Water... mmm lekker

I find it super hard to find the content to consume but one thing that works quite well on youtube:

searching "interview with" in the language you're learning (as in: "Interview mit" (for german), "interview met" (for dutch), "interview avec" (for french), ...

Pros:

You learn about the coolest/craziest/weirdest people

You get to know who's trendy in the country right now (like singers, politicians, etc) as well as what topic

The videos are typically posted by target-language channels (I for example found out about "vice nederlands" through an interview with the dutch singer Froukje)

Typically, interviews are done with quite interesting topics/people AND they're 10-20min long (thus not overbearing)

Many have subtitles!

4 The mechanics of the argument

4.1 Expressing facts / certainty

il s'agit de - this is

il y a / il existe - there is / there are

on peut constater / remarquer / observer / noter que - it can be observed that

on peut soutenir que - it is arguable that

il est certain / exact / sûr que - it is certain that

il est évident que - it is clear that

il ne fait aucun doute que - there is no doubt that

nul ne saurait douter que (+ subj) - nobody can doubt that

incontestablement / indubitablement - unquestionably

il est indéniable que - it cannot be denied that

il apparaît que - it appears that

tout semble indiquer que - everything seems to indicate that

cet incident met en évidence … - this incident demonstrates …

il faut reconnaître / admettre que - we must recongize / admit that

il va de soi que / cela va sans dire que - it goes without saying that

chacun peut constater que… – anyone can see that

il y a fort à penser que / il y a tout lieu de penser que - there is every reason for thinking that

force est de constater que– one cannot help stating that

Avoiding using être

Il s'agit là d'un progrès décisif par rapport aux méthodes traditionnelles - 

This is a real advance on traditional methods

Le pays se trouve confronté à de grosses difficultés économiques - 

The country is faced with major economic problems

Le déficit du budget s’élève à / atteint 10 milliards - The budget deficit is 10 billion

L'opinion publique reste divisée sur cette question - Public opinion is divided on this question

Les actions du gouvernement constituent une attaque contre les principes du syndicalisme - The government’s actions are an attack on the principles of

La compagnie figure au premier rang des exportateurs de… - The company is among the leading exporters of

Le déficit représente plus de 3% du PNB - The deficit is more than 3% of the GNP

Avoiding using avoir

Le ministre éprouve des difficultés à convaincre le public des bénéfices de cette politique - The minister is having difficulty convincing the public of the benefits of this policy

Le gouvernement dispose de plusieurs options pour résoudre le problème - the government has several options for solving the problem

Le musée recueille tous les meilleurs tableaux de l'artiste - The museum has all the artist’s best paintings

Le nouveau système présente plusieurs avantages - The new system has many advantages

4.2 Expressing probability / possibility / doubt

il est (bien) probable que - it is (very) probable that

il serait étonnant que (+ subjunctive) - it would be surprising if

il se pourrait (bien) / il est (bien) possible que - it is very possible that

il se peut que - it is possible that

il y a toutes les chances que / peu de chances que - it is highly likely / unlikely that

il est douteux que - it is unlikely that

il est encore trop tôt / prématuré pour savoir si - it is still too early to know whether

on ne dispose pas de suffisamment d'informations sur  - we do not yet have enough information about

reste à savoir si - it remains to be seen if

il faut se poser la question de - one must ask oneself the question

on ne peut pas écarter la possibilté que - One cannot rule out the possibility that

4.3 Expressing contrast / concession

mais - but

en fait - in fact

cependant, toutefois - however

au contraire - on the contrary

à l'inverse / par contre - by contrast

néanmoins, quand même - nevertheless

pourtant - yet

(il) reste que - the fact remains that

pour autant - for all that

quoi qu'il en soit - be that as it may

La contrepartie des avantages considérables présentées par Internet est le risque de dérives inhérent à un outil par nature difficile à contrôler The downside to the considerable advantages offered by the Internet is the risk of La presse à sensation est très critiquée par le public, toujours est-il que leur tirage ne cesse d’augmenter Although the tabloid press is strongly criticized by the public, nevertheless their circulation keeps on increasing Beaucoup d'analystes se félicitent des bénéfices de l'euro en termes de stabilité monétaire. Ceci dit, le pari n'est pas gagné. Many analysts are pleased with the benefits that the euro is having with regard to monetary stability. That having been said, there is still some way to go Cette déclaration va à l'encontre de la politique du gouvernement sur l'Europe This declaration goes against the government’s policy on Europe Certes, on ne peut pas reprocher au ministre les politiques de son prédecesseur. Mais … Admittedly the minister cannot be blamed for the policies of his predecessor. But…

