Good English listening practice is about hearing a variety of voices, situations, dialects, and media, because the English you hear in class or in textbook listening comprehension exercises doesn’t always sound like what you hear in the real world. It’s important to mix both types of audio.
Discover beginner to advanced level tips and resources for a listening practice that gives you a complete picture of what English sounds like.
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Beginner (basic) English listening practice
The first thing you should do is check your English language fluency level. You can choose the best resources if you know whether you’re a beginner, intermediate, or advanced learner.
The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) scale is a good way to check your skills. A beginner English speaker (CEFR A1-A2) can understand:
- The topic of a conversation
- Slow, clear speech
- Important information like names, dates, and places
- Simple questions
- Short instructions
How to practice listening in English as a beginner
Start with short and simple audio for beginner English listening practice. Listen for one to five minutes at a time. When you feel more comfortable, you can do longer practice sessions.
- Pick short audio clips to listen to, like One Minute English from Elllo. Each clip is one minute long and includes accents from all over the world.
- Listen to short English podcasts about simple topics, like BBC’s Real Easy English. You can hear fluent speakers talk about work, books, hobbies, and more.
- Try audiobooks written for English language learners. The “Easy Reading for ESL Students” series includes several short stories in each book.
- Use language learning apps like Rosetta Stone. Each lesson on the learning path includes audio recorded by native speakers.
Exercises for beginner English listening practice
Practice “active listening” often when you listen to things in English. That means paying close attention to what you’re hearing. Concentrate on the words, the sentence structure, and the features of English pronunciation.
- Read the transcripts of the audio you listen to. Seeing the words as you hear them can help comprehension.
- Practice spelling words you hear with Spell It. The words can be easy or difficult, but the audio includes a short example sentence for each question to teach you new words.
- Use TOEFL Listening Comprehension practice questions to check your progress. You can start with the free TOEFL ITP sample questions.
- Listen to anything in English while you do your daily activities. For example, you can play English songs while you drive to work or turn on the news while you cook. This is called “passive listening.”
Intermediate (independent) English listening practice
Intermediate listening practice includes longer audio samples. Instead of audio designed to teach you how to speak English, start choosing examples that were made for native English speakers.
An intermediate English language learner (CEFR B1-B2) can understand the following at normal speed:
- Casual conversations with slang (American slang and/or British slang)
- Formal conversations about the news or work
- Detailed instructions
- Most non-technical information
- Long speeches and presentations
How to level up listening practice in English
Intermediate audio includes more complex topics and longer audio clips. You can still use educational resources intended for English language learners, but you should also listen to audio recorded for native speakers.
- If your job requires English, listen to podcasts about business English. You can learn about special vocabulary, how to apply for jobs in English, and general work situations (like goals and disagreements).
- Listen to audiobooks written for native speakers. Young Adult (YA) fiction is an easy genre to choose from, and the books (like “The Hunger Games” and “The Fault in Our Stars”) can also be enjoyed by adults.
- Watch movies or TV shows in English. You can use subtitles (in your language) or closed captions (in English) at first, but remove them when you get more comfortable.
- Listen to a variety of music in English and pay attention to the lyrics. Songs from popular musicals are relatively easy to understand because they’re performed as part of a story.
- Attend events in your area. Libraries, community centers, and schools hold a variety of free activities, presentations, and other events in English.
Exercises for intermediate English listening practice
Listening to harder audio is important, but it’s also important to use it to practice effectively. Try these exercises and activities when you listen to audio in English.
- Listen to the English audiobook version of books you’ve already read in your native language. You’ll already know the story, so you can focus on grammar, vocabulary, and pronunciation instead of the plot.
- Write down the lyrics you hear when you listen to music. This will help you find the words you’re missing when you listen. You can look up the lyrics online when you’re ready to check your work.
- Take a few lessons with Rosetta Stone Tutoring. Tutors can check your progress and offer feedback on your current strategy and tips on how to improve.
- If you go to a live presentation or lecture, bring something to record the speaker with. Later, listen to the recording to catch anything you missed.
