12 French Language Hacks to Progress Faster

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There are lots of reasons people decide to learn French. Whether it’s a love of the culture, the food, wanting to resurrect your school French or for traveling, French is a great language to learn.

The good news is that there are many French language hacks to make your learning happen more quickly – and you don’t need lots of money to learn it. 

French language quick facts

As French learners, it’s always nice to know some facts about the language we’re learning. Did you know, for example, that the number of French speakers worldwide has risen 300% in the last 75 years?

French has always held an important place in the world and until the rise of English in the 20th century, it was the world’s pre-eminent language. 

As a Romance language that has descended from Latin, French is among the Romance heavyweights like Spanish and Italian, and it’s certainly among the most intriguing. So, without further ado, let’s look at 12 French language hacks to progress faster.

French language hacks

1. Do your learning on the go with podcasts or audio lessons

Whether you’re working, studying, or retired, you probably have lots of other tasks you need to do each day. Learning on the go is a great way of improving while you’re doing other things like commuting, cooking, or walking the dog. 

Find a French podcast that you can listen to as you move around. You can check this comprehensive list of 17 great French learning podcasts, so you’re bound to find one that works well for you.

Alternatively, you can sign up for audio-based courses and apps like Pimsleur and Rocket French. Both are great options if you want to be conversational quickly.

2. Listen to the radio

If podcasts aren’t for you, or you don’t fancy talking aloud on your dog walk or bus ride, then why not find a French radio station to listen to? And if you’re not into talk radio, don’t worry that the songs will be all of the popular ones you already know, because they won’t!

That’s because, since 1986, French radio stations have a French-language quota. This means that private radio stations have to have between 35% and 40% French-language songs in peak times (typically, 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.). Public stations, like Radio France for example, have a higher quota of 50% French-language songs. 

For the best experience, choose a public radio station or a talk radio station. This website has over 3700 French radio stations you can listen to online. Some of the most popular are:

• France Inter
• RTL 
• RTL 2 (Pop, Rock, Ballads)
• Chérie FM (pop)
• RTBF (a Belgian station playing Top 40/charts)
• Nostalgie (Oldies)
• La Radio Sans Pub (no-ads radio playing pop/hits)
• Radio Mosaïque (Tunisian station playing oriental/pop music)
• France Culture (Talk radio)

3. Focus on learning high-frequency words

If you know the top 300 French words, you’ll have a good footing to understand a lot of things. However, if you can learn the most frequent 1000 French words, you’ll cover 80% of the words used in most French written texts. If you learn three words a day, you’ll have learned 1000 in less than a year!

While one thousand words are much less than fluency, it’ll certainly be the stepping stone to help you get by. Also, don’t forget to learn some ‘false friends’; asking a waiter if something contains préservatifs* will really raise an eyebrow!

Learning some basic grammar points too is essential. Things like learning how adjectives come after nouns in French will make a massive difference.

Rocket Languages has a list of the top 300 French words. You can find the top 1000 words here.

4. Use an app to help you

Variety is key when it comes to learning a language. If you sit and pore over a French-language learning book, you’ll soon get bored. One of the best French language hacks is to vary your experience and you’ll see quick improvements. Find the best French learning apps here.

You don’t have to stick to just one app either. All good French learning apps have their own merits, don’t be afraid to combine your learning. 

If you want a scientifically proven, tried-and-tested app, choose Pimsleur. Other popular ones include Mondly, Babbel, and Duolingo. 

Another excellent way to grow your French vocabulary is by watching French TV shows and movies on Lingopie. You can click on the subtitles for instant translation, hear the pronunciation, and save the words as flashcards!

5. Hire a tutor

Short of living in a French-speaking country for six months, one of the best ways you can learn French is to hire an affordable online language tutor. Having a tutor not only gives you a different way of learning, but it also makes you accountable to someone – which is more motivating!

You can find a lot of French tutors online. The best sites are sites like italki and Preply. Both sites allow tutors to set their own prices and you can find classes for any budget.

6. Focus on enjoyment and learn the things you want to learn

If you’re never going to order train tickets at a ticket desk in a French train station – don’t learn it.  You’re much more likely to remember something if you see a purpose in it or if you really love the topic.

If you’re really interested in history, look into French history and learn some keywords. If animals are your thing, see how many different animal names you can learn.

7. Watch French programs and films on TV

Thanks to Netflix and other streaming softwares, we have the TV and film world at our fingertips – quite literally! If you’re a complete beginner, watch some of your favorite cartoons in French. If you’re familiar with a Simpsons episode, for example, it’s a really interesting thing to watch it in a foreign language. 

There are some great French films available. Depending on where you watch it, you’ll have to switch the language to its original (French). You can choose to add subtitles in English – or if you’re more advanced, put them in French so that you can see the written word at the same time. Avoid complicated plots though!

8. Social media French language hacks

If you’re into social media, following French people online or being a part of a French group on a topic of your interest is a great step forward. How about trying the following?

• Instagram – follow accounts that do stories in French on topics you’re interested in, you’ll get short bursts of immersion as you scroll through your feed.

• Facebook – start joining groups in French. These could be for language learners to ask queries or just groups about things of interest in the French-speaking world.

• TikTok – find some French people to follow. It’ll be great from a cultural point of view too as you’ll see how the closed captions work and get an insight into how French-speaking people live.

9. Do a language exchange 

This is a great French language hack that is about give and take. If you live near a university or where there are a lot of French native speakers, you can often find people who want to practice speaking English.

Arranging to meet in a café for one hour, you can spend thirty minutes chatting in French and thirty minutes in English. It’s a win-win situation and you can practice for free (or for the price of a coffee at least). 

You can also check out language exchange apps and sites to find virtual conversation partners.

10. Decide what your goal is

You can’t anywhere if you don’t know where you’re going! Yes, you want to learn French but how good do you want to get?

Your goals need to be SMART: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound.

So set yourself a realistic SMART target about what you want to achieve and when and how you are going to measure it. Are you going to take an exam, for example?

11. Reflect on your learning 

As well as setting goals, another French learning hack is to “check in” every now and then to see how far you’ve come. Ask yourself about your weakest point and decide where you need to turn your attention to.

Do you need to learn more vocabulary? Do you need to revisit a particular grammar point?

12. Immerse yourself

They say that six months living in a French-speaking country is the equivalent learning curve to seven years in a language classroom. Now, we’re not suggesting you get on the next flight to Paris (unless you want to!), but immersion is the way to go.  

So, change your life to surround yourself with all things French. Look for French on ingredients lists, look for French words in use in our everyday language, watch TV, listen to music, and join some social media channels from the country.

In essence, do all of these French language hacks all at once!

Final thoughts on French language hacks

No matter the motivation behind learning the language, French language hacks will be useful. As the Greek philosopher, Epictetus, said: “progress is not achieved by luck or accident, but by working on yourself daily.” 

In other words, if you want to be successful in your desire to learn French, you need to look at yourself first. Discover your motivations, your goals, and your preferred way of learning and you’re halfway there!

*les préservatifs is French for condoms!