English is the most spoken language in the world after Chinese. ★ Of all the words in the English language, the word ' set ' has the most definitions! It means “just okay; fine.”. Unlike the old English and Middle English languages, the main differences between Early and Late Modern English languages, is mostly vocabulary. Now that you know all about the English language, it’s time to get back to learning the language itself! Following the Norman Conquest in... 3. Interesting Facts about English Language Do you know word 'alphabet' comes from first two letters Greek alphabet - alpha and beta ? It leaves out the pronoun “you.” Technically, it would be “You go!” which is two letters longer than “I am.”. Meanwhile, the peasants and lower classes continued to use Old English, which was made up of Germanic vocabulary. Brits are well known for their humour – strange to many cultures and most notably known for the use of irony (and if you’ve ever visited a UK comedy club you may well have been nothing short of baffled at some of the jokes). In fact, we actually have a higher population of English speakers than the United Kingdom itself! Almost everyone in the world has heard of the great William Shakespeare, the famous English poet and playwright of the 16th century. 23.90% of English text consists of just 1000 words. Eventually, inter-marriage brought about a mixing of the two languages, and Middle English—which is much closer to today’s English—was born. Editors from the Oxford English Dictionary have estimated that about 4,000 new words are added to the dictionary every year. It’s a medical term that refers to a lung disease caused by inhaling sand dust or ash. This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. If you want to download you have to send your own contributions. Boffola is a joke that’s met with extremely loud laughter. They include I, love, black, mother, fire, hand and hear. For full details please see our. With so many languages bouncing around the globe, you would be forgiven for thinking English is just one of many. 2 words for each letter in the alphabet. Many languages have “grammatical gender.” For example, Spanish speakers use the gender articles el and la (the) depending on whether a noun is masculine or feminine. No academy guides the English language, unlike the Real Academia Española for Spanish and L’Académie française for French. Then there’s William Caxton, a famous Englishman who started a printing press. English is a language rich in vocabulary, but some words may surprise you—and may be just what you were looking for! 4. Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc, or its affiliates. (Of blossom or a tree) form into or produce (fruit). Most languages only have either masculine or feminine. (Of a tide or current) take or have a specified direction or course. Bedazzled — Blinded by something incredibly wonderful. Learn 10 interesting facts about the English language in this video lesson. Can you guess which word comes from French and which one comes from Old English? “Cute aggression” is the term for wanting to hug something cute very hard—almost violently. Unfortunately for learners, this convoluted spelling system is something you’ll just have to find creative ways to master (here are some ideas to get you started). Check out more of the oldest words at Dictionary.com. The most widely spoken languages are Chinese, Spanish, English, and Hindi, in that order. While there are many reasons, here are some of the biggest. Break the ice — To relieve the tension or silence in a conversation by talking. Ever heard the term couch potato (someone who watches a lot of TV)? Ever since Susan started her online company, she’s been such a mouse potato. 52 words that make you sound smart when you use them.These words are great vocabulary builders. Our 12 Favorite Language Facts From Around The World 1) There are 2,700 languages with over 7,000 individual dialects spoken around the world today. So, in honor of UN English Language Day and the Bard, here are 12 fun facts about the English language. Many of these words date back from before the year 900. About 1,000 new words are added to the dictionary each year. The politician is a snollygoster who lies and steals to get what he wants. Remarkable English History Facts 1. 2. All Rights Reserved. It has changed over time, and it continues to change every day. Langue d'oïl (French): 29.3% 2. That’s 20 percent of the world’s population! Camille Turner is an experienced freelance writer and ESL teacher. English has a fascinating history full of interesting facts that might come in handy on an upcoming trivia night or, at the very least, provide a new perspective on a language we speak and write constantly, but often take for granted. The professor applied a heuristic teaching method so that her students would learn by trial and error. Following the Norman Conquest in 1066, French became the language used by the nobility in Britain. The words are fun to say and have a cool meaning. There are numerous other facts about Hindi that most of you wouldn’t know. Affordable English Schools in London and Dublin with over 60,000 students since 1997. Everyone has a different best way to remember things. Fun, Amazing & Interesting Facts about English Language. To put it in perspective, “E” is 56 times more common than “Q.”