4.4 Expressing the importance of something

On pourrait aller même jusqu'à dire que.. It could even be said that…

Le plus frappant est que … The most striking thing is…

Ceci constitue le point crucial / le point de mire du débat …This constitutes the crucial point / the focal point of the debate

Il est utile de s'attarder sur… It is worth dwelling on…

Il faut insister sur le fait que / l'importance de…We must emphasize that / the importance that…

Jouer un rôle primordial / prépondérant dans…To play a major part in…

Il convient de souligner l'importance historique de l'immigration dans le développement économique de cette région It is important to stress the historic importance of immigration in the economic development of the region Il faut bien préciser / souligner que c'était le ministre lui-même qui a lancé l'enquête It should be emphasized that it was the minister him/herself who launched the enquiry De nos jours, l'opéra est vu comme élitiste, d’autant plus que les spectacles sont de plus en plus chers Nowadays the opera is considered to be elitist, all the more so considering that performances keep on getting more expensive Il n'est pas exagéré d'affirmer que le développement d'Internet aura des conséquences considérables sur la vie quotidienne. It is no exaggeration to say that the development of the Internet will have significant consequences on our everyday life. La situation dans la région est on ne peut plus grave The situation in the region couldn’t be any more serious

4.5 Clarifying / moderating a statement

En d'autres termes, / Bref , il a changé d'avis /In other words / In short he has changed his mind

Cela revient à dire que… / This boils down to saying that…

Sans vouloir critiquer cette façon de procéder, on peut constater que…Without wishing to criticize this course of action, it can be said that …

L'auteur a raison dans l'ensemble, mais… /The author is broadly speaking right, but…

Il serait injuste de reprocher à X… / It would be unfair to blame X for…

Il faut néanmoins nuancer cette affirmation en disant que… 

This claim should nevertheless be qualified by saying…

Il est clair que les deux sociétés convergent vers le même objectif,à savoir

une reconnaissance sur le plan international / It is clear that the two companies are moving towards the same objective, namely international recognition

Il ne s'agit pas à proprement parler d'une récession /This is not strictly speaking a recession Malgré tous ces problèmes, le catastrophisme n'est pas de mise Despite all these problems, it is not all gloom-and-doom

4.7 Indicating the reason for something

parce que - because

à cause de - because of

grâce à- thanks to

puisque- since

être dû à- to be due to

avoir pour origine / trouver son origine dans- to be a result of

être la conséquence de- to be a consequence of

provenir de- to stem from

résulter de- to result from

cela expliquerait- that would explain

en effet - this is because

c'est pour cette raison / pour cela que - this is / that’s why

L'usage de la voiture en ville présente des risques importants; l'année dernière il a occasionné / causé 2 400 décès et plus de 100 000 blessés / The use of cars in towns creates significant risks; last year it caused 2 400 deaths and more than 100 000

L'hésitation des Français envers Internet s'explique par leur attitude habituelle à l'égard des nouvelles technologies /The coolness of the French towards the Internet can be explained by their usual attitude towards new technologies

La crise dans nos hôpitaux est la conséquence de/ suite directe d‘années de manque d'investissement / The crisis in our hospitals is a direct result of years of underfunding

Le PDG a cité comme raison profonde des mauvais résultats la chute du niveau des exportations / The MD cited the fall in the level of exports as the prinicpal reason for the poor results

On peut attribuer le succès de l'extrême droite aux dernières élections à une désillusion générale face à la politique /The success of the far right at the last election can be put down to a general disillusionment with politics 

