500 Most Common German Words

die Leute - people 

der Mensch - human, person
der Mann - man; husband
die Frau - woman; wife
das Kind - child
der Junge - boy
das Mädchen - girl
der Freund - friend
der Gast - guest

die Familie - family 

die Eltern - parents
der Vater - father
die Mutter - mother
der Sohn - son
die Tochter - daughter
der Großvater - grandfather ...
der Schwiegervater - father-in-law ...
der Onkel - uncle
die Tante - aunt
der Bruder - brother
die Schwester - sister
der Cousin [koozen] - he-cousin
die Kusine - she-cousin

die Arbeit - work 

der Lehrer - teacher
der Fahrer - driver
der Arbeiter - worker
der Ingenieur - engineer
der Arzt - doctor
die Krankenschwester - nurse
der Verkäufer - seller
der Buchhalter - accountant
der Maler - artist
der Student - student

das Land - country; countryside

Deutschland - Germany
England - England
Großbritannien - Great Britain
Amerika - America

das Tier - animal 

die Katze - cat
der Hund - dog
der Vogel - bird

die Stadt - city 

die Schule - school
das Theater - theatre
die Straße - street
der Platz - square; place
das Haus - house
die Kirche - church
der Fluss - river
das Cafe - cafe
das Hotel - hotel
der Garten - garden
der Park - park
die Bank - bank
die Haltestelle - (bus) stop
das Kino - cinema
die Brücke - bridge
die Kreuzung - crossroads
der Wald - forest
das Кrankenhaus - hospital
der Markt - market
die Polizei - police
die Post - post office; mail
der Bahnhof - station
das Zentrum - center
das Geschäft - shop
der Berg - mountain

die Wohnung - apartment, flat 

die Küche - kitchen
der Balkon - balcony
das Badezimmer - bathroom
die Dusche - shower
die Toilette - toilet
der Fußboden - floor (not ceiling)
der Stock - floor, storey; stick
der Korridor - corridor
das Vorzimmer - hall
das Schlafzimmer - bedroom
das Wohnzimmer - living room
die Tür - door
das Fenster - window
der Schlüssel - key
das Bett - bed
die Decke - blanket; ceiling
das Kissen - pillow
der Tisch - table
der Stuhl - chair
der Sessel - armchair
der Kühlschrank - fridge
die Couch - sofa
der Spiegel - mirror

das Essen - food 

das Brot - bread
die Butter - butter
der Käse - cheese
die Wurst - sausage
das Öl - oil
der Pfeffer - pepper
das Salz - salt
die Beere - berry
der Honig - honey
die Marmelade - jam
der Pilz - mushroom
die Zwiebel - onion
die Banane - banana
die Mohrrübe - carrot
die Birne - pear
die Zuckerrübe - beet
das Obst - fruit
die Melone - melon
die Wassermelone - watermelon
der Kuchen - cake; pie
die Schokolade - chocolate
das Fleisch - meat
die Kartoffeln - potatoes
der Salat - salad
die Tomate - tomato
die Gurke - cucumber
der Kohl- cabbage
der Brei - porridge
die Suppe - soup
das belegte Brötchen - sandwich
das Sodawasser - soda
das Wasser - water
der Kaffee - coffee
der Tee - tea
die Milch - milk
der Saft- juice
der Apfel - apple
die Trauben - grapes
die Orange - orange
das Ananas - pineapple
die Aprikose - apricot
der Zucker - sugar
der Reis - rice
die Nudeln - noodles
das Rindfleisch - beef
das Schweinefleisch - pork
das Hähnchen - chicken
das Kotelett - cutlet
die Zitrone - lemon
die Erbsen - peas
die Bohnen - beans
das Brötchen - bun
der Fisch - fish die
das Konfekt - candy, sweet
das Eis - ice; ice cream
die Nuss - nut
das Ei - egg
der Pfirsich - peach

