50 Motivational Language Quotes (In 5 Different Languages)

Justlearn

6/24/2020

11 minute read

Are you learning a foreign language, but struggling to stay motivated? Try reading these inspirational language quotes.

If you think you’re going nowhere or you’re not sure if you’ll make it, don’t worry. This is a common dilemma among all language learners.

It’s completely normal to feel unmotivated and uninspired at times, it’s how you choose to deal with it that matters.

As a matter of fact, it’s a normal part of the process — a difficult phase you have to get past through and never look back.

It’s important that you know that you’re not alone in this. We’ve all been there.

It’s okay to take a break, but don’t give up. You didn’t come this far just to give up, did you?

Lucky for you, you’re exactly where you need to be. We’ll help you stay inspired and motivated to continue your journey.

To help you get back on track, we have put together encouraging quotes for learners and aspiring polyglots like you.

50 Inspirational Language Quotes For All Learners

English

“He who knows no foreign languages knows nothing of his own.” ‒ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
The limits of my language mean the limits of my world.” ‒ Ludwig Wittgenstein
“One language sets you in a corridor for life. Two languages open every door along the way.” ‒ Frank Smith
“A different language is a different vision of life.” ‒ Federico Fellini
“Language shapes the way we think, and determines what we can think about.” ‒ Benjamin Lee Whorf
“Learning another language is like becoming another person.” ‒ Haruki Murakami
“If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart.” ‒ Nelson Mandela
“Learning another language is not only learning different words for the same things, but learning another way to think about things.” ‒ Flore Lewis
“A special kind of beauty exists which is born in language, of language, and for language.” ‒ Gaston Bachelard
“Language is the road map of a culture. It tells you where its people come from and where they are going.” ‒ Rita Mae Brown

Motivational English Language Quotes

Spanish

“Une nouvelle langue est une nouvelle vie.” ‒ Persian Proverb (A new language is a new life.)
“Vives una vida nueva con cada idioma que hablas. Si sabes solo un idioma, vivirás solamente una vez.” ‒ Czech Proverb (You live a new life for every new language you speak. If you know only one language, you live only once.)
“El gran remedio para la ignorancia ... es el conocimiento de idiomas.” ‒ Anonymous (The great remedy for ignorance is… knowledge of languages.)
“Nunca podrás entender un idioma hasta que entiendas al menos dos.” ‒ Geoffrey Willans (You can never understand one language until you understand at least two.)
“Tener otro idioma es poseer una segunda alma.” ‒ Charlemagne (To have another language is to possess a second soul.)
“El lenguaje es la sangre del alma en la que corren los pensamientos y de donde crecen.” ‒ Oliver Wendell Holmes (Language is the blood of the soul into which thoughts run and out of which they grow.)
“La conquista del aprendizaje se logra a través del conocimiento de los idiomas.” ‒ Roger Bacon (The conquest of learning is achieved through the knowledge of languages.)
“Habla un nuevo idioma para que el mundo sea un mundo nuevo.” ‒ Rumi (Speak a new language so that the world will be a new world.)
“Aprenda todo lo que pueda, en cualquier momento que pueda, de cualquier persona que pueda; siempre llegará un momento en que estarás agradecido de haberlo hecho.” ‒ Sarah Caldwell (Learn everything you can, anytime you can, from anyone you can; there will always come a time when you will be grateful you did.)
“El lenguaje es vino sobre los labios.” ‒ Virginia Woolf (Language is wine upon the lips.)

French

“Un hombre que sabe dos lenguas vale por dos hombres.” ‒ French Proverb (A man who knows two languages is worth two men.)
“L'expert en n'importe quoi était autrefois un débutant” ‒ Anonymous (The expert in anything was once a beginner.)
“Plus vous connaissez de langues, plus vous êtes humain.” ‒ Tomas Garrigue Masaryk (The more languages you know, the more human you are.)
“Apprenez une nouvelle langue et obtenez une nouvelle âme.” ‒ Czech Proverb (Learn a new language and get a new soul.)

“Une langue est le reflet exact du caractère et de la maturité de ses locuteurs.” ‒ Cesar Chavez (A language is an exact reflection of the character and growth of its speakers.)

“Chaque fois que vous pensez qu’une autre langue est étrange, rappelez-vous que la vôtre l’est tout autant; vous y êtes juste habitué.” ‒ Anonymous (Any time you think some other language is strange, remember that yours is just as strange, you’re just used to it.)

“Le langage est plus pour l'esprit que la lumière pour les yeux.” ‒ William Gibson (Language is to the mind more than light is to the eye.)

“Comme un faucon ne vole pas haut avec une seule aile, de même un homme n'atteint pas à l'excellence avec une seule langue.” ‒ Roger Ascham (As a hawk flieth not high with one wing, even so a man reacheth not to excellence with one tongue.)

