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11 Ways to Learn a New Language Online for Free

Posted on January 22, 2019July 18, 2022 By Stella Tran No Comments on 11 Ways to Learn a New Language Online for Free

Amara employs a diverse team of individuals from around the world. By participating in global collaboration, our staff maintains a strong curiosity for other cultures. The idea of learning a new language seems irresistible to many of us, especially when learning tools are more accessible now than ever before! Thanks to the many new apps and language-learning platforms online today, limited access or a tight budget are no longer excuses to delay learning a language. Social media, live online chat, and smartphone apps put the world and its many languages directly into your pocket.

For the average online language learner, the objective of searching for a product has changed dramatically in just a few years. With so many options out there now, it is no longer about trying to find just any free language learning resource. The objective is about sorting through the variety of free content to find the very best of what the weirdest and most distant corners of the Internet have to offer.

As the number of language learning tools increased, the types of tools have also become more specialized and varied. Whether you are looking for pronunciation help, lesson plans, grammar games, or some combination of tool types, the search can get overwhelming.

To help you sort through them all, we put together a list of our 11 favorite websites to learn languages online.

Because every person learns differently, particularly when it comes to learning a new language, no single resource is “one size fits all,” so we grouped the resources in our list by their learning method:

  • Daily Practice
  • Immersion (Online classroom)
  • Casual

Daily Practice

If you only have a 10–15 minutes a day for learning a language, the daily practice method is your best choice. Each of the applications listed in the table below have short lessons designed for repeated daily practice. Download an application, set your preferences, and start learning wherever you are!

image10 Duolingo
Learn a language for free. Forever.Duolingo is a freemium language-learning platform that includes a language-learning website and app, as well as a digital language proficiency assessment exam. As of December 2018, the language-learning website and app offer 81 different language courses across 37 languages.Visit Duolingo’s website to learn more.
image5 Babbel
Speak a new language with confidence.Babbel is a subscription-based language learning app and e-learning platform, available in various languages since January 2008. Fourteen languages are currently offered: Dutch, Danish, English, French, German, Indonesian, Italian, Norwegian, Polish, Brazilian Portuguese, Russian, Swedish, Spanish and Turkish.Visit Babbel’s website to learn more.

Author’s note: I have been using Babbel for the last 10 months, and it’s simply amazing :)

image2 Busuu
Speak a language in 10 minutes a day.Busuu is a social learning app for languages. It is available on web and via iOS and Android. Courses are available in twelve languages: English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Russian, Polish, Turkish, Arabic, Japanese and Chinese.Visit Busuu’s website to learn more.

Immersion (Online classroom)

If you prefer structure and guidance from qualified instructors, the immersion method might be right for you! The examples below offer personalized lesson plans, live interaction, and community collaboration. This kind of human connection, online or in person, can help invite you into a culture as well as a classroom and build a foundation to understand your new language.

If you are more interested in a traditional learning style, try these sites that offer online classes and a more interactive experience:

image3 Live Lingua
Boutique online language school.Experience full-service treatment. Enjoy free online book and audio courses in over 130 languages. Expert staff and personalized attention to help you finally learn the language you’ve always wanted to speak.
Visit Live Lingua’s website to learn more!
image4 Udemy
Learn anything, on your scheduleUdemy.com is an online learning platform aimed at professional adults. Unlike academic massive open online course programs which are driven by traditional collegiate coursework, Udemy uses content from online content creators.Visit Udemy’s website to learn more.
image11 Verbling
Learn to speak like a local‎Verbling is an online language learning platform that pairs individuals with language teachers via video chat.
Visit Verbling’s website to learn more.

image9

FluentU
Language immersion onlineLanguage immersion is the key to learning a foreign language. FluentU brings language learning to life through language immersion with real-world videos.Visit FluentU’s website to learn more.

Casual

If you prefer going through material at your own pace, we recommend the casual method. This method is best for people who do not need guidance, assignments, or daily reminders. For self-starters who only want language-learning content, there are many options to choose from.

The YouTube channels in the table below are a small sample of the many language instructors you can find online. Feel free to explore these channels and related videos on your own to find the one that best fits your needs:

image6 Learn German with Jenny:
Fun and useful German lessonsJenny produces German lessons for the A1 – C2 levels. Learn how to communicate in different situations like at the airport, in the office, or with family and friends. Practice your listening comprehension, review essential grammar structures, and build your vocabulary with this channel. Videos come with exercises, worksheets and flashcards on all kinds of different topics and for all proficiency levels.View her YouTube channel to find out more.
image8 Chinese: Learnable and systematic online Chinese courses

Litao Chinese specializes in teaching Mandarin Chinese as a foreign language. They also meet the requirements of the HSK test.This YouTube channel has video lectures that teach you how to write characters, speak Mandarin in specific situations, and perfect your pronunciation.

You can visit their website for information about their other language learning tools.

image7

Italian: Master the Italian language!

Lingo Lab invites viewers to learn Italian in a variety of modern subjects on their YouTube channel.From fashion to Italian proverbs, you can let your interests lead you into a new language and its culture.

image1 Russian: Welcome to the Real Russian Club!

Daria is a certified Russian language teacher from Moscow.Keep up with Russian lessons on her YouTube channel where she uploads 2 videos per week.It’s easy to choose the playlist that is right for you. Go at your own pace, focus on grammar or pronunciation, or travel along with Daria as she explores Russia.

We hope you enjoy exploring these resources, finding the best tool for you, and finally learning the languages you want in your own way!

Read these articles next

Solutions and Tools, Tech Tags:language learning, learn Chinese, learn German, learn Russian

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