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What Is The TOPIK Exam?

October 25, 2021 by Ana Martín Leave a Comment

What is the TOPIK exam? The TOPIK exam is the official Korean language exam. It is internationally recognised and can be used to demonstrate your proficiency.

The exam is broken into two levels:

TOPIK 1 – beginner (Levels 1 – 2)
TOPIK 2 – intermediate and advanced (Levels 4 – 6)

TOPIK 1 tests your reading and listening skills and TOPIK 2 tests reading, listening and writing. There are many TOPIK textbooks that can help you to prepare for the exam if it something you wish to take. Below we have included some frequently asked questions regarding the TOPIK exam to give you a better idea of how it works and what you can expect.

IS TOPIK Exam Necessary

Whether or not this exam is necessary will depend on your individual needs. You can study Korean without taking the TOPIK. You can also live in Korea and work in some jobs there without having taken the exam.

However, for studying and some jobs in Korea a demonstration of your Korean proficiency will be necessary meaning that you may need to take the exam. It can also be useful if you’re studying Korean and want a goal to work towards. By signing up for the exam you’re more likely to learn the necessary vocabulary and grammar structures to meet that requirement which will improve your Korean at the same time. Exam sitting can be an incredibly useful way to improve language skills.

How Can I Pass TOPIK Exam?

There are several things you can do to pass the TOPIK exam. Firstly choose a level that is just above the current level you’re at so you can work towards your exam and it is appropriate for your language ability.

Next use a TOPIK textbook to work your way through the appropriate material for the exam you intend to take. In addition to this you should be doing past exams to practise and so that you know what to expect when the day of your exam rolls around. It’s important you do these exams under timed conditions so you have the same time you would in the actual exam.

Finally it can really help to immerse yourself fully in Korean in the lead up to an exam. Try to read in Korean, watch TV and movies, listen to music, keep a Korean diary and even speak Korean as much as possible even though the test doesn’t include an oral component.

Can I Skip TOPIK 1?

Yes you can skip TOPIK 1 and go straight to 2. You don’t have to take the beginner levels before moving onto the more advanced ones. Instead you can book in for whichever level you feel ready to take. We would recommend trying out some practise papers before you do this to see which level would be most realistic for you. Practise papers can be a great way to assess your current level and to give you a good idea of what you need to work on to achieve a pass in your desired exam.

Is TOPIK Hard?

Whether or not you find the TOPIK hard will depend on your level and how much preparation you have done for the exam. Some may find it much more difficult than others and some will find the tests fairly easy. Having said that students have reported there being a big jump between levels, with the jump from level 4 (intermediate) to level 5 (advanced) being greater for them than the jump between level 3 and 4 (both intermediate).

You should expect to find the exam quite difficult and to prepare adequately in order to pass. For this reason it can be incredibly beneficial to do past papers to practise for the TOPIK, not only does this give you a good indication of what level you’re at but it also helps you to be aware of what you’ll encounter on the test and how long you’ll need to complete each section. We can’t recommend this enough in your test preparation.

Is TOPIK A Written Test

Only TOPIK 2 includes a written test. If you are taking TOPIK 1 which is appropriate for beginners you will be tested on your listening and reading skills but if you are taking TOPIK 2 you will be tested on those two skills in addition to writing. Speaking proficiency is not included in the TOPIK exam.

Do I Have To Go To Korean To Sit The TOPIK?

No you can sit the TOPIK exam in your own country. However, if you want to take the test abroad you may also do this. Many people like to go to Korea to study for the exam and immerse themselves in the language then take the test while there. Whichever you choose is fine and will depend on your individual needs at the time and where you’re located. Taking the test abroad can be fun but taking it in your own country is perfectly fine too and incredibly common.

Hopefully we have helped to answer what is the TOPIK exam for you. If you have any further question regarding the exam or learning Korean in general then please let us know in the comments beneath and we’d be happy to answer them for you.

