--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: French is a foreign language, but I've…" description: "\"French is a foreign language, but I've been speaking it since I was 18 so it's second nature to me.\" — Kristin Scott Thomas" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/23e/kristin-scott-thomas-6749_foreign-language_french-is-a-foreign-language-but-i-ve-be_642278.jpg" --- # French is a foreign language, but I've been speaking it… ![“French is a foreign language, but I've been speaking it since I was 18 so it's second nature to me.” quote by Kristin Scott Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/23e/kristin-scott-thomas-6749_foreign-language_french-is-a-foreign-language-but-i-ve-be_642278.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/23e/kristin-scott-thomas-6749_foreign-language_french-is-a-foreign-language-but-i-ve-be_642278.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/23e/kristin-scott-thomas-6749_foreign-language_french-is-a-foreign-language-but-i-ve-be_642278.jpg) > “French is a foreign language, but I've been speaking it since I was 18 so it's second nature to me.” [Kristin Scott Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-scott-thomas/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. She emphasizes that long-term immersion makes a foreign language feel natural. **In simple terms:** Immersion makes foreign language feel natural. Key Takeaway Practice regularly to internalize language. Themes language learning immersion confidence Mood proud confident Type personal anecdote reflective When to use this quote - travel - living abroad - daily conversation - professional use Key Concepts second language acquisition neuroplasticity Questions to Reflect On - How does immersion differ from formal study? - What challenges arise when switching languages? A Different Perspective May overlook cultural nuances despite fluency. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Foreign language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/foreign-language/) [French](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/french/) [French Foreign](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/french-foreign-3623287/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Spanish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spanish/) [Speaking 18](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/speaking-18-5153808/) ## Related quotes > [Hmm. Petty? Yes. Ineffectual? Yes. Infuriating and off-putting? Yes. Counterproductive? Yes. It's got to be a product of the French Foreign Ministry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-reynolds/hmm-petty-yes-ineffectual-yes-infuriating-and-off-putting-yes/) [Glenn Reynolds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-reynolds/) > [I really like acting in French. It's actually quite different for me, from acting in English. It's fun acting in a foreign language. You're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-scott-thomas/i-really-like-acting-in-french-it-s-actually-quite-different-for-me/) [Kristin Scott Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-scott-thomas/) > [Columbia University, where I went to study in 1993, insisted its undergraduates learn a foreign language, so I discovered French.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aravind-adiga/columbia-university-where-i-went-to-study-in-1993-insisted-its/) [Aravind Adiga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aravind-adiga/) > [I feel pretty stupid that I don't know any foreign languages. I wish I knew French or Arabic or Chinese.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gates/i-feel-pretty-stupid-that-i-don-t-know-any-foreign-languages-i-wish-i/) [Bill Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gates/) > [I realized very early in life what my abilities and limitations were, and foreign languages was definitely one of my limitations. With strenuous effort,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michio-kaku/i-realized-very-early-in-life-what-my-abilities-and-limitations-were/) [Michio Kaku](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michio-kaku/) > [When I was in high school, I started learning English as my second foreign language, but my level of English at that time was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/petr-cech/when-i-was-in-high-school-i-started-learning-english-as-my-second/) [Petr Cech](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/petr-cech/) > [I just know so many people who have six or seven foreign languages and have read everything and have musical training and they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-epstein/i-just-know-so-many-people-who-have-six-or-seven-foreign-languages/) [Joseph Epstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-epstein/) > [I have only so many foreign-language neurons. When I learned Spanish, that displaced whatever Irish was left, and then I learned German, and that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-power/i-have-only-so-many-foreign-language-neurons-when-i-learned-spanish/) [Samantha Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-power/) > [I can speak French but I cannot understand it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/i-can-speak-french-but-i-cannot-understand-it/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [I always wanted to learn French or Italian growing up. I love the romantic sound of those languages.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/riley-stearns/i-always-wanted-to-learn-french-or-italian-growing-up-i-love-the/) [Riley Stearns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/riley-stearns/) > [I've been working with Spanish, French, some more American, and Japanese directors. And then I realized I have to study English, and that's why…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rinko-kikuchi/i-ve-been-working-with-spanish-french-some-more-american-and-japanese/) [Rinko Kikuchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rinko-kikuchi/) > [Serious drama in a significant degree began at Harvard in the 1880s. In 1881, the Cercle Francais initiated the annual French play, and shortly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-anthony-lukas/serious-drama-in-a-significant-degree-began-at-harvard-in-the-1880s/) [J. Anthony Lukas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-anthony-lukas/) > [French sounds flat. In English, you can play with pitch.