Choose the Right Dialect Now, Save Time Later

”The difference between the almost right word and the right word is the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning.” - Mark Twain

Ever felt like you were speaking clearly, but still failed to be understood?

Have you ever talked to someone in a language they understand but failed to capture their full attention? 

As if they didn’t understand you fully, even though you used perfectly crafted sentences with the right words. 

Just ask a French Canadian how his last discussion with a Frenchman went… Pretty sure they will scoff at the memory. 

It is a frustrating experience that renders that conversation less enjoyable and fruitful.

Hopefully, you can help reduce these occurrences by choosing the right form of the language to learn—right from the start.

Common questions

• Should I learn a language in the most standard way possible so that it applies to most speakers?

• Should I learn American English, British English, or Australian English?

• Should I learn Castilian Spanish (in Spain and the Canary Islands) or Mexican Spanish? Or any other Central or South American variety?

We can go on and on. Almost every language on the planet has more than one variant. This would warrant an entire article about each and everyone of them. More on that later.

For now, what interests us is what applies to your specific situation. 

So, the short and boring answer is: it depends. 

Why do you want to learn this specific language? 

For your current job? 

To expand your skill set and employment opportunities?

For travel? Where to?

To move and maybe date abroad?

Just for fun or to understand those Italian opera songs you’ve been hearing all your life?

Because your in-laws speak Korean and you want to connect with them? 

(Lets just hope you don’t find out they’ve been speaking about you the whole time…)

Really take a moment to think about it. Choosing the right variant early on could save you a lot of time down the road.

Good news: You can always readjust

There is no such thing as a point of no-return. Even if you started on the ”wrong” path, you can now narrow your focus to what is most important for your reality.

You might have to unlearn some vocabulary or learn a new pronunciation—but that’s part of the process. 

It is daunting and may take a while to rewire your brain, but you will now have a broader understanding of the language. 

Deep vs Wide

As in everything, you can either:

• Go wide - Learn a little about many cultures and dialects

• Go deep - Master one variant while still being able to interact with speakers of other dialects. 

Most times, going deep is the more efficient and meaningful approach.

Benefits of going deep into one dialect:

• You’ll understand the culture much more. 

  The thing is, you will probably travel to the region where it is spoken, read books and articles about it, watch documentaries, movies or TV series, listen to podcasts or to the news. These will all add to your knowledge of the culture that comes with the language. 

• You’ll connect more easily with native speakers.

• You’ll pick up on nuances and expressions. 

• You’ll look and sound less like a foreigner and be able to interact in a more profound way. 

• It might earn you better treatment and fewer scams.

• You’ll speed up your learning by knowing what applies to your target country or region. 

Example: You won’t need to learn the vosotros tense if you only plan to speak Spanish in the Americas. 

What could make this more challenging? 

The tools and resources available to your specific dialect might be limited. Sometimes you won’t have any other choice but to learn with a resource that isn’t 100% for you. 

You will need to focus a bit more on what you hear/read and know what IS and what ISN’T primordial. 

The same goes with content, such as movies, books, and TV series. There are way more Spanish movies than Guatemalan ones. 

You may need to dig deeper to find content to consume, but that is part of the adventure. 

Anyway, you will need a good enough level to understand these and by the time you are ready, you will have a sufficient knowledge base to comprehend most of what is said. 

This is a minor detail. Not even a hurdle. 

So you’ve made your choice—what now?

Well, it now comes down to what resources exist and are available to you. Don’t go looking for the entirety of what exists. Try to find what you need most at your current level.

Just starting out? 

Look for:

• Podcasts

• Audio courses

• Books

• Learning apps 

Do they have specific content for your target language? 

If so, go with those. 

If not? 

Settle for close enough, that will do the trick, 100%.

Need more vocabulary, expressions, etc.?

Look for:

• Words and expressions lists (i.e.: List of the 10 essential Colombian expressions.)

• Websites that focus on a specific dialect. (i.e. Learn everything about the specificities of Austrian German.)

You may need to take some time for that but the rewards are worth it.

More advanced and want to talk to someone from your target country? 

Well, there are a couple of ways to do that, but the easiest is to go to a platform like iTalki and find the perfect tutor for you. 

They all need to state where they are from and where they live at the present moment. You should be able to find the perfect match. 

🔗 You can read a complete walkthrough of iTalki here.

Pro tip

Planning to visit the country? Book your trip now. 

The added pressure will focus your attention and motivation to a superior level.

What now?

Now that you have a clearer idea of where you are going and how to get there, get to work. 

Find out:

• What’s available to you

• What concessions you will have to make now in order to speed things up 

• What you will have to keep in mind if you have to learn from a less than perfect source. 

Don’t forget, try to go as deep as you can before going wide.

✅ Action step:

Choose which variant of the language you want to learn.

Search for available resources.

If you find more advanced stuff, just write it down. This way, you won’t have to redo this step down the road.

👉 Got more questions? Head over to our Q&A Section—chances are we’ve already answered it (and if not, we will!).

👉 Ready to start your language journey? Grab our free guide “How to QuickStart Your Journey to Fluency” and take your first steps today!

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