（the AGENT） doing the hitting。
PASSIVE
The verb is PASSIVE or in the PASSIVE VOICE if the subject receives or is subject to the
action of the verb。 Thus in “The ball is hit by him”； the subject ball doesn’t do any
hitting。 Rather； it gets hit。 Therefore； we say that the verb hit is in the passive voice
because the subject ball is not performing the action of the verb but is rather having that
action performed upon it。
REFLEXIVE
The verb is reflexive when its action bounces back upon itself。 In the sentence “I dress
myself；” the subject I both performs the action and has it performed on itself。
IMPERATIVE
The imperative is the command form of the verb。 The imperative of the verb to go is go！
The imperative of the verb to watch is Watch！
COMPARATIVE AND SUPERLATIVE
Though not as flighty and volatile as verbs and nouns； English adjectives and adverbs
can’t sit entirely still。
Good； better； and best are really the same word in escalating degrees。 Good is the
simple； the base form of the adjective。 Better is the comparative form。 Best is the
superlative form。 Good…better…best is an example of an irregular comparative…superlative
construction。 If it were regular； it would be good； gooder and goodest； like the regular
neat； neater and neatest。
The comparative and superlative of adverbs in English is formed with more and
most： “He progressed rapidly。 He progressed more rapidly。 He progressed most rapidly。”
CARDINAL AND ORDINAL NUMBERS
Cardinal numbers are one； two； three； four； etc。 Ordinal numbers are first； second； third；
fourth； etc。
FORMS OF ADDRESS
English is deceptively easy in forms of address。 Everybody in second person singular and
plural is you。 Your spouse is you。 Your four year old child is you。 Your interior decorator
is you。 The President of the United States is you。 Your cocker spaniel is you。 In almost
every other language； speakers differentiate； sometimes sharply； between the FAMILIAR
form of address （French tu； German du） and the FORMAL form （French vous； German Sie）。
The usual rule is that you use the familiar form of address only when addressing （talking
to） intimates； children； and animals。 All others take the formal form。
There comes a moment in the affairs of humans when someone who started out
formally as a stranger or casual acquaintance becomes； with time and congeniality； so
familiar that the formal form of address seems almost stilted and even offish or insulting。
In some countries – Norway； for instance – the tension is broken by the suggestion Skal
vi drikke dus？ （“Shall we drink to a new era in our friendship？” one in which we’ll
address each other as the familiar du rather than the formal De？） That’s a speak…now…or…
forever…hold…your…peace moment in the relationship。 If there’s no objection； the two
friends take a glass and toast their graduation from formal to familiar with their drinking
arms intertwined！
DIMINUTIVES
A charming trick almost every language has is this “shrinking” of someone or something
you like by the use of diminutives。 The diminutive of Charles is Charlie。 The diminutive
of William is Billy。 The diminutive of star is starlet。 The diminutive of pig is piglet or
piggy。 The Olympics of diminutives is won hands down by the Italians； who have
literally dozens of different forms of the diminutive； each conveying its own special
nuance of feeling for the noun undergoing the shrinking。
IDIOMS
Idioms are expressions that may not make sense but have clear and specific meanings
anyhow because the speakers of the language have “agreed” that； rules notwithstanding；
those particular words shall have a particular meaning。 An idiom has a meaning that
cannot be derived from the conjoined meaning of its elements。
In English； we say “Let’s take a walk！” What are you taking？ In Spanish； that
becomes “Damos un paseo；” which literally means “Let’s give a walk！” What are you
giving？ Neither makes much sense but both are correct。 Both are idioms。
Some English idioms； at random； are： at first blush； at one’s wits end； axe to grind；
beat around the bush； break the ice； chip off the old block； crack a joke； fit as a fiddle；
forty winks； get in one’s hair； give a piece of one’s mind； keep the wolf from the door； red
tape； and with flying colours。
All languages have idioms。 They’re fun and enriching and they illustrate
differences and similarities among cultures。 How philosophically distant is the
Norwegian who says about a dim witted person； “Han er darlig utstyrt i oeverst etasje”
（“He’s poorly equipped on the top floor”）； from the American Southerner who says；
“He’s three pickles shy of a barrel”？
Learn to diagnose idioms in English and make sure you never try to translate them
literally into any other language。 If you try to tell a Spanish friend； “I’m on a roll；” do not
