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Hablas espanol? Parlez-vous francais?
你会说西班牙语、法语、中文吗？
If you answered, "sí," "oui," or "hui"
如果你能回答"si"，"oui" 或是"会"，
and you're watching this in English, chances are you belong to the world's bilingual and multilingual majority.
而且能用英文字幕观看这部短片，你就跟世界上大多数人一样，属于双语或多语的使用者。
And besides having an easier time traveling or watching movies without subtitles, knowing two or more languages
除了旅游时沟通比较方便，或是看电影时不需要字幕这些好处之外，通晓两种或三种以上的语言，
means that your brain may actually look and work differently than those of your monolingual friends.
表示你的脑袋在外表和运作方式上，与使用单一语言的朋友有明显的不同。
So what does it really mean to know a language?
究竟什么是通晓一种语言？
Language ability is typically measured in two active parts, speaking and writing,
衡量语言的使用能力，包含两种主动能力：说、写；
and two passive parts, listening and reading.
另外还有两种被动方式：听、阅读。
While a balanced bilingual has near equal abilities across the board in two languages,
虽然一个平衡的双语使用者，对于两种语言，具有相近的使用能力；
most bilinguals around the world know and use their languages in varying proportions.
但是大多数的双语使用者，当初如何学习并运用语言，有许多不同的方式。
And depending on their situation and how they acquired each language,
根据个人所处的环境，以及如何学习语言的方式，
they can be classified into three general types.
通常可以把双语使用者分为三类：
For example, let's take Gabriella, whose family immigrates to the US from Peru when she's two-years old.
举个例子来说，Gabriella在两岁时跟着家人由秘鲁移民到美国。
As a compound bilingual, Gabriella develops two linguistic codes simultaneously,
作为一个复合型双语者，Gabriella在刚接触这个世界时就同时学英语和西班牙语，
with a single set of concepts, learning both English and Spanish as she begins to process the world around her.
所以给她一个概念，她的大脑就能同时唤起两种语言信号。
Her teenage brother, on the other hand, might be a coordinate bilingual, working with two sets of concepts,
她有一个十几岁的弟弟，是属于对等型双语使用者，他运用两组不同的概念，
learning English in school, while continuing to speak Spanish at home and with friends.
一面在学校学习英语，一面用西班牙语，跟家人、朋友沟通。
Finally, Gabriella's parents are likely to be subordinate bilinguals
最后是加布瑞拉的父母，他们是从属型双语使用者。
who learn a secondary language by filtering it through their primary language.
当他们学习第二种语言时，需要透过母语进行翻译。
