Learn Spanish, English, French, and other languages with real sentences from the news | The WordBrewery Blog

Master the Japanese kanji 気 ('ki') with 50 real sentences from Japanese news sites

Fri, 21 Jul 2017 00:00:00 -0600

Practicing the word ‘気’ (き, ki, “spirit”) with 50 example sentences from Japanese news sites.

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PDFs

50 Japanese sentences from the news with the verb ‘気’ - PDF - Sentences Only
50 Japanese sentences from the news with the verb ‘気’ - text gloss with word definitions from Jim Breen’s JDICT.

Note: Jim Breen’s WWWJDIC online Japanese dictionary is an open-source project that is unaffiliated with WordBrewery. It is an invaluable tool that I, like thousands of other Japanese learners, have relied on for years. If you use Jim Breen’s Japanese tools, consider supporting them with a donation.

Audio:

50 Japanese sentences from the news with the verb ‘気’ - compressed audio files

CSV:

50 Japanese sentences from the news with the verb ‘気’ - CSV file

Note: Our PDF export feature does not yet work for Japanese and other languages in non-Roman scripts. We are working to fix this. In the meantime, the first PDF is just a printout of the list from the Chrome browser and does not contain translations, but you can find the translations for each sentence in the CSV file and you can find definitions for each word in the sentences in the second and third PDFs, which I created using the text glossing tool on Jim Breen’s JDIC site.

If you think our Japanese resources are valuable, WordBrewery urgently needs your help to improve and grow. Please consider sharing this blog post on social media, subscribing to WordBrewery, and letting us know what you think (Twitter | Email).

The word ‘気,’ (ki) which is usually translated as ‘spirit’, is one of the most common words in Japanese. It appears in many different idioms that express feelings and emotions. The sentences below can help you master this fascinating kanji by studying real, relevant example sentences written by native speakers for other native speakers in recent news articles.

Have you tried studying Japanese in WordBrewery’s Explore Mode yet? Here is a screenshot showing how it works. Click a word you don’t know to see additional example sentences with that word, then add those words and sentences to study lists from which you can create Anki decks, audio files, and automatic sentence lists.

To help Japanese learners get a handle on 気, I used WordBrewery’s automatic sentence list creator to find fifty real example sentences from Japanese-language news sources that use 気 in different forms. Most or all of these sentences are from the Japanese sentences in WordBrewery’s database; this means, among other things, that they contain only the 500 most important high-frequency Japanese words as well as proper nouns. They are also short and to memorize.

Audio of example sentences: WordBrewery has a new ]feature allowing learners to automatically generate audio files for any sentence list so they can practice their sentences while walking or driving. Here is a free audio file in which the sentences are read aloud. Our Japanese sentences are read by one of several text-to-speech voices from IBM Watson and other sources.
CSV export of example sentences: WordBrewery users can export their word and sentence lists as CSV (comma-separated value) text files. These can be opened by a spreadsheet program or text editor, and they can be imported into flashcard programs such as Anki, Memrise, Quizlet, and others. Here is a CSV file with the sentences in this list.
Reviewing your lists with WordBrewery’s Explore Mode: You can also study sentences from your lists with WordBrewery’s Explore Mode by changing the default “Study by Levels” setting to “Study by Lists.” Here’s an example of what this looks like with one of the sentences in this list: You can use WordBrewery’s “study from lists” option in Explore Mode to review the sentences in your sentence lists. You can use WordBrewery’s “study from lists” option in Explore Mode to review the sentences in your sentence lists.

Additional reading:

7 Ways Japanese Ki (気) Creates Interesting Meaning (Japanese LevelUp)

Practicing French numbers and the verb 'avoir' with 50 real news sentences

Sat, 08 Jul 2017 00:00:00 -0600

Practicing the verb ‘avoir’ and French numbers with 50 example sentences from French news sites.

Like all WordBrewery beginner sentences, each sentence contains exclusively the 500 most common words in French plus proper nouns.

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Have you tried WordBrewery’s personalized French courses yet? They are the most efficient and rewarding way to master the vocabulary you need for fluency. You can read about what makes WordBrewery’s courses so valuable here.

If you find our French resources to be valuable, WordBrewery urgently needs your help to improve and grow. Please consider sharing this blog post on social media, trying WordBrewery, and letting us know what you think (Twitter | Email).

The verb ‘avoir,’ which means ‘to have,’ is (along with être, to be) one of the two most common and important verbs in French. Like many high-frequency verbs, it is irregular, so its different forms must be memorized. This is typically done with worksheets, flashcards, and conjugation tables, but rote memorization is an inefficient way to learn. There is a better way: study real, relevant example sentences written by native speakers for other native speakers in recent news articles.

Skip to the example sentences

To help beginning French learners get a handle on avoir, I used WordBrewery’s automatic sentence list creator to find fifty real example sentences from French-language news sources that use avoir in different forms. Most or all of these sentences are from the beginner-level French sentences in WordBrewery’s database; this means, among other things, that they contain only the 500 most important high-frequency French words as well as proper nouns. They are also short and easy to memorize.

PDF of example sentences: WordBrewery recently introduced a new feature allowing learners to print their sentence lists. Here is a free PDF of the sentences paired with two rough translations per sentence.

Note on translations: Before relying on full-sentence translations, we recommend that you try to puzzle through the meaning of the sentence on your own. Also, keep in mind that machine translation is a very imperfect science; be sure to focus on the native sentence rather than the translations, and do not see the translations as “correct answers.”

Audio of example sentences: WordBrewery is currently testing and preparing to release a feature for learners to automatically generate audio files for any sentence list so they can practice their sentences while walking or driving. Here is a free audio file in which the sentences are read aloud. Our French sentences are read by one of several text-to-speech voices from IBM Watson.
CSV export of example sentences: WordBrewery users can export their word and sentence lists as CSV (comma-separated value) text files. These can be opened by a spreadsheet program or text editor, and they can be imported into flashcard programs such as Anki, Memrise, Quizlet, and others. Here is a CSV file with the sentences in this list.
Reviewing your lists with WordBrewery’s Explore Mode: You can also study sentences from your lists with WordBrewery’s Explore Mode by changing the default “Study by Levels” setting to “Study by Lists.” Here’s an example of what this looks like with one of the sentences in this list: You can use WordBrewery’s “study from lists” option in Explore Mode to review the sentences in your sentence lists. You can use WordBrewery’s “study from lists” option in Explore Mode to review the sentences in your sentence lists.

A selection of example sentences containing avoir, plus notes and conjugation tables

See the PDF printout for the full list as well as translations.

Note: Because WordBrewery’s automatic list feature selected these sentences at random from our database of beginning French sentences, not every form of the verb avoir is represented. However, not all of a verb’s forms are equally likely to appear in native-language speech or texts. This important fact is disguised by daunting, comprehensive conjugation tables, and it should provide learners with some reassurance about the task of mastering a particular verb.

Conjugating avoir in the present tense:

j’ai	I have
tu as	you have (familiar)
il/elle/on a	he/she/it/one has, there is
nous avons	we have
vous avez	you (formal or plural) have
ils/elles ont	they have

Vous l’avez fait !

</source>

le = “it” (object pronoun)
faire = “to do”; avoir + faire = “to have done”
je l’ai fait = “I did it”
tu l’as fait = “you did it”
il l’a fait = “he/she/it did it”
nous l’avons fait = “we did it”
vous l’avez fait = “you did it (vous = plural or formal tu)”
ils l’ont fait = “they did it”

Il ne l’a pas été.

</source>

Grammar note: The patterns used in this sentence are critical and very common, but they can be maddening for beginning French users to understand. The best way is to master it is to study many example sentences. Let’s break this sentence down:
ne . . . pas = “not”
être = “to be”; avoir + être = “to have been”
il a = “he/she/it has”
il a êtê = “he/she/it was”
il n’a pas êtê = “he/she/it was not”

Qui a fait ça?

</source>

ça = “it”

Ça non plus j’ai pas pu.

</source>

Grammar note: This sentence is tricky because it is informal, uses abbreviated forms, and changes the usual word order.
non plus = “no more”
j’ai pas = casual form of je n’ai pas = “I didn’t”
pouvoir = to be able to; je n’ai pas pu = I could not

On les a tous eus !

</source>

On y a cru.

</source>

croire = “to believe”
avoir cru = “to have believed”
y = “it; there”

Grammar note: y replaces à + an object. Here, it is best translated as “it” and refers to what the subject (on) believed.

Il y a cela.

</source>

il y a = “there is”. This is one of the most common and useful expressions in French. You should memorize it.
cela = this, it

Grammar note: This sentence is informal, as it omits the ne. The negative is implied by the word pas.

J’ai dit non !

</source>

dire = to say; avoir dit = “to have said”

Il a rien fait!

</source>

rien = “nothing”

Grammar note: This sentence is informal, as it omits the ne. The negative is implied by the word rien.

Il ne l’a pas fait.

</source>

Il n’y a pas à dire.

</source>

Grammar note: Dire (“to say”) is in the infinitive form in this sentence, so it literally means “to say.” This sentence could be translated as “There is nothing to say.”

On en a tous.

</source>

en = “of (them/something)”.
tous = “all”
on a tous = “we have (them) all”; - on en a tous = “we have all of them”

Grammar note: En is a pronoun that replaces de + an object, where the object is a thing. Here, en is used with an expression of quantity (tous). The next few sentences also provide examples of en.

Il n’y a rien à en dire!

</source>

Grammar note: Here, en is best translated as “about it.”

Il ne l’a pas dit.

</source>

Grammar note: In this sentence l’ is an abbreviation of either le or la, the object pronoun representing what the speaker is talking about (i.e., what “he did not say”).

Conjugating avoir in the imperfect tense:

j’avais	I had
tu avais	you had
il/elle/on avait	he/she/it/one had, there was
nous avoins	we had
vous aviez	you had
ils/elles avaient	they had

Il avait 41 ans.

</source>

Grammar note: The imperfect tense is used to describe a continuous state in the past (as opposed to a discrete state in the past, which is represented with the passé simple). This sentence is a good example of this principle. The subject of the sentence (il) was 41 years old; this was an ongoing state (lasting up to one year) rather than a discrete event that happened and was completed.

Je vous l’avais dit !

</source>

Grammar note: In this sentence, avoir is in the imperfect tense, but dire is in the simple past (passé simple) tense. When these two forms are combined, the resulting compound verb—j’avais dit (lit. “I had told you”)—is in the plus-que-parfait (more-than-perfect) tense.

Conjugating avoir in the future tense:

j’aurai	I had
tu auras	you had
il/elle/on aura	he/she/it/one had, there was
nous aurons	we had
vous aurez	you had
ils/elles auront	they had

Il y en aura plus.

</source>

Additional reading:

Conjugation-fr.com, Conjugations - conjugations of the three most common and important French verbs:
- être
- avoir
- faire

Fifty Spanish news sentences with the verb 'ser'

Wed, 05 Jul 2017 00:00:00 -0600

Learning to conjugate the Spanish verb ‘ser’ with real example sentences from the news.

