The Best Free Online Resources For Learning Spanish
Whether you are learning Castellano from Spain or from one of the other 19 Spanish-speaking countries, I've got here a list of different resources to:
- boost your learning in Spanish
- have an online immersion of the language - catch up on the relevant topics of Spanish society
- hear different accents in Spanish. ¿Vámonos?
#spanish #learnspanish #spanishonline
TV & News in Spanish
El País – The traditional newspaper from Madrid. El País also has a section of its site with stories translated into other languages, so if you are struggling with an article you may be able to find the English translation.
RTV – Follow the news from Spain’s state-owned broadcaster, reading or watching it. This is a great mean for boosting your listening skills in Spanish as news reporters usually speak their language clearly and adopt a standard accent. You can watch full TV programmes or even 10 minutes a day, in any case you will see your improvement. Plus, if you're a beginner and need an extra help, you can enable the Spanish subtitles.
Antena 3 – Antena 3 is another Spanish TV channel offering a variety of news content that is useful for improving listening and reading skills as well as getting familiar with Spanish society.
Euronews – This news site is interesting once many of the stories are international, so you may be familiar with them and have an extra help to understand the message.
TV Caracol – This one is the main TV channel in Colombia. You can hear the standard accent from the capital, Bogota. Fun fact, during my time living in Colombia I've got a role as an extra in a Caracol soap opera.
Televisa – This is a mass media company, the largest in Latin America. Televisa is from Mexico and you can check the content spoken in mexican accent on their website or YouTube channel.
Telefe – Telefe is an well-known Argentinian TV channel. Watching the local Master Chef or some other show is a great chance to experience this special accent where yo is pronounced sho, playa is plasha, and llamar is shamar. Shhh, now you know the secret about Argentinian and Uruguaian accents.
Radio & Podcasts in Spanish
Entiende Tu Mente – Or Understand Your Mind is the most popular podcast about psychology in Spanish. In 20 minutes they talk about relevant aspects of everyone's psyche. Great recommendation for those at an intermediate/ advanced level in Spanish.
RTV – Spain’s major radio channels, live or via podcasts.
AccuRadio – You'will find Jazz, Cumbia, and all the latin rythms on this website dedicated to Spanish music lovers.
LanguaTalk Spanish – I am a big fan of this podcast because the presentators Jesus & Rocio, two Spanish teachers who cover different topics and speak relatively slow. Plus, this podcast has video too and you can accedd the transcription for a better comprehension.
Top podcasts by country – You can easily access the ranking of the most-heard podcasts per country. These are the lists from Mexico or from Chile. This is one great way to know what Spanis-speakers are talking about at the moment.
SpanishLand – This is another amazing Latin American Spanish podcast and YouTube channel for leaning the language.
Online Dictionaries in Spanish
Reverso – A superb dictionary created in partnership with publisher, Collins. Examples show each word within different sentences – very useful for gaining a deeper understanding. You can also see additional translations for colloquial words and expressions that have been added by users.
WordReference – Like Reverso, this dictionary is continually growing through user input. As a consequence, it’s great for understanding the differences between regional dialects. If the dictionary does not show the translation you’re looking for, you can check the forum results at the bottom of the page. WordReference also has one of the best verb conjugators.
Forvo – I love this dictionary because it's entirely dedicated for learning pronunciation. You can access several million words pronounced in over 300 languages and recorded by native speakers. This is THE tool for taking your pronunciation in Spanish to the next level.
Pro tip: Take a notebook and create your own dictionary with the new words you learn during your classes or outside and build a solid vocabulary in Spanish! Plus, writing by hand is a huge memory tool itself.
Flashcards in Spanish
If you are having a hard time recalling all those grammar rules and vocabulary you've been learning in Spanish there is no better tool to help you than flashcards. They associate two powerful stimulations for the brain: visual memory and spaced repetition. To remember vocabulary you can choose flashcards with image instead of the English translation for that word in Spanish. For the spaced repetition, flashcards algorithms will understand how well you know each word/flashcard, then prioritises them so that you study the things you don’t know, wich is a time saver. You can wether create your own flashcards with words that you have been using in our sessions or you can download flashcards created by other people. I recommend you ally both!
Anki Web – the original flashcard system. It’s free, and you can also download the App, running in all devices.
Quizlet – like the others, Quizlet allows you to create your own flashcards online. Download the mobile app and you can learn during your free time, waiting for the bus, and in any time. You can easily access all the Spanish flashcards created by other users via this link. If you create a free account you can save sets to your account for future reference.
Other Tools to learn Spanish online
Lengua Y Otras Luces – Manuela Aparicio is a Spanish teacher from Madrid who created this amazing website and visual materials to help students understand grammar and other aspects of Spanish in a creative and effective way.
Videoele – Learn Spanish online with videos. It's another fun way for you to develop your listening skills on different subjects. Many of the videos come with transcripts and exercises pages. Select your level and have fun!
Aprendre Espanol – for exercises and grammar explanations to do anytime, anywhere.
Verbanet – Practice grammar and specially conjugation in Spanish.
Todo-Claro – Choose among different exercises based on your level – from A1 –to C2. You can select your level on the left hand side and go for the best exercises for you.
Ver Taal – Grammar, listening and vocabulary exercises for all levels. You will have lots of fun in Spanish online.
TED Spanish – TED is famous for its inspiring and short talks given by a number of experts in different areas. This page has all talks with Spanish subtitles.
DELE practice – The DELE is the official Spanish diploma granted by Madrid. To evaluate your language level, you can take the official DELE tests from previous years on their website.
100 most-common verbs in Spanish - I've elaborate this list with the ultimate most useful verbs to learn in Spanish, French and Portuguese for my students and all learners. Here you can download the full list.
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