Wanikani. | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Student Life

7 Apps That Can Actually Help You Learn A New Language

The Duolingo owl and I are here to tell you that if you have time to binge 'Euphoria,' you have time to practice French.

24
7 Apps That Can Actually Help You Learn A New Language

In This Article:


Duolingo.

You already know, the go-to for language learning. Duolingo has a large selection of different languages to learn from and it's all completely free! They're constantly adding new languages and recently began offering Hawaiian and Navajo. I started learning Norwegian with it and keep practicing my French. I will say that for Asian languages it's a little iffy. I wouldn't recommend it for Japanese in particular because it introduces kanji very early on without giving any background about kanji. But for most languages, I would say this app is top-notch.

Tinycards.

Tinycards is a flashcard app and you have the option to download card decks that people have already created. This app was my savior when I backpacked Asia. I would download a deck with basic expressions (with that free airport wifi) and then I could practice the vocab on the flight to my next destination. The app was actually created by the same developers at Duolingo! So unlike Duolingo, this is actually a little better if you're just trying to pick up some vocab from an Asian language. I successfully learned how to say "please," "thank you," and "hello" in Thai, Vietnamese and Filipino!

Drops.

I haven't really heard many people talk about this app but that doesn't mean you should be sleeping on it! This app is set up like a game and includes pictures for the vocab too. It's basically one big matching game, and also involves spelling. The app is set up so that you have just a minute of language practice a day but you can do as much as you want within that minute. The downside is that you only have one minute a day. If you want more practice you have to pay within the app. I think the minute is pretty good especially if you do it every day, but I wish that it allowed a little more time.

Quizlet.

You probably already know about Quizlet. You probably already use it for one of your classes in school but just in case, Quizlet is basically the same as Tinycards. The difference being that Quizlet has a much bigger audience than Tinycards so there are likely to be many more contributors. So if you're taking a language class or studying for a proficiency test this may help you out more than Tinycards because you can learn decks specific to terms that may be on a test. You can also use this to learn more about history or just things about the culture in general because it's not limited to language learning.

Memrise.

I'll be honest, I have a love-hate relationship with this app. I currently don't have it on my phone but I remember that I did like it. This is another paid option but I personally really enjoyed it for the time that I had it. It was pretty good for learning Japanese and has a whole host of languages you can pick from. I remember it being pretty similar to Duolingo but I think if you're thinking of investing in a language learning app I would say this is a pretty good option.

Wanikani.

Wanikani is for learning kanji. I used it for Japanese and I'm not sure if you can use it for Chinese because of the different meanings but this is a pretty tried and true method for learning kanji. It takes a while, you can't really progress at your own speed because the app will only let you progress at their own speed (it's part of their learning method) but it does make sure that you really know the lessons before they let you move on. I have fallen off the wagon with my kanji practice but I'm looking forward to getting back on track using this app.

Lingodeer.

Lingodeer is yet another app I tried for learning Japanese. It also offers other Asian languages like Korean or Chinese. What I liked about this app was that it included recorded conversations of an actual native speaker so that you could hear the pace of the words and where they put emphasis. To progress in this app you also have to pay, which I am not so much a fan of, but they do offer a lot and have a different approach than a lot of other language learning apps.

TLDR: If you're looking for a good free app to learn a language Duolingo can't really be beaten; for vocab, I would recommend Tinycards and for Kanji, I would recommend WaniKani. For a paid app, I would recommend Memrise or Lingodeer for an Asian language.

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
Adulting

6 Unrealistic Expectations Society Has For Young Adults

Don't let the thesaurus-inspired vocabularies in our résumés fool you. We're actually just big kids.