die Tasse - cup
das Glas - glass
der Teller - plate
der Löffel - spoon
die Gabel - fork
das Messer - knife
die Untertasse - saucer
die Flasche - bottle
die Serviette - napkin

das Frühstück - breakfast
das Mittagessen - dinner
das Abendessen - supper

das Flugzeug - plane
das Auto - car
die Straßenbahn - tram
der Bus - bus
der Zug - train
das Fahrrad - bicycle

die Zeit - time 

das Jahr - year
die Woche - week
die Stunde - hour
die Minute - minute
gestern - yesterday
heute - today
morgen - tomorrow
das Fest - holiday

einmal - once
zweimal - twice
dreimal - three times

der Tag - day
der Morgen - morning
der Tag - day
der Abend - evening
die Nacht - night

der Montag - Monday
der Dienstag - Tuesday
der Mittwoch - Wednesday
der Donnerstag - Thursday
der Freitag - Friday
der Samstag - Saturday
der Sonntag - Sunday

der Monat - month 

der Januar - January
der Februar - February
der März - March
der April - April
der Mai - May
der Juni - June
der Juli - July
der August - August
der September - September
der Oktober - October
der November - November
der Dezember - December

der Frühling - spring
der Sommer - summer
der Herbst - autumn
der Winter - winter

der Name - name, surname
die Adresse - address
die Nummer - number
der Geburtstag - birthday
verheiratet - married

die Sache - thing

der Kugelschreiber - pen
das Buch - book
das Schach - chess
das Telefon - phone
die Uhr - clock, watch
der Kamm - comb
der Fernseher - television set
das Bügeleisen - iron
die Seife - soap
das Radio - radio
die Tasche - bag; pocket
die Karte - map; card
der Koffer - suitcase
das Geschenk - gift, present
die Kamera - camera
der Computer - computer
der Film - film
die Blume - flower
die Vase - vase
das Bild - picture
das Handtuch - handkerchief
der Ball - ball
der Luftballon - balloon
das Spielzeug - toy
die Rechnung - bill
der Umschlag - envelope
das Papier - paper
die Zeitung - newspaper
der Brief - letter
die Fahrkarte - ticket

die Schuhe - shoes
der Mantel - coat
das Kleid - dress
das Hemd - shirt
der Rock - skirt
der Handschuh - glove
der Hut - hat
die Jacke - jacket
der Schal - scarf
die Socke - sock
der Pullover - sweater
das T-shirt - T-shirt
die Kravatte - tie
die Hose - trousers, pants

was - what
welcher - what kind of
wer - who
wo - where
wohin - where to
woher - where from
wie - how
warum - why
wann - when

ich - I
du - you (singular)
ihr - you (plural)
er - he
sie - she; they
es - it
wir - we
Sie - you (politely)

mein - my
dein - your (singular)
euer - your (plural)
sein - his
ihr - her; their
unser - our
Ihr - your (politely)

aus - from
von - of; from
zu - to
auf - on
unter - under; among
hinter - behind
mit - with
ohne - without
vor - before
zwischen - between
in - in
neben - near
nach - after; to (+ the name of a city or most of the countries)
für - for

eins - one
zwei - two
drei - three
vier - four
fünf - five
sechs - six
sieben - seven
acht - eight
neun - nine
zehn - ten
elf - eleven
zwölf - twelve
dreizehn - thirteen
vierzehn - fourteen
fünfzehn - fifteen
sechzehn - sixteen
siebzehn - seventeen
achtzehn - eighteen
neunzehn - nineteen
zwanzig - twenty
dreißig - thirty
vierzig - forty
fünfzig - fifty
sechzig- sixty
siebzig - seventy
achtzig - eighty
neunzig - ninety
hundert - hundred
tausend - thousand

