6 Easiest languages to learn for English speakers
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So, you’re thinking about learning a new language… we personally couldn’t think of a better way to spend your time!
There are so many reasons to learn a language. For example, you might want to relocate, to impress your partner’s parents, or have the superpower of being able to speak with a huge portion of the world (especially if you learn a common language like Spanish or Chinese).
However, if you’re not sure what language to pick, why not take on one of the easiest language to learn? Regardless of whether they’re “easier” or not, mastering a foreign language takes effort, dedication, and hours of practice. But some languages are simpler to learn than others if you’re an English speaker.
To help you narrow down your options and start practicing right away, we’ve created a list of the easiest languages to learn. But first…
What makes a language easy to learn?
Let’s cover some criteria that determine the level of difficulty in learning a foreign language for English speakers:
- Lexical similarity: The degree to which languages have an overlap with English, including vocabulary, can have a direct impact on how easy it is to learn. This language comparison tool is a great way to see which languages carry the most similar vocabularies.
- Alphabet: Languages that have a similar alphabet system are naturally considered the easiest languages for English speakers. Mastering a new alphabet that looks nothing like the one you’re familiar with can turn into a real challenge.
- Grammar: Less complex grammar rules mean less hard work and second-guessing yourself when speaking! However, although the languages in our list are considered some of the easiest to learn, there are still some general grammatical differences to look out for while you’re learning them.
- Ability to practice: Once you learn the basics, it’s time to put your knowledge into practice. But without speaking with another person, it’s much harder to thrive in language learning. If you live in a small town in Texas, it’s very unlikely that you’ll be able to speak with French speakers. Even so, the chance of practicing Spanish might be quite high.
- Available resources: When considering which language to learn, it’s best to pay attention to how many resources and tools are available for you to use. The more widely available the resources are, the easier it will be for you to master a language.
Now that you know what to look for when choosing an easier language to learn, let’s see the list of the best options.
Top 6 easiest languages to learn (for English speakers)
Spanish
The easiest language to learn for English speakers? There’s perhaps no surprise that Spanish is leading our list. In the US, around 30% of the population speaks Spanish fluently, which makes it easier to master the language through cultural immersion. Outside of the US, it’s widely spoken in Europe, South America, and Africa. Spanish is the second most widely spoken language in the world, so you’ll surely find so many opportunities to test your skills with native speakers.
Spanish is one of the Romance languages derived from Latin. This means that a lot of Spanish words have similar English language equivalents. Plus, so many words with the suffix -tion in English are the same in Spanish, but you exchange it with the suffix –ción or –sión. Plus, what’s simple about Spanish is that it’s a phonetic language — most of its words are pronounced the way they are spelled. Nothing too tricky, right?
The problems seem to arise when it comes to grammar. Although you might find it challenging to memorize Spanish conjugations and some exceptions to grammatical rules, the verb tenses mostly align with the ones you use in English. Because of this, getting used to Spanish grammar isn’t as hard as you may think.
French
One more language from the Romance family on our list is French. Despite differences in pronunciation, the French alphabet is similar to the English one. But the most significant benefit is a vast amount of shared vocabulary. In fact, English has more words in common with French than all the other Romance languages! (including Portuguese, Italian, and Spanish).
Like Spanish in America, French is widely used (and taught) in the UK and Canada. So if you live in one of these countries, you’ll always find someone to speak with and practice your skills.
Norwegian
You may be surprised, but the Norwegian language is even less complicated to learn for English speakers than French and Spanish. This is because it’s one of the Germanic languages. Just like English! Due to this, Norwegian shares a lot of common words with English. Besides, the sentence structure is almost the same.
Concerning grammar, there is nothing tricky about it. For example, Norwegian has only one form of each verb per tense. Its Scandinavian brother Swedish is also up there as one of the easier languages to learn for English speakers. The main thing that can make you feel confused is the tricky pronunciation. Still, only a few sounds are unfamiliar for English speakers.
Dutch
The next easiest foreign language to learn is Dutch. After English and German, it’s one of the most widely spoken Germanic languages in the world.
Although English developed from the Germanic languages, we didn’t include German on our list because of its complicated grammar and pronunciation. Dutch is much more straightforward. It uses many words that are spelled the same as in English. But pay attention to pronunciation since many words sound different even though they look the same.
Afrikaans
Although not the most common language to learn, Afrikaans is widely spoken in South Africa and very closely related to Dutch, but it’s a touch easier to learn for English speakers. Let’s take a look at why.