“Il ne faut pas viser à être possible de comprendre mais à être impossible à mal comprendre.” ‒ Marcus Fabius Quintilian (One should not aim at being possible to understand but at being impossible to misunderstand.)

“L'apprentissage est un trésor qui suivra partout son propriétaire.” ‒ Chinese Proverb (Learning is a treasure that will follow its owner everywhere.)

German

“Die Sprache steht an erster Stelle. Es ist nicht so, dass Sprache aus dem Bewusstsein heraus wächst. Wenn Sie keine Sprache haben, können Sie nicht bewusst sein.” ‒ Alan Moore (Language comes first. It’s not that language grows out of consciousness, if you haven’t got language, you can’t be conscious.)
“Wissen Sie, was ein ausländischer Akzent ist? Es ist ein Zeichen von Tapferkeit.” ‒ Amy Chua (Do you know what a foreign accent is? It’s a sign of bravery.)
“Mit Sprachen sind Sie überall zu Hause.” (With languages, you are at home anywhere.)
“Ändere deine Sprache und du änderst deine Gedanken.” ‒ Karl Albrecht (Change your language and you change your thoughts.)
“Wenn wir eine andere Sprache sprechen würden, würden wir eine etwas andere Welt wahrnehmen.” ‒ Ludwig Wittgenstein (If we spoke a different language, we would perceive a somewhat different world.)
“Eine Sprache zu lernen bedeutet, noch ein Fenster zu haben, aus dem man die Welt betrachten kann.” ‒ Chinese Proverb (To learn a language is to have one more window from which to look at the world.)
“Ich liebe es, zwischen Sprachen zu pendeln, genauso wie ich es liebe, zwischen Kulturen und Städten zu pendeln.” ‒ Elif Safak (I love commuting between languages just like I love commuting between cultures and cities.)
“Das Erlernen einer neuen Sprache wird Mitglied des Clubs - der Gemeinschaft der Sprecher dieser Sprache.” ‒ Frank Smith (Learning a new language is becoming a member of the club – the community of speakers of that language.)
“Eine Fremdsprache ist wie ein zerbrechlicher, empfindlicher Muskel. Wenn Sie es nicht verwenden, wird es schwächer.” – Jhumpa Lahiri (A foreign language is like a frail, delicate muscle. If you do not use it, it weakens.)
“Das intimste Temperament eines Volkes, seine tiefste Seele, liegt vor allem in seiner Sprache.” – Jules Michelet (The most intimate temper of a people, its deepest soul, is above all in its language.)

Danish

“Lær et sprog, så undgår du en krig.” ‒ Arab Proverb (Learn a language, and you’ll avoid a war.)
“Vi bør lære sprog, fordi sprog er det eneste, der er værd at kende endnu dårligt.” ‒ Kató Lomb (We should learn languages because language is the only thing worth knowing even poorly.)
“At lære et nyt sprog er derfor altid et slags spirituelt eventyr; det er som en opdagelsesrejse, hvor vi finder en ny verden.” ‒ Ernst Cassirer (To learn a new language is, therefore, always a sort of spiritual adventure; it is like a journey of discovery in which we find a new world.)
“Jeg er altid ked af, når noget sprog går tabt, fordi sprog er nationernes stamtavle.” ‒ Samuel Johnson (I am always sorry when any language is lost, because languages are the pedigrees of nations.)
“En, der kun taler et sprog, er én person, men en, der taler to sprog, er to personer.” ‒ Turkish Proverb (One who speaks only one language is one person, but one who speaks two languages is two people.)
“Manden, der ikke kender andre sprog, medmindre han er en genial mand, har nødvendigvis mangler i sine ideer.” ‒ Victor Hugo (The man who does not know other languages, unless he is a man of genius, necessarily has deficiencies in his ideas.)
“Sprog er en by, til hvilken bygningen hvert menneske har bragt en sten.” ‒ Ralph Waldo Emerson (Language is a city to the building of which every human being has brought a stone.)
“Det er forbløffende, hvor meget glæde man kan komme ud af et sprog, man forstår ufuldstændigt.” ‒ Basil Lanneau Gildersleeve (It is astonishing how much enjoyment one can get out of a language that one understands imperfectly.)
“Hvem vil have en effekt på andre, skal først tale på deres sprog med dem.” ‒ Kurt Tucholsky (Who wants to have an effect on others, must first speak in their language with them.)
“At lære et sprog er ikke en destination, men en rejse.” ‒ Jean Brunet (Learning a language is not a destination, but a journey.)

Final thoughts

Hopefully, at this point, you are reminded that learning a foreign language is absolutely worth all the time and effort.

It may seem very difficult and challenging at this time, but if you keep going, your future self will thank you for not giving up.

If you think you may need a little more help than this, you might want to consider getting a tutor. With several tutors who are native speakers of over 75 languages, Justlearn can provide a native speaker of the language you’re studying as your tutor.

There’s no better way to stay motivated than having a tutor who understands your struggles and will be with you all throughout your journey.

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1 minute read