alt - old
jung - young
neu - new
groß - big
klein - small
hungrig - hungry
satt - well-fed
gut - good
schlecht - bad
früh - early
spät - late
letzt - last
nächst - next
frei - free
heiß - hot
warm - warm
kalt - cold
hoch - high
niedrig - low
lang - long
lange - for a long time
leicht - light
schwer - heavy
dunkel - dark
teuer - expensive
billig - cheap
links - on the left
rechts - on the right
richtig - right, correct
schnell - quick
langsam - slow
weich - soft
hart - hard
schön - beautiful
aufmerksam - attentive
traurig - sad
froh - joyful
glücklich - happy
fertig - ready
böse - evil; angry
Haupt ... - main, chief

schwarz - black
blau - blue
braun - brown
grün - green
grau - grey
rot - red
weiß - white
gelb - yellow

ja - yes
nein - no
nicht - not
kein - not (before a noun)

dieser - this
jener - that
dass - that (conjunction)
hier - here (location)
dort - there (location)
dorthin - there (direction)
hierher - here (direction)
jetzt - now
schon - already
noch - still
viele - many
viel - much
wenige - few
wenig - little
sehr - very
jeder - each, every
alle - all, everybody
alles -all, everything
solcher - such

und - and
oder - or
denn - because, for
weil - because, as

sein - be
haben - have
können - can
dürfen - may
müssen - must (internal reason)
sollen - must (external reason)
werden - become; for building the future tense
leben - live
wohnen - live, reside
kommen - come
gehen - walk
fahren - go
sehen - see
sitzen - sit
sagen - say
sprechen - speak
stehen - stand
arbeiten - work
brechen - break
machen - make
tun - do
senden - send
kaufen - buy
schwimmen - swim
schlafen - sleep
wecken - wake
waschen - wash
versuchen - attempt, try
finden - find
bringen - bring
feiern - celebrate
lächeln - smile
weinen - cry
kosten - cost
lernen - learn
lehren - teach
schreiben - write
wechseln - change
fallen - fall
hören - hear
zeigen - show
siegen - win
denken - think
schließen - close
öffnen - open
wissen - know
kennen - know, be acquaintance
singen - sing
tanzen - dance
fragen - ask
sammeln - collect
lieben - love
malen - draw, paint
wählen - choose
wollen - want
essen - eat
trinken - drink
geben - give
backen - bake
kochen - cook
schneiden - cut
nehmen - take
warten - wait
danken - thank
lesen - read
spielen - play
antworten - answer

Entschuldigung - sorry, excuse me
bitte - please
keine Ursache - not at all
schade - it's a pity
auf Wiedersehen - goodbye

das Lied - song
die Musik - music
das Party - party
die Größe - size
das Geld - money
das Glück - happiness
der Scherz - joke
die Überraschung - surprise
das Problem - problem

das Wetter - weather

der Regen - rain
der Wind - wind
der Schnee - snow
der Himmel - sky

500 Most Common Spanish Words

 gente - people


persona - person
hombre - man
marido - husband
mujer - woman, wife
niño - child
muchacho/a - boy/girl
amigo - friend
invitado - guest

familia - family

padres - parents
padre - father
madre - father
hijo/a - son/daughter
abuelo/a - grandfather/grandmother
suegro/a - father-in-law/mother-in-law
tío/a - uncle/aunt
hermano/a - brother/sister
primo/a - cousin

trabajo - job, work

maestro - teacher
conductor - driver
obrero - worker
ingeniero - engineer
doctor - doctor
enfermera - nurse
vendedor - shop assistent
contador - accountant
pintor - artist
estudiante - student

país - country

América - America
Inglaterra - England
España - Spain

animal - animal

gato - cat
perro - dog
pájaro - bird

ciudad - city

escuela - school
teatro - theatre
calle - street
plaza - square
lugar - place
casa - house
iglesia - church
río - river
café - cafe
hotel - hotel
jardín - garden
parque - park
banco - bank
parada - (bus) stop
cine - cinema
puente - bridge
intersección - intersection, crossroads
bosque - forest
hospital - hospital
mercado - market
policía - police
oficina de correos - post office
estación - station
centro - centre
tienda - shop, store
montaña - mountain

