When you are mastering a new language, it can be an exciting experience, but some languages take much more time and work than others! The complexity relies on multiple factors, including your native language, the writing system, pronunciation, grammar, vocabulary, and practice. Some languages are regarded as extra difficult by even native speakers of the English language, due to their great differences from English.
There is no single straightforward response to this question about the hardest languages to learn for everybody. One learner may find a language difficult that is easier for another. On the contrary, languages like Mandarin Chinese, Arabic, Japanese, Korean, Russian, or Finnish are usually classified as hard due to their particular grammar and learning needs.

Exploring the top hardest languages to learn can help learners understand which languages require the most time, practice, and dedication.

What Makes a Language Hard to Learn

It is nice to understand what makes a language difficult before going through the hardest languages. The first huge factor: grammar. Certain languages involve complicated verb, noun (including case and gender), or sentence structure rules.

• A lot of the difference might also come from the writing system. To put that into context: English (the one we will be focusing on today) uses the Roman alphabet, but languages such as Japanese, Chinese, Korean and Arabic have very different writing systems.

• Pronunciation is another challenge. This is leading to the creation of new languages as learnt from other languages that contain sounds not represented by English. A learner can read a word but with difficulty pronouncing it word-wise even if they recognise it.

• Vocabulary also matters. Pirated a pirate copy of the novel by Redmond. Conversely, a language that may use entirely different vocabulary can have thousands of new words to memorise.

• Last but now not least, practice additionally does its task. A foreign language is always difficult, but the work on reading, listening, speaking, and writing expands possibilities.

Mandarin Chinese

Mandarin Chinese is one of the most difficult languages for English speakers to learn. Its writing system is one of the biggest challenges. Mandarin is written with Chinese characters, not an alphabet, which means learners have to memorize thousands of them.
Also, pronunciation can be an issue because Mandarin is a tonal language. Depending on the tone at which a word is said, it can vary in meaning. It means that learners have to listen very carefully to how words are pronounced — both the pitch and pronunciation of individual words.
The bright side is that certain aspects of its grammar can be simpler than students expect. Compared to many European languages, there are no verb conjugations. While learning the language regularly, it is possible for learners to slowly learn to get accustomed to the language.

Arabic

One of the languages that many students should not learn is Arabic. The first reason is because of its writing, which is so different from the English language. We have seen that Arabic is written from right to left direction and the shape of some letters varies according to their position in a word.
It has sounds that are unfamiliar to English speakers, which is why it may take practice to speak Arabic. Words have their complications by means of variations, and they come according to gender, number and grammatical structure.
What might also intrigue you is the fact that one dialect of spoken Arabic can be very different from another. The language of the literature is called Modern Standard Arabic in a formal sociolinguistic sense, and several common spoken varieties exist, unique to their respective countries.

Japanese

Japanese is widely recognised as one of the most challenging languages to learn due to its unique combination of multiple writing systems. Learners typically come in contact with these three types of scripts — hiragana, katakana, and kanji.
It can take a long time to learn because there are so many characters that you have to learn; this is the case with kanji. Japanese is also quite a different model from English when it comes to sentence structure. To a beginner, the ordering of information may seem anomalous.
Japanese also utilises various levels of politeness with regard to the situation and relationship between the speakers. Learners need to learn where to use casual or polite expressions.
However, Japanese is also super logical and has fairly consistent pronunciation rules. Exposure to Japanese books, videos, and everyday conversations through mundane phrases would make it a lot easier for you.

Korean

One reason why Korean can be hard for an English speaker is that its grammar and sentence structure are so different from English. Korean syntax is typically subject-object-verb. English is flexible and can be either subject-verb-object or the reverse.
Korean also has levels of speech and honorifics. How you talk can differ depending on who you're talking to and where.
One notable exception, however, is the Korean writing system — Hangul, which many people consider relatively logical and systematic. Most newbies can pick up the basic letters rather quickly. The biggest challenge often comes from grammar, vocabulary, and real conversation.

Russian

Russian is another one that can be difficult from the grammar and pronunciation perspective. Unlike the Greek alphabet used in Modern Greek, however, it uses the Cyrillic alphabet, which means that beginners initially have to learn a new set of letters.
Russian also uses grammatical cases. These cases attach to the ends of words and modify the form of the word based on how it is used in a sentence. Nouns are gendered, and adjectives tend to morph into the same form.
Sounds and consonant combinations that can seem unfamiliar may also take time to master. However, once learners have grasped the main grammar patterns, Russian becomes more predictable!

Finnish

Finnish is another language that gets mentioned quite often when it comes to difficult languages. This makes its vocabulary very different to English and many other widely taught European languages.
Finally, Finnish has many grammatical cases, meaning that words inflect in relation to the role they play in a sentence. Instead of this, learners need to learn these patterns by themselves instead of using only the order of words.
Finnish is relatively consistent in how you say the words from a written aspect, which can help. But vocabulary and rules of grammar can take a lot of practice to master!

Hungarian

The Hungarian language has unique grammar and vocabulary. It is a member of the Uralic language family which bears little resemblance to English or many other Western European languages.
So there are many grammatical endings in the language to show how they go together. The Hungarian language often doesn't use separate words as much as English, especially in the case of prepositions:
Learners will not realise this as you structure the sentences just like this, and it may confuse them in the beginning, but it gets easier when they see it is a pattern. Be patient with yourself — it takes time and repetition!

Polish

Polish is a difficult language due to its pronunciation, spelling, and grammar. However, some Polish words include clusters of consonants that would be tricky for beginners.
Polish is another so-called Slavic language like Russian, and nouns are inflected with grammatical genders (like Russian). A word can transform its meaning depending on how it is used in a text. It turns out that Polish can be easier for learners who already speak another Slavic language, due to similarities in vocabulary and grammar.

Learning A HARD Language – How Long Does It Take?

There is no set time in which a hard language should be learnt. Your native language, how you learn, the time you dedicate to it, and even your goals — they all play a role.
For instance, a person who studies 30 minutes every day is likely to make progress at a different rate than someone who takes lessons for several hours each week. Your goal also matters. It's easier to learn some simple phrases about travel than it is to return to levels of fluency that allow for academic or work use.
The best way is by practising consistently. A little bit every day is better than a couple of hours once a week!

Tips to Study Hard Word Language

Set realistic goals if you decide to learn any of these challenging languages. Do not attempt to learn everything in the first go.

• Start with the most common words and simple phrases. Native speakers can provide insight into accents, correct pronunciation, and use of natural spoken language. This is also why speaking out loud on a regular basis is so important; reading it and actually using the language are two totally different skills.

• Flashcards for vocabulary and writing small sentences for grammar. Movies, podcasts, simplified readings, and language apps can add variety to your practice.
  And finally, for heaven's sake, do not fear failure. Everyone makes mistakes, and that is a part of learning. That mistake is an avenue for you to know the language more.

Final Thoughts

Note that no language is actually impossible to learn, only very difficult for the average English-speaker. Languages like Mandarin Chinese, Arabic, Japanese, Korean, Russian, Finnish, Hungarian, and Polish might have some issues, but with regular practice, any of those can be learned.
Instead of worrying about how tough it is to learn a language, consider why you want to do so! A powerful reason to learn will also carry you through when grammar, pronunciation, or vocabulary is tough. Choosing the best professional certificate programs can help learners build practical skills and improve their career opportunities.
In time, with a bit of practice and the right resources to learn from as well as reasonable goals, even a hard language can become much easier. The secret is to be consistent, spend time every day on it, and more than anything, have fun finding a new form of communication.