The Power of Making Combinations (TAORLL 06)
The Best Method for Rapid Language Learning
In our last blogpost, I talked about the importance of learning the most often used words first.
Since locals use only about 2.5% of the total vocabulary of their language in their everyday life, it’s best to focus on that “Magical 2.5%” rather than use up the time and energy on difficult words.
Unfortunately, simply learning important vocabulary won’t help you to become fluent. There is something else you need to become very good at, in order to become fluent.
Can you guess what?
Learning grammar maybe?
Mm, not necessarily.
Let me give you an example…
It doesn’t matter so much how much you know…
Most of us learned a foreign language at school for many years, yet we didn’t become fluent. We had learned lots of words and grammar so why did we fail?
– Did we do something wrong at school?
– Are we just not talented enough?
Here’s the thing; at school, we learned a lot about the language. We learned lots of words, we learned the grammar and we had to read a lot of texts. Now, there’s nothing wrong with that approach, but what actually matters most is the ability to use the things you know.
Let me repeat that:
The ability to use the words and grammar that you know in real, natural, flowing conversations is a bigger factor that determines your level of fluency, rather than the number of words and grammar rules you know.
Many people have been learning a language, like Spanish for example, for years. They’ve studied the grammar and know many words, but yet they aren’t fluent.
How can we solve this problem?
The answer is by practicing and making combinations with the words you know. Only once you start generating your own sentences all the words get activated in your brain.
Another benefit is that by making combinations, you’re less likely to forget new words. These facts are supported by scientific research.
If you focus on the “Magical 2.5%’’ and on making combinations, you will be surprised by how quickly you can reach a conversational level.
Let’s take a look at how this works by comparing this method to how traditional learning methods work.
The power of making combinations vs the traditional method
Here’s an example of how some traditional courses work:
Lesson 1: You learn the basic greetings.
– Number of words you know: 20
– Number of combinations you can make: 0
Lesson 2: Names of clothing items.
– Number of words you know: 40
– Number of combinations you can make: 0
Lesson 3: Names of colors.
– Number of words you know: 60
– Number of combinations you can make: 0
Do you get what we’re trying to say here?
Some more popular courses come with dialogues. We find learning with dialogues more useful than the kind of courses that we described above, but learning to make combinations is the real deal if you want to learn effectively.
This is how it works
We’ve taken Spanish as an example here as it’s a popular language to learn.
- The word ‘’I’’ in Spanish is ‘’Yo’’.
Now you know: 1 word
and you can make 0 combinations.
- The word for ‘’To want’’ is ‘’Querer’’.
I want.
Yo quiero.
Now you know: 2 words
and you can make 1 combination.
- And – Y
- You – Tú
Now try to translate the English sentences below into Spanish:
I want.
Yo quiero.
You want.
Tú quieres.
I want and you want.
Yo quiero y tú quieres.
You want and I want.
Tú quieres y yo quiero.
Now you know: 4 words
and you can make 4 combinations.
Let’s add a few more words:
- Not – No
There are now 4 more combinations that you can make.
Try to translate the sentences into Spanish by yourself…
I don’t want.
Yo no quiero.
You don’t want.
Tú no quieres.
I don’t want and you don’t want.
Yo no quiero y tú no quieres.
You don’t want and I don’t want.
Tú no quieres y yo no quiero.
Now you know: 5 words
and you can make 8 combinations.
- To work – Trabajar
New combinations that you can now make:
I want to work.
Yo quiero trabajar.
I don’t want to work.
Yo no quiero trabajar.
You want to work.
Tú quieres trabajar.
You don’t want to work.
Tú no quieres trabajar.
I want to work and you don’t want to work.
Yo quiero trabajar y tú no quieres trabajar.
Etc., etc…
Now you know: 6 words
and you can make 20 combinations.
After adding more useful words like ‘aprender’ (to learn), ‘dónde’ (where), aquí (here), allí (there) you will be able to make over 100 sentences…
Do you see how the number of combinations that you can make is increasing quickly?
Becoming conversational quickly is not about the number of words or grammar rules you know, it’s about learning to make combinations with the words you know.
‘’When we actually start using the language, we see the rewards, gain motivation and momentum’’
Do you remember the “Magical 2.5%”? Can you imagine how many combinations you would be able to make if you’d know a few hundred words?
How many things would you be able to say? Would you be able to travel to the country where your target language is spoken and get by speaking your new language? Definitely!
This is the method that our students have used to quickly reach a conversational level in a new language.
When we actually start using the language, we see the rewards, gain motivation and momentum. Now it’s a matter of getting more practice, keep adding new words to your vocabulary, spending more time with native speakers and fluency will eventually come.
Do you remember the ‘’Associative Stage’’ [insert link] when learning new skills? That’s exactly what we do when we start making combinations. Instead of studying, we now start using the language and we learn from the feedback we receive from others.
This is why it is so important to not skip this stage of learning. As I have said before, both input and output are important if you want to reach a desired level in the language you are learning.
So, the winning recipe for learning a language fast is this:
- learn the most important vocabulary first (the “Magical 2.5%),
- make combinations and use what you have learned as soon as you can,
- find native speakers to practice with and implement their feedback into your language learning.
You will be surprised how quickly you will become conversational in your target language!
Check out our next blog in which I will talk about the best ways and methods of learning vocabulary.
If you want to find out more fast, you can learn more in our e-book The Art of Rapid Language Learning.
About the writer of this article:
Jan van der Aa traveled to 100 countries and learned 10 languages before he turned 30. On his website he shares his language learning experience and helps people from all over the world to learn languages faster.