apartamento - flat, apartment

cocina - kitchen
balcón - balcony
cuarto de baño - bathroom
ducha - shower
inodoro - toilet
suelo - floor
techo - ceiling
piso - floor, storey
pasillo - hall, corridor
dormitorio - bedroom
sala de estar - living room
puerta - door
ventana - window
llave - key
cama - bed
almohada - pillow
mesa - table
silla - chair
sillón - armchair
nevera - fridge
sofá - sofa
espejo - mirror

comida - food

pan - bread
mantequilla - butter
queso - cheese
salchichón - sausage
aceite - oil
pimienta - pepper
sal - salt
baya - berry
miel - honey
mermelada - jam
seta - mushroom
cebolla - onion
banana - banana
zanahoria - carrot
pera - pear
remolacha - beet
fruta - fruit
melón - melon
sandía - watermelon
pastel - (small) cake
tarta - cake
chocolate - chocolate
carne - meat
patatas - potatoes
ensalada - salad
tomate - tomato
pepino - cucumber
col - cabbage
papilla - porridge
sopa - soup
bocadillo - sandwich
soda - soda
agua - water
café - coffee
té - tea
leche - milk
jugo - juice
manzana - apple
uvas - grapes
naranja - orange
piña - pineapple
albaricoque - apricot
azúcar - sugar
arroz - rice
fideos - noodles
res - beef
cerdo - pork
pollo - chicken
chuleta - cutlet
limón - lemon
frijoles - beans
guisantes - peas
bollo - bun
pescado - fish
caramelo - candy
helado - ice cream
nuez - nut
huevo - egg
melocotón - peach

taza - cup
vaso - glass
plato - plate
cuchara - spoon
tenedor - fork
cuchillo - knife
platillo - saucer
botella - bottle
servilleta - napkin

desayuno - breakfast
almuerzo - dinner
cena - supper

avión - plane
coche - car
tranvía - tram
autobús - bus
tren - train
bicicleta - bicycle

tiempo - time, weather 

año - year
semana - week
hora - hour
minuto - minute
ayer - yesterday
hoy - today
mañana - tomorrow, morning
fiesta - holiday; party
vez - (one) time
día - day
tarde - evening
noche - night

lunes - Monday
martes - Tuesday
miércoles - Wednesday
jueves - Thursday
viernes - Friday
sábado - Saturday
domingo - Sunday

mes - month

enero - January
febrero - February
marzo - March
abril - April
mayo - May
junio - June
julio - July
agosto - August
septiembre - September
octubre - October
noviembre - November
diciembre - December

primavera - spring
verano - summer
otoño - autumn
invierno - winter

nombre - name
dirección - address
número - number
cumpleaños - birthday 
casado/a - married

cosa - thing

pluma - pen
libro - book
ajedrez - chess
teléfono - phone
reloj - watch
peine - comb
televisor - TV set
plancha - iron
jabón - soap
radio - radio
bolsa - bag
mapa - map
tarjeta - card
maleta - suitcase
regalo - gift
cámara - camera
ordenador - computer
película - film
flor - flower
florero - vase
cuadro - picture
pañuelo - handkerchief
bola - ball
globo - balloon
juguete - toy
cuenta - account
sobre - envelope
papel - paper
periódico - newspaper
carta - letter
billete - ticket

ropa - clothing 

zapatos - shoes
abrigo - coat
vestido - dress
camisa - shirt
falda - skirt
guante - glove
sombrero - hat
chaqueta - jacket
bufanda - scarf
calcetín - sock
suéter - sweater
camiseta - T-shirt
corbata - tie
pantalones - pants, trousers

mano - hand
pie - foot
cabeza - head
ojo - eye
lengua - tongue; language
nariz - nose
boca - mouth
oreja - ear

