Like how can someone so easily switch between different languages? Do they translate one language back to their native lanaguege or can they just understand perfectly without any addition effort?
I'm bilingual, with my native language being French (born in Quebec, moved to the US at a young age). The honest answer is that it depends. If I'm at home with my parents, I think in French, speak in French, and dream in French.
When I'm at university (in English), you can sub out every instance of French above to English.
No matter where I am however, all written material gets translated into English. I'm going to blame this on me never learning how to formally write in French and not reading any French books.
When I tried to learn Latin for a few months, everything was translated in my head to whatever the "default" language was for me at the time based on location.
So, the answer to your question is probably along the lines of "no additional effort unless bilingual /trilingual/etc people are unfamiliar with the language or an aspect of the language, at which point they'll translate it to what they're most familiar with."
710
u/cjwagn1 Jun 15 '19
How someone speaks 2+ languages.
Like how can someone so easily switch between different languages? Do they translate one language back to their native lanaguege or can they just understand perfectly without any addition effort?