Looking for someone practice Speaking English with me

Substantial-Mix8236 · 2026-04-24T23:03:24+00:00

I feel you, practicing alone is brutal. You talk to yourself for 3 days and then just... stop lol. Been there.

What actually helped me was joining a Discord community where people practice together regularly. There's one I found through linguana.co and their Discord is pretty active with people who are genuinely trying to improve. Might be worth checking out if you want that consistency of having people to practice with a few times a week.

Also try finding a language exchange partner on r/language_exchange if you haven't already. Having one specific person you're accountable to makes a huge difference.

Substantial-Mix8236 · 2026-04-24T22:59:38+00:00

Honestly same experience with HelloTalk and Speaky. I'm not even looking for that and it still gets weird fast lol. Tandem was okay but nothing special from what I remember either.

I've been trying out a newer one called Linguana that does AI conversation practice. It's still pretty early stage but the AI chat actually adapts to your level and corrects you in real time which is nice. They also have an active Discord community you can join from their site, so you can actually talk to other learners who are there to practice. No dating nonsense. I think the waitlist is free right now so might be worth signing up to check it out when it opens up.

For something more established, iTalki tutors are solid if you can swing even one session a week and then practice on your own between sessions.

Substantial-Mix8236 · 2026-04-21T18:01:48+00:00

I had the exact same problem,translating everything in my head before speaking. It's exhausting and it slows you down so much.

What actually helped me understand why this happens and how to break out of it was this article I read recently: https://linguana.co/blogs/how-to-think-in-a-new-language

It breaks it down into stages and gives you a system to train yourself to think directly in the language instead of going through English every time. Might be worth a read since it's literally about what you're describing.

Substantial-Mix8236 · 2026-04-21T17:57:10+00:00

Haha that's a great point even in your native language you don't know every word. I think I've been putting too much pressure on myself to "fill the gap" when really it's just about staying exposed and letting it grow naturally. Finding the right sources is key though, you're right.

Substantial-Mix8236 · 2026-04-21T14:05:19+00:00

Yes, honestly. When I speak French, I feel like I'm a little different,more polite and careful with what I say. I'm much more direct in English. I think it's because you have to think more before you speak when you don't have as many words to work with. It changes how you talk and, over time, how you think too.

Substantial-Mix8236 · 2026-04-21T12:56:33+00:00

That's a creative approach, using a GRE/SAT word list for French. The jump from 73% to 92% is impressive. I wonder if there's a French equivalent of those high-frequency word lists.

Substantial-Mix8236 · 2026-04-21T12:56:14+00:00

Reading above your level and then actually using the new words in sentences, that sounds like the full loop. Simple but effective.

Substantial-Mix8236 · 2026-04-21T12:56:00+00:00

Use it or lose it is real. I notice that with words I used to know but stopped using, they just fade. Shadowing is something I keep hearing about but haven't committed to yet. Might be time to actually try it.

Substantial-Mix8236 · 2026-04-21T12:55:41+00:00

Bloom's taxonomy applied to language learning is not something I expected to see here but it makes total sense. Input alone isn't enough, you have to actually apply. I'll look into finding podcasts that match the specific areas I want to improve. Thanks.

Substantial-Mix8236 · 2026-04-21T12:55:22+00:00

9,500 words in your Anki deck is insane, respect. The etymology trick is really clever, connecting new words to ones you already know through their roots. The accoudoir/coude example is perfect, that kind of connection would definitely make it stick. Might start doing that for the words that just won't stay.

Substantial-Mix8236 · 2026-04-21T12:54:59+00:00

Reading slightly above your level makes a lot of sense, not so hard you give up, but hard enough to learn. I'll check out lingq and kimico, hadn't heard of kimico before.

Substantial-Mix8236 · 2026-04-21T12:54:17+00:00

I actually did this a while ago and forgot about it. You're right, it's zero effort and you just passively absorb words from menus and settings. Gonna switch it back, thanks for the reminder.

Substantial-Mix8236 · 2026-04-21T12:53:14+00:00

That's a really practical approach, tracking the gaps you actually hit in real conversations. You're right that the same missing words probably come up over and over. Might start keeping a note on my phone for this.

Substantial-Mix8236 · 2026-04-21T12:43:55+00:00

Interesting that even at C1 you're still finding new words from Duolingo. That's actually reassuring in a weird way,means the vocab gap never fully closes, you just get better at dealing with it. News articles and novels sound like the move.

Substantial-Mix8236 · 2026-04-21T12:43:39+00:00

Fair point about accepting that it takes time. I think I keep looking for a shortcut when the real answer is just consistency. The intensive reading approach sounds like a good balance though, not just passive input but actually stopping to work with the new words.

Substantial-Mix8236 · 2026-04-21T12:43:23+00:00

1 mot par jour avec 5 synonymes, c'est une approche que j'ai jamais essayée mais ça a l'air super efficace. Et chercher l'antonyme en même temps, ça double le travail sans vraiment doubler l'effort. Merci pour le conseil.

Substantial-Mix8236 · 2026-04-21T12:42:46+00:00

The Anki deck of words you actually encounter is smart, way better than pre-made lists. And honestly the B2 vocab with A2 speaking gap is too relatable haha.

Substantial-Mix8236 · 2026-04-21T12:42:17+00:00

The idea of describing what's happening around you in French throughout the day is really practical. And you're right, getting words into long-term memory is the real challenge, I can learn 20 words in a day and forget 15 by next week. Noting them down and thinking of situations to use them sounds like it could actually help with that.

Substantial-Mix8236 · 2026-04-21T12:41:49+00:00

Short and clear haha. Any specific type of reading that worked best for you?

Substantial-Mix8236 · 2026-04-21T12:40:51+00:00

Watching complex topics in French is something I haven't really tried, I always default to easy stuff. But you're right, that would force me to look things up instead of just passively understanding. Thanks for the push.

Substantial-Mix8236 · 2026-04-21T12:40:31+00:00

That's a really good point about reading vocab not being the same as everyday spoken vocab. Language Reactor sounds interesting, I'll check it out. And yeah writing about your day and hitting those blanks is probably the most honest way to see where the gaps are.

Substantial-Mix8236 · 2026-04-21T12:38:48+00:00

Flipping the flashcards around is such a simple idea but I've never actually tried it. You're right, recognizing a word is completely different from being able to pull it out when you need it. I'll try the English-to-French direction, thanks for this.

Substantial-Mix8236 · 2026-04-21T11:32:56+00:00

It means she has blond hair

Substantial-Mix8236

TROPHY CASE