Slide 21 of 24
Notes:
To speak another language, it is NOT just learning another dictionary: it’s more like writing a new novel!
A single example will illustrate the type of problems that arise as a result of how words change in combinations. In English, the phrase “I like” can be spoken by saying “I” followed by “like.” However, in French, the word for “I” is “Je,” which loses the “e” before words starting with a vowel or “h.” So, if you have the words “je” and “aime” on a device that speaks, pressing the two words and then speaking them would produce “je aime,” which is incorrect – it should be “j’aime. This feature of the way in which the language works necessitates having two forms of “je” on a board, if you are using the one word – one key approach.
Another example shows how simple word replacement doesn’t capture the reality of the language. The French equivalent of “I feel go” is “Je vais bien,” but the word “vais” is better translated as “going” and so “Je vais bien” is better converted to English as “I am going well.” However, you would not use this in English.
Finally, the word “in” in English is used for “in the box” and “in Wooster.” However, in French, you use “dans” for the first example of “in” but “en” for the second when talking about places where you live. Thus, the word “in” needs to have two French representations.
