Last night I responded to a gentleman’s “gracias” with “de nada.” I’ve known that phrase since I was a kid, but I’d never used it. Honestly, I never had the chance. Now, though, I find myself in a highly diverse community where I’m hearing languages I’d rarely encountered before. Growing up, Spanish speakers were all around me, but social and cultural pressures often discouraged them from using their first language publicly. That’s not the case here. I’m not currently studying Spanish, but I was recently able to use a small bit of what I remembered—even just one tiny phrase—to connect with someone. And it felt meaningful.

When I was younger, I saw language learning as a process of memorizing words and rules. That’s probably why I have a decent Spanish vocabulary but can’t actually communicate in Spanish. I memorized how to greet people, ask how they were, count, and respond to a “thank you”—but none of it ever led to real conversations.

Memorization is important, of course. But it’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking we need to memorize every word, phrase, or grammatical rule before we start using the language. That mindset can be dangerous. First, it’s overwhelming. There are so many words in English that I’m still learning new ones despite speaking it all my life. Second, many of the grammar rules we study don’t show up much in conversation—some are even outdated, even in formal writing (I see you, “no prepositions at the end of a sentence”). And third, that kind of memorization-heavy approach can take the joy out of the process, leaving us frustrated and discouraged.

A better strategy is to start with core vocabulary—search for lists of the most frequently used words—and focus on basic present-tense sentence structure. That alone gives you a surprising amount of communicative power. With just the 100 most common English words and a grasp of basic sentence formation, you can already say things like:

• How do I get there?
• I can find it.
• These are their people.
• We want to look at it.
• She sees the man.
• Tell her why.

With these building blocks, we can begin to explore our target language in the wild. It might feel uncomfortable. We’ll misunderstand things. But we’ll also be able to ask simple questions, express basic ideas, and interact with the language in real contexts—before we’ve memorized 2,000 words or mastered all the tenses.

This approach helps us avoid some common pitfalls. When we engage with the language in real time, we learn by understanding. If someone says something meaningful to us, it sticks. We start noticing patterns, picking up on context clues, and building vocabulary more naturally. And the need to respond in the moment gives us a chance to test what we know, make mistakes, and get instant feedback.

Here’s a tip if you’re just starting out: choose a hobby or personal interest and begin building vocabulary around that. Then seek out chances to talk about it. You’ll stay more engaged because you’re speaking about something that matters to you—and that enthusiasm makes learning feel less like a chore and more like an adventure.

It’s easy to get stuck in memorization mode, but the real magic happens when we use what we know. Formulaic expressions like greetings and polite responses are helpful starting points—but it’s through active use, not passive study, that we begin to understand the language on a deeper level and develop the ability to communicate in meaningful ways.