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-green/french-sounds-flat-in-english-you-can-play-with-pitch/) [Eva Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-green/) > [When I need to get into details, I like French. But when I want to do something stronger, English is better. The swear words…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jo-wilfried-tsonga/when-i-need-to-get-into-details-i-like-french-but-when-i-want-to-do/) [Jo-Wilfried Tsonga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jo-wilfried-tsonga/) > [I can speak French.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rubi-rose/i-can-speak-french/) [Rubi Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rubi-rose/) ## More by Kristin Scott Thomas > [People are always saying, English, English, English rose, and I just feel so completely different.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-scott-thomas/people-are-always-saying-english-english-english-rose-and-i-just-feel/) [Kristin Scott Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-scott-thomas/) > [You have to think about whether that Mercedes-Benz you have is actually worth how much it costs to you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-scott-thomas/you-have-to-think-about-whether-that-mercedes-benz-you-have-is/) [Kristin Scott Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-scott-thomas/) > [My children are lovely. They're perfect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-scott-thomas/my-children-are-lovely-they-re-perfect/) [Kristin Scott Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-scott-thomas/) > [Baths are my favorite thing. I can have two, three a day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-scott-thomas/baths-are-my-favorite-thing-i-can-have-two-three-a-day/) [Kristin Scott Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-scott-thomas/) > [Movies make you immortal and ageless.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-scott-thomas/movies-make-you-immortal-and-ageless/) [Kristin Scott Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-scott-thomas/) > [I have never met a woman who works who doesn't feel guilty. I mean we all deny it like crazy but deep down there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-scott-thomas/i-have-never-met-a-woman-who-works-who-doesn-t-feel-guilty-i-mean-we/) [Kristin Scott Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-scott-thomas/) > [We older women in Europe are lucky not to be shoved away in a drawer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-scott-thomas/we-older-women-in-europe-are-lucky-not-to-be-shoved-away-in-a-drawer/) [Kristin Scott Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-scott-thomas/) > [I tend to do things that I'm very frightened of. That's what I do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-scott-thomas/i-tend-to-do-things-that-i-m-very-frightened-of-that-s-what-i-do/) [Kristin Scott Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-scott-thomas/) > [Buy, buy, buy, buy! They want to grab you and trap you and turn you into little Elizabeth Hurleys.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-scott-thomas/buy-buy-buy-buy-they-want-to-grab-you-and-trap-you-and-turn-you-into/) [Kristin Scott Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-scott-thomas/) > [With the theatre, your whole day is geared towards the evening's show, and that's the job. People usually go to work about 9 and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-scott-thomas/with-the-theatre-your-whole-day-is-geared-towards-the-evening-s-show/) [Kristin Scott Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-scott-thomas/) > [I'm a bit of a Doubting Thomas - always worrying about things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-scott-thomas/i-m-a-bit-of-a-doubting-thomas-always-worrying-about-things/) [Kristin Scott Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-scott-thomas/) > [I mean, if you're being directed very precisely by somebody who has admiration and who's really smart, it's great. If you're being told what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-scott-thomas/i-mean-if-you-re-being-directed-very-precisely-by-somebody-who-has/) [Kristin Scott Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-scott-thomas/) > [My body is a baby machine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-scott-thomas/my-body-is-a-baby-machine/) [Kristin Scott Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-scott-thomas/) > [I find it very difficult to be two different characters at the same time - actress and mother.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-scott-thomas/i-find-it-very-difficult-to-be-two-different-characters-at-the-same/) [Kristin Scott Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-scott-thomas/) > [I am sure that, had I grown up with both parents, had I grown up in a safe environment, had I grown up with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-scott-thomas/i-am-sure-that-had-i-grown-up-with-both-parents-had-i-grown-up-in-a/) [Kristin Scott Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-scott-thomas/) [Explore all 97 Kristin Scott Thomas quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-scott-thomas/) ## More Foreign language quotes > [I put myself in the student's place and remember the frustrations, doubts, determination, and desires I felt when I was going through the initial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-martinez/i-put-myself-in-the-student-s-place-and-remember-the-frustrations/) [Ted Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-martinez/) > [Columbia University, where I went to study in 1993, insisted its undergraduates learn a foreign language, so I discovered French.