I’m in a hurry, just give me the free files!

If you find our Spanish resources to be useful, WordBrewery needs your help to improve and grow. Please consider helping us by sharing this blog post on social media, trying WordBrewery, and letting us know what you think (Twitter | Email).

The verb ‘ser,’ which means ‘to be,’ is the most common verb in Spanish. However, like many high-frequency verbs, it is irregular, so its different forms must be memorized. This is typically done with worksheets, flashcards, and conjugation tables, but rote memorization is an inefficient way to learn. There is a better way: study real, relevant example sentences written by native speakers for other native speakers in recent news articles. These examples make the verb’s forms come alive.

Skip to the example sentences

About these sentences and files

To help beginning Spanish learners practice ser, I used WordBrewery’s automatic sentence list creator to find fifty real example sentences from Spanish-language news sources that use ser in different forms. Most or all of these sentences are from the beginner-level Spanish sentences in WordBrewery’s database; this means, among other things, that they contain only the 500 most important high-frequency Spanish words as well as proper nouns. They are also short and easy to memorize.

Sentence list PDF: WordBrewery recently introduced a new feature allowing learners to print their sentence lists. Here is a free PDF of the sentences paired with two rough translations per sentence; these are generally machine translations from Google Translate and Microsoft Translator, though some may be added by WordBrewery translators or contributed by users. Before relying on full-sentence translations, however, I strongly recommend that you try to puzzle through the meaning of the sentence on your own. Also, machine translation is a very imperfect science; be sure to focus on the native sentence rather than the translations, and do not see the translations as “correct answers.”
Sentence list audio: WordBrewery is currently testing and preparing to release a feature for learners to automatically generate audio files for any sentence list so they can practice their sentences while walking or driving. Here is a free audio file in which the sentences are read aloud. More than 90% of our Spanish sentences have been recorded by professional voice actors from Venezuela; the remaining sentences are read by one of several text-to-speech voices from IBM Watson.
Sentence list CSV export: WordBrewery users can export their word and sentence lists as CSV (comma-separated value) text files. These can be opened by a spreadsheet program or text editor, and they can be imported into flashcard programs such as Anki, Memrise, Quizlet, and others. Here is a CSV file with the sentences in this list.
Reviewing your lists with WordBrewery’s Explore Mode: You can also study sentences from your lists with WordBrewery’s Explore Mode by changing the default “Study by Levels” setting to “Study by Lists.” Here’s an example of what this looks like with one of the sentences in this list:

You can use WordBrewery’s “study from lists” option in Explore Mode to review the sentences in your sentence lists.

A selection of the example sentences with notes and conjugation tables

See the PDF printout for the full list as well as translations. Before relying on full-sentence translations, however, I strongly recommend that you try to puzzle through the meaning of the sentence on your own.

Note: Because WordBrewery’s automatic list feature selected these sentences at random from our database of beginning Spanish sentences, not every form of the verb ser is represented. However, not all of a verb’s forms are equally likely to appear in native-language speech or texts. This important fact is disguised by daunting, comprehensive conjugation tables, and it should provide learners with some reassurance about the task of mastering a particular verb.

‘Ser’ as an infinitive

‘Ser’ often appears in the infinitive form ser, which literally means “to be.” The infinitive form is sometimes called the lemma, base form, or dictionary form because you would find the verbs es (he/she/it is), soy (I am), fuiste (you were), etc. under ser in a dictionary.

Puede ser más de uno.

</source>

poder = “to be able to”; puede = “he/she/it can”
mas de = “more than”

Y esto no puede ser.

</source>

esto = “this.” Easily confused with eso (“that”).

Eso es lo que no puede ser.

</source>

lo que = “that which” or “what”

Pero no pudo ser.

</source>

pudo ser = “could be.” Pudo is the third-person preterite form of poder.

Tenía que ser Cristiano.

</source>

Grammar note: The verb “tener” means “to have,” but the phrase “tener que” means “to have to” or “to need to.” tenía que ser = “he/she/it had to be”

Conjugating ‘ser’ in the present tense:

(yo) soy	I am
(tú) eres	you are (familiar)
(él, ella, usted) es	he/she/it is; you are (formal)
(nosotros) somos	we are
(ustedes, ellos, ellas) son	you (plural) are; they are

Es lo que tienen que hacer.

</source>

Grammar note: tienen que hacer = “they need to do”

Y es que lo es.

</source>

Somos lo que somos.

</source>

No es uno más.

</source>

Useful phrase: uno más = “one more.” If you want another beer, however, you’ll need to ask for una más because una cerveza is feminine.

Los Juegos no lo son todo.

</source>

jugar: “to play”; juego: “game”
Meaning note: Note that “Juegos” (Games) is capitalized, so it is a proper noun and does not mean “games” in general. It likely refers to the Olympic Games. If you were to see this sentence on WordBrewery, you could check by clicking the newspaper icon beneath the sentence to see it in its original context.

A César lo que es de César.

</source>

Cultural note: This is an abbreviated Biblical phrase.

La Cultura es de todos y para todos.

</source>

de = “of, belonging to”; Es de todos = “it belongs to everyone”
para: See Spanish grammar: por vs. para by example

Eso es lo que haremos.

</source>

eso = “that”
haber = “to have”; haremos = “we will have” (future tense)

Esto no es el Apocalipsis.

</source>

El Apocalipsis is a cognate, meaning that it is very similar to an English word. Can you guess what it means?

Con lo que tengo y con lo que soy.

</source>

con = “with”
tener = “to have”; tengo = “I have”

La de Darren Osborne es la otra.

</source>

Meaning note: We don’t know from this sentence alone what “la” is referring to; all we konw is that it is a feminine noun belonging to Darren Osborne. When you are studying sentences on WordBrewery, this is a situation in which you might want to click the newspaper icon beneath the sentence to get more context from the original article where the sentence was found. You can also try searching Google for the exact sentence in quotation marks to find its source; I just did so to identify the source of this sentence. It comes from an article in the Spanish newspaper El País about Islamophobia in the United Kingdom following the recent terrorist attack on a mosque in Finsbury Park.

¿Es como lo que hace BlackBerry?

</source>

Meaning note: The verb “hacer” can mean either “to do” or “to make”; “to do” is the more common meaning. “lo que hace X” = “what X does” or “what X makes.”

¡No somos el Bayern!

</source>

Meaning note: “Bayern” refers to FC Bayern Munich, a successful German soccer team based in Munich.

Es lo que tengo que hacer.

</source>

tener que hacer: to have to do

Son los que están en la Comisión.

</source>

Es la Copa Davis.

</source>

Meaning note: According to Wikipedia, the Davis Cup is the “premier international team event in men’s tennis.”

Es todo lo que tengo que decirles.

</source>

decir = “to say”; decirles = “to say to them”

Es lo que había.

</source>

haber: “to have”; había: “I/he/she/it had” (imperfect form); había una vez: “once upon a time”

Es lo que hay.

</source>

haber: “to have”; hay: “There is/there are”

Conjugating ‘ser’ in the imperfect tense:

(yo) era	I was
(tú) eres	you were (familiar)
(él, ella, usted) era	he/she/it was; you were
(nosotros) eramos	we were
(ustedes, ellos, ellas) they were

Pero eso no era todo.

</source>

Grammar note: The imperfect form is used to refer to continuous or ongoing events in the past; by contrast, the preterite form is used to refer to discrete past events that happened at a specific time.
no era = “he/she/it was not”

Conjugating ‘ser’ in the preterite tense:

(yo) fui	I was
(tú) fuiste	you were (familiar)
(él, ella, usted) fue	he/she/it was; you were
(nosotros) fuimos	we were
(ustedes, ellos, ellas) fueron	you (plural) were; they were

No, no fue eso.

</source>

no fue = “he/she/it was not.”

Pero eso no fue todo.

</source>

Conjugating ‘ser’ in the present perfect tense:

(yo) he sido	I have been
(tú) has sido	you have been (familiar)
(él, ella, usted) ha sido	he/she/it has been; you have been
(nosotros) hemos sido	we have been
(ustedes, ellos, ellas) han sido	you (plural) have been; they have been

No lo han sido.

</source>

haber = “to have”; han = “they have”
Meaning note: This phrase could mean “it wasn’t them” or “they were not.”

Eso ha sido el Brexit.

</source>

Conjugating ‘ser’ in the future tense:

(yo) sea	I will be
(tú) serás	you will be (familiar)
(él, ella, usted) será	he/she/it will be; you will be
(nosotros) seremos	we will be
(ustedes, ellos, ellas) serán	you (plural) will be; they will be

Será a las 19.30 en el Aquarium.

</source>

Es que lo seré.

</source>

Conjugating ‘ser’ in the present subjunctive tense:

(que yo) sea	that I may be
(que tú) seas	that you may be (familiar)
(que él, ella, usted) sea	that he/she/it may be; that you may be
(que nosotros) seamos	that we may be
(que ustedes, ellos, ellas) sean	that you (plural) may be; that they may be

Pero puede que no lo sea.

</source>

Grammar note: The subjunctive is often used to express a conjecture, something the speaker is not certain about. poder que = “it is possible that”; puede que no lo sea = “perhaps it is not.”

Additional reading:

SpanishDict, Conjugating ‘ser’
SpanishDict, Subjunctive vs. indicative in Spanish

Create your own language lessons with automatic sentence lists

Mon, 26 Jun 2017 00:00:00 -0600

New at WordBrewery: Automatic Sentence Lists

In this video, WordBrewery founder Ryan McCarl discusses what makes WordBrewery different from other language-learning sites.

FAQ: How does WordBrewery measure my vocabulary knowledge as it grows?

The best way to learn vocabulary and grammar is by studying real example sentences. WordBrewery’s new automatic list feature allows you to instantly generate a printable and exportable list of real example sentences from the news for any word you want to study. It’s a great way to study a word’s different forms and the nuances of its usage. While studying the word, of course, you’ll also be reviewing and learning new vocabulary and grammar from the set of example sentences you created. Try it using the directions in the video and let us know what you think.

Here are two lists of real Spanish sentences from the news created with this tool:

Become a WordBrewery subscriber to create your own sentence lists in any of 19 languages WordBrewery currently teaches.

Three ways to use WordBrewery’s automatic sentence list tool:

Create a new list with 20 sentences, then print or download the PDF of your new list. If you do this a few times each week, you will quickly build your vocabulary, grammatical understanding, and reading speed, and you will become more and more confident as you move toward fluency.
Learn Spanish, French, or Russian verb conjugations effortlessly by studying examples of the verb in different forms; Ryan demonstrates this in the video above.
Practice Japanese kanji or Chinese hanzi by searching for a character you want to learn in the Explore Mode search bar, clicking a word that contains that character in one of the sentences that appears, then creating a list of sentences containing that character.
Bonus note for language teachers: Teachers can use the tool to easily get content for tests and worksheets.