2271
boy in adult clothes

Well over four feet tall and 100 pounds in weight, many of us "young adults" of the world still consider ourselves children. Big, working, college-attending, beer-drinking children. We may live on our own, know how to cook noodles, and occasionally use a planner, but don't be fooled; the youthful tendencies that reside within us still make their way into our daily lives. From choosing to stay up until 3:00 a.m. playing video games on a school night to going out in 30 degree weather without a coat, we still make decisions that our parents and grandparents would shake their heads at in disappointment. So why are we expected to know exactly how to be a wise, professional, sensible adult? It's not that we're irresponsible (for the most part, anyway). It's that we are young, inexperienced, and still have the sought-after, enthusiastic mentality that we can do and be whatever we want, which has not yet been tarnished by the reality of the world. These are just a few of the unrealistic expectations that society has for young adults.

Keep Reading...Show less
pizza
Fandango

There are a lot of foods in this world, but there is only one dish that stands above the rest: Pizza. If you're close to me or at least know who I am, then you know that I'm totally obsessed with pizza. It's one of my favorite things to eat and I will NEVER turn down a slice, even if it doesn't have my favorite toppings. There isn't a day that goes by where I'm not thinking about pizza. I even sleep with a pizza pillow every night! There are many reasons why pizza stands above all other foods, and here are just a couple reasons why.

Keep Reading...Show less
sex and the city
Warner Bros. Television

1. You don't have to feel guilty about flirting with customers for tips (or just for shits and giggles).

2. You can be obnoxiously flirtatious with anyone you want. You are free to be that girl that flirts with everybody and makes 'em all smile (it's especially fun when the guy is as cute as Collin Jost). No shame.

3. Making random men nervous with your superior beauty and intense eye contact just for the hell of it is really amusing and empowering.

4. No one gives two poops if ya legs are hairy (your man shouldn't either but *Kermit the Frog meme* That's none of my business)

5. The toilet seat will remain down.

6. There's more money to spend on yourself.

7. There's always this secret butterfly in your tummy that marvels at the possibility that when you go out this weekend you're gonna meet someone super handsome/wonderful/prince-like and have this moment of dazzling dalliance.

8. Nothing is that serious...you can take it all with a grain of salt...you don't owe anybody anything.

9. You can dance with anyone and everyone...or no one (Hello frat boi w/ glasses, I see you).

10. You don't have to fluff anyone's ego but your own.

11. Free drinks and dinners from single guys (It's not taking advantage if they're offering; a girl's gotta eat).

12. You have more time to learn how to love and improve yourself rather than constantly pouring your energy into another person.

13. You don't have to sacrifice your cheesy Jen Aniston rom-coms and Gilmore Girls for his Fast and Furious/other dumb action movie featuring blonde that is only in the movie to supply a relationship to the male lead and to make him look more masculine/empowered in juxtaposition (In other words, you don't have to deal with a guy being a crabby Patty while you watch your cute movies).

14. You can daydream about what your future husband may be doing right now (and not get stressed/guilty out because you're not picturing your current boyfriend that's crazy about you as your future husband).

15. There is more time to be spent with your girlfriends.

Girls Night In
Milk + Blush

We've all been there - you've been saying since Tuesday after French that this weekend is the weekend. You're finally going to break out those new heels and actually put on eyeliner on and make this Friday night be one for the memory books! That is, of course, until Girls Night Out turned into...Girls Night In.

Keep Reading...Show less
Entertainment

What Is Your Zodiac GIF?

Characteristics of the astrological signs, explained through GIFS.

793
zodiac
Wordpress

Whether you believe astrology is a legitimate "science" or not, we have all found ourselves looking at our horoscopes from time to time. The 12 astrological signs all fall under one of four elements: air, water, earth, or fire. Air signs are rational, social, and love to communicate with others. Water signs are are emotional, intuitive, and mysterious. Fire signs tend to be passionate, creative, and adventurous. Earth signs are conservative, realistic, and loyal.

Each sign is determined by the relative positions of celestial bodies to ourselves at our moment of birth, which is said to influence our personalities. Find your zodiac GIF below, based on the traits and characteristics provided by each sign.

***Disclaimer: GIFS are meant to be lighthearted and are based on descriptions of signs from http://www.astrology-zodiac-signs.com/.

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments