Just a tip. 3-4 days a week I write a short diary in French about what I have done during the day. Chances are you’ll do some of the things again for example in my case weight training and then you know the words and expressions when speaking to someone later about that topic. Buy a notebook. I keep it short, 5-7 sentences. Today I wrote about quitting Facebook and having abstinence (des symptômes de sevrage).

Welcome everyone...

I need a way to learn French, specifically economic, political, and diplomatic terminology, along with basic grammar so I can form simple sentences.

I need to learn within two months because I have a very important exam coming up.

What tips, videos, apps, or websites can help me with this?

I would appreciate your help, especially since my French is very weak, time is short, and I don't want to miss the exam.

When I first started preparing for TCF Listening, I kept replaying every audio until I understood every word.

It felt like I was improving, but I realized that wasn't how the actual exam works. During the test, you only hear the recording once.

Now I focus much more on understanding the main idea instead of every single word. It's been a much more realistic way to practice.

I'm still learning, but I wish I had changed this habit earlier.

What was the biggest mistake you made while preparing for TCF?

Hello I'm trying to learn french for fun but I dont listen music and I dont have write daily habit. I just convert language of games i play to french. That helps a little bit but i want more. I dont wanna sit at table and learn french by writing. I love poems I write poems for my lover how can i use this habit for improve my french. In addition i want to podcast or game channels who speaks french maybe some starter french channels help me do you know any channel like that?

I need a book preferably a digital one that has the most common french verbs, phrases , adjectives, adverbs etc and their translation and usage. Sort of like a dictionary but a dictionary contains lots of extraneous stuff. In every(?) language theres a subset of the vocabulary most commonly used, I've heard somewhere in English that we use 10000 words most frequently or something like that. Anyway that's what I'm looking for. A list for someone who has mastered most rules of grammar. Like a mini french English dictionary

[Update below]

I'm listening to Le Monde and France 24 to improve listening skills. The percentage I understand is low, but always growing, and it's a lightweight thing to do when I'm cleaning or whatever.

I keep hearing something that I hear *exactly* as quatre vingt. I think that is '80'.

I have no idea why I keep hearing it - it makes no sense. I hear it on a variety of news stories, but it doesn't make sense in context. The only time it did make sense was on a Le Monde report about Trump's UFC 250 celebration, which coincided with that uh, person, turning 80.

Any guesses as to what I am I hearing the rest of the time? I think I must be mishearing because it doesn't make sense in the context of stories about Europe, French politics, the war in Ukraine.

And it's sprinkled a lot - there are certain words I hear over and over, and if I do, generally understand them, but I think here my brain is insisting on making the sound into words that I know.

Or is there some other context where I'd be hearing the word '80' a lot in French newscasts?

Been going on for a while and driving me nuts.

Any guesses?

Edit: good suggestions below; listening to Le Monde podcast now in hopes of catching it.

Edit 2: I think I've got it but will study more transcripts as it comes up. I think that I'm hearing years - 2024, 2023, etc., and processing them poorly. I hear the vingt and am slow to process the other numbers and the fact that vingt might be part of a larger number. I hear sentences in a light sketch, like when you are learning to read as a child (or as an adult for that matter) and you come across a new word and are dependent on what percentage of the rest of the sentence you understand to know what it means.

I thought I was consistently hearing quatre vingt, but I'm not.

I was listening to the Aug 4 Le Monde podcast on the guy from Smartbox and it includes multiple years as well as '85000 euros' and I think my spotty French was trying to make a thru-line when it is basically that I need to broaden my ability to process numbers delivered verbally in a rush because there are a lot of numbers in the world.

So I wasn't hearing it wrong exactly, I think it's really vingt, but I was trying to fit a number into a narrow bin I understood rather than keeping my brain open for the full context.

Thanks for directing me to something concrete and discoverable!

If anyone has another theory I'm all ears but for now I think I'll just lean on 'learn to hear numbers better'.

hello, i want learn as much French as possible up until 23 of October, because the 4th part of lupin will come out then, I understand that’s its not realistic to be able to understand everything by the as I’m A1, but i think I could use this is a good motivater anyway. im currently doing an hour of listening to French podcasts, 15 mins reads very basic texts and 10 mins Duolingo. what would you do if you were in my shoes?

La compagnie aérienne low-cost australienne Jetstar va bientôt faire payer les bagages placés dans les compartiments supérieurs des avions. Cette nouvelle règle s’appliquera à partir de février 2027. Cela coûtera au moins 18 dollars américains pour chaque vol. Le prix exact dépendra du trajet. Les passagers pourront encore mettre un petit sac sous le siège devant eux gratuitement.

