How to learn a language fast, according to polyglot Olly Richards
![](https://preply.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/two-preply-learners-chatting-on-a-table.jpg)
- 13 tips for how to learn a language fast
- 1. Learn one language at a time
- 2. Start with short, simple dialogues
- 3. Study pronunciation very early on
- 4. Concentrate on one language island at a time
- 5. Focus on comprehensible input
- 6. Use a structured reading technique
- 7. Read wisely, not widely
- 8. Avoid relying on parallel texts while learning
- 9. Start speaking early
- 10. Immerse yourself in the language
- 11. Turn off the subtitles when watching movies and TV shows
- 12. Have a strong tolerance for ambiguity
- 13. Focus on real concentrated study, not cheap hacks
- Take the time to learn a language right, not just fast
Many of us dream about learning to speak a second language (or, if we’re lucky and work hard, potentially a third). But the ability to speak more than three languages is so rare that it seems almost impossibly out of reach.
Yet there are people among us, known as polyglots, who serve as walking, talking evidence that teaching yourself how to speak five, six, seven, and even eight languages is not only possible – it’s more achievable than you might think.
If learning another language will help you reach specific goals – like getting a job in a competitive international market or moving abroad – then you need to progress as fast as possible. While we don’t have a way to download new languages to our brains just yet, you can become pretty fluent in a new language faster than you’d imagine.
In a recent webinar, we spoke to the renowned polyglot Olly Richards to learn some practical tips on how to learn a new language fast based on his personal experience. In addition to speaking eight languages (French, Spanish, Portuguese, Japanese, Thai, Arabic, Cantonese, and Italian), Richards is well known online for being the creator of the StoryLearning® method.
Today, we’ll recap some of his proven advice on how to learn a new language fast, from turning off subtitles (yes, really!) to being comfortable with not understanding everything right away.
13 tips for how to learn a language fast
Are you looking to expand your horizons by learning a new language? Well, there’s no better way to learn how to do something than to get advice from somebody who has done so successfully themselves. Here are 13 language learning tips from Olly Richards, who has done it not once, not twice, but eight times.
1. Learn one language at a time
As a polyglot who has taught himself to speak eight languages, Richards always gets this question: “How can I learn more than one language at the same time?”
His advice? “Don’t do it. Let’s face it: learning one language by itself is hard enough, right? And there’s a direct correlation between focus and the amount you learn,” Richards explains. Adding a second language just divides your time and attention. But focusing your attention on one language means you’ll spend more time in that language, so you’ll learn it much faster.
That being said, if you really want to learn two languages at the same time and you’re not as focused on speed, Richards says to go for it as long as you understand that it will slow you down. If you are committed to learning two languages at once, try to choose languages that are very different (such as Spanish and Japanese) to avoid confusing new vocabulary and grammar rules.
2. Start with short, simple dialogues
Richards believes that it’s possible to become conversational in a language in just 90 days – as he did with Italian – by starting with reading and listening to stories. But how can you do that when you’re so new to the language that you barely understand a thing? Well, Richards says, “At the beginning, you need to use material that’s really, really simple.”
In the first week or so, stick to reading the short, simple dialogues you might find in a beginner language learning textbook, such as “I go to the grocery store” or “I like to run and watch movies.” Although these phrases might seem too basic, you’ll learn more than you think.
“What most people don’t realize is if you are just reading those dialogues at the beginning, they will contain the 100 or 200 most common words in the language, which are used over 50% of the time,” explains Richards.
You can start by making your own simple dialogues with these tips to start speaking a new language fast or use these phrase lists as inspiration.
3. Study pronunciation very early on
With languages, you can always learn vocabulary and grammar as you go along. But it’s essential to avoid building bad habits at the beginning of your language learning journey.
“I’m a big believer that one of the first things you should do with a new language is really study pronunciation,” says Richards. “It’s much easier to get it right at the beginning than it is to try and fix it later on.”
How can you practice pronunciation? The best way is to learn by listening to audio recordings or watching videos of native speakers so you can hear how they pronounce things. Then copy them by repeating the same sounds over and over until they begin to feel natural in your mouth. You can also use pronunciation apps like Glossika, where you listen to a native speaker, record yourself repeating what they said, and then compare your version to the native speaker’s.
To improve your pronunciation even faster, you can work with a private tutor who’s a native speaker of your target language. They’ll notice exactly what words you’re mispronouncing, demonstrate how they say them, and help you practice until you get it right.
4. Concentrate on one language island at a time
If you’ve ever felt stuck in your language learning journey, you’re not alone. Many learners experience what’s known as the language plateau, where they feel like they can’t progress further than they already have.
To overcome this hurdle, Richards suggests focusing on a single “language island.” Instead of jumping between unrelated topics like World War II, gardening, and Harry Potter, which introduce a vast range of vocabulary, he suggests focusing on interconnected subjects.
For instance, delving into the histories of World War I, World War II, the Vietnam War, and the Korean War would be considered one language island. The advantage? “You’ll be learning lots of military terms, seeing those same words come up over and over again in different contexts,” Richards says.
