---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: English grammar and composition is…"
description: "\"“English grammar and composition is difficult even for the English, but worse and worse for a Welsh boy. He speaks, reads, writes, and he thinks in Wel..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/564/richard-llewellyn-4816_english-grammar_english-grammar-and-composition-is-diffi_402110.png"
---

#  English grammar and composition is difficult even for the…

![“English grammar and composition is difficult even for the English, but worse and worse for a Welsh boy. He speaks, reads, writes, and he thinks in Welsh, at home, in the street, and in Chapel, and when he reads English he will understand it in Welsh, and when he speaks English, he will pronounce…” quote by Richard Llewellyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/564/richard-llewellyn-4816_english-grammar_english-grammar-and-composition-is-diffi_402110.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/564/richard-llewellyn-4816_english-grammar_english-grammar-and-composition-is-diffi_402110.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/564/richard-llewellyn-4816_english-grammar_english-grammar-and-composition-is-diffi_402110.png)

> ““English grammar and composition is difficult even for the English, but worse and worse for a Welsh boy. He speaks, reads, writes, and he thinks in Welsh, at home, in the street, and in Chapel, and when he reads English he will understand it in Welsh, and when he speaks English, he will pronounce the words with pain and using crutches. So stupid are the English, who build schools for the Welsh, and insist, on pain of punishment, that English is to be spoken, and yet, for all their insistence, never give one lesson in the pronouncing and enunciation of the spoken word. And Good God in Heaven, if you cannot read English aloud and in the English of the King, half the beauty is taken from you. O, and what pity, to hear a noble tongue chewed, and besmirched, and belittled…””

[Richard Llewellyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-llewellyn/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

The quote laments the difficulty Welsh speakers face learning English, criticizing schools that enforce English without proper pronunciation instruction, and lamenting the loss of linguistic beauty when a language is forced and mispronounced.

**In simple terms:** Welsh speakers struggle with English pronunciation due to lack of proper teaching.

Key Takeaway

Advocate for better language instruction that respects native tongues.

Themes

language education culture identity colonialism

Mood

frustrated hopeful critical

Type

cultural educational political

When to use this quote

- school curricula
- language immersion programs
- community language workshops
- policy reform

Key Concepts

bilingualism phonetics cultural erosion

Questions to Reflect On

- How can schools balance English proficiency with preserving native language integrity?
- What role should community elders play in teaching pronunciation?

A Different Perspective

It assumes all English instruction is uniformly poor, ignoring successful bilingual models.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[English grammar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/english-grammar/) [Spoken word](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spoken-word/)

## Related quotes

> [The perfidious, savage, disdainful, stupid, slothful, inhospitable, stupid English.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julius-caesar-scaliger/the-perfidious-savage-disdainful-stupid-slothful-inhospitable-stupid/)

Julius Caesar Scaliger

> [A smattering of English is worse than useless; it is an unnecessary tax on our women.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/a-smattering-of-english-is-worse-than-useless-it-is-an-unnecessary/)

[Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/)

> [“Your strong jaw, your perfectly mussed-up hair, the lean but somehow still muscular body, the height—you’re practically Captain America.” “Except English.” “Even worse!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-hodkin/your-strong-jaw-your-perfectly-mussed-up-hair-the-lean-but-somehow/)

[Michelle hodkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-hodkin/)

> [Stupid English." "English isn't stupid," I say. "Well, my English teacher is." He makes a face. "Mr. Franklin assigned an essay about our favorite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/stupid-english-english-isn-t-stupid-i-say-well-my-english-teacher-is/)

[Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/)

> [When I turned 11, we had to leave East Germany overnight because of the political orientation of my father. Now I was going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dieter-f-uchtdorf/when-i-turned-11-we-had-to-leave-east-germany-overnight-because-of/)

[Dieter F. Uchtdorf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dieter-f-uchtdorf/)

> [French is, in many ways, more difficult for an English-speaking person to sing. It is so full of complex and trying vowels. It requires…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alma-gluck/french-is-in-many-ways-more-difficult-for-an-english-speaking-person/)

[Alma Gluck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alma-gluck/)

> [Class is the most difficult subject for American writers to deal with as it is the most difficult for the English to avoid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/class-is-the-most-difficult-subject-for-american-writers-to-deal-with/)

[Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/)

> [The American struggle for the vote was much more difficult than the English for the simple reason that it was much more easy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/the-american-struggle-for-the-vote-was-much-more-difficult-than-the/)

[Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/)

> [Word lessons, in particular the wouldst couldst shouldst have loved kind, were kept up, with much warlike thrashing, until I had committed the whole…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-muir/word-lessons-in-particular-the-wouldst-couldst-shouldst-have-loved/)

[John Muir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-muir/)

> [Then suddenly, he was struck by a powerful but simple little truth, and it was this: that English grammar is governed by rules that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roald-dahl/then-suddenly-he-was-struck-by-a-powerful-but-simple-little-truth-and/)

[Roald Dahl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roald-dahl/)