Firstly, there’s no grammatical gender. For example, in Afrikaans, you use “die” to mean “the”. In German, in comparison, you will find three versions: “der,” “die,” and “das”. In Afrikaans, verb conjugation is almost non-existent, and there are only 3 tenses to learn!
Not only that but there are some memorable and descriptive (almost hilariously so) words when you translate them into English. Kameelperd means Giraffe but directly translates to “Camel horse”. Verkykers means binoculars, but translates to “far lookers”!
For these reasons, plus the similarities with English spelling, Afrikaans can be a fun and easy language to learn!
Portuguese
Portuguese is the last easiest language to learn on our list. Just like Spanish, it’s part of the Romance family of languages and shares a lot of similar words with English due to its Latin roots. But watch out for false cognates! For instance, “pasta” in European Portuguese means “folder” in English.
Portuguese pronunciation, especially because of the nasal sounds, can be unfamiliar to English speakers at first, but the rhythm of the language makes the learning process much more straightforward. Besides, Portuguese and Brazilian music, films, and cuisine have become an important part of global culture, giving learners tons of opportunities to practice and master their skills.
Why should English speakers learn a foreign language?
Globally, English is spoken by millions of people, making it the world’s lingua franca. It’s the language of business, science, and technology worldwide. If you speak English, you can easily communicate with one-fifth of the world’s population today. So why should English speakers even bother learning a foreign language?
One of the main reasons is the transformation of the world’s job market. Being even a bit fluent in another language is a competitive advantage among other candidates. Even if it’s not directly relevant to your potential career, a second language will surely make your CV or university applications stand out.
Along with new job opportunities, bilingualism has cognitive benefits — learning a new language can significantly boost your skills, especially concentration. It can also improve your travel experience as speaking with the locals allows you to see a place that you explore from a new perspective.
Still, the number of Americans who are learning a second language leaves a lot to be desired. Only 20% of US students are learning another language. If you’re a monolingual English speaker who wants to learn a second language, you’re at the right place to start your journey. Here at Preply, we not just offer helpful tips and tricks on language learning but also provide 1-on-1 lessons with tutors from all around the world. Decide what language to learn, find a preferred tutor, and study online at any time convenient for you.
One more thing…
In the end, a language is only as easy or difficult as we make it. A large part is how motivated we are to hit our goals, and how good our methods are to reach them.
If you want a smart method to get real practice, try 1-on-1 conversations with a tutor on Preply. On Preply, you’ll find hundreds of tutors who can guide you through the learning process and make sure you enjoy your experience.
Studying online via the video chat will allow you to speak with native speakers from all over the world. Whether you want to learn French or Norwegian, you’ll find an expert tutor who’ll help you get the results you want – whether you just want basic vocabulary or you’re looking to emigrate. Good luck taking on this new challenge!
Related questions
What is the most similar language to English?
Which language has the easiest grammar?
What are the top 5 hardest languages to learn?
- Mandarin Chinese: Even though we just pored over the fact that Mandarin has simple grammar, it is still a truly complicated language for English speakers to learn. Because it's a tonal language, even the slightest change in tone can mean something different entirely. Of course, it has its own complex alphabet too.
- Arabic: Arabic is also a real challenge for native English speakers. The writing is tricky because most letters are written in 4 different forms depending on their placement in the sentence. Pronunciation is notoriously tricky, plus many written words exclude vowels outright. There are so many different dialects of Arabic, that even learning one form will only scratch the surface.
- Hungarian: Hungarian grammar is a killer for English speakers. It has 35 distinct cases (like accusative). Word order changes all the time depending on a variety of factors. And although the grammar is complex, there is a sense that you have to have a complete understanding of the grammar to speak with subtlety and precision to convey meaning, making it super tricky to learn by yourself!
- Russian: Although a very commonly spoken language, Russian can be difficult to learn simply because of its lack of proximity to other European languages and English. You will have to contend with an entirely new alphabet and tricky pronunciation (even "hello" - здороваться - is a pain to pronounce!).
- Japanese: Although you won't be short on learning material when you learn Japanese - with the thousands of famous and manga and anime to read and watch - you might struggle with how different it is. Japanese has 3 unique writing systems: hiragana, katakana, and kanji. Each has thousands of characters and its own alphabet you need to know before writing Japanese. Like all languages though, Japanese is beautiful, and will certainly be worth learning if you stick to the task.
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