Remember: unlike content from a textbook or other language apps, all of WordBrewery’s sentences are real sentences from recent news articles, so they tend to be relevant and interesting, making them more fun to study and easier to memorize.

How to access the automatic list feature:

Search for or click any word in Explore Mode, WordBrewery’s default mode. When you click a word, the Word Information box appears and displays information about the word such as its meanings, part of speech, and pronunciation. Near the top of the box, there is a little menu that you can click to build your list.

After building your sentence list, you can find it by clicking “Lists” in the navigation bar to visit the Study Lists page.

From there, you can download a PDF file of your sentences with their Google and Microsoft translations. You can export the sentences to a CSV file for import to Anki, Quizlet, or another flashcard program.

Note: Subscribers can choose how many sentences you want the list to contain; non-subscribers can try the feature but are limited to 30 total sentences per month.

If you get stuck, the video above walks you through the process.

Coming soon: Download audio files of your sentence lists

We have developed a feature that allows learners and teachers to automatically create downloadable audio files of the sentences in any of your lists, including the automatic sentence lists discussed in this post. We are currently testing and refining the feature. Be sure to join our email list to be notified when it is ready for you to try.

Advanced tip: lists based on specific forms of a word

The term lemma means the root form or dictionary form of a word family. For example, if you look up “makes” or “phones” in an English dictionary, you probably won’t finda them, because only lemmas appear in dictionaries. Instead, you would find the words in their lemma forms “make” and “phone.”

For most languages, WordBrewery lets you automatically create lists of example sentences containing containing either the word in all its forms or the word in one specific form. To see sentences with any form of the word, choose the option “Create a list with the lemma «word»,” as in this screenshot:

Interview with polyglot and language blogger Lindsay Williams

Tue, 13 Jun 2017 00:00:00 -0600

Interview with polyglot, educator, and language blogger Lindsay Williams

Lindsay Williams’ blog Lindsay Does Languages is dedicated to “inspiring independent language learners and online teachers.”

Lindsay agreed to share some of her thoughts about learning and teaching languages with The WordBrewery Blog and its readers. She has studied over ten languages, and when not practicing these, she teaches others how to improve their learning experience. For more information about Lindsay and her methods, you can read her blog or follow her on Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr.

WordBrewery: Which languages have you studied, and to what levels of proficiency?

My first foreign language was French at an extracurricular club in primary school. I kept going because we got croissants at the end of term! From there, I added Spanish at school when I was 13, and that was it for quite a few years until I started my university studies. I then began with Italian and Mandarin Chinese as well as adding a little German along the way. After that, I started to teach myself languages including Portuguese, Dutch, Japanese, Korean, Esperanto, Indonesian and now Guaraní, an indigenous language spoken in Paraguay. French and Spanish are my strongest languages.

WordBrewery: How has your study of other languages affected different areas of your life? (Career, personal, travel, personality, etc.)

Learning languages has of course made travel a lot easier, which is great! It’s also helped me create a business completely founded on my love for languages and desire to help others learn them. It’s honestly something I can’t imagine life without.

This is an interesting one. I don’t think there’s a right or wrong answer as it depends on so many personal variables. Personally, I find myself being drawn to lots of languages, so accepting that I’d have to curb that enthusiasm if I was to focus on one language to mastery is tough, and I imagine I’d get a little distracted eventually or burn out without input from other languages too. But that’s not to say it’s the best way! I love scratching the surface of a people, place and culture via language, but I also love being able to go deeper with my stronger ones and to keep learning new things in those languages.

WordBrewery: What learning methods, habits, and tools do you use regularly? Do you use the same strategy for every language?

Memrise is always the first thing that comes to mind here! It’s the tool I’m most likely to use every day. Beyond that it does vary for different languages, although there are some common themes such as music, which plays a crucial part in giving me something to enjoy and fall in love with about the languages I’m learning.

I also think it’s important to study regularly, and to define what regularly means for you - does it mean every day for a full study session? Or does it mean once a week? This is something for you to decide, but I do believe that little and often is better than one long study session every couple of weeks.

WordBrewery: What are your favorite tips for successfully studying a language on your own, without the structure of a traditional classroom?

Learning a language on your own can be incredibly rewarding, but so many people fizzle out. There’s a few reasons for this but to keep things short, we’ll focus on what can be done to avoid this.

Firstly, goals are incredibly important, as is holding yourself accountable with your learning. Whether or not you choose to go public with this - either with close friends and family or out there on the internet for all to see - is a personal choice that you have to make as only you will know what works for you best. When it comes to the specifics of goals, it’s necessary to have smaller goals that will help you reach that bigger end goal. That way, you’re constantly achieving and feeling good about the process rather than down that you haven’t yet reached your big end goal.

Secondly, it’s crucial that language learning becomes a habit. How regular that habit is is up to you, but it makes things easier once you are bringing language learning into your life a little each day and it becomes as normal as brushing your teeth.

Finally, find something you love. It could be music, it could be the food, it could be a particular grammar construction. Whatever it is that draws you in and closer to the language, this will be a very important thing when motivation gets low.

WordBrewery: Can you discuss which learning media and methods you have used, and what have been the pros and cons of each?

I’m a huge fan of using social media for language learning. It’s a great way to use all of the language skills you need to develop as you improve in a language. For example, you can follow accounts that share interesting content in your target language and fill your feed with language learning rather than cat videos and random posts from people you knew once 10 years ago.

Beyond that, it’s really simple to get creative and document your language learning via speaking in short video posts or posting photos of your writing practice notebooks. This is a valuable part of language learning allowing you to share, which holds you accountable, as well as document the process, which is great to look back on for days when you feel like you’re not progressing.

That said, of course, social media isn’t the only tool I use for language learning and I’m a huge fan of mixing resources you use to create a solid foundation of methods, tools and techniques that work best for you.

WordBrewery: Thank you, Lindsay, for taking the time to talk with us!

We encourage WordBrewery learners and The WordBrewery Blog readers to check out Lindsay Does Languages, follow Lindsay on Twitter and Facebook, and take advantage of the excellent and motivational materials she produces for language learners, teachers, and everyone who loves languages.

Spanish Fundamentals #6: 11 new words and many practice sentences

Wed, 07 Jun 2017 00:00:00 -0600

WordBrewery’s Spanish Fundamentals Course: Lesson 6

Welcome to Lesson Six of WordBrewery’s Spanish Fundamentals series. We have scoured thousands of recent Spanish-language news articles and chosen 300 sentences from them to teach you the essentials of Spanish grammar and vocabulary. We have also had native speakers record audio of each sentence, and we’ve created an Anki deck where you can practice these and other sentences.

Review of previous lessons

This post assumes knowledge of previous lessons in the Spanish Fundamentals series; each post defines only words that are appearing for the first time in the series. Since it has been awhile since our last post, here are nearly all of the sentences used in the first five posts of this series. If you can’t read all of those sentences quickly and fluently with 100% understanding, please go back and review the earlier lessons:

Bueno, no es así.	Creo que los dos.
El niño es americano.	Entre ellos, tres niños.
Eres uno más en el grupo.	Es la hora de la verdad.
Es un buen grupo.	Eso es la vida.
Eso es un error.	Eso no existe para ellos.
Eso también es verdad.	La verdad es que no.
Lo sé.	No mucho, la verdad.
No, no lo creo.	Él es americano.
Pero no lo sé.	Son las dos cosas.
Soy como una abuela.	Un minuto es la vida.
Y eso es bueno.	Y no es así.
Y no solo eso.	Y somos mucho más que eso.
Yo creo que no.	Yo no soy su amigo, eh.
¡Es increíble!	¡Gracias por ser y estar!
¡Yo no soy así!	¿Cual es tu secreto?
¿Cómo estás?	¿Entre tú y yo?
¿Por qué lo hace?	¿Por qué?
¿Y eso es un error?	¿Y no solo eso?

Have you started studying real Spanish sentences on your own with WordBrewery yet? If not, go sign up and try it now (the first 50 sentences per month are free). Each sentence you understand and practice brings you one step closer to fluency. We especially encourage you to try our personalized Accelerated Beginning Spanish course, which continues until you have thoroughly mastered the 500 most common word families in Spanish.

32. Y no siempre es bueno.

</source>

siempre

always

</source>

33. Y ahora, lo mismo.

</source>

ahora

now

</source>

mismo

same

</source>

34. No todos, pero algunos.

</source>

todo

all

</source>

algunos

some

</source>

35. Nada es para siempre.

</source>

nada

nothing

</source>

Grammar note: por vs. para

We prepared a separate post explaining these two words, both of which can often be translated as “for.” That post includes printable PDFs with sixty sentences from the news from WordBrewery’s database that contain either por or para–an illustration of our new automatic sentence list feature. Check out the post here.

36. Y todo por dinero!

</source>

dinero

money

</source>

37. No es poco dinero.

</source>

poco

little, few

</source>

38. Pero está muy bien, es divertido.

</source>

muy

very

</source>

bien

good, well

</source>

divertido

fun

</source>

Practice sentences:

These sentences contain only cognates or words that you have encountered in this or previous lessons. Can you read them quickly and fluently? Practice them until you can. Memorizing them can’t hurt, either.

Como dos en uno.

</source>

¿Y ahora qué hacer?

</source>

Grammar note: Note in the above sentence that the lemma eso (that) changes to esa to agree with the feminine noun la idea.
Additional reading:
StudySpanish.com, “Por” and “Para”
SpanishDict, Spanish Present Tense Forms
SpanishDict, Spanish Indicative Mood

Spanish grammar: por vs. para by example

Mon, 05 Jun 2017 00:00:00 -0600

The Spanish prepositions “por” and “para” can both be translated as “for.” There are few consistent rules about when each is appropriate, so your best bet is to study real example sentences rather than memorize rules. Accordingly, we have used two of WordBrewery’s newest features—the ability to automatically create lists of example sentences containing any word and the ability to print sentence lists as PDFs for offline study—to create the following two free documents for you to study. Each contains thirty real sentences from the news containing the words “por” or “para”:

That said, here are a few guidelines about when to use por or para¹:

Some examples of when to use ‘para’

1. Para can be used to express purpose.

Los brazos son para abrazar.

Arms are for hugging.

</source>

¿Para qué lo hizo?

Why did he do it?

</source>

2. Para can be used to express the idea of “for someone” or “on someone’s behalf.”

Unos para los niños, otras para los padres.

Some for the children, others for the parents.

</source>

2. Para is used to express a destination, e.g. “We are headed for home.”

Vamos para la universidad.

We are going to college

</source>

3. Para is used in definite time phrases.

¿Estás listo para el fin de semana?

Are you ready for the weekend?

</source>

4. Some idiomatic expressions use para.

An idiom is a “set phrase” whose meaning is different than its individual words might suggest. Accordingly, idioms should be learned as phrases rather than as combinations of words with separate and independent meanings.

Somos tal para cual en este sentido.

We are two of a kind in this respect.