The beauty of this approach lies in its simplicity. By immersing yourself in a specific language island, you encounter repeated vocabulary, which helps you learn faster. Richards shares a personal example to illustrate this: “I’ve been watching videos in Cantonese about making videos on YouTube. So, when I move on to the next video, I see the same vocabulary coming up all the time, which means I learn it faster.”
This method brings focus to your vocabulary learning and ensures that you’re continually reinforcing and building upon what you’ve already learned.
5. Focus on comprehensible input
If your goal is learning languages fast, it’s key to familiarize yourself with the concept of comprehensible input, or the idea that you should read or listen at your level or slightly above it, based on notable linguist Stephen Krashen’s theory of language acquisition.
When you’re new to learning Spanish, it’s probably too early to watch an entire movie in Spanish. Instead, you’ll want to find material just above your level at every stage of your language learning journey. As a beginner, this will likely be those short, simple dialogues we discussed earlier.
You’ll soon start understanding more than you think and be ready to read stories or non-fiction material. First, reading gives you everything you need for comprehensible input – you can study at your own pace and highlight any vocab you don’t know. Stories are particularly effective because their structures are universally relatable, so the stories you know in your mother tongue can help you understand.
Beyond that, stories allow you to have an experience that engages your entire brain in the learning process instead of just the left brain that may be involved when you’re only learning grammar. Activating different parts of your brain helps you form new neural connections, leading to better long-term language retention.
“This is how native speakers learn their own language,” Richards says, “We didn’t learn English by studying grammar rules. We learned from our parents reading us books.”
6. Use a structured reading technique
While reading is vital for learning a language, you need to be strategic about it. Here’s how Richards suggests you approach reading in a foreign language:
- Read the chapter from the beginning to the end: Don’t stop to look up new words or study grammar.
- Go back and reread the chapter: This allows your brain to notice more things, like conjugation or sentence structure.
- Look up any words repeated at least five times: This helps you focus on the most important vocabulary so you don’t spend more time in the dictionary than on what you’re reading.
- Move on to the next chapter: Don’t go back to memorize more words or learn new grammar rules.
Although you might feel tempted to return to the chapter to look up more words, the most important part of this process is moving on. You need to keep your focus on constantly getting new input from your target language. “Your progress in the language is going to come down to one thing, which is how much time you spend in the language,” Richards reiterates. “So you mustn’t spend all your time with your head in the dictionary. You’ve got to spend time actually consuming content.”
7. Read wisely, not widely
There’s value in narrowing the focus of your reading materials. Focus on choosing the right books, ideally, some that are related to your hobbies and interests.
Richards says, “If you are really into gardening, for example, then look for books on gardening in your target language.” The idea is to learn through topics that already interest you because you’ll be intrinsically motivated to understand.
But contrary to many common suggestions, Richards recommends not using popular book series, like Harry Potter, to learn a language. Most fiction books are filled with odd vocabulary you won’t use in real life – unless you’re a wizard.
Instead, start by reading nonfiction books because they use practical language you’re likely to use in your daily life. Nonfiction is written more simply than novels, which often use more creative vocabulary and complex sentence structures.
As a bonus, if you’re reading a nonfiction book about one of your interests, you already understand the topic. That means you can focus on learning the new language rather than unfamiliar concepts.
8. Avoid relying on parallel texts while learning
Parallel texts are books with the target language on one side and your native language on the opposite page. At first glance, this seems like a handy tool for language learners. For instance, you read a sentence in English and immediately have the German translation to assist you.
But Richards warns against becoming too reliant on this method. “It removes the struggle,” he says. “If you get an immediate translation, your brain doesn’t need to do the work of really trying to figure out the meaning of what you’re reading in the foreign language.” And while some might argue they can resist the temptation to peek at the translation, Richards is skeptical: “We always cheat.”
Imagine going to the gym and only lifting light weights. There’s no resistance, so your muscles will never grow. The same applies to your brain and a new language.
Instead of parallel texts, Richards recommends reading materials entirely in the target language. His books, for instance, are 100% in the target language without any translation. The most challenging vocabulary is bolded and explained at the end of each chapter.
This method encourages learners to grapple with the language, which promotes a deeper understanding. “What this means is that you struggle to read, you struggle with the story, and there’s some bits you don’t understand. It’s ambiguous,” Richards explains. “But then, at the end of the chapter, once you’ve finished, you get to learn some words that unlock the stuff you’ve been reading. This promotes your ability to actually deal with the language.”
9. Start speaking early
While we’ve focused a lot of tips on input, let’s not forget the critical importance of speaking. After all, when Richards learned Italian in 90 days, he spent his entire second and third months actually speaking Italian. So, if you want to learn a language fast, he recommends to start speaking and have daily conversations in the second month.
There are many opportunities to speak a new language even if you can’t travel to a country where that language is spoken. You can find a language exchange partner or use a language exchange app with on-the-go speaking tools.
“I would go on a service like Preply and take daily language lessons with a tutor so I’m speaking the language every day,” Richards says. Once you add regular conversation practice to your routine of reading and listening to your target language, you’ll progress quickly in your first three months.