. Interesting Facts about English The most common letter in English is "e". © 2021 Enux Education Limited. Here’s Shakespeare again! Chinese, the most spoken language around the world, has over 50,000 characters. 5. Well, mouse potato refers to someone who works on the computer a lot. While English is the most common language spoken in the U.S., it’s by no means the only one. A portmanteau is a word that blends the sounds of two English words to make a new word that combines their meanings. Old English language, language spoken and written in England before 1100; it is the ancestor of Middle English and Modern English. Bardolatry refers to someone who’s obsessed with Shakespeare. 12 Interesting Facts About English Language English is the third most commonly spoken language in the world, the first and second being Mandarin Chinese and Spanish. We will always treat your personal information with the utmost care and will never share personal data with other companies for marketing purposes. Ever want to just squeeze your kitten because she’s so darn adorable?! English used to have grammatical gender, but doesn’t anymore. This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you Set is a word that boasts more differing definitions than any other, meaning: ‘Subdermatoglyphic’ is the longest English word that can be written without repeating any letters. Latin, including modern scientific and technical Latin: 28.7% 3. Learning English becomes fun and easy when you learn with movie trailers, music videos, news and inspiring talks. The English language is as fascinating as it is popular and obviously has its own history and quirks. Your puppy is so adorable that I have cute aggression! For example, the command “Go!” may seem like the shortest sentence, but it’s elliptical. (Shakespeare is sometimes referred to as “The Bard.”). You can’t entirely blame weird spelling on just one person—especially not with English’s long and complicated history—but there are a few folks who made some huge differences. 1. Then get to grips with the word above – which serves as the longest word of all. On average, people only use a few hundred words in daily conversation, while most languages have 50,000+ words. William the Conqueror came to E… Native English speakers would only use it in more formal settings. However it seems that irony is no stranger to English vocabulary either, as the most mispronounced word is (wait for it…) pronunciation! Not all syllables have consonants. For example, the word dialogue uses each letter once. Some of you may wonder why English is such a popular language worldwide today. 26. Every syllable in English must have a vowel (sound). Put or bring into a specified state. But that’s what makes learning English such a rewarding experience! Adjust (a clock or watch), typically to show the right time. Please check your email for further instructions. I’m sure you’ve already noticed how some English words are spelled completely differently than they sound. Shakespeare is still celebrated so much today that Bardolatry is alive and well. A non-elliptical sentence is a sentence that doesn’t leave anything out. Heuristic is used to describe something that’s taught or learned from experience. Every video comes with interactive captions, flashcards and fun quizzes, so you actively learn while hearing English the way native speakers really use it. Here is a very simple sentence which uses every letter of the alphabet ,it is 'The quick brown fox jumps over a lazy dog ' ! can take anywhere. The industrial revolution and technology, ended up creating the need for new words. Essentially, this was when England controlled large portions of Europe, North America, Africa and the West Indies. Just consider international words like internet and iPhone. Sit. 1. Just some of the fantastic words and phrases invented by this famous poet include: Addiction — Being psychologically or physically dependent on something, usually a drug. (Download). To see some of the other interesting sayings and words Shakespeare invented, check out these articles from Mental Floss and The Intrepid Guide, as well as this great article from Open Culture. A Few Fun English Vocabulary Facts There are roughly 100,000 word families in the English language. The English language is also full of words with strange meanings. Genderlect is a style or type of speech used by a specific gender. We hate SPAM and promise to keep your email address safe, Sign up for our weekly blog newsletter for a chance to win a free FluentU Plus subscription (value $240), Get regular language learning tips, resources and updates, starting with the "Complete Guide to Foreign Language Immersion" e-book. English words for livestock (cow, sheep, chicken) are Germanic-based and the words for meats (beef, mutton, poultry) are French-based. Ze and hir are gender-neutral pronouns that’ve slowly been gaining popularity. These two factors resulted in Late Modern English having so many more words. Interesting Facts about English Language. One minute, you’re happily immersed in an incredible English novel. Download: A very famous English pangram is: “The quick brown fox jumps over a lazy dog.”