> [Making English grammar conform to Latin rules is like asking people to play baseball using the rules of football.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/making-english-grammar-conform-to-latin-rules-is-like-asking-people/)

[Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/)

> [ I believe it is imperative to see modern English grammar as a rich and diverse linguistic system deposited on our \[England's\] shores 1,500 years… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-burchfield/i-believe-it-is-imperative-to-see-modern-english-grammar-as-a-rich/)

[Robert Burchfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-burchfield/)

> [“Not until 1761 did any grammarian settle on the eight that became the canonical parts of speech in English. He was the same man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-a-garner/not-until-1761-did-any-grammarian-settle-on-the-eight-that-became-the/)

Bryan A. Garner

> [Do not be surprised when those who ignore the rules of grammar also ignore the law. After all, the law is just so much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-breault/do-not-be-surprised-when-those-who-ignore-the-rules-of-grammar-also/)

[Robert Breault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-breault/)

> [English grammar is so complex and confusing for the one very simple reason that its rules and terminology are based on Latin - a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/english-grammar-is-so-complex-and-confusing-for-the-one-very-simple/)

[Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/)

## More by Richard Llewellyn

> [“What is there, in the mention of Time To Come, that is so quick to wrench at the heart, to inflict a pain in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-llewellyn/what-is-there-in-the-mention-of-time-to-come-that-is-so-quick-to/)

[Richard Llewellyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-llewellyn/)

> [O, there is lovely to feel a book, a good book, firm in the hand, for its fatness holds rich promise, and you are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-llewellyn/o-there-is-lovely-to-feel-a-book-a-good-book-firm-in-the-hand-for-its/)

[Richard Llewellyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-llewellyn/)

> [“I also have a world, is it? And I will have whoever I say to share it. Ivor it was, first, because I said…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-llewellyn/i-also-have-a-world-is-it-and-i-will-have-whoever-i-say-to-share-it/)

[Richard Llewellyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-llewellyn/)

> [“How quiet is the house when the mistress has gone. You walk in, and the same smell is a comfort to you, the air…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-llewellyn/how-quiet-is-the-house-when-the-mistress-has-gone-you-walk-in-and-the/)

[Richard Llewellyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-llewellyn/)

> [“Never mind what you feel. Think. Watch. Think again. And then one step at a time to put things right. As a mason puts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-llewellyn/never-mind-what-you-feel-think-watch-think-again-and-then-one-step-at/)

[Richard Llewellyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-llewellyn/)

> [“There is no room for pride in any man. There is no room for unkindness. There is no room for wit at the expense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-llewellyn/there-is-no-room-for-pride-in-any-man-there-is-no-room-for-unkindness/)

[Richard Llewellyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-llewellyn/)

> [“It hurt to think that a boy would not have him at his value of himself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-llewellyn/it-hurt-to-think-that-a-boy-would-not-have-him-at-his-value-of-himself/)

[Richard Llewellyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-llewellyn/)

> [“Yet Conscience is a nobleman, the best in us, and a friend.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-llewellyn/yet-conscience-is-a-nobleman-the-best-in-us-and-a-friend/)

[Richard Llewellyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-llewellyn/)

> [“For as men have fists and heads to defend themselves, so women have a gentleness of silence about them, a barrier built of things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-llewellyn/for-as-men-have-fists-and-heads-to-defend-themselves-so-women-have-a/)

[Richard Llewellyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-llewellyn/)

> [“A good friend of mine is a cup of tea indeed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-llewellyn/a-good-friend-of-mine-is-a-cup-of-tea-indeed/)

[Richard Llewellyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-llewellyn/)

> [“The evil that is in Man comes of sluggish minds...for sluggards cannot think, and will not...Send upon us thy flames that we may be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-llewellyn/the-evil-that-is-in-man-comes-of-sluggish-minds-for-sluggards-cannot/)

[Richard Llewellyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-llewellyn/)

> [“I thought when I was a young man that I would conquer the world with truth. I thought I would lead an army greater…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-llewellyn/i-thought-when-i-was-a-young-man-that-i-would-conquer-the-world-with/)

[Richard Llewellyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-llewellyn/)

> [“The world was created for Mankind, not for some of mankind.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-llewellyn/the-world-was-created-for-mankind-not-for-some-of-mankind/)

[Richard Llewellyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-llewellyn/)

> [“It is strange how you shall hate a man, and yet pity him from the depths.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-llewellyn/it-is-strange-how-you-shall-hate-a-man-and-yet-pity-him-from-the/)

[Richard Llewellyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-llewellyn/)

> [“How can there be fury felt for things that are gone to dust.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-llewellyn/how-can-there-be-fury-felt-for-things-that-are-gone-to-dust/)

[Richard Llewellyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-llewellyn/)

[Explore all 106 Richard Llewellyn quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-llewellyn/)

## More English grammar quotes

> [Do not be surprised when those who ignore the rules of grammar also ignore the law. After all, the law is just so much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-breault/do-not-be-surprised-when-those-who-ignore-the-rules-of-grammar-also/)