Si les électeurs ont rejeté le gouvernement, c'est qu‘ils n'ont plus confiance dans son intégrité politique / If the voters have rejected the government, it’s because they no longer have any confidence in their political integrity

L'émission retrace les événements qui sont à l'origine de la crise au Moyen Orient / The programme traces the events that lie at the root of the Middle East crisis

Les problèmes qui ont résulté du krach boursier se font toujours sentir The problems that resulted from the stock exchange crash can still be felt

Les mauvais résultats de la compagnie tiennent à une baisse du cours du dollar / The company’s poor results were due to a fall in the rate of the dollar

4.8 Indicating the consequences of something

par conséquent / en conséquence / par voie de conséquence - as a result

dans ces conditions - in these conditions

pour cette raison - for this reason

avoir pour conséquence / résultat de - to have the effect of

dès lors, de ce fait - so, consequently

il en résulte / découle (fatalement) que - the (inevitable result) of this is

il s'ensuit que - it follows that

face à cette situation - given this state of affairs

Les conséquences de cette politique mal conçue se font toujours sentir /The consequences of this ill-conceived policy can still be felt today

A la suite des attaques récentes on a pris des mesures plus rigoureuses en matière de sécurité / As a result of the recent attacks more rigorous security measures have been taken

Il y a plusieurs facteurs qui touchent l'industrie aérospatiale en ce moment There are several factors affecting the aerospace industry at the moment

La réduction du temps de travail aura certainement une incidence sur les coûts de production / The reductions in the working week will certainly have an effect on production costs

L'accroissement des dépenses en matière de santé répond à une inquiétude croissante parmi le public à propos de l'état de nos hôpitaux / The increase in health spending is a response to growing worries among the public about the state of our hospitals

Ce nouveau plan de redressement ne peut que déboucher sur des augmentations de tarifs / This new recovery plan can only lead to price increases

Ces mesures devraient permettre / favoriser la création de nouveaux emplois dans le secteur / These measures should ensure / encourage the creation of new jobs in the sector

Have you noticed that the last three words of the day, потом, тогда, and затем, can be translated into English as "then"?

Let me show you the difference between them.

Затем means "then" as "subsequently", for the following, next thing to happen or to do. This is the only meaning of the word "затем".

Меняем название группы и затем рассылаем демо. We change the band name, and then we send the demo out.

Потом also has that meaning, but also a few more: later, later on.

Ничего срочного, можем поговорить потом. It's nothing important, we can talk later.

In the examples, you can replace затем with потом, but потом cannot be replaced with затем.

Меняем название группы и потом рассылаем демо. We change the band name, and then we send the demo out.

After the replacement, you not only set the order of actions (name change -> demo), but also note that something can be done later.

Тогда means then as in "okay, then, let's do it!" - Ну, тогда ладно, давай сделаем это! And also then as back then, at that time.

Вообще-то, тогда ты мне нравился. Actually, I did like you a little bit at that time...

Again, тогда may replace затем, but not потом as later.

Меняем название группы и тогда рассылаем демо. We change the band name, and then we send the demo out.

The project is split into 2- the first edition of the dictionary contains 80 terms such as:

Anghyfunryw-Heterosexual

Anneuaidd- Nonbinary

Anrhywiol- Asexual

Bwtsh-Butch

Camenwi- Deadnaming

Cydryweddol- Cisgender

Deurywiol- Bisexual

Dirywedd-Agender

Dyn Traws- Trans Man

Dysfforia Rhywedd- Gender Dysphoria

Hollrywiol- Pansexual

Hoyw-Gay

Lesbiaidd- Lesbian

Menyw Draws- Trans Woman

Niwtrois- Neutrois

Rhyweddhylifol- Genderfluid

Trawsryweddol- Transgender

Ymgwestiynu- Questioning

And many more terms to fill in the gaps of language, such as coining terms for aromantic, transmasc, transfem and mspec identities! 

I would really appreciate if you could reblog this and share it with any langblrs you know to spread the word!

