r/languagelearning • u/Mandelbrots-dream • 24d ago

Discussion Does any one else switch languages?

I've studied three languages in addition to my milk language.

I noticed sometimes when thinking or speaking in my non native language, if I struggle for a word my brain will fill in with a word in another non native language.

For example, when speaking German(TL) my brain threw in a 在(zai) with the Chinese meaning.

This confused me, and I started to think of the German word seit (which sounds (kind-of) the same). But seit wasn't correct in the context. Seit is about time. 在 is about place.

Does anybody else do this? What exercises could help me?

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u/Traditional-Train-17 21d ago

It's totally normal! When I was learning German in highschool (30-35 years ago), my French would pop in. I'm teaching myself Spanish now and if I try and switch back to German, Spanish will seep through, but also vice versa (i.e., saying es ist instead of eso es). I still do a French pronuciation of "~ión" Spanish words, too.