Advanced (proficient) English listening practice
Having advanced listening skills (CEFR C1-C2) in English means you can understand English like a native speaker. You’re able to understand:
- All spoken English, including dialects that are unfamiliar to you
- Thick accents (like Southern American or Scottish)
- Unclear audio (like radio or loud concerts)
- Movies, TV shows, and other media without subtitles
- Jokes and sarcasm said in a serious way (“deadpan”)
How to practice listening in English fluently
Listen to as much audio for native English speakers as possible. If you could listen to something in your native language (like the news), try to listen to it in English instead. Look for things you can listen to for fun, too!
- Listen to the news in English. If you live in the United States, PBS is a good option, while BBC is a good option if you live in the United Kingdom. Whatever source you pick, check it for media bias.
- Check out a few of the hundreds of official TED Talks. These presentations cover everything from environmental science to finding joy in your life. You’re certain to find at least one topic that interests you.
- Pick harder audiobooks to listen to. If you want an extra challenge, try famous classic English literature like “The Lord of the Rings” by J.R.R. Tolkien or the plays of Shakespeare.
- Watch sports with commentary to hear English spoken at a faster speed than normal. Popular sports with a lot of commentary include American football, soccer, and basketball.
- Go to a local museum and use any available audio guides. You can walk around the museum with earphones or headphones to hear more about the exhibits without disturbing any other visitors.
Exercises for advanced English listening practice
To improve your English fluency, get exposed to a wide variety of topics. When you hear a word you don’t know, try to guess its meaning from context before looking it up. Ultimately, listen to English as much as you can.
- Continue to use some resources designed for advanced English language learners (especially for difficult topics). For example, the quizzes that go with these academic English audio samples will check your listening comprehension.
- Find podcasts that are about unusual topics and that include multiple people (which counts as English conversation practice). Try a trivia podcast like Good Job Brain or a celebrity interview podcast like Good Hang with Amy Poehler.
- Attend events in person if you can. For example, if you go to a basketball game instead of watching it on TV, you’ll hear different things even if you’re watching the same game.
- If you live in one of the English-speaking countries around the world, go out in public and listen to people talking around you. You can go to a restaurant, a park, or just take a walk down a busy street.
Types of listening to focus on in English
Practicing English listening skills is about more than what resources you use. You can turn anything into good practice by using strategies like these:
- Adjust your listening speed. When you listen to something new, you can slow it down to 0.8x. When you want to try understanding something fast, increase the speed to 1.5x.
- Watch movies or TV shows in English with subtitles in your native language. This is best for beginners who want to listen to English but still need help with comprehension.
- Watch movies or TV shows in English with closed captions. The words that appear on the screen will match what you hear (or it will be close), which can help you with words that you have trouble understanding.
- Write a summary of what you listened to. This is an easy way to check your comprehension, and it’s also good English writing practice.
- Try writing down the words that you hear (this is called “transcription”). Many audio samples created for English language learners come with transcripts, so you can check your accuracy when you’re done.
Tips for practicing listening in English
Some tips for improving your English ability apply to all skill levels. Keep these things in mind when you’re choosing what to listen to in English:
- Find out which English dialects are most important for you. If you study abroad in London, you’ll want to learn some specific British words. If you move to the United States, look at African American Vernacular English (AAVE) and the dialects of the region you’ll be living in (like New England or Midwestern).
- Learn the most common English idioms. You’ll hear these in both casual and formal conversations.
- Listen to English for at least a few minutes every day. Play music in English or turn a movie on in the background even if you aren’t able to do specific exercises or long listening sessions.
If you listen to something in English, that’s listening practice
Improving your English listening skills doesn’t have to feel like practice. You can make it more interesting and enjoyable by choosing audio that you like to listen to. If it’s in English, it counts as practice!
With so many listening practice resources, you might wonder “Can you learn a language just by listening?” While listening is an important skill, you need more than one skill to be fluent in English. You can learn English through listening, speaking, reading, and writing with Rosetta Stone. The combination of these different skills is what will increase your English fluency.
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