Before now, if you want to learn a foreign language, you’ll first be advised to travel to the country that speaks that native language and this could get one discouraged most because of financial constraint; cost of travel. Today, one can learn almost any language that exists from mobile or desktop apps.
You could just signup and pay for an online class and receive lectures and drills at the comfort of your home. While this makes learning easier, it’s still not complete as one needs a native from the country of interest or someone who speaks the language or even a novice like you who is learning the language too so they can help you become comfortable in having a conversation in that language without sounding funny.
Now, there are certain mobile applications that help people locate a language partner that they can speak with and learn more from. Curious to know these apps? Read on…
You can find a language partner with following apps:
1. Hello Talk
This app doesn’t require assistance from third party apps or Skype to help interact with your partners. Hello Talk is a standalone app with which you can do a lot more than just connecting with someone who speaks or is learning the target language.
It helps saves embarrassment during conversations when you can’t fully express yourself in the target language to be understood as the application has Translation, Transliteration, text-to-voice features and voice-to-text features. This way, you can also use the translation feature to interact with your language partner.
2. Bilingua
This application goes beyond getting you a complimentary native speaker; it makes learning fun, easy and very interactive for people who use it.
Its smart chat feature gives users suggestions on topics they could talk about with their language partners so you don’t run out of topics and get the conversation boring or awkward. It also recommends phrases you could use during a conversation.
Once you start using the app, you’ll be asked personal questions like hobbies, best food, etc. then Bilingua matches you to a partner with a similar profile. This way, you’ll feel more comfortable and maybe bong in a friendship on the long haul.
3. HiNative
It is common for one to be inquisitive when learning a new language. Questions like origin of the culture, language etc. and most times, these questions could only be answered by the natives of the target language. This could be difficult especially if you are not in the target country.
HiNative has a Question & Answer feature that helps one get their questions answered by natives of the target language. It has an easy-to-use interface, where you could ask questions with the ‘Ask’ button.
It also has a voice record feature where you can ask questions and record, then allows natives to answer your questions, also correct you on pronunciation mistakes. You could also help answer other people’s question about your native language and so on.
So, learning a new language shouldn’t be that hard as there exists apps that could help you locate a language partner or a native of the target language around you to help with your learning process.
Bonus – The Foreign Language Exchange group
If you are a frequent user of Facebook, you may find your ideal partner in our own Facebook group. It was created with the intention of connecting language learners and giving them a platform to share their tips and ask questions. Now, a year after it’s creation, we are have gained many thousands of members.
Are there any other apps you can recommend for language exchange?