</source>

¿Estás listo para vivir tu vida digital en tres dimensiones?

</source>

Some examples of when to use ‘por’

1. Por may indicate movement:

Lo único que quiero es poder caminar tranquila por la calle.

All I want is to be able to walk peacefully down the street.

</source>

2. Por may express an indefinite or general period of time:

Adiós a las clases por la tarde.

Farewell to afternoon classes.

</source>

3. As with para, some idiomatic expressions use por.

These should be memorized as phrases:

In the PDF of example sentences containing the word por, for example, we find the following phrases:

¿Por qué lo ha hecho?

*Why did he/she do it?

por qué | why

</source>

<Name>, por tanto, “lo tenía todo”.

<Name>, therefore, had it all.

por tanto | therefore

Todo eso está por ver.

All that remains to be seen.

(estar) por ver | (to remain) to be seen

</source>

Vamos a por todas!

Let’s go for it all1

(ir) por todas | (to go) for all

</source>

Additional resources:

University of Victoria, Beginning Spanish: Por vs Para exercise
StudySpanish.com, “Por” and “Para”
123TeachMe, Spanish Sentence Quiz: Por vs. para 1
Conjuguemos, Por vs. Para #1
Enforex Por vs. Para

See John Butt and Carmen Benjamin, A New Reference Grammar of Modern Spanish 504–11 (McGraw Hill, 4th ed. 2004) ↩

Reading Japanese Katakana #6: The next eight syllables (and many more practice words)

Wed, 31 May 2017 00:00:00 -0600

Reading Japanese Katakana Lesson 6: Mastering ム, ロ, チ, テ, デ, ナ, and メ

Welcome to Lesson Six of WordBrewery’s Reading Japanese: Katakana series. We have created a frequency list of Japanese words, then mined that list for the most common words that include only katakana characters. If you already read katakana, you can still learn from the vocabulary in this post series and use it to build your Japanese reading speed and fluency. But if you’re new to katakana, these posts will help you learn to read it quickly and accurately while picking up some useful vocabulary along the way.

This post presumes knowledge of the characters introduced in previous lessons of the Reading Japanese: Katakana series; each post defines only words that are appearing for the first time in the series.

*You may have noticed that the posts in this series are gradually getting longer. The reason is that, if you have followed this series since the beginning, you can now read almost all of the katakana characters. Since each word in this series includes only characters you have already studied.

Have you started studying real Japanese sentences on your own with WordBrewery yet? If not, go sign up and try it now (the first 50 sentences per month are free). Each sentence you understand and practice brings you one step closer to fluency.

The characters we’ve learned so far

Here are the katakana characters we have studied so far; read them aloud, and if you need more practice with any of them, review the previous lessons:

アイウエオーンルスズトドラフブプクグリレツッタダコゴシジホボポマヒビピ

Seven more common katakana syllables

Today we will meet the following new katakana characters:

ムロチテデナメ

ム | mu (“moo” with a short “u”)

ホーム

home

</source>

タイム

time

</source>

ブーム

boom

</source>

ダム

dam

</source>

イスラム

Islam

</source>

フィルム

film

</source>

コム	com (as in dot-com)

</source>

リズム

rhythm

</source>

トム

Tom

</source>

ドーム

dome

</source>

フォーラム

forum

</source>

スタジアム

stadium

</source>

ジム

gym

</source>

コラム

column

</source>

プラットフォーム

platform

</source>

ドラム

drum

</source>

ルーム

room

</source>

リフォーム

renovation

</source>

グラム

gram

</source>

ムービー

movie

</source>

ムスリム

muslim

</source>

ゴム

gum

</source>

リアルタイム

real time

</source>

エフエム

FM (radio)

</source>

フォーム

form

</source>

シンポジウム

symposium

</source>

アルゴリズム

algorithm

</source>

ドリーム

dream

</source>

スムーズ

smooth

</source>

ウィリアム

William

</source>

フレーム

flame

</source>

ムード

mood

</source>

タイムズ

times (as in “New York Times”)

</source>

クリーム

cream

</source>

ジェームズ

James

</source>

クレムリン

Kremlin

</source>

ストックホルム

Stockholm

</source>

クレーム

claim

</source>

ホームラン

home run

</source>

グアム

Guam

</source>

ムラ

village

</source>

ムーン

moon

</source>

ムダ

waste

</source>

ラム

lamb

</source>

スクラム

scrum

</source>

マイホーム

my home

</source>

スラム

slum

</source>

ジェームス

James

</source>

ファーム

farm

</source>

グランドスラム

grand slam

</source>

ストリーム

stream

</source>

ブラームス

Brahms

</source>

アイスクリーム

ice cream

</source>

フイルム

film

</source>

スリム

slim

</source>

ビーム

beam

</source>

ムッ

stuffy

</source>

アーム

arm

</source>

ファシズム

fascism

</source>

アダム

Adam

</source>

ホームレス

homeless

</source>

ドラムス

drums

</source>

ランダム

random

</source>

トラム

tram

</source>

タイムリー

timely

</source>

リムジン

limousine

</source>

オウム

parrot

</source>

プライム

prime

</source>

ズーム

zoom

</source>

ロ | ro (“roh” as in “pro”)

ロシア

Russia

</source>

プロ

pro

</source>

プロジェクト

project

</source>

ロンドン

london

</source>

プログラム

program

</source>

ロック

lock

</source>

ブロック

block

</source>

ダウンロード

download

</source>

ブログ

blog

</source>

コントロール

control

</source>

ロボット

robot

</source>

ロス

loss

</source>

クロ

black

</source>

ローン

loan

</source>

ロゴ

logo

</source>

ロード

load

</source>

ロング

long

</source>

プロフィール

profile

</source>

フロント

front

</source>

クロス

cross

</source>

ヒーロー

hero

</source>

フロー

flow

</source>

コロムビア

columbia

</source>

プロレス

wrestling

</source>

ヒロイン

heroine

</source>

マイクロ

micro

</source>

マクロ

macro

</source>

ローズ

rose

</source>

プロトコル

protocol

</source>

ロビー

lobby

</source>

ブロードウェイ

Broadway

</source>

フロア

floor

</source>

フロリダ

Florida

</source>

クローン

clone

</source>

ストローク

stroke

</source>

ロードレース

road race

</source>

プロトタイプ

prototype

</source>

スロット

slot

</source>

ロール

roll

</source>

プログラマ

programmer

</source>

ボロボロ

tattered

</source>

ロープ

rope

</source>

スクロール

scroll

</source>

グローブ

globe

</source>

ログイン

</source>

ロビン

robin

</source>

ロク

good

</source>

トロント

Toronto

</source>

プロトン

proton

</source>

プロレタリアート

proletariat

</source>

フォロー

</source>

イエロー

yellow

</source>

スロー

throw

</source>

オスロ

Oslo

</source>

プログラマー

programmer

</source>

プロダクト

product

</source>

ログ

log

</source>

コントローラ

controller

</source>

ロールプレイング

roleplaying

</source>

ゴロゴロ

curr

</source>

クローズアップ

close-up

</source>

ローラー

roller (e.g. rollerblades, roller skates)

</source>

レシプロ

reciprocating

</source>

プログレッシブ

progressive

</source>

ロマンス

romance

</source>

アロー

arrow

</source>

ロット

lot

</source>

フクロウ

owl

</source>

ブロー

blow

</source>

コロラド

Colorado

</source>

ロスト

lost

</source>

ホロコースト

the Holocaust

</source>

トロフィー

trophy

</source>

ドロップ

drop

</source>

ロリータ

Lolita

</source>

イントロ

intro

</source>

アイロン

iron (e.g. golf club)

</source>

ブロンズ

bronze (e.g. Bronze Age)

</source>

ブロード

broad

</source>

ロングラン

long run

</source>

チ | chi (“moo” with a short “u”)

チーム

team

</source>

インターチェンジ

interchange

</source>

コーチ

coach

</source>

チェック

check

</source>

クロアチア

Croatia

</source>

タッチ

touch

</source>

マッチ

match

</source>

マルチ

multi

</source>

アプローチ

approach

</source>

チェコ

Czech Republic

</source>

チェーン

chain

</source>

インチ

inch

</source>

プラスチック

plastic

</source>

スイッチ

switch

</source>

チリ

Chile

</source>

アーチ

arch

</source>

イチ

position

</source>

エチオピア

Ethiopia

</source>

チェンジ

change

</source>

チーズ

cheese

</source>

チップ

chip

</source>

ビーチ

beach

</source>

チェロ

cello

</source>

スピーチ

speech

</source>

ピッチ

pitch

</source>

ピンチ

pinch

</source>

チーフ

chief

</source>

ランチ

lunch

</source>

アスレチックス

athletics

</source>

チラシ

flyer

</source>

タイトルマッチ

title match

</source>

イチゴ

strawberry

</source>

アンチ

anti-

</source>

スチール

steel

</source>

リッチ

rich

</source>

プーチン

Putin

</source>

マーチ

march (e.g. the Women’s March protest)

</source>

オートマチック

automatic

</source>

ロマンチック

romantic

</source>

チェイス

chase

</source>

ストレッチ

stretch

</source>

テ | te (“teh” as in “television”)

テレビ

TV (television)

</source>

システム

system

</source>

テーマ

theme

</source>

ホテル

hotel

</source>

テスト

test

</source>

ステージ

stage

</source>

テロ

terrorism

</source>

アイテム

item

</source>

ステークス

stakes

</source>

シティ

city

</source>

テーブル

table

</source>

テープ

tape

</source>

ボランティア

volunteer

</source>

ステップ

step

</source>

コンテスト

contest

</source>

テン

ten

</source>

ラテン

latin

</source>

テンポ

tempo

</source>

ステレオ

stereo

</source>

インテリア

interior

</source>

プロテスタント

Protestant

</source>

テレホン

telephone

</source>

ティー

tea

</source>

テント

tent

</source>

アーティスト

artists

</source>

システムズ

systems

</source>

ホステス

hostess

</source>

ステア

stare

</source>

ステイタス

status

</source>

テイク

take

</source>

スティーブ

Steve

</source>

アムステルダム

Amsterdam

</source>

テロリスト

terrorist

</source>

クリスティアン

Christian

</source>

アトランティック

Atlantic

</source>

テコ

leverage

</source>

スティング

sting

</source>

テンプレート

template

</source>

ホームステイ

homestay

</source>

ステンレス

stainless

</source>

ティムール

Timur

</source>

ポテト

potato

</source>

シティー

city

</source>

テルアビブ

tel aviv

</source>

スティール

steele

</source>

ステート

state

</source>

ティム

Tim

</source>

リアリティ

reality

</source>

フロンティア

frontier

</source>

テック

tech

</source>

テリア

terrier

</source>

レイティング

rating

</source>

グアテマラ

Guatemala

</source>

ステロイド

steroid

</source>

クリエイティブ

creative

</source>

ティーン

teen

</source>

テラス

terrace

</source>

ステルス

stealth

</source>

コレステロール

cholesterol

</source>

スティーブン

Steven

</source>

テイラー

tailor

</source>

テイスト

taste

</source>

アコースティック

acoustic

</source>

デ | de (“deh” as in “dead or “desperate)

</source>

データ

data

</source>

ビデオ

video

</source>

デジタル

digital

</source>

スウェーデン

sweden

</source>

ディスク

disk

</source>

アイデア

idea

</source>

ボディ

body

</source>

デンマーク

Denmark

</source>

ホールディングス

holdings

</source>

アイディア

idea

</source>

エンディング

ending

</source>

インディーズ

Indies

</source>

ディレクター

director

</source>

ディスプレイ

display

</source>

ゴールデン

golden

</source>

クーデター

coup d’etat

</source>

アップデート

update

</source>

オーディオ

audio

</source>

デー

day

</source>

アイデンティティ

identity

</source>

ディスプレー

display

</source>

デスクトップ

desktop

</source>

ディフェンダー

defender

</source>

デート

date

</source>

ヒデ

hide

</source>

レコーディング

recording

</source>

デスク

desk

</source>

ディフェンス

defense

</source>

デフォルト

default

</source>

ディーラー

dealer

</source>

インデックス

index

</source>

デトロイト

Detroit

</source>

スタディ

study

</source>

デイリー

daily

</source>

デビッド

David

</source>

ボディー

body

</source>

レディース

ladies

</source>

ディスコ

disco

</source>

ディレクトリ

ナ | na (“nah” as in “not” or “Namaste”)

ナ

</source>

コーナー

corner

</source>

オリジナル

original

</source>

シナリオ

scenario

</source>

オーナー

owner

</source>

ウクライナ

Ukraine

</source>

マイナス

minus

</source>

アナログ

analog

</source>

ボーナス

bonus

</source>

アリーナ

arena

</source>

アンテナ

antenna

</source>

ナポリ

Naples

</source>

ファイナル

final

</source>

ナチス

Nazi

</source>

ナイフ

knife

</source>

ナウ

now

</source>

テナント

tenant

</source>

ナイト

night

</source>

ドナルド

Donald

</source>

コンテナ

container

</source>

アナウンス

announcement

</source>

アナリスト

analyst

</source>

シンシナティ

Cincinnati

</source>

マイナー

minor

</source>

ランナー

runner

</source>

ナポレオン

Napoleon

</source>

マナー

manners

</source>

ライナー

liner

</source>

ナイジェリア

Nigeria

</source>

ナトリウム

sodium

</source>

ファイナルファンタジー

Final Fantasy (role-playing game series)

</source>

ナイター

night game

</source>

トレーナー

trainer

</source>

プラチナ

platinum

</source>

ファイナンス

finance

</source>

ラインナップ

lineup

</source>

アナトリア

anatolia

</source>

シグナル

signal

</source>

スナック

snack

</source>

マクドナルド

McDonald’s

</source>

ディナー

dinner

</source>

ナイロビ

Nairobi

</source>

レオナルド

Leonardo

</source>

ボーナストラック

bonus track

</source>

エナジー

energy

</source>

メ | me (“apmeh” as in “metro”)

</source>

イメージ

image

</source>

メートル

meter

</source>

コメント

comment

</source>

メディア

media

</source>

メールアドレス

mail address

</source>

メール

</source>

メイト

mate

</source>

コメ

rice

</source>

トーナメント

tournament

</source>

メダル

medal

</source>

メリット

merit

</source>

ドメイン

domain

</source>

メイド

maid

</source>

リメイク

remake

</source>

ダメージ

damage

</source>

メイク

make

</source>

ラーメン

ramen

</source>

メダリスト

medalist (e.g. in the Olympics)

</source>

メンテナンス

maintenance

</source>

メタ

How to find a language exchange partner and make the most of your conversations

Tue, 30 May 2017 00:00:00 -0600

Why you need a language partner

Speaking in another language can be terrifying, especially if your partner is a native speaker. But regular practice with a native speaker can accelerate your learning and help you stay motivated. There are many ways to connect with native speakers, especially if you are willing to spend some time speaking in your native language with someone trying to learn it. We’ve gathered some suggestions for finding and working with a language partner and created a list of question-and-answer sites and language-specific Google searches for each of the nineteen languages WordBrewery teaches. You can find that list at the bottom of this post.

Choosing a language partner: know what you are looking for

When searching for a partner, don’t just think about your language needs. Think about a person you would like to talk to on a regular basis regardless of their language. What might their age, gender, hobbies and motivation for learning English be? Don’t be afraid to keep looking for a better fit. Similarly, be straightforward in what you need from your partner and what you want to be able to discuss fluently in your target language — do you want to talk about movies or business, for example? Do you have an academic or occupational specialty that you want to be able to talk about?

Meeting with your language partner: Create structure and be prepared

It’s a good idea to list greetings and brainstorm questions before the meeting. Doing this will give you a starting point for the conversation. Try practicing in front of a mirror to gain confidence.

As you improve, keep challenging yourself to learn new vocabulary and grammatical constructions so you do not rely too heavily on particular words and sentence patterns. Challenge yourself by writing single keywords on index cards and using them to practice conversing with your partner or in front of a mirror.

Asking icebreaker questions

When you meet your partner for the first time, here are some questions and answers you might want to have prepared:

What is your hometown like?
What is your favorite __? (book, movie, superhero, music, food, soccer team, etc.)
What do you like to do in your free time?
How many siblings do you have? Do they go to school or work? What do they do?
What do you do as your job?
What is your daily routine like?
What are your hobbies and interests?

If you need more icebreaker questions, search Google for the phrase “conversation questions“or “conversation starters” in your target language. It’s possible that someone has already complied a list of interesting questions. If you are still unable to find a list of questions, try adding qualifiers to your search such as “interesting questions,” “dating questions,” or “school questions.” To help you, we’ve complied a list of question-and-answer sites and language-specific Google searches for each of the nineteen languages WordBrewery teaches. You can find this at the bottom of this post.

Communicate about the exchange and stick to your agreement

If you both decided to practice each language for 30 minutes then switch, be sure to set a timer and stick to that plan. Also, always be punctual when meeting your partner: any last minute cancellations or delays will make the next session more awkward, if it happens at all.

Let the conversation evolve naturally

We have mentioned structure several times because being prepared and structuring the conversation can make the difference between a language exchange session that is useful and one that is not. That said, if you start a conversation about The Godfather and eventually start talking about environmental conservation and climate change, don’t stop! Authentic native conversations evolve from one topic to another. Being too rigid about sticking to your theme will make conversations with your language partner sound stiff and unnatural. At the end of the day, you want to sound like a native, not a robot.

Ask lots of questions, and be sure to listen rather than just planning your next response

Asking how to say something is vital to learning. Part of language-learning is cultural exchange, so don’t be afraid to ask about your partner’s country, religion or politics. Just be polite! If you prepare beforehand, you can even ask these questions in your target language. And don’t forget to make a note of new phrases to review later.

Have you ever participated in a language exchange or partnership? What worked well and what didn’t? Send us a tweet at @WordBrewery and let us know. Also, be sure to try WordBrewery and sign up to get our latest blog posts by email.

Lists of useful conversation questions and answers for your target language:

Arabic - Search Google.ae for “أسئلة بداية المحادثة” | How to break barriers and start a conversation in English | اسئلة المحادثة كيف تكسر الحواجز و تبدأ محادثة باللغة الإنجليزية

Chinese - Search Google.hk for “话题” | 100 English and Chinese Conversation Topics (with Pinyin)

Danish - Search Google.dk for “100 samtale spørgsmål” | 100 spørgsmål du kan blive stillet til jobsamtalen

French - Search Google.fr for “questions pour faire la conversation” | 36 Questions Pour Tomber Amoureux

German - Search Google.de for “gute Fragen” | Fragen sind die Antwort – 50 gute Fragen

Greek- Search Google.gr for “100 ερωτήσεισ για συζητηση” | Oι 100 ερωτήσεις που πρέπει να κάνεις στο παιδί για να δεθείτε περισσότερο

Hungarian - Search Google.hu for “100 kérdés” | 100 kérdés 100 válasz

Italian - Search Google.it for “domande per la conversazione” | 100 Domande per Conoscere Meglio una Ragazza o un Ragazzo

Japanese - Search Google.co.jp for “会話の質問” | 会話の糸口がほしい人に100の質問

Korean - Search Google.co.kr for “대화 질문” 사랑하기 위해 물어야 할 36가지 질문

Norwegian - Search Google.no for “bli kjent spørsmål venner” | 100 spørsmål - Bli litt bedre kjent med meg?

Polish - Search Google.pl for “pytania do rozmowy” | (O czym rozmawiać…? 100 tematów do nawiązania rozmowy!

Portuguese - Search Google.com.br for “perguntas para conversar” | 31 perguntas para quebrar um silêncio constrangedor

Serbian - Search Google.rs for “питања за пријатеље” | 100 potencijalnih pitanja na intervjuu

Spanish - Search Google.es for “preguntas para conversar” | 44 Preguntas Interesantes Para Conocer Mejor a Alguien

Swedish - Search Google.se for “frågor för konversationbra” | 100 FRÅGOR

Russian - Search Google.ru for “Вопросы о разговоре” | 48 вопросов, которые помогут вам сделать неуклюжую беседу проще

Ukrainian - Search Google.com.ua for “розмова питання” | 100 питань, які змінять ваше життя

How to measure vocabulary knowledge

Wed, 24 May 2017 00:00:00 -0600

What it means to master a word

(and how WordBrewery measures it)

One of the fun design decisions that educational app creators get to make is how to measure knowledge. There are people who study the field of psychometrics for a living. But we get to explore it a bit as well in order to track learners’ knowledge of the words they find in the news sentences on WordBrewery.

Core principle: results matter—not effort.

Some language-learning apps provide an illusory sense of progress. Completing a particular set of lessons feels good, but it only matters if it meaningfully increases your ability to communicate in your target language. We think it is much less important to measure learners’ effort than it is to measure the learning that resulted from that effort.

In fact, we believe in efficiency, not effort. If you can learn more Spanish, French, or German vocabulary in an efficient 30-minute study session than in an inefficient 60-minute session, you win twice: once by saving time and energy, and again by learning more than you would otherwise.

In short, the meaningful metric is not how many lessons you complete; rather, it is what you can do with your new vocabulary and grammar knowledge and increased reading comprehension.

What we mean by “mastery”

Imagine a book.

When you read that sentence, did you have to pause to think about the definition of “book”? No; in fact, you may have immediately began to follow the sentence’s direction by picturing a book in your mind. You probably didn’t have to think about the words in that sentence at all.

That is what it means to be fluent, and that is what it feels like to have mastered a word. When you understand and process a word’s meaning without effort or delay—without even noticing it—you have mastered the word.

