Will I be fluent in Spanish after studying abroad for four months?

Question

I've studied Spanish freshman to junior year, but it didn't fit into my schedule senior year so I may have forgotten lots. However, I still remember the basics and I'm sure that once I refresh my memory it'll catch on again

I'm planning on studying abroad for four months, where I'd live in a homestay with a non-English speaking family and also take intensive courses. Would four months be enough to become fluent? (and by fluent I mean able to hold a fluid, decent conversation and be able to understand most.. of course not to the extent of being able to pass as a native)

thanks

Answer 1

Fluent means being able to speak and write with effortless ease, so, no you won't be fluent in four months. But it should be  long enough to be able to hold a conversation without too much difficulty. The good thing about your plans is that, speaking to Spanish natives for four months will help you to pick up nuances an pronunciations that you may not get in a school study.

Answer 2

It depends how good you are at languages.  When I was in high school, I went to a Spanish immersion program to Chile.  When I was in college, I spent a semester in Spain.  I met some other students who had absolutely no previous Spanish and who were fluent in two months, and others who had taken a few classes but still had horrific accents and could barely make themselves understood at the end of the semester.  I had a reasonable ear and a decent amount of Spanish beforehand, but the best I ever got to was to hold a reasonable conversation with a patient person and understand someone talking directly to me if I could interrupt and ask a question if I didn't understand something.  That said, I never studied intensively, more for fun.

Answer 3

Fluent, doubtful. Proficient -- IF you are willing to work and do things right. One of those things is avoiding English as much as possible! That includes chatting, phone calls, etc. The more you use English, the less you will learn Spanish! In some cases, one hour of interaction in your native language will cost three days of immersion.