Can apps teach you a language?
6 Minute English

Can apps teach you a language?

B1IntermediateSeptember 10, 20266 min
  • Language lesson
  • Language learning

Have you ever used Duolingo, Babbel, Busuu or perhaps another language-learning app? How did you get on? Some people love the convenience of these apps – you can learn on the go, like during your commute to work, rather than committing to a certain time each week, like learning in a class. But are they teaching the languages effectively? Neil and Pippa discuss this and teach you some new vocabulary. Get a free worksheet, quiz and transcript for this episode: https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/english/features/6-minute-english_2026/ep-260910 Practise your listening with The Listening Roo...

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Sentence 7 of 12 · 1:37

episode of 6 Minute English. And as usual, we'll be learning some useful new vocabulary too!

,

and a free worksheet to test what you've learnt. It's all at bbclearningenglish.com.

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  • C11:37
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  • B23:55
  • B24:29
  • B24:42
  • B25:43
  • B26:28

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A1 34%A2 36%B1 17%B2 12%C1 1%
  • 87% of the words are B1 or easier.
  • 167 words a minute: natural, fairly fast speech.
  • 19 harder words (B2 and up) in the whole episode.

Transcript

The opening of the episode. The whole transcript is in the player.

1:17

Hello and welcome to 6 Minute English from BBC Learning English. I'm Neil. And I'm Pippa. Apps like Duolingo, Babu and Busu all aim to help you learn

1:27

a language. But do they really help? We'll be trying to answer that question in today's episode of 6 Minute English. And as usual, we'll be learning some useful new vocabulary too! Yes, and don't forget to head to our website for a transcript of this episode and a free worksheet to test what you've learnt. It's all at bbclearningenglish.com.

1:47

OK, Neil. Let's start with a quiz question. Which of these is not a language you can learn using Duolingo? Is it... I'm going to say... Well, we'll find out at the end of the programme.

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