The only way to master a word is by seeing it and comprehending it in many different contexts. Memorizing the word’s definition has little to do with it: remember, you didn’t have to pause to think of the definition of “book” when I asked you to imagine a book. When you learned the words “mama” or “daddy” or “doggy” at age two, no one brought you a dictionary to assist you. You simply learned to associate those words with their meanings.

So when we designed WordBrewery’s system for tracking your mastery of a word, we tried to ensure that your statistics only count a word as mastered if you have in fact mastered it—if it is firmly embedded in your long-term memory, and if, when you encounter that word in your target language, you will not have to pause or stumble over it. The word will be yours.

The details: how WordBrewery tracks your vocabulary knowledge

You have a Knowledge Score of 0-100 for each of the 30,000 most common words in your target language.
Every time you interact with a sentence in either Course Mode or Explore Mode, your knowledge score changes for each word in the sentence. For example, clicking a word to see its meaning slightly lowers your score for the word; continuing to another sentence without clicking the word slightly increases your score for that word.
Answering quiz questions in Course Mode also affects your knowledge score for each word in the sentence serving as the quiz prompt and, in multiple choice questions, for each word presented as an answer choice. Skipping a quiz question has no effect on your knowledge statistics.
We use the following labels to describe different levels of word knowledge on the path to mastering the word:

Knowledge Score	Label	Description
0	New	A word you have never seen on WordBrewery.
1-20	Nearly New	A word you have seen on WordBrewery, but probably need to practice.
21-59	Familiar	A word you probably know, but should review occasionally to solidify your long-term memory.
60-89	Learned	A word you know well, but possibly less well than a word in your native language.
90-100	Mastered	A word in your long-term memory that you can recognize and recall fluently as though it were a word in your native language.

A WordBrewery course continues until you have mastered all of the 500 target words taught in the course

The purpose of a course is to master all of the target words of the course by studying them in the context of many different sentences selected specifically for you according to your current word knowledge. You can read more about Course Mode here, and you can browse our currently available courses here. We currently have Accelerated Beginner and Intermediate courses available for Spanish, English, and German; French will be added in the next few days. Please send us a tweet (@WordBrewery) or email us with your requests and feedback.

Summary

We put a lot of time and research into developing our word knowledge scoring system. We think the level of “Mastery,” reflected in your “Words Mastered” counter, represents true mastery of a word rather than just “points” or some other internal measure. This is because, on WordBrewery, there is no way to demonstrate knowledge of a word unless you’ve seen many real examples of the word in different sentences. In the progress of all of that reading, if you have not recently had to look up the word by clicking it, there is a good chance that you have thoroughly internalized its meaning and can now read it fluently.

By the end of WordBrewery’s Intermediate Spanish course, this learner will have thoroughly mastered the 1,000 most common word families in Spanish and will understand about 90% of the words they encounter in daily life.

Learn German with WordBrewery's personalized courses

Mon, 22 May 2017 00:00:00 -0600

Introducing WordBrewery’s new personalized German courses

Exciting news for WordBrewery’s German learners: our revolutionary Course Mode is now available for German.¹ Our Accelerated Beginning German course helps you thoroughly master the 500 most common word families in German (~75% of the vocabulary you will encounter in a typical day); our Intermediate German course does the same for the 1000 most common word families in German (~90% of the vocabulary you will encounter in a typical day).

In Course Mode, each learner sees sentences selected specifically for them

No two learners see the same sentences or lessons. Every sentence is selected specifically for you based on your current word Our algorithm attempts to show you sentences that are slightly above your current ability level by introducing no more than one totally new word per sentence.** The remaining words are review words that you have learned to various degrees. We also choose sentences that contain words that you are due to review according to our spaced-repetition algorithm.

Teach our algorithm which words you know and which you need to practice

Each time you study and interact with a German sentence or answer a quiz question anywhere on WordBrewery, your German word knowledge statistics change for every word in the sentence, and the course will become more closely tailored to your current knowledge. That is what makes Course Mode so special: these are the world’s first automatically generated but individualized language courses that teach words exclusively in the context of authentic material.

Read real German sentences from day one

As always on WordBrewery, you’ll be studying real sentences from recent German news articles, so you don’t have to worry about the accuracy or relevance of your study materials. And you’ll only study vocabulary in context—never through rote memorization.

Getting started with a German course

Here are some screenshots from our Accelerated Beginning German course as well as some tips for making the most of a course. To get started with a course, register for WordBrewery (it’s free), then click on “Courses” in the navbar or visit this link. Non-members can study 50 sentences per month, but we can only grow with your help, so please consider becoming a member, mentioning us to fellow learners and teachers, and sharing this post on social media.

Inside an Accelerated Beginning German lesson

Each lesson is designed to take less than five minutes while helping you make meaningful progress. The lesson starts with five sentence screens. Each sentence contains up to one new word as well as several words that are due for review.

To make the most of the sentence screens, use the following steps:

Take your time with each sentence.
Repeat each sentence aloud after the audio. Consider pressing the speaker icon again.
Click each word you don’t know or need to review and review its meaning.
Reread the sentence until you understand it thoroughly.

Each time you click a word or continue without clicking a word, your knowledge statistics for that word change. It is important to click words you are unsure about to keep your statistics accurate and ensure that the Course Mode algorithm selects sentences for you that will help you master each word as efficiently as possible.

We use an algorithm to score sentences according to their predicted usefulness to language-learners and measure “usefulness” primarily by the frequency of the words in the sentence. But we add new sentences daily and do not manually review each sentence. if you find a sentence that you think is unhelpful, click the report icon beneath the sentence so we can delete it from the database and improve our filters. If you have any other difficulties or feedback, please send us a tweet (@WordBrewery) or email us.

Get more context by skimming the original source article

As in Explore Mode, you can click the newspaper icon to see the sentence in the context of the news article from which it was selected:

Check your understanding when needed with Microsoft and Google translations

If you are stumped by a sentence or need to check your understanding, you can click the translate icon to see Google and Microsoft translations of the sentence. You should only do this when you need to, after you have clicked on every word you don’t know and done your best to understand the sentence. Machine translations are imperfect, so see these as guidelines rather than as “correct answers”:

WordBrewery uses an algorithm to score sentences according to their predicted usefulness to language-learners. We measure ‘usefulness’ primarily by the frequency of the words in the sentence.

Answer quiz questions to build fluency

After the sentence screens, you will see approximately five quiz screens, each containing one of our six quiz question types. All of our question types are based on real sentences, usually sentences that you have seen before on WordBrewery. One of the quiz question types is illustrated below: it is a fill-in-the-blank (cloze) typing question to improve your recall, word usage, and writing skills. Language acquisition and learning research shows that recall exercises like this are very effective for building long-term memory. Other quiz question types include listening exercises and multiple-choice questions; you can read more about them on our earlier post about Course Mode

Our quiz questions are automatically generated and based on real sentences.

At the end of each five-minute lesson, you’ll see an update on your progress:

We also have English and Spanish courses available, and our first French courses will be released later this week. We will continue to add courses for other languages and levels according to customer demand. Feel free to send us a tweet (@WordBrewery) or email us. ↩

Reading Japanese Katakana #5: The next five syllables (and many more practice words)

Sat, 13 May 2017 00:00:00 -0600

Welcome to Lesson Five of WordBrewery’s Reading Japanese: Katakana series. We have created a frequency list of Japanese words, then mined that list for the most common katakana words. Each word contains exclusively characters that have been introduced in previous lessons. Accordingly, if you read the post series in order, you should be able to read each word you encounter.

Have you started studying real Japanese sentences on your own with WordBrewery yet? If not, go sign up to try it now and consider joining us. Each sentence you understand and practice brings you one step closer to fluency.

The characters we’ve learned so far

Here are the kana characters we have studied so far; read them aloud, and if you need more practice with any of them, review the previous lessons:

アイウエオーンルスズトドラフブプクグリレツッタダコゴ

Eight more katakana syllables

Today we will meet the following eight new characters:

シジホボポマヒビピ

シ | shi (“shee” as in “sushi”)

</source>

シリーズ

series

</source>

シーズン

season

</source>

シーン

scene

</source>

タクシー

taxi

</source>

シート

sheet

</source>

シングル

single

</source>

クラシック

classic

</source>

シェア

</source>

アシスト

assist

</source>

シンプル

simple

</source>

シリア

Syria

</source>

シアター

theater

</source>

シフト

shift

</source>

シップ

ship

</source>

シアトル

Seattle

</source>

シール

seal

</source>

リーダーシップ

leadership

</source>

アシスタント

assistant

</source>

シェフ

chef

</source>

レーシング

racing

</source>

シリアル

cereal

</source>

シークレット

secret

</source>

シェル

shell

</source>

インターンシップ

internship

</source>

ファシスト

fascist

</source>

シンクタンク

think tank

</source>

シック

chic (fashionable)

</source>

シリコン

silicon (e.g. Silicon Valley)

</source>

オアシス

oasis

</source>

フランシス

Francis (name)

</source>

シルク

silk

</source>

ブラシ

brush

</source>

シーク

seek

</source>

ジ | ji (“jee” as in “jeer”)

</source>

アジア

Asia

</source>

ラジオ

radio

</source>

エンジン

engine

</source>

ブラジル

Brazil

</source>

エジプト

Egypt

</source>

フジ	Fuji (name of Japan’s tallest mountain, “Fuji-san”)

</source>

オブジェクト

object

</source>

オレンジ

orange

</source>

クレジット

credit

</source>

アレンジ

arrange

</source>

アルジェリア

Algeria

</source>

ジェット

jet

</source>

ジオン

zion

</source>

ジェフ

Jeff (name)

</source>

レンジ

range

</source>

ファンタジー

fantasy

</source>

ゴジラ

Godzilla

</source>

エージェント

agent

</source>

ジーンズ

jeans

</source>

レジェンド

legend

</source>

レジスト

resist

</source>

フリーエージェント

free agent

</source>

ジングル

jingle

</source>

フィジー

Fiji

</source>

ファジー

fuzzy

</source>

ダイジェスト

digest

</source>

エンジェル

angel

</source>

ジプシー

gypsy

</source>

ラウンジ

lounge

</source>

ジェダイ

Jedi (Star Wars term)

</source>

ホ | ho (“hoh” as in “hole”)

</source>

ホール

hole

</source>

ボ | bo (“boh” as in “bowl”)

</source>

ホンダ

Honda (auto maker)

</source>

ホスト

host

</source>

ホラー

horror

</source>

ホー

</source>

ホット

hot

</source>

ホーン

horn

</source>

ホープ

hope

</source>

ブラックホール

black hole

</source>

ホース

hose

</source>

ポ | po (“poh” as in “post”)

</source>

ボール

ball

</source>

ボード

board

</source>

ボタン

button

</source>

ボーイング

Boeing (aircraft manufacturer)

</source>

ボックス

box

</source>

シンボル

symbol

</source>

ボート

boat

</source>

ボクシング

boxing

</source>

ボス

boss

</source>

ボストン

Boston

</source>

フットボール

football

</source>

ボーイズ

boys

</source>

ドラゴンボール

Dragon Ball (Z) (anime)

