French, Spanish, Portuguese, Norwegian—these are some of the languages often considered to be the easiest for English speakers.
But these languages are very different from one another and just because they are “easy” for one person doesn’t mean they’ll be easy for you.
If your goal is to learn a language quickly and with minimal fuss, here’s what you need to know about the easiest languages to learn.
“No Language is Easy to Learn”
Search for terms like “what is the easiest language to learn?” and “which language is easiest for English speakers?”, and you’ll almost certainly land on an article that begins by telling you that no language is easy.
It’s true…but it’s also misleading.
It’s all a matter of perspective and comparison. And as someone who began by learning a very difficult language and then switched to an “easy” one, trust me when I say that perspective really matters.
For a bit of back story, I didn’t start learning a foreign language until I was 30. Previously, my experiences with foreign languages included swearing in Spanish, counting to three in French, and recognizing a few dozen words in Greek.
As my partner and in-laws are Greek, I decided it would be a good language to learn.
I knew it wasn’t going to be easy, but I figured I’d have a head start.
I was wrong.
What followed was 2 years of struggling through countless apps and programs and never really feeling confident. Eventually, I reached B2 and then decided to try a new language.
I picked Norwegian, and I’m glad I did. It was so much easier.
After just 10 hours (spread over 3 weeks) I felt like I learned more than I learned in my first 6 months studying Greek.
Sure, I was more experienced with languages by that point and I knew what worked for me. But mainly it was the language itself. It felt more like English. It was easier to remember and pronounce. Generally speaking, it was a much easier language.
It’s true that learning a language isn’t easy, but after slogging through Greek as a complete beginner, learning Norwegian felt like the easiest thing in the world.
What is the Easiest Language?
There are a few things to consider when looking for the “easiest” language for you:
- Your native language
- Your preferences and accessibility
- Your motivation
Let’s take a closer look at each of these things:
Your native language
Obviously, the languages you speak play a massive role in whether a foreign language is easy or not. But whether those languages are native or foreign can also make a huge difference.
Norwegian was easy for me, but it wasn’t as easy for my Greek friends. One of them is a polyglot who speaks half a dozen languages and has a C2 in English, but as Norwegian was so far removed from the other languages he knows (mostly romance languages) it was a tough ask.
If you’re a native Italian or Greek speaker with a C2 in English, you’ll likely find that Spanish and even French are so much easier than Norwegian.
Preferences and accessibility
One of the issues I had learning Greek is that I don’t enjoy Greek media.
I know, blasphemous—it’s okay, my in-laws will never read this.
I watch a lot of thrillers and horrors, and I can only ever recall 1 Greek film in this genre that I liked. Books are easier, but again, the genre options are limited. I did find something I liked (a famous comic book artist who has a large volume of work), but I was limited.
Immersing yourself in your target language’s media is very important for making the jump from intermediate to expert. If it’s not there or you don’t like it, you’ll struggle.
It’s one of the reasons I chose Norwegian and not French, as Norwegian media has a greater appeal to me.
Your motivation
Many language students/teachers scoff at beginners who ask questions about the easiest languages or the simplest grammar.
It’s partly down to the use of the term “easy”, as noted above. But motivation also comes into it, and it’s something I agree with 100%.
If your only motivation to learn the language is that it’s easy, you’re probably going to give up after a few weeks.
Even the most dedicated students only make it a few months before switching to a more sensible choice.
Sure, polyglots learn random languages that they aren’t really motivated to study, but they’re a unique breed who get a kick out of the process. As a beginner, you’re far more susceptible to losing interest.
It’s better to choose a language that you’re motivated to learn, whether it’s because:
- Your friends/family speak the language
- You like TV/films/books in that language
- You want to live in a country where it is spoken
- You want to travel to that country a lot
- You’re fascinated with the language and culture
The Four Easiest Languages for English Speakers
In my opinion, these are the four easiest languages to learn for English speakers and language novices:
4. Spanish
Spanish is a great choice for many reasons.
First, this romance language is phonetic, which means the words look like they are pronounced. It makes for a refreshing change if all you know is English, as the English language seems to switch pronunciations at will (think of the words “rough”, “dough”, “bough”, “coughed”, and “slough”).
Secondly, it has many cognates with English, which are connected words that look/sound the same.
Finally, there is a wealth of Spanish media out there. As with English, you can take your pick from countless films, TV shows, bands, poets, and authors, with no shortage of genres or quality.
3. Dutch
Spoken in the Netherlands, as well as Suriname and parts of Belgium, Dutch has a similar structure and syntax to English, making it a fairly easy language to learn. English and Dutch share a lot of words, although they are often pronounced differently.
2. Afrikaans
Afrikaans is a Germanic language spoken in South Africa and several other countries. It descended from Dutch but also borrowed words from other languages.
There are thought to be over 15 million Afrikaans speakers worldwide and it is becoming increasingly common on language apps.
1. Norwegian
Norwegian is a North Germanic language that has a lot in common with English, follows a similar structure, and is available on most major language-learning apps.
I’m sure many would argue that Afrikaans and even Dutch should rank higher than Norwegian. But the differences are slight, and Norwegian gets the nod as I believe it has a far greater selection of media to choose from.
Sure, there have been some great films and books in Dutch and Afrikaans. I’m not disputing that. But Norwegian cinema is booming right now and there are scores of top films to watch on Amazon Prime, Netflix, and other streaming services.
It’s also very similar to Danish, which has just as many great films. In fact, after learning Norwegian for just a few weeks, my first experience of recognizing it “in the wild” came from hearing Danish players at the European Championships and listening to the country’s entry in the Eurovision Song Contest.