How to Learn a Foreign Language: 10 Tips to Speed Up the Process
There are many benefits to speaking more than one language. This guide on how to learn a foreign language lists 10 tips to speed up the process.
Bonjour! Hola! If you’re learning a second language, you’ve probably already mastered a few basic words like hello. Studying a new language is a fantastic way to broaden your horizons, improve your memory, and sharpen your mind.
But, learning another language can be tough to do, especially if you have limited time and want to learn as much as you can.
Is there anything you can do to speed up the process? Luckily, there is! Keep reading to find out how to learn a foreign language quickly.
1. How to Learn a Foreign Language? Dedicate Time Each Day
One of our top tips for learning a language is to be consistent! To achieve success, you need to dedicate time each day to reading, learning, and practicing.
However, it doesn’t need to consume your life—there are plenty of ways to learn while multitasking. For example, can you listen to audiotapes while driving to work, practice pronunciation while doing dishes, or wake up a bit earlier each time for study time?
Look for a high quality foreign language program that you feel will work well for your learning style and spend time each day working on it. Soon, you’ll be impressing your friends with how much you’ve learned!
2. Make Flashcards
Are you a visual learner? If so, you may find it helpful to work with flashcards. You can buy them, but it’s also easy to make your own from index cards.
Write the English word or sentence on one side and the same word or phrase on the back in the language you’re learning. Use them to test yourself and help with memorization.
You can also find plenty of apps for your smartphone that will work as virtual flashcards.
3. Spend Time with Native Speakers
Immersion is one of the best ways to learn a language, but long-term travel to another country isn’t always possible.
Instead, try to meet someone local, or online, that you can converse with on a regular basis. If you’re studying Spanish, maybe find a native Spanish speaker who wants to improve their English, and you can learn and help one another.
Not only will both of your language skills improve, but you’ll make a new friend.
It will be easiest to find a native speaker if you’re studying some of the most commonly spoken languages, such as Mandarin Chinese, Hindi, and Arabic.
4. Listen
Learning a language can be faster if you take the time to listen. You can improve your knowledge and pronunciation by listening to native speakers talking.
You can do this by traveling, but also by watching movies or videos (subtitles are ok!), or listening to audio.
5. Understand the Culture
If you want to learn and understand a new language, it helps to understand the culture. Take Arabic, for example—taking the time to learn about this history in Arabic-speaking parts of the world, along with current events, customs, and religious beliefs can help you see the bigger picture.
Knowing more about the culture of an area can also help you better comprehend why certain phrases are used, why people speak in a certain way, or to understand what to do and not do when speaking the language.
6. Learn the Right Words
When learning a new language, it’s helpful to start with the most commonly-used words in that language. Sure, you could memorize the name of every animal and musical instrument, but when are you going to use that in conversation?
Try to focus at first on verb (and verb tenses), commonly-used nouns, and transition words. This will make it easier to string sentences and phrases together, helping you progress faster.
7. Read Books in Language
A good way to ramp up your language skills fast is to try to read books in the language you’re studying. It doesn’t need to be War and Peace—start small.
Even reading books written for children is a good way to start, since they use simple sentence structure and images often help explain what’s happening.
You’ll probably want to have a pocket dictionary handy, so you can quickly look up the meaning of unfamiliar words—a great way to expand your vocabulary!
8. Don’t Be Afraid of Making Mistakes
When practicing another language, you may be nervous about saying the wrong thing or making a mistake. This is ok! No one gets it perfect every time, and you’ll never progress unless you try.
If you’re talking with a native speaker, they’ll likely be impressed that you’re making the effort and won’t mind if you’re not 100% correct.
9. Use New Words Right Away
If you want to imprint new words into your memory, try to use them right away. Otherwise, there’s a good chance you’ll forget them.
Use your new words in conversation with someone else and repeat, repeat, repeat—practice makes perfect!
10. Practice in Your Head
It’s not always possible to practice speaking with another person, but even if you’re alone, you can still work on your language skills.
As you study, try to practice either in your head or aloud. Repetition helps us learn, and if you’re struggling with a certain word or phrase, just keep at it until it starts to make sense.
Pronunciation can sometimes be challenging with new words, so listening to audio tapes helps you learn how to say a word correctly.
Use These Language Learning Tips to Master Your New Language
If you want to travel the world, converse with friends or family, or understand other cultures, you can’t go wrong with learning a second (or third) language.
Now that you know how to learn a foreign language quickly, use the tips above to increase your speed and learn as much as you can. Soon, you’ll be surprising yourself with how much you’ve learned!
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