Here at Live Lingua, we’re all about immersive language learning. There’s simply no replacement for working one-on-one with a French language tutor. But what should you do when you’re in the moment and need a translation, or a quick service to complement your studies? We all want something to help us learn and grow our language skills between lessons.
The best French learning app available for your iPhone that can work as a strong complement to online French lessons, from our friends at Vidalingua. It’s called Learn French + and is built to be more like a series of language learning games than a traditional study guide.
The app is immediately useful, unlike some others that have you spend hours learning grammar and rarely-used vocab.
Why is this the best French language app?
The app contains 101 lessons starting with must-knows such as greetings, directions, and weather. But here is where Learn French + gets interesting. There are lessons that are entertaining such as Limousines, At the Pub, and In the Hottub. Any some lessons are downright hilarious like Pick-up Lines and Rejections. They even have games that coincide with our learn how to swear in French article.
With over 1,180 phrases, Learn French + will work alongside your lessons to get you up to a conversational level, and can be used in the moment if you are in a French-speaking country. You can tap on a phrase to hear in pronounced. You control the speed and choose from several accents.
There are thousands of interactive exercises to keep you engaged. The first type of exercise has you put the words of a translated phrase in the right order. This can be very helpful in French because ordering adjectives and adverbs is different than in English. Set goals and go!
The second type tests your punctuation. Learn French + speaks a phrase to you and then your record yourself saying it back. The app uses advance speech recognition to determine if you said the phrase correctly. Make sure your volume is turned up so you hear the confirmation sounds.
The third type is multiple choice. A bit too easy for my taste but the developer says they will make it harder in the the next version. The app allows you to set goals and chart your progress. You can receive notifications with phrase of the day or a reminder to maintain your streak, a tool that really makes this the best French language app.
A complement and a tool
There is a lot to like in this app and you get the first 11 lessons for free. Check out the iPad version here, and while you’re at it, download their free Vidalingua translator apps, which allow you to type a word in English and see how it translates across a number of different languages. It’s perfect for when you need to ask a question in a foreign language.
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