As a foreign language learner, the "rules" you learn form a framework on which to build understanding when you're learning. It's been my experience that after

As a foreign language learner, the "rules" you learn form a framework on which to build understanding when you're learning. It's been my experience that after you get past a certain point, the rules stop mattering quite as much and are replaced by "intuition" similar (but not necessarily quite as strong) to what a native speaker has. When I write or speak English or Japanese, I do not think in terms of rules; I simply say what I think means what I want to communicate. Sometimes I don't know how to say something, but that's not because I've forgotten the "rules"; it's because I haven't built a strong enough intuition to express myself how I want to, using the words I have memorised. Studying grammar and etymology can give insight into how a native speaker of a language sees the world. Ultimately, memorization of rules and vocabulary is the easy part of learning a language, though it is often very time consuming.