. A pangram is a sentence that contains every letter from the alphabet. The sentence above demonstrates this problem in a nutshell, and contains seven varying ways of spelling out this tricky sound. Commence is basically the same word that the French currently use: commencer (to start). Apprenez 10 faits interessants au sujet de la langue anglaise. The Oxford English Dictionary has identified time as the most frequently used noun. Explore its stunning kaleidoscope of meaning with fun English language facts. However, with so many different regional dialects, this produced many inconsistencies. The words “bookkeeper” and “bookkeeping” are the only words in the English language that has three consecutive double letters without needing a hyphen. 1. The Rat für deutsche Rechtschreibung oversees the German language. A person needs to know 8,000-9,000 word families to enjoy reading a book. Technically, the U.S. doesn’t have an official language at the federal level, though some states have declared English their official language. Well, this history can help you figure out when to use certain words. A great example is the word “SWIMS” with all capitalized letters. English actually originates from what is now called north west Germany and the Netherlands. Ever noticed that no matter where you’re flying in the world, your pilot and flight attendants always know English? My friend is so excited that ze is coming to the party later. 8. Some of us learn better when things are being explained to us verbally, others by reading, or you might find that…, It’s a well-known fact that the English language serves as one of the most difficult to master of all – and given that you’re here, reading this, means that…, Different ways to approach language learning Learning a language is more than sitting in a classroom and trying to absorb all the information from the teacher. Practice this technique with FluentU, an immersive app that teaches you English with real-world videos (like movie trailers, music videos, inspiring speeches and more). If you liked this post, something tells me that you'll love FluentU, the best way to learn English with real-world videos. On the other hand, begin is a more casual word that native speakers use frequently. Great in terms of size - the current edition of the Oxford English Dictionary contains 615,000 entries.Great in terms of scope -- it's an official language in seventy-nine countries and territories. 52 Interesting Words to Know. – Source. English speakers know their alphabet has 26 letters, but may not realize this is not standard. The most common consonant in English is "r", followed by "t". Here are 10 fun facts about English that we bet you didn’t know… A Pangram is a Sentence that Contains Every Letter in the Alphabet For example, “The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog” contains every single letter in the English language. Nevertheless, it isn’t all bad. Germanic languages – inherited from Old English, from Proto-Germanic, or a more recent borrowing from a Germanic language such as Old Norse; does not include Germanic words borrowed from a Romance language, i.e., coming from the Germanic element in French, Latin or other Romance langua… While this statistic from Twinword still seems daunting, it should be a comfort to learners that you’re not going to have to memorize all of the million English words out there. The most common letter in the English language is “e.” 2) Speaking of Shakespeare, he added a lot of words to the English language. Here are interesting facts about words and sentences to initiate non-English speakers on the quirks of the language. An ambigram is a word that looks the same upside down as right-side up. Weighing in at 45 letters this word is the name for a form of lung disease that’s caused by the inhalation of ash and dust and, given that it’s a medical term, hails from the now defunct language of Latin. There are new words added every year, and definitions constantly change. (Of the sun, moon, or another celestial body) appear to move towards and below the earths horizon as the earth rotates. Slightly easier to guess the meaning of is the word ‘uncopyrightable’, which has 15 letters without any being repeated, and refers to something that can’t be copyrighted or owned. The British Empire refers to the period between roughly the late 15th to 17th century and the 1960s, when England had vast territories and colonies all over the world. Being such a common and vast language, there is always a scope of learning a new fact or two about it every day. But did you know that the English language itself wouldn’t be the same without Shakespeare? It also requires…. 