In France, if there is one discipline in which we do not excel, it is language learning. English, German, Spanish… same battle. Few of our compatriots have a satisfactory level when they leave school unless they have done one or more immersion stays abroad.
With new technologies, language learning has many very powerful tools that allow you to hear a language spoken and possibly practice it in a fun way.
This is what is proposed in particular LyricsGap.
Learn a foreign language through famous songs
Indeed, this website, which has been around for quite some time (which is reflected in its somewhat dated design), will allow you to select songs to use to perform various types of exercises and thus improve your abilities language.
Le site has songs in a good twenty languages ranging from Basque to Turkish, including of course more classic languages such as Spanish and English.
Search for a song you like using the site's integrated search engine and click on it.
You will then be able to choose between several types of exercises:
- Karaoke: not bad for beginners, you have all the lyrics to sing along with the music
- Quiz: a multiple choice question to fill in the missing words in the song lyrics
- Fill-in-the-blank text (3 levels of difficulty): you must fill in the missing words by listening to music
At the end of the exercise, you can view your score and see any mistakes you may have made.
Also interesting, for each of the exercises, when you click on a word in the text, you will be able to obtain the translation of this word in the language of your choice.
The site is completely free, but on the other hand it is full of advertising inserts that hinder visibility a little. If we cannot blame the developer for wanting to monetize his creation, he could have made an effort on the placement of the ads... too bad!
Another little tip to improve your language skills relatively painlessly: look at your films and series in original version with subtitles. Start with French subtitles and when you feel comfortable enough, move on to subtitles in the language of what you are watching. You will very quickly make huge progress in listening comprehension!