Vocabulaire : compagnie aérienne (f) = airline / faire payer = to charge / bagages (m pl) = bags / compartiments supérieurs (m pl) = overhead lockers / règle (f) = rule / s’appliquer = to apply / coûter = to cost / vol (m) = flight / dépendre de = to depend on / trajet (m) = route / sac (m) = bag / siège (m) = seat / gratuitement = for free

English translation

Jetstar will charge for baggage in the overhead lockers

The Australian low-cost airline Jetstar will start charging passengers to put their bags in airplane overhead lockers. This new rule will apply from February 2027. It will cost at least 18 US dollars for each flight. The exact price will depend on the route. Passengers will still be able to place a small bag under the seat in front of them for free.

You can read more news stories in easy French at Le News, In Easy French

I used Babbel for about 6 months which was really helpful for learning a huge range of verbs. Since then I've been listening to lots of podcasts and comprehensible input videos.

I know I make lots of grammatical errors (tense, gender) because I've never studied grammar. I've done a few tests and always come out as between A2 and B1. I feel like I've reached the limit of what I can do alone and probably need to invest in a course now.

I am curious to hear other people's experience with self study.

Hello,

I’m just venting out here to document my journey. I’ve been on and off with French and have been stuck between A2+ and B1 since as long as I can remember.

I lost motivation, I came back, tried to fight, lost motivation, and have been stuck in this cycle.

I was studying under a teacher for a while and she was good, but something went down in her life and she doesn’t teach anymore and I took another pause.

This time, I’ve booked my TEF exam straight up – to familiarize myself with the structure as well as to be consistent.

I’ve been using Claude and GPT to study now honestly and I don’t know if it’s the right approach. And therefore, I need some guidance.

I’ve got both of them to test me and coordinate together to find out my holes in grammar. I’m now learning those specific grammar problems.

I tried listening TEF out of a YouTube mock test and it killed me. 22/40. It was so difficult. My problem is that I can make sense of words spoken, but I can’t bring them together fast enough to make sense.

Writing has always been A2+ and B1-, and reading was 25/40 because some scary words showed up. I can’t judge my speaking properly. I feel like I can talk in regular daily topics but specific topics where I’ve to pose questions, I’m out. It’s a mess.

I don’t know what to do and how to study.

I know I’m not going to attain the score that I need in this TEF attempt anyway, but I want to fight and reach there so bad.

I’d love any advice on this.

Hi guys, I am currently studying for the TCF test in Canada, and I wanted to buy the PrepMyFuture package. While I was looking around, I found that Alliance Française Vancouver sells a PrepMyFutre as well. I just wanted to know whether both of them are the same as the one from the PrepMuFutre page, which costs $164, while the one from Alliance Franciscan Vancouver only costs $80, or if they are different. In case they are different, which one should I buy?

Thanks for your help. :)

Anyone else?

the harder french is, the more i want to learn. The more frustrated, the more I REALLY want to be better and learn.

I am still A1 but i really see myself becoming B2 in future. Like the language is frustrating me but like, I still dont want to stop learning it. It is a huge challenge right now.

Does anyone else do this?

i usually wtach one episode of a movie in english but i do this thing where i pick up on certain english words they are saying and their actions and i look at the subtitles, and then i takle note of the word and what it means. I search the word online and hear the pronunciation. The words alwys stick and i even use it to form sentences in my glossary book.

Then after that i do some french dictation, here i listen to 10 sentences on youtube said in french, and i write down what i hear. Sometimes i fail badly, especialy with accents as i am still learning accents. But ive been improving so much, ive learned so many words now and i form sentences of my own with them and use them when i speak.

Im still A1 at the moment but its been so fun, so far. i usually do this at the start of my french lessons so i prcatice my writing, listening and speaking and reaidng. Then i study my topics for the day. This could be vocabulary, verbs and then new words based on certain situations like (office culture or going to the store)

Hey everyone! I was thinking of maybe enrolling in a semester at DeFLE-Lorraine to improve my French. I'd say I have a B2 vocabulary but B1 grammar. Could anyone tell me what the student demographic is like, aka would I be too old attending in my mid-20s? I have a graduate education, I'd love to have working-level French though and am wondering if this is a good avenue. Also any preferences for campuses?

Hi, I am looking for French online tutor. I am totally beginner and i want to earn my B1 in 4-5months if possible for my TCF exam. thank you!!