{"id":118511,"date":"2023-08-21T23:54:33","date_gmt":"2023-08-22T03:54:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/learn\/french-listening-comprehension\/"},"modified":"2025-06-11T09:06:04","modified_gmt":"2025-06-11T13:06:04","slug":"french-listening-comprehension","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/french\/french-listening-comprehension\/","title":{"rendered":"How To Improve Your French Listening"},"content":{"rendered":"

Understanding written French<\/a> and comprehending spoken French<\/a> are two completely different skills.<\/p>\n

When children learn, they must take time to learn how to read and write. The way many adults learn a language, though, is the opposite\u2014being able to read and write before the listening comprehension kicks in.<\/p>\n

So if you’re new to speaking and listening to French<\/a>, here are five ways to start moving from “Please speak slower” to “You could actually speak faster, if you’d like\u2014I understand!”<\/p>\n

[fluentu-toc]<\/p>\n

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1. Speak as often as possible\u2014even if you make mistakes<\/h2>\n

In my experience, this is much easier said than done. Speaking and continually making mistakes is daunting and often frustrating. But there are ways to do this without feeling embarrassed and discouraged at every turn. When you say what you hear, it cements your understanding of the spoken word in a way that doesn’t happen when you simply just listen.<\/p>\n

Find a language partner or join a language exchange<\/h3>\n

It’s important not only to find a language partner to practice your conversation skills<\/a>, but also to establish strong listening comprehension. When you’re speaking with your partner, practice listening to what they say, and then ask questions\u2014in French\u2014if you don’t understand. Then repeat back what they say.<\/p>\n

Try answering your partner, double checking with them that you fully understood and that you provided an acceptable response. For example, your speaking partner might make a comment using a vocabulary word you don’t yet know<\/a>. Tell them: “Je ne comprends pas. Pouvez-vous expliquer?” <\/em>(I don’t understand. Can you explain?)<\/p>\n

When they clarify the meaning, repeat what they said. Confirm that you said it correctly. Then respond with a follow-up comment or question to continue the conversation.<\/p>\n

Practice pronouncing unfamiliar words and phrases on your own<\/h3>\n

When you encounter particularly difficult words or phrases<\/a>, take a note and say them out loud at home. Specifically note why it’s difficult for you: is it the accent<\/a>, the grammar<\/a> or the usage?<\/p>\n

Once you feel comfortable with it, go back to your language partner or use it in a conversation with a friend. You’ll find that you’ve nailed it and will understand it clearly when other people use it.<\/p>\n

2. Watch movies with French subtitles<\/h2>\n

Watching dubbed<\/a> and subtitled movies<\/a> is a great way to connect the words you hear to the written words you’ve already learned. When you’re trying to improve your listening, it’s hard to even grasp what the characters might be saying, leaving only the visual as a clue.<\/p>\n

To avoid struggling through a 2-hour film and feeling frustrated at the end, turn on the French subtitles. If you don’t feel comfortable reading that quickly in French, try this process to work up to it:<\/p>\n

1. Pick an American movie you’ve seen before.<\/p>\n

2. Turn on the French dubbed version so that the characters are speaking French rather than English.<\/p>\n

3. Turn on the English subtitles first, then listen carefully to the words the characters are saying. Take notes about the words and turns of phrases that may not be familiar to you.<\/p>\n

4. When you feel more confident, switch the subtitles to French. Now connect those same sentences you hear to the French words themselves. Again, write down aspects of the language you’re not understanding. Ask a friend or your language partner about them.<\/p>\n

5. Watch one more time without any French subtitles. Can you pull out certain words from the conversation? Do you understand the dialogue? What do you miss? What do you know you understand 100%?<\/p>\n

Consider doing this with a friend, too, who you can text or call and ask, “Did you understand that one scene…?”<\/p>\n

You may be able to do this with movies you rent from a video store. If you’re using a DVD, make sure any DVDs you may rent or buy do indeed have French audio and subtitle options.<\/p>\n

There’s also the option of the FluentU program<\/a>, which contains dual-language subtitles.<\/p>\n

FluentU<\/strong> takes authentic videos\u2014like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks\u2014and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.<\/p>\r\n

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You can try FluentU for free for 2 weeks. Check out the website or download the iOS app<\/a> or Android app.<\/a><\/p>\r\n

P.S. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)<\/a><\/i>\r\n<\/p>\r\n

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