Top 10 Easiest Languages for English Speakers to Learn Fast

Key takeaways:

• Languages most similar to English — like Dutch, Norwegian, and Spanish — are the easiest to learn.
• Germanic and Romance languages often share vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation patterns with English.
• Access to resources and regular practice speed up learning.
• Promova offers lessons, tutors, and AI speaking practice to help you progress faster.

If you’re looking to learn a new language, you might be trying to decide which one to study. Learning a language offers numerous benefits, including improved cognitive function, enhanced memory, and better communication skills. 

While some people learn a new language to visit a particular country or communicate better with someone, others master a new language to acquire a new skill. If you don’t have a particular language in mind, you might be keen to know which is the easiest language to learn. 

Choosing a language with similarities to English can help you learn faster, boost your confidence, and instill a love of language learning. One of the benefits of learning an easier language is that progress is motivating, so the faster you learn, the more motivated you will be to keep learning. 

What makes some languages easier to learn than others? 

While people embarking upon their language journey wonder, "What's the easiest language to learn?" and "How long will it take to learn a new language?" It’s worth pointing out that there’s no such thing as an easy language to learn. 

However, some are easier than others and require less study time, making them a fantastic language choice for busy learners. All languages are complex, but certain things can make learning a second language easier, such as:

Similarities

Choosing a second language that shares similarities with your native tongue can speed up your learning. For example, if your first language is English, it makes sense to learn a language that uses the same alphabet, thereby reducing the number of things you need to learn. 

By contrast, learning Chinese would require you to master a few thousand new Chinese characters, which can be pretty time-consuming. 

Sounds

How you pronounce words and the tone you use when speaking can alter the meaning of words in some languages. Learning a language with a similar sound to English can simplify the learning process.

1

Language family 

Language families are descended from the same language ancestor. Although the different languages may have developed differently, they will likely share similar patterns of grammar and sound, meaning you will be building on your existing understanding of language. 

English is part of the Indo-European language family, so you might find other languages from this family easier to learn. 

Accessibility 

One thing that impacts how hard a language is to learn is accessibility. If it’s easy to find learning resources, tutors, and language practice groups, you’re likely to learn much faster than when trying to learn a more obscure language. 

The more opportunity you have to practice, the quicker you will learn.

How long does it take to learn easy languages?

The U.S. Department of State offers a helpful guide on the time it takes to learn various languages. 

These figures are based on a 40-hour study week (23 hours in the classroom combined with 17 hours of self-study) and how long it takes to achieve a professional working proficiency in each language. 

Source

As you can see from the list above, you have lots of easier languages to choose from as an English speaker. If you’re looking for a good first language to learn, you won’t go wrong with one of the above.

English is a Germanic language, and generally speaking, other Germanic languages will be easy to learn thanks to the similarities with English. 

10 easiest languages to learn for English speakers

1. Dutch

Dutch, as part of the Germanic languages, is very similar to English, making it an ideal second language to learn quickly. Lots of Dutch words sound very similar to English words; for example, ‘klok’ for ‘clock’. It’s often easy to figure out what a word means, making mastering this language a little easier. 

Though Dutch pronunciation can be different from English, it won’t take you long to learn the language. One thing you may find tricky is sentence order, because in Dutch, the verb comes in second position. 

It can take time to get used to this difference, but watching Dutch TV and movies and listening to Dutch podcasts can help it become second nature. 

2. Norwegian 

Norwegian is another great language for English-speaking learners. The similarities between Norwegian and English mean this will be an easier language to master. Both languages usually use subject-verb-object sentence structure, which means you’ll find translating sentences much easier. 

Pronunciation in Norwegian is pretty straightforward, and the varying accents in Norway mean you have some leeway when pronouncing words. 

3. Spanish 

Though Spanish takes slightly longer, we’re listing it as one of the easiest languages for English speakers to learn. According to Harvard University, almost 500 million people speak Spanish as their first language, so you won’t struggle to find people to practice your new language skills with.

