> "simple" is not synonymous with "easy to learn". I used simple in reference to "gender+conjugation+declension system of many languages". In that specific co

> "simple" is not synonymous with "easy to learn". I used simple in reference to "gender+conjugation+declension system of many languages". In that specific context, it does make it easier to learn english than german or spanish. > There is some research that suggests that it is easier for adults to learn isolating languages, like English and Mandarin, than it is for adults to learn synthetic languages like German, Russian, or Arabic. English is a germanic language and hence a synthetic language. Not sure why you lumped it with Mandarin. I don't know mandarin but I've heard that spoken mandarin is easy to learn since it very regular and has fairly limited vocabulary. Their tonal system make it extremely hard for people from non-tonal languages and their writing system is notoriously difficult. > In other words, adults are better at learning lists of words than systems for constructing words. Yes. It is easier to learn english on the front end because we lack the gender+conjugation+declension. My point is that what makes english difficult is the irregularities and exceptions. > The fewer grammatical morphemes they need to learn, the faster they can reach functional fluency. In other words "simple is easier to learn"?