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aravind-adiga/columbia-university-where-i-went-to-study-in-1993-insisted-its/) [Aravind Adiga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aravind-adiga/) > [“Hear me now or regret it later: Everything you write must be read aloud. Once all the context items are in place, this is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jiro-adachi/hear-me-now-or-regret-it-later-everything-you-write-must-be-read/) [Jiro Adachi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jiro-adachi/) > [Wer fremde Sprachen nicht kennt, weiss nichts von seiner eigenen.He who is ignorant of foreign languages, knows not his own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/wer-fremde-sprachen-nicht-kennt-weiss-nichts-von-seiner-eigenen-he/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [The immense value of becoming acquainted with a foreign language is that we are thereby led into a new world of tradition and thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/havelock-ellis/the-immense-value-of-becoming-acquainted-with-a-foreign-language-is/) [Havelock Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/havelock-ellis/) > [As the president of Kosovo, I am more concerned about the current situation with the employment standing at around 70 % of the population,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibrahim-rugova/as-the-president-of-kosovo-i-am-more-concerned-about-the-current/) [Ibrahim Rugova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibrahim-rugova/) > [I have a one-question language test that people who have lived abroad do better on than those who studied in a classroom. Try my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-kristof/i-have-a-one-question-language-test-that-people-who-have-lived-abroad/) [Nicholas Kristof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-kristof/) > [“Under ordinary circumstances, we learn to speak before we learn to read, and anyone who has tried to learn a foreign language knows that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kory-stamper/under-ordinary-circumstances-we-learn-to-speak-before-we-learn-to/) [Kory Stamper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kory-stamper/) > [“The Actor, noticing a closed bookshop, dismounted from the horse which he tied to a street lamp. He woke up the bookseller and bought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-limbour/the-actor-noticing-a-closed-bookshop-dismounted-from-the-horse-which/) [Georges Limbour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-limbour/) > [One of the things I like about my job is that it draws on the entire person: not just your knowledge of grammar and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-norris/one-of-the-things-i-like-about-my-job-is-that-it-draws-on-the-entire/) [Mary Norris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-norris/) > [“The obvious cure for the tragic shortcomings of human intuition in a high-tech world is education. And this offers priorities for educational policy: to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-pinker/the-obvious-cure-for-the-tragic-shortcomings-of-human-intuition-in-a/) [Steven Pinker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-pinker/) > [Modern man is educated to understand foreign languages and misunderstand foreigners.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-k-chesterton/modern-man-is-educated-to-understand-foreign-languages-and/) [Gilbert K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-k-chesterton/) > [I think most Israelis prefer not to know. So for them, texts about the occupation are like something that's been written in a foreign…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amira-hass/i-think-most-israelis-prefer-not-to-know-so-for-them-texts-about-the/) [Amira Hass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amira-hass/) > [“You are so young, so much before all beginning, and I would like to beg you, dear Sir, as well as I can, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/you-are-so-young-so-much-before-all-beginning-and-i-would-like-to-beg/) [Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/) > [The language skill in the U.S. for the most part has been awful. Many Americans don't learn any foreign language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-a-schwarzman/the-language-skill-in-the-u-s-for-the-most-part-has-been-awful-many/) [Stephen A. Schwarzman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-a-schwarzman/) [Browse all 281 Foreign language quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/foreign-language/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "French is a foreign language, but I've been speaking it since I was 18 so it's second nature to me.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Kristin Scott Thomas" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-scott-thomas/french-is-a-foreign-language-but-i-ve-been-speaking-it-since-i-was-18/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Foreign language" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-scott-thomas/french-is-a-foreign-language-but-i-ve-been-speaking-it-since-i-was-18/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/23e/kristin-scott-thomas-6749_foreign-language_french-is-a-foreign-language-but-i-ve-be_642278.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/23e/kristin-scott-thomas-6749_foreign-language_french-is-a-foreign-language-but-i-ve-be_642278.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/23e/kristin-scott-thomas-6749_foreign-language_french-is-a-foreign-language-but-i-ve-be_642278.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“French is a foreign language, but I've been speaking it since I was 18 so it's second nature to me.” — Kristin Scott Thomas", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Kristin Scott Thomas", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-scott-thomas/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "French is a foreign language, but...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-scott-thomas/french-is-a-foreign-language-but-i-ve-been-speaking-it-since-i-was-18/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-scott-thomas/french-is-a-foreign-language-but-i-ve-been-speaking-it-since-i-was-18/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```