qué - what
cual - what (kind of)
quién - who
dónde - where
a dónde - to where
de dónde - where from
cómo - how
por qué - why
cuándo - when

yo - I
tú - you (singular)
él - he
ella - she
usted(es) - you (politely, singular/plural) 
nosotros - we
vosotros - you (plural)
ellos/as - they (masculine/feminine)

mi - my
tu - your (singular)
su - his, her, their, your (politely)
nuestro - our
vuestro - your (plural)

de - from; of
a - to
sobre - on
debajo de - under
detrás de - behind
con - with
sin - without
antes de - before
después de - after
delante - in front of
entre - between
en - in
cerca de - near
para - for

uno - one
dos - two
tres - three
cuatro - four
cinco - five
seis - six
siete - seven
ocho - eight
nueve - nine
diez - ten
once - eleven
doce - twelve
trece - thirteen
catorce - fourteen
quince - fifteen
dieciséis - sixteen
diecisiete - seventeen
dieciocho - eighteen
diecinueve - nineteen
veinte - twenty
treinta - thirty
cuarenta - forty
cincuenta - fifty
sesenta - sixty
setenta - seventy
ochenta - eighty
noventa - ninety
ciento - hundred
mil - thousand

viejo - old
joven - young
nuevo - new
grande - big
pequeño - small
bueno - good
malo - bad
bien - well
mal - badly
temprano - early
tarde - late
pasado - last
próximo - next
libre - free
ocupado - busy
caliente - warm, hot
frío - cold
alto - high
bajo - low
largo - long
corto - short
fácil - easy
difícil - difficult
ligero - light, not heavy
pesado - heavy
oscuro - dark
claro - light, not dark
caro - expensive, dear
barato - cheap
a la izquierda - to the left
a la derecha - to the right
correcto - correct, right
rápido - quick
despacio - slow
suave - soft
duro - hard, not soft
bonito - beautiful
atento - attentive
triste - sad
alegre - joyful
feliz - happy
listo - ready
enojado - angry
principal - main, chief

negro - black
azul - blue
marrón - brown
verde - green
gris - grey
rojo - red
blanco - white
amarillo - yellow

sí - yes
no - no; not
este - this
ese - that
aquel - that (further than ese)
que - that (conjunction)
aquí - here (location)
allí - there (location)
acá - here (direction)
allá - there (direction)
ahora - now
ya - already
todavía - still
mucho/a/s - much, many
poco/a/s - little, few
muy - very
cada - each, every
todos - all
todo - everything
tan - so

y - and
o - or
pero - but
porque - because

ser - be (permanently)
estar - be (temporarily), be located
tener - have
poder - can
deber - must
vivir - live
permanecer - stay
venir - come
ir - go
ver - see
sentar - sit
decir - say
hablar - talk
trabajar - work
romper - break
hacer - do
enviar - send
comprar - buy
nadar - swim
dormir - sleep
despertar - wake
lavar - wash
probar - try
encontrar - find
traer - bring
celebrar - celebrate
sonreír - smile
llorar - cry
costar - cost
aprender - learn
enseñar - teach
escribir - write
cambiar - change
caer - fall
escuchar - listen
mostrar - show
ganar - win, earn
pensar - think
cerrar - close
abrir - open
saber - know
conocer - know (a person)
cantar - sing
bailar - dance
preguntar - ask
contestar - answer
recoger - collect, gather
amar - love
dibujar - draw
elegir - choose
querer - want
comer - eat
beber - drink
dar - give
hornear - bake
cocinar - cook
cortar - cut
tomar - take
esperar - wait
leer - read
jugar - play
fumar - smoke
crear - create
luchar - fight

gracias - thanks
perdón - sorry
por favor - please
de nada - not at all, you are welcome
qué lástima - it's a pity
hasta la vista - goodbye

canción - song
música - music
tamaño - size
dinero - money
felicidad - happiness
suerte - luck
broma - joke
sorpresa - surprise
problema - problem
hambre - hunger

lluvia - rain
viento - wind
nieve - snow
cielo - sky

Myth: You certainly need to learn a language in the country

When I visited Germany first time in my life, I had already learnt German for two and a half years at my university in Russia.

