Learn Languages with Steve Kaufmann

Episodes

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  The Best Way to Learn Vocabulary in Any Language 29.10.2026 14m

  People often tell me to learn 10 words a day and nail them down until I can use them. That has never worked for me. I read and listen a lot, look words up, and simply accept that I'll forget most of them at first. Over time, meeting the same words in different contexts is what makes them stick. Do you try hard to memorize new words, or do you let them come to you?
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  How to Understand Native Speakers in Any Language 22.10.2026 11m

  When I start a language like Persian or Arabic, at first it's just noise. I can't even tell where one word ends and the next begins. So I listen first, every morning, while I make breakfast or do my exercises. I listen to a short story two or three times, move on to the next one, and come back to it later. Do you start a new language with listening or reading?
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  I Thought These Languages Would Be Easy. I Was Wrong 15.10.2026 10m

  Portuguese should be easy for me. I speak Spanish, and the vocabulary, grammar and word order are almost the same. But when I go to speak Portuguese, Spanish keeps getting in the way. I had the same experience moving from Japanese to Korean, and with Persian words hiding in Arabic. Have you ever found a "similar" language harder than you expected?
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  How to Choose the Right Content for Language Learning 08.10.2026 15m

  What makes language learning content easy? It's not about knowing 97% of the words. That's the goal, not where you start. What helps me most is repetition, short sentences, clear audio, and above all, content I'm genuinely interested in. What kind of content made a new language finally click for you?
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  Should you learn low-frequency words? My approach as a polyglot 01.10.2026 9m

  Many learners are told to focus on the 1,000 most common words and stop there. I've never done that. In Arabic I now have over 35,000 known words at LingQ, and while I can't use most of them yet, they let me follow podcasts on history and politics and discuss difficult subjects with my tutor. A big vocabulary is my potential in the language. Do you stick to common words, or do you push yourself to learn the rare ones?
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  You don’t need a perfect language learning routine 24.09.2026 7m

  Some of my best language learning material came from a random book I pulled off my library shelf. A history of Portugal, a book about Prague, a Swedish novel. A little Portuguese here, a little Czech there, a little Swedish, and it all adds up, like snow that slowly covers the ground. You don’t always need two free hours to make progress. What’s the most useful thing you’ve found by accident while learning a language?
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  Why You Can Speak a Language But Still Can’t Understand It 17.09.2026 6m

  Someone told me they can speak their second language but cannot understand what people say back to them. I know this one well, because my wife can hold a social conversation in French and Spanish while missing most of what she hears. The fix is not more speaking practice, it is a much wider base of listening and reading. Comprehension is what lets you talk about more than a handful of familiar subjects. Which side are you on right now, speaking or understanding?
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  Do This if You Understand But Can't Speak 10.09.2026 9m

  I meet a lot of people who tell me, almost with pride, that they understand a language well but can't speak it. Usually two things are going on. Their comprehension isn't as broad as they believe, because they only follow the familiar topics they hear again and again. And they have made "I can't speak" part of their identity, so every meeting they sit through in silence confirms it. Which language do you understand far better than you speak?
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  The best way to read in another language 03.09.2026 11m

  When I start reading in a new language, I accept that I am not going to understand most of it. My brother compared it to mowing a lawn: if the grass is high, you set the blades high on the first pass and lower them the next time through. I go over the same content again and again, and each time I pick up something I missed before. Do you push through content you only half understand, or do you wait until you feel ready for it?
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  Spain vs Latin America: how different is their Spanish? 27.08.2026 18m

  Spanish is spoken across three continents, and learners worry constantly about picking the wrong version. But compared to English or Portuguese, the variation is surprisingly small. The vowels stay consistent whether you are in Mexico, Colombia or Spain, and most of what really changes is slang, rhythm and a couple of consonants. I have found that after a day or two in a new country you stop hearing the accent at all and just hear the meaning. Which Spanish accent do you find hardest to follow?
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  Why paper books beat screens for learning (backed by research) 21.08.2026 6m

  I have somewhere between 60 and 70 shelves of books in this house, well over a thousand of them, in several languages, and I have finally started cataloguing the lot. Going through them reminded me why paper still matters to me. The research is fairly clear that we retain more from paper than from a screen, and I think the reason is simple. When it is just you and the book in your hands, there is nowhere else to go, no pixels, no navigating, no temptation to scroll away. When did you last read a paper book for three hours straight?
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  Why your reasons NOT to learn a language are just EXCUSES 13.08.2026 6m

  I was with some Canadians recently who all agreed that French would help them professionally. Within a few minutes I had heard three reasons why they hadn't learned it: I can read but I can't speak, the Montreal accent is too hard, and they changed our class this year. Every one of those puts the problem somewhere outside the person saying it. I lived in Hong Kong where nobody spoke Mandarin and I learned Mandarin anyway, because I did the listening and reading. What's the reason you give yourself?
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  Why reading in some languages is harder than in others 06.08.2026 10m

  Reading is a huge part of how I learn languages, but it is not equally easy in every language. In Spanish or Turkish I can sound out almost any word the first time I see it. In Arabic and Persian I often cannot, so I read those online where I can hear the word pronounced. The writing system changes the whole shape of my routine. Which language has been the hardest for you to read?
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  9 habits that are KILLING your progress in a new language 30.07.2026 6m

  Friction is what reduces our enjoyment of language learning, so in this video I go through the nine forms it takes and what I do about each one.
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  How I learn grammar without studying grammar rules 23.07.2026 9m

  Should you focus on words or grammar? Here's how I approach grammar as an input-based learner, and why most corrections never stick.
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  How I'm getting my Portuguese ready for Portugal 16.07.2026 6m

  In this video I'll you how I'm getting ready for my trip to Portugal by using point-of-view stories, circling questions, and AI to create custom lessons.
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  Stop forcing yourself to remember vocabulary. Do this instead 09.07.2026 7m

  Today I want to talk about the fifth language skill — the one nobody teaches alongside reading, writing, speaking, and listening, and the one that might matter just as much.
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  The sweet spot that makes you enjoy learning (and how to find it) 02.07.2026 10m

  Today I want to talk about the state of flow — that feeling of being completely absorbed in what you're doing — and how you can use it to become a better language learner.
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  Why I DON’T use spaced repetition to learn vocabulary 25.06.2026 9m

  Vocabulary is the clearest measure of your level in any language, so here is how I acquire and review words, and why I skip most of the popular methods.
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  Languages or Sudoku? The better choice for a healthy brain 18.06.2026 6m

  At 80, I'm still learning languages every day, and I'm convinced it does more for your brain than any Sudoku puzzle ever could.