</source>

ボイコット

boycott

</source>

ボイス

voice

</source>

ブルボン

bourbon

</source>

レインボー

rainbow

</source>

ボルト

bolt

</source>

リボン

ribbon

</source>

ボーイ

boy

</source>

リスボン

Lisbon (capital of Portugal)

</source>

ボブ	Bob (name)

</source>

シボレー

Chevrolet (type of car)

</source>

ボウ

bow

</source>

ボトル

bottle

</source>

ダンボール

cardboard

</source>

ボウル

bowl

</source>

ボンド

bond

</source>

コラボ

collaboration

</source>

ラボ

lab

</source>

コンボ

combo

</source>

ボーリング

bowling

</source>

ターボ

turbo

</source>

ボルボ

Volvo (auto maker)

</source>

ポ

</source>

スポーツ

sport

</source>

ポイント

point

</source>

ポスト

post

</source>

ポーランド

Poland

</source>

ポール

pole

</source>

ポート

port

</source>

ポスター

poster

</source>

スポット

spot

</source>

ポップ

pop

</source>

リポート

report

</source>

リポーター

reporter

</source>

シンポ

symposium

</source>

ポーズ

pause

</source>

ポリシー

policy

</source>

レポート

report

</source>

ポップス

pop

</source>

ポートフォリオ

portfolio

</source>

レポ

report

</source>

ポータブル

portable

</source>

ポリス

police

</source>

ポッド

pod (as in “podcast”)

</source>

ポインター

pointer

</source>

ポータル

portal

</source>

レスポンス

response

</source>

ポット

pot

</source>

ポッター

potter (e.g. Harry Potter)

</source>

クーポン

coupon

</source>

ポリゴン

polygon

</source>

マ | ma (“mah” as in “mama”)

</source>

ドラマ

drama

</source>

マーク

mark

</source>

マレーシア

Malaysia

</source>

マジ

really

</source>

クリスマス

christmas

</source>

マシン

machine

</source>

マップ

map

</source>

コマンド

command

</source>

マイク

microphone

</source>

マスター

master

</source>

ママ

Mama

</source>

フォーマット

format

</source>

マイル

mile

</source>

コマ

coma

</source>

マジック

magic

</source>

マスク

mask

</source>

スマートフォン

smartphone

</source>

マイン

main

</source>

アンマン

Amman (capital of Jordan)

</source>

マット

mat

</source>

トマト

tomato

</source>

マルクス

(Karl) Marx

</source>

マドリード

Madrid

</source>

マスターズ

masters

</source>

マウンド

mound

</source>

マリ

Mali

</source>

マスコット

mascot

</source>

マウント

mount

</source>

ジレンマ

dilemma

</source>

マックス

max

</source>

マフィア

mafia

</source>

スマート

smart (fashionable)

</source>

マシーン

machine

</source>

クライマックス

climax

</source>

マート

mart

</source>

マインド

mind

</source>

マーズ

Mars

</source>

マラリア

malaria

</source>

スマイル

smile

</source>

ランドマーク

landmark

</source>

マージン

margin

</source>

ヒ | hi (“hee” as in “here”)

</source>

ヒット

hit

</source>

コーヒー

coffee

</source>

ヒント

hint

</source>

ヒップホップ

hip hop

</source>

ヒルズ

hills (e.g. in a place name)

</source>

ヒアリング

hearing

</source>

ヒート

heat

</source>

ビ | bi (“bee”)

</source>

ビル

building

</source>

ビール

beer

</source>

ラグビー

rugby

</source>

ビッグ

big

</source>

ビン

bottle

</source>

リビア

Libya

</source>

ビートルズ

(The) Beatles

</source>

ビット

bit

</source>

アラビア

Arabia

</source>

ラトビア

Latvia

</source>

ビート

beat (rhythm)

</source>

ビラ

villa

</source>

ボリビア

Bolivia

</source>

ダイビング

diving

</source>

ビジター

visitor

</source>

レズビアン

lesbian

</source>

ホビー

hobby

</source>

ルビー

ruby

</source>

シビリアン

civilian

</source>

ピ | pi (“pee” as in “peer”)

</source>

オリンピック

Olympics

</source>

スピード

speed

</source>

コピー

copy

</source>

フィリピン

(The) Philippines

</source>

アピール

appeal

</source>

ピーク

peak

</source>

ダンピング

dumping

</source>

ピンク

pink

</source>

ピン

</source>

レシピ

recipe

</source>

ピース

piece

</source>

シェークスピア

shakespeare

</source>

スピリット

spirit (e.g. Spirit Airlines)

</source>

スピリッツ

spirits

</source>

スピン

spin

</source>

ピル

pill

</source>

ピストル

pistol

</source>

ピックアップ

pick up

</source>

ピリオド

period

</source>

スピードアップ

speed up

</source>

マッピング

mapping

</source>

The most efficient way to master high-frequency vocabulary

Thu, 11 May 2017 00:00:00 -0600

Introducing WordBrewery’s Course Mode: Personalized digital language courses

By the end of WordBrewery’s Intermediate Spanish course, you will have mastered the 1,000 most common word families in Spanish and will understand about 90% of the words you encounter in daily life.

To become fluent or even competent in another language, learners must master a core set of high-frequency words. All four language skills—reading, writing, speaking, and listening—require this basic vocabulary. Meaningful communication is impossible without it.

WordBrewery founder Ryan McCarl and others on the WordBrewery team have spent the past year and a half asking: What is the most efficient possible way to learn and teach the core vocabulary needed for fluency? And more ambitiously: can we build customized language courses to implement that method while adapting to each learner’s level of vocabulary knowledge?

There was one constraint: we wanted to make sure that our courses remained true to WordBrewery’s principles, the basic commitments that make us different from every other language-learning app:

Use only authentic sentences
Teach only high-frequency words
Never teach words out of context
Never rely on rote memorization

The first automatically generated and individualized language courses

Our search for the most efficient path to fluency led us to build Course Mode: automatically generated and invidualized language courses that teach high-frequency words in the context of real sentences from the news. The courses measure and adapt to each learner’s exact level of current vocabulary knowledge and teach a set of sentences that is customized for each learner.

By the time a learner finishes the Intermediate Spanish course, she will have read thousands of real Spanish sentences and mastered the 1,000 most common word families in Spanish. Along the way, she will have encountered hundreds of Spanish idioms and every common grammatical pattern while getting a glimpse into different parts of the Spanish-speaking world by reading sentences from the same news websites that native speakers read.

Getting started with WordBrewery’s language courses

Once you have registered for WordBrewery and logged in, you will be taken to Explore Mode by default. Click “Courses” in the navbar, choose the language and course you want to study¹.

(Note: if we have not yet released courses for your language,¹ you can still use WordBrewery’s Explore Mode to learn any of our nineteen languages one sentence at a time.)

The course dashboard screen

The Course Dashboard for WordBrewery’s Intermediate English course

When you start or resume a course, you will see your course dashboard. The statistics meters at the bottom of the Course Dashboard tell you (1) how many of the course’s target words you have mastered; (2) how many of the course’s target words you have “studied,” i.e. how many of these words have appeared in sentences you have seen in Course Mode or Explore Mode; and (3) how many total words you have mastered in your target language.

What happens inside a course lesson?

There is no limit to the number of lessons in a course. A course continues until you have mastered each of the target words in the course. This is a long process, but it reflects the fact that there no shortcuts to fluency—just more efficient ways of pursuing it.

A. The eight sentence screens

The first eight screens in a course lesson are “sentence screens” that display real sentences from the news. These sentences have been specifically selected for you based on your current word knowledge statistics and learning needs.

Teach the course algorithm which words you need to practice by clicking them to reveal their definitions. You can also add them to lists for further study, printing, and exporting.

Getting the most out of the sentence screens

To get the most out of a WordBrewery course, you should take your time and study each sentence until you understand every word in it. Use the following procedure:

Read the sentence through once without stopping and listen to its audio. Repeat the sentence aloud after listening to the audio, and try to mimic the pronunciation of the speaker.
Identify and click any words that you do not know or need to review.
Review the meanings of those words in the Word Information box. Consider adding those words to a study list by clicking the star icon at the bottom of the Word Information box.
Now that you have the meaning of every word in your short-term memory, read the sentence again.
Without looking at the sentence, replay the sentence’s audio by clicking the speaker button. Repeat it without looking at the screen.
Press “Continue” when you are ready to move on to the next screen.
If necessary, click the full-sentence translation icon and use the Google and Microsoft translations to check your understanding. If you do this, only do it after you have done your best to understand the sentence without looking at a translation. Then, think of the translations as rough guidelines, not as “correct answers,” and be aware that translations are often imperfect.
Optional: If you want more context about a sentence, click the newspaper icon to see the sentence in its original context.
Optional: If you want to review this sentence again in the future, click the star icon beneath the sentence.
Optional: If you think a sentence has an error or does not make sense, click the thumbs-down icon to report it so we can delete it from the database and improve our sentence filters.

B. The six quiz screens

The remaining screens in a course lesson are quiz screens based on sentences you have studied. None of the question types test your knowledge of an isolated word. Several use variations of the cloze (fill-in-the-blank) method. These screenshots and their captions illustrate some examples:

A multiple choice cloze question in the Intermediate English course

A cloze typing question in the Intermediate Spanish course

A listening comprehension and typing question in the Accelerated Beginning Spanish course

Because our quiz questions are automatically generated, different for every learner, and based on real sentences from the news, some questions may have several possible answers or other problems. You can skip these questions by pressing the “Skip” button below the answer section.

Some questions include hints that you can use to prompt your memory. Using a hint slightly penalizes your knowledge score for the words tested in the question.

When you finish a course lesson, you will see a completion screen that shows you your progress:

A screen showing your statistics after a completed lesson in the Intermediate Spanish course

Q: What does it mean to “master” a word?

The purpose of a course is to master all of the target words of the course by studying them in the context of many different sentences selected specifically for you based on your current word knowledge. I will explain the concept of “mastery” and how we measure word knowledge in greater detail in a separate post on The WordBrewery Blog. For now, here is the basic information you need to know:

Here is an example from our administrator panel of how WordBrewery automatically tracks your mastery of high-frequency words as you use WordBrewery.

You have a Knowledge Score of 0-100 for each word. A word is Mastered if your knowledge score for the word is 90-100. You should be able to recognize and recall a Mastered word fluently, as though it were a word in your native language.
Every time you interact with a sentence in either Course Mode or Explore Mode, the knowledge score for each word in the sentence changes. For example, clicking a word to see its meaning slightly lowers your score for the word; continuing to another sentence without clicking the word slightly increases your score for that word.
Answering quiz questions in Course Mode also affects your knowledge score for each word in the sentence serving as the quiz prompt and, in multiple choice questions, for each word presented as an answer choice.

Q: How are different Course Mode sentences selected for each learner?

Every sentence consists of target words and review words.