Article: What Is The TOPIK Exam

Suggested Articles: Why Take The TOPIK

Why Take The TOPIK

October 22, 2021 by Ana Martín Leave a Comment

Why take the TOPIK is a question that lots of learners of Korean will find themselves taking. What is it? Will it benefit them? And should they take it? These are all questions that may enter their heads when they first hear about the TOPIK exam. First off let’s take a look at what the TOPIK is.

The TOPIK exam is a Korean language proficiency exam that tests a non native speaker’s abilities in reading and listening, or reading, listening and writing at the more advanced levels. There are two main levels to the exam; TOPIK 1 and TOPIK 2. TOPIK 1 is for beginners and is further broken down into level 1 and 2. This exam only tests a learner’s reading and listening skills. TOPIK 2 consists of four levels; level 3 and 4 being intermediate and levels 5 and 6 being for advanced learners. TOPIK 2 tests a learners reading, writing and listening abilities.

What Is The Point Of TOPIK

The point is the test your proficiency in the Korean language. The test can be used as a goal setting method for learners to help them improve their Korean, a bench mark of how they’re progressing or it can be used to help find jobs and studying opportunities in Korea or Korean speaking companies and programmes.

Whether or not the learner will find a point in taking the exam will depend on why they’re learning Korean and what they want to get out of it. If they are looking to improve, study in Korea, work in Korean or even move to the country long term then it would definitely be worthwhile taking these exams.

Should I Take The TOPIK

This really depends on you but if you want to improve your Korean, or you want to live or work long term in South Korea then yes you should take the TOPIK.

Firstly, this exam is very useful for applying to jobs in Korea or if you’re looking to study there. However, the exam can be beneficial even if this isn’t the case for you. When learning a language, it’s easy to become stuck at one point. If you set yourself a goal like an exam at a slightly higher level than you’re currently at, then you’re more likely to improve your Korean as you study towards this goal. You’ll learn new grammar and vocabulary to help you pass the test and improve your language skills at the same time.

If you’re considering taking the exam and you have the time, money and inclination then we see no reason why you wouldn’t.

How To Prepare For The TOPIK Exam

One of the best ways to prepare for the TOPIK exam is to use a TOPIK textbook. You can purchase ones that take you through the appropriate material for each level in addition to ones with mock exams with which you can use to practise.

In addition to revising the material for the exam, it can be useful to immerse yourself in Korean, read, watch TV shows, listen to music and get as much speaking practise as you can. If you don’t have anyone to practise with start keeping a diary, this can be written or a video diary so you get used to thinking in Korean.

One important thing to note is that when you are taking in Korean media, make sure it matches the level you’re currently at. If it’s too difficult to understand you probably won’t take anything in and it won’t help with your learning.

How Much Does It Cost To Take The TOPIK

If you’re taking the test in Korea then the prices are as follows:

KRW 35,000 for TOPIK I

KRW 40,000 for TOPIK II

When Should I Take TOPIK Exam

When you take the TOPIK exam will depend on you, what you need it for, how long you’ve been studying in addition to other factors. One important thing to consider is that the TOPIK exam is only valid for two years and then you have to retake it. So if you’re studying towards this exam solely to improve your Korean then you can choose when to sit it, however, if you’re planning on using your qualification to study in Korea or apply for jobs you may want to consider this time factor when you go to take it.

If you’re not under any time restrictions and you want to sit the exam to improve your Korean then it may be a good idea to book in to take the test when you’re passing practise papers.

Article: Why Take The Topik

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How Hard Is Learning French

June 26, 2021 by Ana Martín Leave a Comment

How Hard Is Learning French

How hard is learning French or how hard is it to learn French is a question we get asked quite often on Lingo Press. French remains a popular language to learn even though it isn’t seen as being as useful as Spanish, Mandarin or Arabic. This could be in part because of people wanting to go to France, having the opportunity to work with French companies or our love of France and French culture. France remains a huge part of Europe in terms of culture, politics and economy and French remains popular along with it.