One day I was invited there to the birthday party of an old man (he had even been a soldier of Wehrmacht), who made a compliment to me. He said that I spoke German perfectly and he didn't believe that I had never been in Germany before. He just couldn't believe that a person could speak the language so well without learning it in the country of the language. He didn't know that I had been to Kazakhstan and Ukraine before but I couldn't speak their languages at all at that time. Actually this former German soldier couldn't speak Russian either in spite of the fact that he had spent several years fighting on the Eastern front.

I'd love to have learnt German in Germany, but if it is not possible, the language can be mastered in any other country as well. Textbooks, dictionaries and tutors are available now almost in any country, especially nowadays in the era of the Internet.

When I learnt German, there was no Internet yet. Now it is much easier to learn languages without visiting the country of the language. You can watch movies in the language you learn, listen to audiobooks and songs in this language, communicate with people who speak this language etc. You can immerse yourself in the language as if you were in the country of the language.

What is your ideal in speaking a foreign language

I grew up in the time of the Soviet Union. Our favorite television series in that time was "17 Moments of Spring". The series portrayed the exploits of Maxim Isaev, a Soviet spy operating in Nazi Germany under the name Max Otto von Stierlitz. He spoke German so well that nobody would guess that he was Russian. The film was so popular in the Soviet Union that city streets were empty during the showing and the crime level dropped almost to zero.

I was amazed by Isaev's ability to speak German so much that I decided to learn the language exactly on the same level as him.

That's why later when I didn't try to learn one hundred German words or one thousand or ten thousand, I tried to learn ALL of them. And I didn't try to remember them only until my next test or exam in German, but to remember them forever.

I think it was my strongest motivational factor that helped me not to be lazy and to derive the maximum benefit from the learning process.

What is your ideal in mastering languages? A famous polyglot? A singer? A spy like in my case? The better your ideal is, the more motivated you are.

How to instantly improve your language performance

When I was a student I spent a semester at a university in Germany. There was a female student from Russia whose German was very good. I mean she knew the grammar well and knew a lot of words.

I also met a Russian guy there who didn't know the German grammar so well and didn't know so many words. But the difference between them was that Germans thought that this guy spoke German much better than that girl.

How come?

The girl was afraid of speaking German, of making mistakes or of being seen as stupid. But what she was afraid of actually happened to her.

The male student wasn't afraid of making mistakes and of being seen as stupid. In spite of all grammar and lexical mistakes he could always put across his ideas.

So your decision just to speak the language you learn despite all possible errors will greatly improve your language performance in front of native speakers. Such a decision will give a 50% advantage over those who know the language better but are afraid of using it.

That's how things happen: It's better to speak making mistakes than to stay silent without making any mistakes.

PS:

This blog is part of my decision to use English in spite of all possible mistakes.

Language Difficulty Ranking

If you want to become a polyglot you have to learn as many foreign languages as possible. But it is possible to spend thousands of hours on learning a very difficult language and become just a bilingual person or it is possible to spend the same amount of time on learning several easy languages and become a real polyglot.

