how to realistically write a bilingual character
no one who speaks 2+ languages ever “randomly” switches in the middle of a sentence. like that just…….. doesn’t happen?
the only times people will get confused and mix them up is when:
a) they’re in an environment where they have to alternate between speaking two languages often/quickly, and the brain can’t keep up and messes up.
b) they’ve been in an environment where they have to speak/hear one language for a long time, and when they change settings it takes them a moment to not instinctively go for the other language.
c) they’re hearing one language (music, radio, background chatter) and trying to speak another
interrupting themselves in the middle of a conversation because they can only remember the word they wanna say in another language
having the perfect idiom/expression for a situation but it doesn’t translate as well
having the perfect word for a situation but it doesn’t even fucking exist in that language
if ur character is out in public with their family, i can guarantee u that they’ll talk shit about people around them in their native tongue
calling their significant others pet names is a conscious choice. it doesn’t just “slip up”. it may come naturally with time, but saying a word in another language is something you like… immediately notice
swearing is complicated and i’m not getting into it rn
anyone who has ever picked up another language has been pissed at specific vowels and pronunciations and this is the gospel truth
[forgets a word] [attempts to explicitely describe the thing they’re trying to say] [forgets a word while trying to explain themselves] “oh jesus christ nevermind”
will know how to speak a language but not know any of the mathematical/scientific/biological terms because they went to school in a different language and no one learns, like, algebra in a second language unless they studied in multiple languages.
[knows a word but they’ve only ever read it and they have no idea how it’s pronounced]
there’s probably more stuff that i’m forgetting rn but that’s like, the main bits. thank u for ur time
jbbartram-illu
dededos
yousharknotpass
janainaart
kaledo-art
stormborns
