why is english so confusing?

Question

why cant english be phonetic? and why do we need words that mean more than one thing but spelt the same?
cant they invent new words?

Answer 1

English is a wonderful language that has evolved over centuries from many other languages....

This may amuse you!

ENGLISH

The English Language is clear enough
Despite bough and cough and dough and tough
Mistakes are possible it’s true
With hiccough, thorough, lough and through
Beware of heard – a tricky word
That looks like beard but sounds like bird
And dead, it is said like bed not bead
It is wrong to pronounce a fellow deed.
Watch out for meat and great and threat
They rhyme with suite and straight and debt.
A moth is not a moth in mother
Nor both in bother, broth in brother
And here is not a rhyme for there
Nor dear and fear for bear and pear
There is always dose and rose and lose
Look those up with goose and choose
And cork with work and card with ward
Or font with front and word with sword
And do and go or thwart and cart –
Speaking English is an art
With all these traps in which to fall
It is a wonder we can speak at all.
Author Unknown.

I do have another one, but it is quite long so I won't put it here, if you would like to see it then feel free to email me....

Answer 2

Why are you asking this question in this category, or should that be "dogegory"? English is an ancient language that has evolved from many sources (chiefly Nordic/Germanic and Romance - French, etc) over many thousands of years. If you were thousands of years old and had parents from cultures that diverse, you'd be illogical too. As for inventing new words, well, we leave that to the Americans. It is a harmless pastime that takes their minds off bombing people. PS. I have a very nice little puppy by the way.

Answer 3

I think people in here already invented new words..Have you check out their spelling lately. They use words like. U..Tat..ver..sup....If people would go back to using proper English rather than this yahoo lingo they all made up..English may not be so hard to understand.

Is this question in Dogs..or am I in the wrong place lol

Answer 4

English is constantly "inventing" new words.. every year they add words to the dictionary.. so, it is in constant evolution.. and yes, it is difficult, but there are other difficult languages as well.. I am learning to speak Thai and they have five tones and so much sounds alike.. here's one for you - - in Thai language, they "open" and "close" the light, television etc.. so, I taught my wife that in English - we "turn on" and "turn off" the tv, the light etc.. and it was a fun game - - and we went around the house doing this - - that night, when we went out, she told me to "turn off the tv, turn off the light" and then as we were leaving she said "turn off the door" - - - no, not easy..

Answer 5

I am from the English motherland (now living in Australia) and am not a young lady anymore. Still I get confused with things like when to use Borrow and Lend - Their and there (not really- I am ok on this one) but what frustrates me most now days is even spell check does not even pick it up!!

Answer 6

OK look first of all why is this in the pet section??? second of all its because it comes from a lot of different country's and how they speak and 3rd of all it because that Americans are TOO lazy to make new words, and i agree with you!!

Answer 7

we are to lazy to invent new words. but I do agree, english is a confusing language.

Answer 8

because english is not a right.. it is a gift. we dont want just anyone speaking to us in our language. so we made it very complicated and followed no rhyme or reason when we created it.

Answer 9

That is why english is such a fun language.

Answer 10

because it comes from so many peoples languages