from English, such as kein (no), das ist nicht die… (that is not the …), es gibt nichts mehr (there is nothing left) and so on. While this grammar does have its logic, it doesn’t always fall within one’s expectations for correct usage.
And even if you memorize all of the exceptions, you will rarely be able to use them correctly without understanding their meaning first, which takes time and practice. Again, German is no different than French or any other foreign language in this regard.
For these reasons, a learner of German will be well advised not to expect quick results in the early stages. But with a bit of practice, one soon learns how useful it is to know at least some basic German words and phrases.
Paradoxically, despite its difficulty for beginners, German is actually one of the easiest languages in the world for adult learners. If you have learned English as an adult (or are learning now), then you already have a head start on most other learners: namely, that your grammar is basically correct. In fact, the German grammar is very similar to that of English. So if you can speak English at all, then learning German will be much easier than for most people-especially when it comes to words.
Tip #1: Before starting to learn German, first learn correct English grammar so that you will be able to construct sentences your brain can understand. Then mentally translate these sentences into their equivalent in German; this is an excellent way for beginners to start learning how to speak German without feeling overwhelmed by all the exceptions.
There are a number of books on basic (elementary) English grammar available in stores as well as online (just do a search); I recommend Strunk & White’s book The Elements of Style for adults. After studying these rules until you know them by heart, then turn to any good beginning German book or resource such as Talk Now! Deutsche Geb�rde-Sprachf�hrer and learn all the correct German grammar and vocabulary that goes with it.
Tip #2: Likewise, if you are an adult and learning German for the first time, disregard all of your English grammar rules whenever they conflict with those of German. You will just have to accept that sometimes these two languages do things differently. On the other hand, always learn the German way when there is a choice between different versions and options–such as whether to use “der” or “das”, or “ein” versus “kein”.
The reasoning behind this is simple: As an adult learner it is much easier for you to learn new grammatical rules than it is to unlearn old habits! Once you are more advanced, then you can follow each language’s rules according to their logic; but until then simply learn the rules that govern German (and not English).
Tip #3: Also, don’t spend time learning and memorizing verb conjugations or other grammar rules at the very beginning. In fact, you should completely ignore verb charts and any type of grammar analysis for now; instead focus all your attention on getting a good “feel” for how each word sounds and feels when speaking/reading it aloud, as well as its spelling rules. There is no substitute for this process of immersion in the native language.
Because these days there are so many German resources available online (including audio), it’s now easier than ever to immerse yourself in an authentic German-speaking environment whenever you want. The beauty is that you can do this at home on your schedule, and in the comfort of your own bedroom. Highly recommended!
Tip #5: Although I don’t recommend that beginners start out using online translators, there are several reasons you may need to do so later on. For one thing, some things can’t be translated directly such as slang terms or idiomatic expressions; secondly, it’s much cheaper to use an online dictionary rather than constantly trying to buy new (and more expensive) German dictionaries.
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