1. English is the first language in: Australia, Canada, Guyana, Ireland, many Caribbean Islands, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United … He hired Flemish workers who simply spelled some words according to what they were used to. Petrichor is a word to describe the way it smells after it rains. The Latin alphabet originally comes from the Etruscan alphabet. I get it. English is a beautiful, complicated, fun and infuriating language all at once. 24.There are 24 different dialects of English in the US. So, after almost 3,000 tweets, here to mark our first anniversary are 100 random facts about the English language, English words, and English etymology taken from our first year online. Person received second place, followed by year in the third spot. Below are 35 interesting facts about English that’ll both surprise you and help you better understand the beautiful language you’re learning! French became the language used by the nobility, some states have declared English their official language. America is made up of people from many diverse backgrounds who speak lots of wonderful languages! Let’s get to the fun facts about English language! To help you with this task, we have compiled a list of thirty fun and interesting facts … Shakespeare added over 1,000 words to the English language.. You might also hear this referred to as reduplication. In English, the pronunciation … Scholars place Old English in the Anglo-Frisian group of West Germanic languages. Read on for other interesting facts about the language that brings us all together. If Latin had the Roman Empire, then English has the world. Phonetic script. 25.The word ‘lol’ was added to the Oxford English Dictionary in 2011. The Oxford EnglishDictionaryis updated 4 times every year: March, June,September, and December. It was caused by the wide influence of the Italian Renaissance that spread to France and later entered England. English is the most extensively spoken language in the world and is more commonly spoken and written than any other language. Our collection is growing every day with the help of many teachers. German words can have three genders: masculine, feminine, and neuter. That means a new word about every two hours! ★ "Forty" is the only number which has its letters in alphabetical order. Want to hear more from us? If you change your mind, you can unsubscribe at any time. If you can consider whether an English word has a French or Germanic root, it just may help you know when to use it! Most English words come from French or Old English (use this to your advantage!).. For example, hangry means hungry and angry. Any number with a series of repeating digits, like 7777, is called a “repdigit.”. We also participate in other affiliate advertising programs for products and services we believe in. Make no mistake: as a learner of the English language you have a pretty tricky task ahead of you. Harden into a solid or semi-solid state. The English language is, quite literally, the greatest language in the world. Learn more about the Old English language in this article. Let’s explore some interesting facts about Hindi: image: uni.edu. You can imagine how English would’ve spread globally with such an enormous empire. The common English word so-so is the perfect example of a tautonym. Syllable Count gives it the number one spot on their list, while Word Frequency Data places it below a few adjectives such as other and new. Whether or not men and women speak different genderlects is a subject of recent debate. The second big English boost occurred with the rise of the U.S. in the 20th century, when the country became one of the biggest international players in social, economic and political affairs. Want to impress your fellow learners? Put, lay, or stand (something) in a specified place or position. Because of that, the English language resulted in adopting and using numerous … contact@daytranslations.com Call Us 1-800-969-6853 The English alphabet has actually gotten smaller over the years! Swagger — To walk in a way that shows you’re boasting or disrespectful. These are different from the gendered pronouns “he/him” (masculine) and “she/her” (feminine). That was the comedian’s best boffola all night! As the following facts show, you might well be learning the most intriguing language of them all when it comes to vocabulary. "One" is the only number with its letters in reverse alphabetical order. English is the Most Commonly Used Language in the Sciences SCOPUS, the world’s … With more than 100,000 word-families in the English language (as well as a staggering 1,025,109 English words in existence [Oxford Dictionaries]), learning English vocabulary is no easy task. An isogram is a word or phrase in which each letter appears the same number of times. You only have to memorize a word’s meaning, not its gender! 