[RajT88]

> Consider this: it adds unnecessary cognitive load. When trying to think of a word, it comes to you in four different languages, which isn't helpful!

This has been my experience as well. My native language is English, and I do just fine in it. But I've also studied a couple other languages, and when I try to put together sentences, whatever word is closest sometimes pops out.

I almost never find myself accidentally sticking English words into sentences, but I will frequently mix words from my second and third languages. It's brutal.

A friend of mine whose languages are Japanese, English, Spanish and Korean (in that order) told me that learning the third language is the hardest. Once you figure out how to stick to just one language at a time, learning more languages is a lot easier.

[polishdude20]

I wonder if it's different if you've studied the language vs if you grew up with it.

I learned polish from my parents when growing up and English from living in Canada and cartoons. My native tongue is English but I can speak polish fairly well and read and write it. I don't ever feel like I accidentally reach for polish or English words when I need the other.

[mejutoco]

If I understood correctly, the parent poster is saying that he mixes words between their second and third languages, not the native one.

I agree with your interpretation though. My anecdotal experience tells me this happens with studied languages.

[RajT88]

Correct - I have trouble staying 100% in non-native languages.

[zdragnar]

I had the same experience. German was my second, Chinese Mandarin my third. The first two years I was learning Mandarin, I found reading, writing and listening were fine. However, when it came to actually speaking, I was constantly stuttering because my brain wanted to substitute in German words instead of Mandarin words.

My girlfriend at the time natively spoke two languages (English and Hokkien) but was less proficient in both than many people who were only native speakers of one of them. She did, however, manage to pick up Mandarin a whole lot easier than I did.

[Cerium]

My experience is similar, the third language is indeed a problem. When learning the first foreign language in my mind it was "native vs other". Then when adding the third any gaps in my vocabulary would be filled by the previous language in a sort of layered cache approach. Unfortunately it is hardly ever useful to find the right Spanish word when you want a Japanese one.

[RajT88]

"Pan" is about it.

[Kamq]

> I almost never find myself accidentally sticking English words into sentences, but I will frequently mix words from my second and third languages.

Which is perfectly valid english.

[mejutoco]

I sympathize with your point, but it depends.

Entschuldigung, what time is it? Is that valid English?

Auteur, oeuvre, etc. are now English terms, but Remmidemmi?

My take is it is a gradient, and at some point you would be speaking broken English. Far from, mix words and it will be _perfectly_ valid English.

I believe your assertion is more of a rhetorical tool to make a point, and I agree with that point, though.

[Kamq]

> Entschuldigung, what time is it? Is that valid English?

It will be if you use it enough.

Sort of like how schadenfreude got added to english.

[nunuvit]

I don't understand this comment.

[jcranmer]

English has a reputation of excessively borrowing words from foreign languages. I don't think English is actually any more prone to doing this any other languages, but English does have a stronger habit of insisting on using foreign spellings and pronunciations for words.

[nunuvit]

Ah gotcha. I read it completely differently and didn't even think of that. Thanks