When starting a new language, many people believe they must begin with the alphabet. While that might make sense for written languages, it’s not always the best path for speaking and understanding a language quickly—especially if your goal is to communicate, not to write essays or pass grammar tests.

Let me tell you something bold: you don’t need to memorize the alphabet to speak a language.

In fact, focusing on the alphabet might actually slow you down.

Think Like a Baby

How do babies learn to speak?
They don’t start with ABCs.
They listen, observe, and copy what people say. That’s all. No textbooks. No grammar charts. No pressure.

They repeat sounds. They copy intonation. They use the music of the language before they understand its structure.

That’s exactly what you need to do.

Imitation First, Explanation Later

If you want to speak well, forget about spelling and grammar at first. Focus on sound. Mimic. Shadow. Copy. Repeat.

Here’s what works:

  • Listen to short audio clips or videos.
  • Pause.
  • Repeat what you hear – even if you don’t understand it yet.
  • Copy the tone, the rhythm, the melody of the language.

Don’t worry about the meaning right away. Your brain is smarter than you think. It will catch up. Just like babies, you’ll start connecting sounds to meaning naturally.

But Isn’t Reading Important?

Yes – but not at the beginning.
Reading is great for expanding vocabulary, learning spelling, and grammar later. But for fluency in speaking and listening, reading often gets in the way—especially in languages that don’t sound the way they’re written (like English or French).

And if the language has a different script (like Japanese, Arabic, or Thai), the alphabet will just make you feel overwhelmed.

So What Should I Do?

Start with these 3 rules:

  1. Listen every day – even 5 minutes is enough.
  2. Copy the sounds – speak out loud, don’t just listen passively.
  3. Don’t touch the alphabet until you feel comfortable with the sounds.

You can always go back and learn how the words are written later. But if you want to speak fast and sound natural, learn like a child: imitate first.

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