Learn a new language : Bago is Tagalog for New
Work life is sometimes met with way too much frustration. When your Monday blues loom across the rest of your week it’s easy to wind up vegging out—curled up on the couch, packing away calories, TV remote in hand. Weekends are ideally spent charging us up for the week ahead and unwinding in the best possible ways.
Here’s one thing you can do. Learn a new language.
There are a lot of learning apps nowadays.
Learning a new language is one of the toughest things to put your brain through. As we grow older, it is especially challenging, though more rewarding for just that reason. Learning a new language is like ‘Botox for the brain’, as it is proven to delay the effects of aging and postpone the onset of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.
Best language learning apps
1.Memrise
Memrise is your go to place for fun vocabulary practice. There is no shortage of courses on almost every language you can imagine—or invent, as there are also several devoted to constructed languages—created by the vibrant community of users. You can find standardised courses based on popular textbooks or vocabulary frequency lists. There are also less expected vocabulary collections such as “Japanese naughty words” or words from the Japanese translation of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.
2. LinguaLift
This is a language app that is geared more towards serious learners who want a complete language program with the guidance of a tutor. Yes they have a good app, but it’s the extra help from the professional teachers that makes the difference.
If you are serious about learning a new language, LinguaLift offers a complete program that’s definitely worth checking out. But if you have even the slightest interest in languages, be sure to get a free copy of their Language Learning Secrets book. LinguaLift
3. Rosetta Stone
No list of top language learning apps would be complete without Rosetta Stone. Unfortunately, the only reason we’ve include it is because it’s the most widely recognized language learning program on the planet.
The truth is, Rosetta Stone is so well known because it was the first language program on the market. But these days, there are much more effective programs out there.
4. Duolingo
When you try to describe any other learning app how often have you heard the question “is it like Duolingo?” There is no list of best apps that doesn’t mention it. Luis von Ahn successfully merged gamification and learning, addicting people to languages and producing an app with over 100 million users. The app has become a staple example of mobile language learning.
5. HelloTalk
An app aimed to facilitate speaking practice and eliminate the potential stress of real time conversation. Learners can find native speakers and converse with them using a whatsapp-like chat with voice and text messages.
Extra perk? With HelloTalk you can also exchange doodles. So if you really run out of vocab, you can unleash your inner artist.
6. Mindsnacks
Did I say Duolingo gamified language learning? Mindsnacks takes gamification to a whole different level.
The basic download is free, but it comes only with a restricted number of games. If you pay a little bit you can access more lessons and widen your game options.
7. Busuu
Busuu offers full courses in 12 languages. The app is free but to unlock most of the features and course materials you have to invest $17 a month. The app takes you through learning individual words to simple dialogues and questions about the dialogues. All of which include audio where you can listen to native pronunciation.
Both studying and contributing to the platform as a teacher allows you to collect “berries”, points used to rank students based on their activity. So if you’re one of the points and badges addict, it’s a good place for you!
8. Babbel
A paid cousin of Duolingo with more free material than busuu? The free version comes with 40 classes, so even without investing money the app allows you to learn a fair amount of phrases in one of the 13 languages it teaches.
Apart from the general beginner’s courses Babbel also has separate packages devoted to improving specific skills such as grammar or vocabulary. If you already have some experience with a particular language and know where your weaknesses lie you can focus on improving those chosen skills. Babbel’s classes can be downloaded for later offline study and the app will send you convenient reminders so you don’t miss your daily session.
9. TripLingo
As the name suggests the app is aimed at travellers who need to brush up on their language skills before that dream holiday in Mauritius or a business trip to Mexico.
10. MosaLingua
MosaLingua is a fully rounded resource for a number of languages including French, Spanish and Italian. You can choose to go through the standard lesson program starting from simple phrases and numerals, or you can opt to go for one of the specific topical packs, for example people, time or tourism.
11. HiNative
HiNative is like a bite-size language exchange. You get the benefits of contact with native speakers without the hassle of searching for an exchange partner or scheduling a chat.
12. (How to) Pronounce
You may already have some grasp of the language or decided to just go wild and rely on a paper phrasebook. Yes you will still encounter words or phrases that you are not sure how to pronounce to be understood.
Perhaps you had this experience in a restaurant: when asking for the simplest meal and had to repeat the so-diligently-learned Italian phrase three times. Still the only thing you achieved was the look of bewilderment and confusion on the waiter’s face. They said the phrase back to you and the only thing that you had wrong was the stress.
If you feel bored and are a language geek (like all of our blog readers) you can just listen and marvel at the differences between language varieties.