Top 10 Easiest Languages for English Speakers to Learn

Easiest Languages for English Speakers to Learn

1. Afrikaans

• Time to Learn: 24 weeks (600 hours)

• Speakers: 6 million

• Where It’s Spoken: South Africa

Pros:

• 90% of vocabulary is Dutch-based (a Germanic language like English)

• Familiarity with many words (e.g., kleur = color, deur = door)

Cons:

• Limited geographic reach

• Trilled “r” sound is tough for English speakers

2. Dutch

• Time to Learn: 24 weeks (575–600 hours)

• Speakers: 23 million

• Where It’s Spoken: Netherlands, Aruba, Belgium

Pros:

• Many words are similar or identical to English

• Simple past tense grammar

Cons:

• Pronunciation can be deceptive despite similar spelling

3. Norwegian

• Time to Learn: 23–24 weeks (575–600 hours)

• Speakers: 4.4 million

• Where It’s Spoken: Norway, Denmark, Sweden

Pros:

• Similar sentence structure and vocabulary to English

• Pronunciation is mostly straightforward

Cons:

• Special characters and gendered nouns may pose difficulties

4. Spanish

• Time to Learn: 24 weeks (600 hours)

• Speakers: 595 million

• Where It’s Spoken: Colombia, Mexico, Argentina, etc.

Pros:

• Latin roots create shared vocabulary (e.g., atención, cámara)

• Phonetic language – pronunciation matches spelling

Cons:

• Complex verb tenses

• Temptation to use English sentence structures

5. Italian

• Time to Learn: 23–24 weeks (575–600 hours)

• Speakers: 63 million

• Where It’s Spoken: Italy, Switzerland, parts of Croatia and Slovenia

Pros:

• Latin roots aid comprehension

• Pronunciation and spelling are straightforward

Cons:

• Verb conjugations and plural rules can be tricky

6. Portuguese

• Time to Learn: 23–24 weeks (575–600 hours)

• Speakers: 260 million

• Where It’s Spoken: Portugal, Brazil, Mozambique, etc.

Pros:

• Shares alphabet and some intonation similarities with English

• Romance language connections

Cons:

• European and Brazilian variants differ

• Confusion with Spanish pronunciation

7. French

• Time to Learn: 24 weeks (575–600 hours)

• Speakers: 320 million

• Where It’s Spoken: France, Belgium, Canada, West Africa

Pros:

• Latin roots; familiar words due to global culture (e.g., c’est la vie)

• Used in major global organizations

Cons:

• Tricky pronunciation rules and silent letters

8. Romanian

• Time to Learn: 24 weeks (575–600 hours)

• Speakers: 28 million

• Where It’s Spoken: Romania, Moldova

Pros:

• Phonetic – words sound like they’re spelled

• Latin-based with familiar grammar

Cons:

• Includes five grammatical cases (like Slavic languages)

• Influenced by Slavic vocabulary

9. Swahili

• Time to Learn: 36 weeks (900 hours)

• Speakers: 80 million

• Where It’s Spoken: Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda

Pros:

• Simple pronunciation with no silent letters

• Familiar words via pop culture (Simba = lion, Hakuna Matata)

Cons:

• Complex sentence structure

• Prefixes and participles are challenging

10. Tagalog

• Time to Learn: 44 weeks (1100 hours)

• Speakers: 45 million

• Where It’s Spoken: Philippines

Pros:

• Vocabulary influenced by English and Spanish

• Simple pronunciation

Cons:

• Verb structure and sentence order are very different from English

• Some concepts don’t translate directly