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actionfromafaryesterday at 9:09 AM2 repliesview on HN

You could try the opposite angle with German - watch movies and shows in German, no subtitles. Maybe start with something aimed at children. Sprinkle in some Dutch to mix it up. It can be useful in real-world situations, depending on region.


Replies

culebron21yesterday at 12:26 PM

These passive approaches don't work at all. I tried this with Portuguese, French (which I don't consider learnt at all), and German as well.

Before I took a good teacher's classes, I had been listening German radio for 2 years, learned nothing of substance.

Portuguese, which I do speak, probably even at B2, is the language that I learned through radio, thanks to similarities to Italian and Spanish, and in which I feel the least confident. All my progress with it was when I was actually using it -- spoken or written, looking up dictionaries.

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Gravitylossyesterday at 12:02 PM

or have subtitles in German at first. Also helps if you repeat some catch phrases aloud. Especially fun if you're watching together with someone.

One cool effect is that your vocabulary can be heavily concentrated on what you're watching. Like police procedures. (in Alte they speak very clear German, can recommend.)

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