[Robert Breault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-breault/)

> [“Not until 1761 did any grammarian settle on the eight that became the canonical parts of speech in English. He was the same man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-a-garner/not-until-1761-did-any-grammarian-settle-on-the-eight-that-became-the/)

Bryan A. Garner

> [ I believe it is imperative to see modern English grammar as a rich and diverse linguistic system deposited on our \[England's\] shores 1,500 years… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-burchfield/i-believe-it-is-imperative-to-see-modern-english-grammar-as-a-rich/)

[Robert Burchfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-burchfield/)

> [Word lessons, in particular the wouldst couldst shouldst have loved kind, were kept up, with much warlike thrashing, until I had committed the whole…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-muir/word-lessons-in-particular-the-wouldst-couldst-shouldst-have-loved/)

[John Muir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-muir/)

> [English grammar is so complex and confusing for the one very simple reason that its rules and terminology are based on Latin - a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/english-grammar-is-so-complex-and-confusing-for-the-one-very-simple/)

[Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/)

> [Then suddenly, he was struck by a powerful but simple little truth, and it was this: that English grammar is governed by rules that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roald-dahl/then-suddenly-he-was-struck-by-a-powerful-but-simple-little-truth-and/)

[Roald Dahl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roald-dahl/)

> [Making English grammar conform to Latin rules is like asking people to play baseball using the rules of football.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/making-english-grammar-conform-to-latin-rules-is-like-asking-people/)

[Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/)

> [“I believe that no great lyric poet ever speaks in the so-called “proper” language of his or her time. Emily Dickinson didn’t write in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilya-kaminsky/i-believe-that-no-great-lyric-poet-ever-speaks-in-the-so-called/)

[Ilya Kaminsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilya-kaminsky/)

> [“the rules of English grammar are largely an artificial construct with little or no bearing on the language as it is spoke.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-aaronovitch/the-rules-of-english-grammar-are-largely-an-artificial-construct-with/)

[Ben Aaronovitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-aaronovitch/)

> [Only in grammar can you be more than perfect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-safire/only-in-grammar-can-you-be-more-than-perfect/)

[William Safire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-safire/)

> [For most of us the rules of English grammar are at best a dimly remembered thing. But even for those who make the rules,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/for-most-of-us-the-rules-of-english-grammar-are-at-best-a-dimly/)

[Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/)

> [“I remember one English teacher in the eighth grade, Florence Schrack, whose husband also taught at the high school. I thought what she said…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/i-remember-one-english-teacher-in-the-eighth-grade-florence-schrack/)

[John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/)

> [“The Elements of Style does not deserve the enormous esteem in which it is held by American college graduates. Its advice ranges from limp…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoffrey-pullum/the-elements-of-style-does-not-deserve-the-enormous-esteem-in-which/)

Geoffrey Pullum

> [“I don't know anything but the simplest rules of English grammar, and I seldom consciously apply them. Nevertheless, I instinctively write correctly and, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/issac-asimov/i-don-t-know-anything-but-the-simplest-rules-of-english-grammar-and-i/)

Issac Asimov

> [“The chief characteristic of English grammar is the way words are arranged within sentences, and the technical term for this process is syntax. It”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-crystal/the-chief-characteristic-of-english-grammar-is-the-way-words-are/)

[David Crystal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-crystal/)

[Browse all 18 English grammar quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/english-grammar/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“English grammar and composition is difficult even for the English, but worse and worse for a Welsh boy. He speaks, reads, writes, and he thinks in Welsh, at home, in the street, and in Chapel, and when he reads English he will understand it in Welsh, and when he speaks English, he will pronounce the words with pain and using crutches. So stupid are the English, who build schools for the Welsh, and insist, on pain of punishment, that English is to be spoken, and yet, for all their insistence, never give one lesson in the pronouncing and enunciation of the spoken word. And Good God in Heaven, if you cannot read English aloud and in the English of the King, half the beauty is taken from you. O, and what pity, to hear a noble tongue chewed, and besmirched, and belittled…”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Richard Llewellyn"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-llewellyn/english-grammar-and-composition-is-difficult-even-for-the-english-but/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "English grammar"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-llewellyn/english-grammar-and-composition-is-difficult-even-for-the-english-but/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/564/richard-llewellyn-4816_english-grammar_english-grammar-and-composition-is-diffi_402110.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/564/richard-llewellyn-4816_english-grammar_english-grammar-and-composition-is-diffi_402110.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/564/richard-llewellyn-4816_english-grammar_english-grammar-and-composition-is-diffi_402110.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“English grammar and composition is difficult even for the English, but worse and worse for a Welsh boy. He…” — Richard Llewellyn",
                "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": "Richard Llewellyn",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-llewellyn/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“English grammar and composition is difficult...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-llewellyn/english-grammar-and-composition-is-difficult-even-for-the-english-but/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-llewellyn/english-grammar-and-composition-is-difficult-even-for-the-english-but/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
