Whether you're looking to learn a new foreign language or just brush up your skills in one
that you've practiced before you, already have your most important tool in the palm
of your hands--your smartphone. Here are the best language learning apps that you will need on your
journey to fluency in any language. Hi guys and welcome to my channel! My name is Connor and I
make videos about everything travel and languages. In the modern world, we carry our smartphones with
us everywhere and anywhere we go. So, needless to say, having the right language learning apps
should be the top priority for anyone serious about learning a language. Today I'm going to be
going over my favorite language learning apps, both some that are already pretty well known,
as well as some you've probably never heard of before--even if you're an experienced language
learner. These are all language learning apps that I have downloaded on my own phone right now
and most of them I've been using for years, so I can definitely attest to their usefulness.
Best of all, every app that I'm going to recommend today is completely free. So without further ado,
let's get started! The first language learning app on my list, and also the one that I've been
using for the longest, is Duolingo. Chances are you've already heard of Duolingo or even used it,
since it's the most popular language learning app on both iPhone and Android. But if you haven't,
Duolingo is a fun and free app that teaches 35 plus languages through game like lessons.
Duolingo is always the first resource I turn to when learning a new language, since it teaches you
the basics without boring you out of your mind. I actually just made a video about why you should be
using Duolingo, as well as some tips and tricks to get more out of the app, so I'd encourage you to
check that out if you want to learn more. The next language learning app in my toolbox and probably
the one that I use most consistently at this point is Anki. Anki is a free open source flash
card app that works using a spaced repetition system. This means that it only shows you flash
cards when your brain is about to forget them, leading to maximum learning efficiency. I use
Anki to learn vocab words, however the app is not exclusive to language learning, meaning that you
can use it pretty much anytime that you want to memorize large quantities of information.
Because of this, lots of med students use Anki to study for the MCAT and other medical school exams.
And when I wanted to learn the regions of Spain and Italy, for instance, I also used Anki. At
first glance, the app can seem a little daunting, since admittedly it doesn't have the most friendly
user interface. However, there are a lot of really cool features to discover. For example,
you can either make your own flashcard deck or download pre-made ones through the app.
Furthermore, the statistics section allows you to track your progress over time. Of course,
it's hard to learn new vocab words without a dictionary that tells you what they mean,
and to that end I like to use WordReference. WordReference is an online foreign language
dictionary with support for over 19 languages. The app provides detailed definitions and translations
of vocab words, as well as sample sentences to demonstrate their use. A verb conjugator
section allows you to reference different verb conjugations. Furthermore, WordReference has a
built-in forum where users can go to ask each other questions about the meaning of words and
phrases. I found this section to be particularly helpful with finding the meaning of slang terms
and regionalisms that you otherwise wouldn't find in a dictionary. Another multi-use tool that I
frequently use is Reverso. Reverso is great for intermediate learners and on top of a dictionary,
boasts a conjugator, thesaurus, and grammar guide. However, my favorite Reverso feature has to be its
in-context translator. Anyone who's ever used an online translator knows that machine translations
are simply not capable of picking up on all the little differences and nuances between words.
To prove that point, you just need to take a famous quote, plug it into Google Translate,
run it through a bunch of languages, and watch as it completely changes meaning.
For example, if we were to take Forrest Gump's classic line "life is like a box of chocolates,
you never know what you're gonna get" and drag it through all these languages,
then you'd end up with "life is like a box of chocolates I don't know what to get"
insightful and coherent? Debatably. Anything like the original? Not so much. On the other hand,
you can translate individual words with incredible accuracy using a dictionary,
but try that same method to translate an entire sentence and you'll sound like a caveman.
Reverso's in context translator provides a perfect balance between these two extremes. Basically,
it works by matching your input text with a contextualized translation. All the translations
are drawn from real life sources, so it's pretty accurate with regard to intended meaning. One
thing to keep in mind, however, is Reverso works best with common phrases and sentence fragments,
since these are more likely to have a direct match when compared to entire sentences. Personally,
I've found Reverso Context to be invaluable with developing my foreign language writing skills.
Last year, I had to write a 20 page research paper for an Italian class and I would have
been completely lost if I didn't have Reverso Context there to help me phrase my thoughts in
Italian. If you've been enjoying this video so far, please consider dropping a like and hitting
that subscribe button so that I can continue to make future videos like this one! Next up on
my list is yet another dictionary, but a special kind that you might not have even known existed--a
pronunciation dictionary. The name of the app is Forvo and it collects the pronunciations for words
in hundreds of different languages. If you're ever unsure about the pronunciation of a word,
or you just want to practice fine-tuning your accent, then you can look it up in Forvo and hear
how a native speaker says it. I discovered Forvo a few years back and have sworn by it ever since.
And even though I'm including Forvo in a video about foreign languages,
I've low-key used it more times for English than any other language. Another essential language
learning app is Tandem. Tandem allows you to meet native speakers of your target language
and practice through video, text, and audio exchanges. In one of my earlier videos, which you
can check out up here or in the description below, I went over the top 5 language learning myths.
One of the biggest such myths was that you can't become fluent in a language without living abroad.
Tandem completely dispels of this myth, as you can use it to meet people from all over the world.
Tandem isn't the only language exchange app in this category, and I actually used another
one called HelloTalk for about a year. However HelloTalk, which is based in Shenzhen, has been
facing a lot of controversy lately for censoring their Chinese users. As a result, I'd encourage
you to pick an alternative. But no matter the language exchange app that you choose to use,
it's important to know that sometimes using these apps it can take a little while to find a quality
partner. Nonetheless I've definitely met people through both of these apps that I continue to keep
in contact with to this day. The next app that you should have downloaded if you want to improve your
language skills is any news app in your target language. Reading the news is a great way to gain
exposure to how your target language is used by native speakers, as well as to understand current
events that are happening in the countries where your language is spoken. Additionally, most news
articles will probably be about topics that you already have some basic background knowledge in,
so they'll be easier to understand than a novel, for instance. When you're just starting out,
you can find tons of news apps that are especially well suited for beginners. The Slow News series,
for example, offers news podcasts with transcripts in French, Italian, Spanish, English, and German.
You can also find newspapers that are made for native speakers but written to be more
simple and concise. For example, France's 20 Minutes and Germany's Nachrichtenleicht.
As you progress in your reading skills, it's best to transition to a more traditional news app.
Many of these, including Euro News and Spain's RTVE offer video broadcast versions that help
you improve your listening comprehension and get used to a native speakers rate of speech. Finally,
one of my favorite language learning apps of all time is actually not a language learning
app at all--YouTube. YouTube is awesome for learning languages just because of the sheer
quantity of content uploaded around the world every day. More importantly, you
can use YouTube to explore your interests while practicing your language skills at the same time.
For example, if you like fitness and you're learning French, you can watch French fitness
youtubers. And if you like cooking and you're learning Italian, you can learn from Italian
chefs. Alright guys if you enjoyed this video please hit that like button and tell me a little
bit about your favorite language learning app in the comments below! If you want to stay updated
on future videos, go ahead and subscribe and click the notification bell. Thanks for watching!
you