10. Immerse yourself in the language
Once you’ve trained your ability to “get the language out of your mouth and speak it,” as Richards describes it, you need to start doing the same things as before, but “on steroids.” The idea is to speak to as many people as possible and get as much language input as possible through reading and listening.
To create as much immersion as possible from your home without traveling to a foreign country, you must find ways to input your target language into your daily life. As we explained earlier, learning through your personal interests can help tremendously by keeping you engaged and interested as you learn the language.
Other ways to create an immersion environment from home include:
- Listening to podcasts in your target language while doing chores, commuting or exercises
- Watch videos on YouTube in your target language
- Change your mobile phone to your target language (but make sure you know how to change it back!)
- Talk to a smart assistant like Siri or Alexa in your target language for stress-free conversation practice
Most of these examples are completely free, so it doesn’t hurt to experiment! Try incorporating them into your daily routine so you’re surrounded by your new language as much as possible.
11. Turn off the subtitles when watching movies and TV shows
Another popular “hack” for learning a language is to watch movies and TV shows in that language. But Richards isn’t such a fan of this as a core language study format.
“For me, movies are not a very good way to study. It’s just not a very convenient format because it’s very long form,” Richards says. “It’s not convenient to rewind and rewind. You can only see one sentence on the screen at the same time.” Instead, he prefers books because everything is already on the page, so it’s easy to go back and reread something he didn’t understand.
That being said, if you are going to watch movies or TV in a foreign language as a supplemental learning tool, don’t use any subtitles – not even in your target language. When you turn the subtitles on, you’re not listening anymore; you’re reading. It’s even worse if you’re reading subtitles in your native language because you won’t be learning much in a foreign language, will you?
“With all things being equal, two hours spent in Spanish is better than two hours spent in English,” Richards says. “But don’t be under the illusion that by watching a movie for two hours you are making big progress in your language skills because, unfortunately, you’re not.”
12. Have a strong tolerance for ambiguity
You might be a bit shocked by the idea that a person can learn a new language to a conversational level in three months. For most of us, it takes much longer. Doesn’t it?
When asked what makes learning a new language take longer than it should, Richards explains that language learners need to have a strong “tolerance for ambiguity.” This means you need to be okay with the millions of things you don’t understand when learning a language.
“I think insisting on knowing everything and then just grinding to a halt and not moving is the biggest mistake I see people make,” Richards says. If you get caught up by checking every single word in a text that you don’t understand, it’s simply too inefficient and takes too much time.
But when you have a high tolerance for ambiguity, as good language learners do, you can be comfortable being a bit lost. By tolerating ambiguity, you free yourself to keep exposing yourself to the language while also being open and curious about the language to learn more.
13. Focus on real concentrated study, not cheap hacks
Just like anything that requires hard work, there’s no shortage of myths and shortcuts to learning a language floating around on the internet. But the truth is that you won’t get results with language learning by putting in the minimum effort.
So, can you learn a language while sleeping? Richards doesn’t hesitate to answer: “It’s a waste of time.” While the idea of absorbing a new language without actually doing anything might sound appealing, the reality is that true language acquisition requires active engagement and conscious effort.
That’s why immersion is the most effective way to truly grasp a new language. It forces you to think, process, and respond in your target language, which speeds up your learning and helps you think more naturally in the new language.
It’s also important to practice actively producing the language through speaking and writing, which is often overlooked. If your goal is to use your new language in the workplace, you need to have strong writing skills. It’s not enough to just speak when you also need to respond to emails and create presentations for meetings.
You can get practice by responding to writing prompts. This helps you practice constructing sentences and expressing your thoughts. Ultimately, this exercise can significantly improve your vocabulary and grammar, which is important for professional communication.
Take the time to learn a language right, not just fast
While these tips from Richards focus on helping you learn a language at breakneck speed, they’re just as relevant and valuable for people who are able and willing to take their time learning their target language. Because unless you have a good reason to set a goal of learning a new language in 90 days, there’s no reason to stress out too much about learning a language fast.
If you have to compete with anybody, compete with the person you were yesterday, not somebody else. Celebrate the small, incremental improvements that are the bread and butter of language learning. After all, the best ways to learn a language are the ones that work for you. So enjoy the process!
But if you want to speed up your language learning journey, consider partnering with one of Preply’s online English tutors. A private tutor will create a personalized learning plan based on your level of proficiency and language learning goals, which is the most effective way to progress quickly.
With over 16,000 English tutors to choose from, you can easily find someone who fits your learning style. Tutors are also available in every time zone so that you can fit your 1-on-1 tutoring sessions into your busy schedule.
Next article
![](https://preply.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/conversation-384x256.png)
How to achieve a conversational level in a foreign language (90-day plan)
Is it possible to reach a conversational level in a language in as little as three months? Experts show it can be done!
Previous article
![](https://preply.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Multicultural-business-partners-talking-around-a-meeting-table-384x256.jpg)
Getting a job with an international company: What you need to know
Applying to an international job is different compared to a local application process. Learn the essential aspects that you must be prepared for.