Let's see the view of the Foreign Service Institute (FSI) on the difficulty of different languages for English speaking people. The FSI has distingished 4 levels of language difficulty:

Level 1: Languages closely related to English

Afrikaans, Danish, Dutch, French, Italian, Norwegian, Portuguese, Romanian, Spanish, Swedish

Level 2: Languages similar to English

German

Level 3: Languages with linguistic and/or cultural differences from English

Indonesian, Malaysian, Swahili

Level 4: Languages with significant linguistic and/or cultural differences from English

Albanian, Amharic, Armenian, Azerbaijani, Bengali, Bosnian, Bulgarian, Burmese, Croatian, Czech, Estonian, Finnish, Georgian, Greek, Hebrew, Hindi, Hungarian, Icelandic, Khmer, Lao, Latvian, Lithuanian, Macedonian, Mongolian, Nepali, Pashto, Persian (Dari, Farsi, Tajik), Polish, Russian, Serbian, Sinhala, Slovak, Slovenian, Tagalog, Thai, Turkish, Ukrainian, Urdu, Uzbek, Vietnamese, Xhosa, Zulu

Level 5: Languages which are exceptionally difficult for native English speakers

Arabic, Cantonese (Chinese), Mandarin (Chinese), Japanese, Korean

How to have a breakthrough in language learning

By the time I went to university I had already been studying German at school for 7 years. However as it is very common in the Russian educational system I didn't speak the foreign language. Even after a year of studying at the faculty for foreign languages I wasn't quite sure whether I could speak German or not. But then something amazing happened.

We had such a part of our learning process as home reading. Every year we had to read and retell 500 pages of foreign original books.

I didn't have any German original books and there wasn't any Internet yet. That's why I asked my teacher to give me some books. I got two thick German books from her. I had only two weeks for reading them. So I had to read quite a few pages every day.

The first days were the most difficult. I came across a lot of new words, which I wrote down and tried to remember. On the first page I saw lots of them. On the second one I saw lots of them again.

But authors usually have not more than 10,000 words in their vocabulary. So beginning from the fifth or the sixth page I began to see all the same favorite words of the author and fewer and fewer words were unknown to me.

The miracle happened at the end of the book. The vocabulary of the author had already been depleted and he couldn't give me any new words. He had used them all. I felt that I had mastered the language. I liked that feeling of total understanding of the language.

It was difficult at the beginning of the book, but the feeling at the end of the book was worth it. 

Studying multiple languages at the same time: yes or no

I am passionate about languages. I have loved learning languages as long as I can remember. That's why I tried to learn almost all languages you could only imagine. What was the result? I didn't master even one percent of the languages I had been trying to learn.

What happened to the one percent of the languages which was mastered by me? Why was I successful in these languages and wasn't successful in other ones?

I mastered only the languages I studied intensively. It means I learnt every one of these languages so hard that I didn't have any time for other languages.

Then there was time when I learnt multiple languages at the same time. I got to know some basics of the languages but never reached the level of fluency in them. Moreover I forgot even the basics of the languages as soon as I stopped learning them. The only productive time I had when I was learning just one language at a time.

Now I try to concentrate just on one language at a time. This time should be at least half a year. It is more than enough to learn at least 3000 words.

Of course I need some regular time to refresh the languages I have already learnt. I often listen to the radio or watch documentaries in those languages. But my focus is still on the ONE language that I'm learning in this period of my life. 

How to Count the Number of Words You Know in Any Foreign Language

It was in 1994.

I went from Russia to Germany for studying at the Technical University of Chemnitz-Zwickau. It took about 5 days to get there by train. I didn't want to waste that time in the train and decided to calculate my German vocabulary.

But how could I do it? To take a dictionary and count all the familiar words there it would have been too time consuming. Even my 5 day journey wouldn't  have been long enough to look carefully through the whole dictionary. So I found another way.

I took my Russian German dictionary and counted the words I know only on every tenth page of it. Then I multiplied the result by 10 and got the approximate number of words I know in the German language, the approximate one but pretty close to the exact volume of my vocabulary. It was 6,000 words.

After 4 months of studying in Germany I went back to Russia and on my way home I repeated the same action with my Russian German dictionary. I counted the words on every tenth page but began doing it from a different page than I had done it before. By that time I had already known 12,000 German words.

Maybe you know some other ways of calculating your vocabulary? Feel free to criticize my method and to suggest your own one.