say “Estoy en un panecillo。” He will look under your feet for signs of crumbs without
any comprehension that what you really meant to express is that things are going
extremely well for you at the moment。
Likewise； be attentive to idioms as they come at you in other languages。 The
German who tells you to “break your neck and your leg” is really wishing you luck。 So is
the Italian who seems to be sending you “into the mouth of the wolf”！
The foregoing is by no means the whole of the mechanical vocabulary you’ll need
to conquer every other language on earth。 You’ve got some dandies waiting for you
inside whatever language you choose to tackle。 In French and other languages you’ll
meet the double negative。 In Finnish； it’s worse： you’ll meet the inflecting negative！
German will be watching to see if you can handle its double infinitive。 Russian can’t wait
to hit you with its perfective and imperfective verb aspects。 Gender in Hebrew is so
complex you have to know the sex of a dog before you can command it to quit biting
you。
These are not monsters in the woods。 The lovely people who speak all those
languages descend from people who found every single one of those Bermuda Triangles
of grammar utterly logical and useful； and they’ve never felt the need to change。
The old school grammarians； the ones who assassinated the desire of young
Americans to learn foreign languages； were right in their insistence that knowledge of
grammar is vital。
They were wrong； however； to insist that all grammar must be learned here and now
before we take our first step into conversation and the fun of learning another language。
Again； grammar is best attacked from the rear。 When you read the rule in your
grammar book you may say to yourself； “Oh； so that’s the reason I’ve been saying it that
way all along； the way I learned from my phrase book； my cassettes； my newspaper； and
my Italian friend at the pizzaria！”
When you come upon an explanation of a grammatical wrinkle and you don’t
understand all the terms in English； pick up a dictionary （not a language dictionary； but
an English only dictionary）。 You’ve got to know something of your own language before
you can efficiently learn another。
Last Words Before
the Wedding
It is my hope that this volume will help those who’ve never yet dared to make the
commitment； march to the altar； and “marry” another language。 If you’ve already studied
other languages； perhaps tried for years with disappointing results； let’s look at your next
effort as a second marriage； fortified； this time； with the foregoing advice。
Best men and bridesmaids traditionally utter inanities to grooms and brides before
they march down the aisle。 As your avuncular advisor； who at this writing has studied
foreign languages as a hobby for forty…six years； let me use this precious final
opportunity to hammer home some points – some repeats and some leftovers – that will
ensure your success and ensure that you enjoy yourself as you succeed。
Plunge In
When an interviewer asked the famed bank robber Willy Sutton why he robbed banks； he
replied； “Because that’s where the money is。” Using the language is where the real
learning is。 There’s a direct analogy to sports and war。 Ask any ball player to give his
views on the difference between watching the coach diagramme plays on a blackboard
and facing the opponents in a real game。 Ask any soldier the difference between basic
training and actual combat。
The same difference exists between language study and language use。 Try recalling
the words and phrases you’ve learned most recently the next time you meet by surprise a
speaker of the language。 Your mind is likely to be a frustrating blank。 Once you’ve used
your knowledge in real life； however； your chances of recall are much greater。
Go out； then； and “pick” conversations in the language you’re learning； like a
belligerent drunk picks fights。
Certain words； phrases； idioms； and grammatical constructions will remain
unmeltable lumps。 They will defeat your best efforts to learn them。 Many students accept
such unscalable heights as proof that “I don’t have an ear for languages！” （That； by the
way； is the most pernicious myth of all。 If you have the motivation and discipline to
proceed through the system； it doesn’t matter what kind of “ear” you have； so long as it
can hear。）
Once you score your first victory over one of those “unconquerable” fortresses； an
emotional momentum is released that will carry you forward。 Grab hold of the nearest
holdout word and beat the hell out of it。 Bite at it one syllable at a time or even one letter
at a time。 Throw fits of irrational energy against it until it’s yours。
There is something truly serene about encountering a word that used to be a hideous
holdout – and is now as familiar to you as your middle name！
Point of sale is t