Some Dutch courage could help your Dutch

A swift drink may help improve your foreign language skills, research suggests.

The study looked at whether Dutch courage would boost people’s ability to speak a second language – or whether it would turn their words into Double Dutch.

It looked at 50 native German speakers who were studying at Maastricht University in the Netherlands and had recently picked up the local language.

The group were given either an alcoholic or non-alcoholic drink and then held a conversation in their non-native language.

Researchers found those who were slightly intoxicated had better pronunciation than their sober colleagues.

Dr Inge Kersbergen, from Liverpool University ’s Institute of Psychology, Health and Society, who was involved in the study, said: “It shows that acute alcohol consumption may have beneficial effects on the pronunciation of a foreign language in people who recently learned that language.

“This provides some support for the lay belief (among bilingual speakers) that a low dose of alcohol can improve their ability to speak a second language.”

Dr Fritz Renner, one of the researchers who conducted the study, added: “It is important to point out that participants in this study consumed a low dose of alcohol. Higher levels of alcohol consumption might not have beneficial effects on the pronunciation of a foreign language.”