Knowing languages is one of the greatest advantages you can have up your sleeve.
And we won’t lie, learning a new language is no easy task, but it’s definitely worth it, because you gain a whole new perspective of the world, knowledge of another culture and understanding of the world through thinking about it on another language. Many people don’t see learning languages as such an all-encompassing experience, but things are slowly changing now that we have so many apps to nudge us in the right direction and make the whole learning process much easier. For that reason, we’ve decided to talk about some of the best language learning app you should definitely try out in 2017.
Busuu
This app focuses on your vocabulary when learning a language, because its primary goal is to enable you in a very short period of time to understand when someone’s talking in a foreign language. You can choose from which level you want to start, you’ve got available everything from beginner to upper intermediate and there’s also a separate category for traveling. If you’re already in a foreign country, Busuu will be of great help in getting around and understanding some basic phrases. You’ll even get quizzes to test what you’ve learned, but just know that you have to log into the app before you start using it – that way you can always see how you’re progressing and keep tabs on what still needs to be improved.
Learn 50 Languages
The name of the app is enticing enough and what they promise, they deliver. You get an opportunity to choose one of 50 languages spoken all over the world, which is quite amazing, to be honest, especially because it’s free. However, with so many different languages in choice, you can’t really expect to get substantial knowledge out of this app. True, it will definitely provide you with some basic phrases and some understanding of a certain language but don’t expect miracles, for that you still have to pay. With 50 languages app, you get well over 100 lessons with any language you choose, which is more than enough to get you started.
Babbel
The truth is that most language apps are the same at their core and you pretty much know what to expect when you download them. What does make them stand out or fall through the cracks are the nuances, little extra features that end up making all the difference. With Babbel, you get the chance to learn one or more of twelve world languages and you get to do it free of charge. Of course, if you want to get more out of this app, you will have to pay for some additional classes, but according to user experiences, those classes are well worth paying. Just make sure you stay safe while paying online, because apps can sometimes be compromised by hackers. Thankfully, there are some very effective security services you can use to prevent problem. What makes Babbel special is the way grammar exercises are constructed – they make it easy on you to learn some basic rules while not overwhelming you.
Duolingo
You’ve probably already heard of this one, seeing that it is one of the most famous language learning apps there is. The system on which Duolingo functions is based on you practically competing with yourself. The app incorporates pictures with spoken and written text to make it easier on you to remember the term you’re learning and connect it with its visual representation. You are moving through sections and as the time goes by and you get better, the lessons and exercises become more challenging, which makes it all the more interesting. If you’re really confident, you can take a test that consists of few different lessons and see how well you bode then.
Memrise
Here’s an app that is incredibly ambitious when it comes to the number of languages it has to offer to its users – over 200. Whatever language you can think of, chances are you will find it on Memrise and dozens of lessons that come with it too. The app uses different approaches in helping you learn different words – from mixing the foreign language with your native language so that you can learn it quicker to associating images with words. You can even play around with some simple translation that will introduce a couple of new words at once so that they can really stay with you once you’re done with your lesson and have to go out into the world to use acquired knowledge.
Language apps are by far one of the most useful things that came to us with the development of smartphones. You can gain at least some beginner knowledge on any language you can think of, you don’t have to pay a dime for and you can do it all from wherever you want – your couch, car, while commuting or simply taking a walk, the sky is the limit, so take full advantage of that.