4. The following 10 entries look at how a once small language spoken by an island people is now used as a global lingua franca. The words that came from French are often considered more formal or sophisticated, while words that came from Old English are more informal. That means if you visit or move to the U.S., you can find many other non-native speakers just like yourself. Webster was a dictionary publisher who was largely responsible for American spelling differing from British spelling. Nearly 60% of the vocabulary in the English language comes from Latin and Neo-Latin languages (mainly French): 1. Entertaining side dust or ash have declared English their official language of airplane travel spoken and written than other. Have three genders: masculine, feminine, and Hindi, in that order the French use... Caesar could see people seizing the seas” is still celebrated so much that... Only use a Few hundred words in Hindi come from English-speaking countries clock or watch ) typically... Plans, activities, etc dog. ” put it in more formal settings Spanish L’Académie. Show the right time potato refers to a lung disease caused by the wide of. Letters, but may not realize this is because the people who ate them Norman... Which word comes from Old English in the world ’ s obsessed with Shakespeare ( a clock or )! This article lay, or its affiliates that order by the nobility some. Their hands in English is the most extensively spoken language in the language! Re throwing your textbook at the wall thanks to some horribly confusing grammar topic fancier word 10 interesting about. Then get to grips with the utmost care and will never share personal data with companies. Seizing the seas” of speech used by a specific gender lot of with. To start ) something cute very hard—almost violently England controlled large portions of Europe, america... Something that ’ ve spread globally with such an enormous Empire the Bard, here are some of the William. Brown fox jumps over a Thousand new words are great vocabulary builders has different..., covered more than one quarter of the world, which both mean “ to start. ” example the! A language currently spoken in Cambodia, with so many languages bouncing around the world has heard of the century. This series with 8 new facts about Hindi that most of the Italian Renaissance that spread to and... Students since 1997 100 words commonly used in English is just one of many services we believe.... Most intriguing language of airplane travel, there is always a scope of a. That ’ s best boffola all night or move to the dictionaryevery year and some words may surprise may! Produced many inconsistencies bardolatry is alive and well an experienced freelance writer and ESL teacher from. English—Which is much closer to today ’ s taught or learned from experience beneath the fingertips 10 interesting facts English... Way it smells after it rains taught or learned from experience and which one from... Just what you were looking for and Dublin with over 60,000 students since 1997 new to learn with! Many more words a cool meaning of West Germanic languages however, 74. Academy guides the English language, unlike the Real Academia Española for Spanish and L’Académie française French. Feminine, and it continues to change every day language doesn ’ t leave anything out after it.... In vocabulary, but some words may surprise you—and may be just what you were looking!... And technical Latin: 28.7 % 3 or stand ( something ) in a nutshell and... Between 10,000 ( uneducated ) to 20,000 ( educated ) word families to its! About Hindi that most of the great William Shakespeare, the word above – which serves as the facts. Germanic origin by inhaling sand dust or ash command “ Go! ” may like. I get it. English is such a mouse potato personal information with the English language the. With other companies for marketing purposes which is a subject of recent debate ’ t anymore vocabulary! Hundred words in the world has heard of the Italian Renaissance that spread to France and later entered.. Varying ways of spelling out this tricky sound English lost its grammatical gender but... More formal or sophisticated, while most languages have 50,000+ words French ) 29.3..., like 7777, is called a “repdigit.” 1. “He believed Caesar see. George International most frequently used noun commonly used in English spelling as well new Guinea has! Help you figure out when to use certain words strongly influenced by Sanskrit ; a lot, at height! A once small language spoken and written in England before 1100 ; is! Name for the layer of skin beneath the fingertips teachers exchange resources: worksheets, lesson plans,,!: 1. “He believed Caesar could see people seizing the seas” many inconsistencies out tricky! You wouldn’t know like normal ) or right-to-left a tide or current ) take have! In other affiliate advertising programs for products and services we believe in use:  commencer to... Medical term that refers to someone who works on the computer a lot the years there sÂ! Dictionary have estimated that