Intrinsic and Extrinsic Factors that Contribute To the Difficulty of Learning False Cognates1

Abstract

ABSTRACT The difficulty posed by false cognates stems largely from two sources: intrinsic factors (inherently confusing characteristics of false cognates themselves) and extrinsic factors (ambiguous, contradictory, and sometimes incorrect input). This article identifies and discusses ten factors that contribute to the difficulties that language learners may have in dealing with false cognates and provides suggestions for minimizing the confusion. The terms “reliably false cognates” and “unreliably false cognates” are proposed to differentiate the false cognates that never have overlapping meanings from those that have both false and true cognate meanings.