The sentences displayed in a language course are chosen by our algorithm according to the following guidelines:

Note: the actual order of these screens is randomized.

Sentences	Guidelines
Sentences 1 and 2	One completely new word per sentence that you have never seen on WordBrewery; the remaining words are review words.
Sentences 3 and 4	Two nearly-new words per sentence; the remaining words are review words.
Sentences 5 and 6	Two familiar words per sentence; the remaining words are review words.
Sentences 7 and 8	One nearly-learned word; the remaining words are review words.

Q: Which courses are available so far?

This week, WordBrewery released its first four courses:

Spanish

Accelerated Beginning Spanish (master the 500 most common word families in Spanish)
Intermediate Spanish (master the 1000 most common word families in Spanish)

English

Accelerated Beginning English (master the 500 most common word families in English)
Intermediate English (master the 1000 most common word families in English)

In the next two weeks, we will add similar courses for German and French. Which languages should we add after that? Let us know, and note that we prioritize languages based on the number of members we have studying each. To help us improve and build new courses faster, please support us by joining WordBrewery, making a donation, or sharing this post with your network.

Courses are currently available in Spanish and English. German courses will be added in the next week, and French courses will be added in the next two weeks. More languages and courses will follow. ↩ ↩²

Three strategies for using vocabulary lists and flash cards

Thu, 04 May 2017 00:00:00 -0600

How to use word lists and flash cards effectively

Vocabulary lists and flash cards are almost universal practices among language-learners. Suppose you have a list of vocabulary you have gathered from sentences from the news, and now you want to practice those words. Once you have made a list of words to study or a stack of physical or digital flash cards, what do you do with it? Here are three ways language learners can use vocabulary lists and flash cards effectively.

1. Do not study words in isolation.

A vocabulary list typically contains only isolated words; the same is true of many flash card decks, including most user-generated Anki decks and Memrise courses. But the purpose of language learning is to learn a new system of communication. And in real communication, words typically occur only in the context of sentences or phrases. To truly know a word is to be able to recognize it instantly when you enounter it in authentic speech or text, and to be able to use it without hesitation in your own speaking and writing. These skills are not the same as knowing the word’s definition.

To this day, despite all we know about the importance of context-based learning and the inadequacy of rote memorization, the vast majority of language-learning and vocabulary apps continue to teach isolated words out of context.

At best, studying isolated words is inefficient. At worst, it can amount to productive procrastination: going through the motions of learning without actually building meaningful knowledge and increasing your ability to communicate in your target language.

Flash cards can be a useful study tool for language learners, but only if they are used effectively. Always study vocabulary in the context of real example sentences.

2. Beware of productive procrastination.

I once saw a classmate in a 10th-grade Honors English class meticulously creating flashcards for every word on her study list. The list included the word “murky,” so she made a flashcard with that word on one side and its definition on the other. Since she was a native speaker with a strong vocabulary, I asked her whether she already knew the word “murky”; she said yes, she did know it. But nevertheless she was making a flash card for it along with the other words on the list.

Simply writing out a word or sentence by hand strengthens your memory of the word or sentence. And flashcards coupled with a spaced-repetition system definitely have a place in language learning. But it is easy to go through the motions of studying vocabulary by doing things like making flashcards from a vocabulary list. Since making flashcards can be time-consuming, we recommend using them to focus on particular sentences, words, or grammatical constructions that are giving you trouble. Do not waste time making flashcards for words you already know.

WordBrewery users can export their study lists to flash card programs like Anki or Quizlet, and we are about to add a new feature allowing users to print PDFs of their word lists with example sentences as either formatted lists or flash cards.

3. Understand that a word’s definition is a temporary crutch, not the target of your efforts.

Quick: define the word “cat.”

If you are like most people, you do not know a “definition” of either that word or any other word you use on a regular basis. You can probably create a definition for it, but doing so requires some thought. And yet surely you know the word “cat.” You know it fluently because you can instantly recognize it when it appears in texts or speech, and you can automatically summon it without conscious effort when you need it in your own speech and writing. That is what fluency means. Fluency does not mean memorizing definitions.

And yet for centuries, language learners have studied vocabulary by trying to memorize definitions of isolated words, just as the classmate mentioned above was trying to do with the word “murky.” This is an inefficient and low-value study method. So if you are studying basic Japanese and you learn that “neko” (猫 | ねこ) means “cat,” you could make a flash card with “neko” on one side and “cat” on the other, but that is not the only approach. Consider these far-superior alternatives:

(a) Making a flash card not for the word “neko” itself, but for an authentic example sentence containing the word “neko.” This is WordBrewery’s preferred approach: that is why WordBrewery always teaches words in the context of real sentences and never in isolation. This works much better than memorizing isolated words and is much more rewarding and enjoyable. Consider: even if you have never studied a word of Japanese, you probably now know the word “neko” simply because I have just used it in two sentences in this post. I will use it three more times in this post, and at that point you will have taken a substantial step toward memorizing the word. That is what efficient, painless language-learning feels like.

(b) Associating “neko” with a picture of a cat. This method is advocated by Gabe Wyner in his excellent book Fluent Forever, and it will be familiar to users of Memrise or Rosetta Stone. I find that preparing materials for this method is too time-consuming to be efficient. However, it is helpful if the process of gathering pictures and matching them to words can be crowdsourced, as it is at Memrise. If, like me, you don’t want to spend study time searching for images, you can likely get the same effect by taking a moment to visualize the item you are studying.

(c) Associating the word “neko” with a specific cat you know. This is how most children first learn the word “cat.” To a child, “cat” first means the household cat; only later is it abstracted to the general concept of “any cat.” This method is very effective for long-term memory because it links the memory of the new word to a rich, extensive network of associations, feelings, and experiences. The process of long-term learning—the learning that matters most, especially to self-educators and lifelong learners—consists primarily in building up this network of associations. As cognitive linguists Dagmar Divjak and Catherine Caldwell-Harris explain, “slow learning allows information to be incrementally integrated into long-term memory structures, where they have rich associations with many patterns, facilitating generalization and abstraction.”¹

(d) Not making a flash card at all—instead, just keep reading, and review the word as needed when it comes up in the context of future sentences. By definition, high-frequency words will appear more often than other words in most texts you read; this means that you can automatically review and strengthen your high-frequency vocabulary simply by reading a lot. If I am right that you now know the word “neko,” making a flashcard for it would be tedious and redundant. Better to move on to conquer new words as they arise in the context of new sentences.

If you want to be sure that each sentence contains high-frequency words you need to review, you can read sentences on WordBrewery; every WordBrewery sentence has been tested to ensure it consists entirely or primarily of high-frequency vocabulary at a particular level. So each word in a beginner sentence is either (a) one of the 500 most frequent words in a language or (b) a name or other proper noun. Every sentence you interact with on WordBrewery increases your knowledge level for each word in the sentence, and when your knowledge level reaches a certain score, we conclude that you have thoroughly mastered that word and we add it to your total of “mastered words” displayed in your statistics meters.

A behind-the-scenes look at how WordBrewery tracks your mastery of high-frequency vocabulary words as you read.

To master a word on WordBrewery requires that you encounter the word in the context of real, relevant sentences from the news many times. Most language-learning apps and systems measure effort, but language learners are not interested in effort for its own sake; rather, they are interested in fluency. When WordBrewery’s algorithms indicate that you have mastered a word, you will have truly mastered that word and it should never again be an obstacle to fluent reading, speaking, and listening in your target language. And you will have accomplished that without making a single flash card (unless you choose to do so).

Notes:

Dagmar Divjak and Catherine Caldwell-Harris, Frequency and Entrenchment, in Ewa Dabrowska and Dagmar Divjak, eds., Handbook of Cognitive Linguistics 64, De Gruyter Mouton (2015). ↩

How language learners can overcome the intermediate plateau

Sun, 23 Apr 2017 00:00:00 -0600

What can language learners do when they feel stuck?

We have all at some point felt stuck in our language learning. It can feel like the march toward fluency is hopeless, too slow, and not worth the effort. We may think of all the things we could be doing instead of studying our target language: surely some of those things are valuable, too. And maybe we are good enough already and should mark this lifelong goal as completed.

This feeling of being stuck has been called the “language plateau.” Learners often reach the plateau at the intermediate or advanced level. It is a time when the rapid, satisfying progress one experienced as a beginner levels off, and progress begins to feel slower and harder to come by. Learners’ communication skills are decent, but fluency still seems like a distant goal. They can understand 60-80% of their target language, but the remaining 20-40% can seem like an insurmountable obstacle.

Linguist Jack Richards identifies several problems connected to this plateau: unnatural speech, limited vocabulary, gaps between input (listening, reading) and output (speaking, writing) activities, and lack of complex grammar usage. In other words, the learner still has a long way to go. Yet learners often have difficulty monitoring and appreciating their progress at this stage.

Here are some suggestions about how to overcome the plateau and continue your progress toward fluency:

Practice complex grammar

Get out of your comfort zone and start pushing yourself to learn and use new forms accurately. Richards notes that the “development of fluency may mean greater ease of known language forms but does not necessarily imply development in the complexity of the learner’s language.”

If you don’t understand a sentence, but know all the words, consider trying to diagram it while taking note of any gaps in your understanding of how the sentence works. Try buying a comprehensive grammar workbook in your target language and working through it, or look into preparation guides for high-level certification tests, such as C1 or C2 on the Common European Framework of Reference for Language (CEFR) scale.

Set ambitious but practical vocabulary goals

Richards writes that learners at the intermediate plateau stage tend to overuse simple vocabulary while failing to master more advanced and nuanced vocabulary. Try learning new vocabulary by topic and setting a goal for how many new words to learn each day. Richards believes that a vocabulary of about 5000-6000 words should get you through to the next level. In WordBrewery’s level system, intermediate learners focus on the 3,000 highest-frequency word families (500 for beginners, 10,000 for advanced learners, and 30,000 for master-level learners).

We also recommend looking at variations of each word you learn. If you are learning a noun, is there a verb form? An adjective? Adverb? You can find these derivative terms on Wiktionary or via an online dictionary in your target language. If you discover or look up a word on WordBrewery’s Explore Mode, you can look it up in Wiktionary instantly by clicking the link in the word information box. You can also automatically generate a list of real example sentences that use various forms of the word you are studying.

WordBrewery members can automatically create study lists with example sentences illustrating different word forms.

Find native speakers and practice conversing about new topics.

Find a language partner and arrange to move beyond small talk and discuss a particular topic in depth. Go in with a list of new vocabulary or grammatical structures that you want to try out in conversation. As you talk, ask the native speaker to note mistakes you make on a piece of paper, then coach you through them after the conversation.

If this topic interests you, we recommend reading the full paper by Jack Richards; it is academic but well-written and readable. Another article by researcher Qing Xu argues that, to overcome the plateau, language learners must implement an active and deliberate strategy with the help of teachers and native speakers. Xu says that an effective strategy places emphasis on active and productive activities such as speaking and writing.