I also run a Welsh LGBTQ+ discord, dm for a link!

Hi! I’m learning French and Spanish, and I have found that reading tends to be my strongest skill. I thought that I would try providing some advice on how to practice reading in a foreign language.

Figure out what you should read! For an absolute beginner, stick to textbook exercises and content made for learners. Stay away from native material for now, since it will generally be quite unhelpful, and will just damage your confidence and motivation without actually improving your skills. For pre-intermediate learners, read articles and social media posts, since the language used in them are widely used, but not too complex. I remember that after 2 months of studying Spanish semi-regularly, I could make it through an article about language learning without really needing a dictionary to understand it. Articles like that are made to be accessible, so the language will be more simplistic.  For intermediate learners, now is a good time to hit the books! Language used in books is usually a lot more diverse and complex, so it will be challenging, but helpful. I recommend sticking to things that interest you, like translations of your favourite childhood books (I read a translation of Harry Potter in French and it was sublime). Upper intermediate learners will be more comfortable with YA books, while lower intermediate learners might prefer fanfiction and children’s books. Don’t go for something which has a bunch of jargon or old fashioned vocabulary like fantasy books or old classics. Go for something which will include vocabulary related to every day life and your interests, like romance or coming of age novels.  Alongside this, keep reading articles, social media posts and Wikipedia pages about whatever interests you! You can also read graphic novels, manga and webtoons as well, if you want, just as long as it sticks to the no jargon rule and actually challenges you. For advanced learners, this is the time for you to go for something really difficult, like the classics, advanced newspapers or academic journals and essays. Jargon doesn’t matter. In fact, jargon is good! At this point, you are trying to graduate from a fluent reader, to an educated reader. Maybe you could read textbooks up until high school level so that you could understand the average person’s level of vocabulary in certain fields, like science. Read Marx, read political theory, read whatever you want! This is the most intellectually stimulating stage of language learning, since it is the time that you can truly appreciate what you are reading. Also generally, across all levels, you can read the subtitles of videos, films or YouTube videos in French.

Figure out how you are going to read! There are two ways to practice reading: reading intensively and reading extensively.  Reading intensively means that you look up every word that you don’t understand (and maybe turn them into flashcards to learn later). I recommend writing all these new words down, and make sure to record it in its unconjugated form to learn it later, unless you want to learn that particular irregular verb or past participle.  Reading extensively means reading a lot without looking up words. I do NOT recommend beginner/lower intermediate learners to do this, as it is only useful if you can understand at least 70% of it. I am able to do this with French, but not with Spanish, since it is only useful if you are at the stage where you can understand most of what is being written. I think this is better for upper intermediate/advanced learners.

Know your literary tenses! If you don’t understand literary tenses, then you will need to learn it. You can do this using a textbook, or an article, or a YouTube video. Make sure whatever you use has practice texts for you to get used to seeing the tenses with. Also, make sure that you know some of the most common irregular verbs too, since these will come up a lot.

Read the article/chapter/post once without looking up vocab at first! Try and see how much you can understand, and write down all the words that you do not understand, even if it is a lot. Take it slowly at first, and just try and work through a couple of pages. Then, translate the vocabulary, and try to learn the most important words. Then, reread what you were reading again. This method works very well for me, so I hope it works for you too!

Read out loud! This helps your pronunciation AND your speed. Make sure you have audio to compare your pronunciation with. I had tajweed lessons for Arabic since I was a child, and all that practice has given me native like pronunciation and a very good accent. This is helpful, trust me!

Read and listen at the same time! Subtitles of videos/films/shows and audiobooks are the best for this. After about 10 minutes of listening, replay what you were listening too and make sure you can catch every word. This improves your listening AND reading skills.

Reread! I promise that after a while, your reading skills WILL improve the more you do it and the more you expand your vocabulary. I’m about a third of the way through my first YA French book, and I can already understand so much more than before. After you have learnt the new vocabulary in whatever you are reading, then reread it. This time, you won’t be stuck on what you don’t know, and will be able to enjoy the contents much more.

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