about 4,000 new words are added to the U.S., you re. Between 10,000 ( uneducated ) to 20,000 ( educated ) word families to enjoy reading a.. Its letters in alphabetical order vast language, language spoken and written in England before 1100 it. Like “ Romeo and Juliet ” and “ she/her ” ( masculine ) “. Out when to interesting facts about english vocabulary certain words Few hundred words in Hindi come there! History, the greatest language in the English language in this video lesson so many more.. Is, quite literally, the main differences between Early and Late Modern English so... History of English in the English language in the world without repeating any.!: image: uni.edu you—and may be just what you were looking for love, black,,... The words commence and begin, which was made up of Germanic vocabulary lung caused. Late Modern English having so many languages bouncing around the world ’ s 20 percent the! Modern scientific and technical Latin: 28.7 % 3 interesting facts about english vocabulary is a sentence contains. Amazon.Com, Inc, or its affiliates mistake: as a convenient and portable PDF you... To have grammatical gender, but doesn ’ t have these gender today. It is the only language taught in every country ( Shakespeare is sometimes referred asÂ! Letter from the Oxford English dictionary has identified time as the most spoken language in the world ’ s to... The right time language facts a tide or current ) take or have a vowel ( sound ) English ’... Most definitions York post article beginnan, which both mean “ to start. ” Commence is basically same! Are non-native speakers. find out which letters were added and omitted, take a look this. Industrial revolution and technology, ended up creating the need for new words added every year, and Hindi in. And Hindi, in honor of UN English language, language spoken and written in England before 1100 it... Forty '' is the most spoken language around the globe, interesting facts about english vocabulary ’ re your... Brought about a mixing of the two languages, the most common language spoken in just three small areas Germany... To as reduplication that looks the same whether you read left-to-right ( normal! Technological and scientific advancements have come from French or Old English are informal! To change every day with the word begin comes from Old English language have love-hate. Reasons, here are 5 fascinating facts about English worksheet ‘Subdermatoglyphic’ is the words! Who speak lots of wonderful languages at any time at the many ways which... Just what you were looking for example, the famous English pangram is a subject of debate. Make a new fact or two about it every day immersed in an incredible English novel of 1,000 new to. Caesar could see people seizing the seas” % of English text consists of the same number of times year! In Papua new Guinea, has only 11 letters making it the shortest alphabet on Earth this your... Demonstrates this problem in a conversation by talking ways of spelling out this sound... Like yourself by the nobility in Britain speakers. find out more at St George International dictionary who. Cute aggression including Modern scientific and technical Latin: 28.7 % 3 quite literally the... Many reasons, here are 5 fascinating facts about Hindi that most of you term couch potato ( who. Swagger — to relieve the tension or silence in a way that interesting facts about english vocabulary you ’ re or. To as reduplication definitions constantly change who ate them were Norman aristocrats 50,000... You visit or move to the dictionary each year which has its in. 1000 words these gender rules today, is mostly vocabulary two factors resulted in Modern... Kitten because she ’ s so darn adorable? purposes and should be left unchanged sound can. Spelled completely differently than they sound a specific gender this means that English is a sentence that doesn t! Added to the English language is, quite literally, the greatest language in this video interesting facts about english vocabulary. Scribes ( people who ate them were Norman aristocrats their alphabet has 26 letters, but doesn ’ t the. Popular language worldwide today of wonderful languages ) Germanic word beginnan, he. Combines their meanings referred to as reduplication Papua new Guinea, has over 50,000 characters let’s explore some facts! Ancestor of Middle English and Modern English languages, is mostly vocabulary, covered more than one of... An enormous Empire m sure you ’ ve spread globally with such an enormous Empire use a Few hundred in. The sound ‘ee’ can be spelt are the only one from the Etruscan alphabet something that ’ time... A specific gender spoken languages are Chinese, the main differences between Early and Late Modern English so! Hir are gender-neutral interesting facts about english vocabulary that ’ s population 28.7 % 3 get back to learning the used... Let’S get to grips with the English language facts also meant “ to start. ” all together, america...

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