Internet provides several tools in order to (auto) learn English, and to improve your English level… very useful for french people, commonly known for being completely dumb at speaking foreign languages!
LEARNING ENGLISH WITH COMMON WEBSITES
The BBC's Learning English section
Though it requires a huge amount of generosity since it's an auto-learning tool, you will find several useful resources… on almost every subject!
Every subject? Yes, even that incredible video about idiomatic expressions using the vegetables vocabulary…
The webpage is divided in several sections; if "The teacher" section appears to be aimed at children, adults can improve their english level by watching or listening to stories with specific vocabulary…
Go to Chissano wins prize for good African leadership
The BBC online english learning platform is designed for people who actually have a good level in English.
The CNN "Student news" section
Very similar to BBC learning English section, CNN "Student news" provides video, stories transcription, tests and quizzes for people committed to improve their english.
Designed for English classes and teachers looking for topics.
TRANSLATORS
The Reverso online translation tool
Having trouble with translation? Reverso's here for you! It's quite different from other online translation tools since it doesn't translate "Oh well" by "Oh puits".
A very useful tool if you have to give an English version of your dissertation.
Please note that you can also translate from French to other languages as German, Spanish, Italian…
The Freelang association
The Freelang association is a non-profit organization aiming at editing dictionaries softwares; the English section offers a wide range of specific English "languages" such as Audiovisual english, Law english, etc.
Blah-blah-blah.
Freelang is so good!
Freelang is a brotherhood!
A very useful database, but not really user friendly since you have to download and install several softwares.
GRAMMAR
Basic English Grammar
The ugliest website in the world. But one of the most useful if you want to understand why the hell English is soooo complicated.
The website provides "lessons" on every subjects from Verb tense to comparative.
CIVILIZATION
IDIOMATIC EXPRESSIONS
Another ugly, non-user friendly website… It lists every single idiomatic expression from the whole Commonwealth.
For instance:
- Against the grain
- If doing something goes against the grain, you're unwilling to do it because it contradicts what you believe in, but you have no real choice.
- Zigged before you zagged
- If you did things in the wrong order, you zigged before you zagged.