Spanish isn’t a Germanic language like English, but it is part of the Romance language family derived from Latin. English shares roots with Latin, providing plenty of similarities between the two languages. Some words, like “animal,” auto,” and “alcohol,” are written the same in both languages. 

Sentence structure is similar in both languages, which aids your translation. The phonetic nature of Spanish takes the stress out of pronunciation. Spanish grammar might give you a headache, however, especially if you stumble over tenses and grammar exceptions. 

4. Swedish 

Swedish is a Germanic language, so it has lots in common with your native tongue. Swedish and English share many words, such as "art," "station," and "piano," making it a great second language for English speakers. 

Swedish grammar rules are pretty simplistic, and the sentence order is similar to English, which is why we’re including this on our list of easiest languages to learn for English speakers. 

The Swedish alphabet contains three extra vowels, so you’ll need to learn how these look and sound before you can read Swedish. The trickiest job will be to master the pronunciation, but it won’t take you long to get the hang of it. 

5. German 

It goes without saying that German is a Germanic language and, therefore, quite similar to English. English and German share the same alphabet and have similar sentence structures, making it a great language to learn. 

It might take you a while to master the pronunciation, but it will be worth it when you can communicate with an extra 100 million people globally. 

6. Portuguese 

Portuguese is the main language in both Portugal and Brazil, with over 250 million speakers worldwide. As a Romance language, Portuguese evolved from Latin and uses the same alphabet as English. 

Although it is similar to Spanish, the two languages are distinct, with varying pronunciation rules. 

7. Italian 

Another Romance language, Italian, is an excellent option for a second language to learn. Lots of Italian words have made it into the English language, such as “pizza,” “finale”, and “diva,” so you may already know some Italian without realizing it. 

Pronunciation is generally relatively straightforward, so you’ll be able to accurately guess how to pronounce words very soon. The Italian alphabet has only 21 letters, so you can say goodbye to J, K, W, X, and Y. 

8. French 

Though French takes longer to learn than some of the other languages on this list, it’s still an excellent choice for a new language learner. French is a Romance language spoken by nearly 300 million people around the world, so you won’t struggle to find people to test out your new language skills on. 

Pronunciation is generally considered tricky for newbies, but you’ll soon get the hang of it with practice. Nouns are assigned a gender, and it can be tricky to determine which gender to use at first. However, with a bit of practice, you’ll soon be on your way to learning French. 

9. Romanian 

Romanian is a Romance language with a lot of similarities to Italian, French, and Spanish. It's a phonetic language, which means it’s easy to figure out how to pronounce new words, making it perfect for learners. The main barrier to learning is the grammatical differences, but these are easy to grasp with practice. 

10. Danish 

Danish is considered one of the more challenging Germanic languages thanks to the pronunciation. Although it may resemble Swedish and Norwegian, the words are pronounced differently, and it takes time to master the differences.  
Danish has plenty of words you’ll recognize from English, and other languages that are easy to work out, plus the grammar rules are easy to learn, so it’s a good option if you’re ready to brave the pronunciation. 

How Promova can help you learn new languages faster

Promova can speed up your language learning by helping you access helpful resources, manage your time, and stay motivated as a language learner. Our learning platform can help you master a new language using:

• Self-study. Through the Promova app, you can access lots of engaging lessons and other learning materials to accelerate your learning. 
• Professional tutors. The Promova app connects you with professional online tutors to learn solo or in a group. Group learning can boost motivation and provide learning support. 
• Speak with AI. Our AI-powered role-play chat lets you practice with AI. Perfect your pronunciation, improve your conversation skills, and boost your confidence with cutting-edge technology.

Try a free trial lesson today and see the benefits of Promova for yourself. 

Conclusion

It’s not easy choosing a second language to learn. Learning a new language takes time and commitment, so you want to choose a language you’ll enjoy. Motivation is key when it comes to learning, so choosing an easy language is a great way to boost motivation and help you fall in love with language learning. With a little bit of hard work and plenty of practice, you’ll be able to master a new language.