Due to this lots of people want to learn French either for work or fun and one of the first questions they ask is how hard is learning French? French and English are both Indo-European languages, meaning that they share a common language ancestor and they share many similarities. Compared to most languages French is an easy language to learn for a native English speaker. Languages like Spanish might be considered easier due to uniform pronunciation and pretty standard grammar rules but French is still up there with easy languages for native English speakers to learn.

French And English Share Many Similar Words

Even though they come from two separate language families, English has had lots of influence from the romantic languages meaning that there is a lot of overlap. For example words that end in ‘tion’ in English tend to be similar or the same in French (although the pronunciation is definitely different). For example ‘nation’ in English is spelt exactly the same in French but has French pronunciation, same for ‘instruction.’ ‘Suction’ in English becomes ‘succion’ in French, so although different, still similar enough to help you remember it. And this is true for lots of other French words as well.

There Are Patterns To Gendered Words

When you first come across European languages and realise that words are gendered it can really throw a lot of people. The good news is that there are good rules to know whether something is masculine or feminine based on the word’s ending and once you’ve learned these rules you’ll be able to guess the gender of new words based on their endings.

There Are Lots Of Resources To Help You Learn French

Due to French being a popular language there are an abundance of resources to help you learn. You have courses on Duolingo and Memrise, textbooks, graded readers, TV, film, youtube channels and so much more. These resources make it so much easier to learn than other languages where the materials haven’t been developed as well yet.

Things That Make Learning French Difficult

We’ve looked at things that make French easy to learn, now let’s look at some of the factors that make the language a bit more tricky.

Irregular Verbs

One of the things that make Fench slightly more difficult is the amount of irregular verbs. If you’re learning a language like Spanish the rules are pretty straight forward but when it comes to French they like irregular verbs and exceptions to rules as much as the English language does. Irregular verbs are definitely something that people struggle with when it comes to learning French

Difficult Pronunciation

Another factor that makes French fairly difficult is the pronunciation of certain phonemes. French has sounds that English doesn’t really have and that can be difficult for an English speaker to recreate. They have several similar sounds which can change the meaning of a word but an English speaker would just use the same sound for all of them. Getting used to French pronunciation is something you need to do early on when learning French if you want to be understood but is also something that many learners of the language find difficult.

False Friends

Now these are things that most European languages have but it’s still important to mention them. False friends are words that trip you up by looking incredibly similar to the English word but having a different meaning For example ‘actuellement’ means ‘currently’ rather than ‘actually’. This is just one of many false friends that trip English speakers up and can leave them confused or find themselves in embarrassing situations when learning French.

So how hard is learning French? For an English speaker French is a fairly easy language to learn compared to other languages. There are some factors that make it more difficult like irregular verbs and strange pronunciation but on the whole it’s on of the easier languages for a native English speaker to learn.

Article: How Hard Is Learning French

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Spanish Words That Start With An A

October 28, 2020 by Ana Martín Leave a Comment

Spanish Words That Start With An A

If you are looking at Spanish words that start with an A because you want to try and learn them all then you’re probably better offer learning common words that you’ll actually use first. If you learn the word for wasp now but you’re only learning how to introduce yourself then it’ll be harder to keep these words in your brain. It will benefit you more if you learn words as you’re able to use and practise them rather than cramming all the Spanish words that start with an A in one go. If you already have a good grasp of Spanish but you want to expand your vocabulary then go ahead and take a look.

We’ve divided our list of Spanish words that start with an A into Prepositions, nouns, verbs, adjectives and interjections so you can skip ahead to whichever section you find most useful or that you’re most interested in.

Spanish Prepositions Starting With An A

Starting with prepostision, these are some Spanish words that start with the letter A:

Abajo – down
Abierto – open
Alrededor de – around
Arriba de – above
Arriba – up

Spanish Nouns That Start With An A

This is the largest category that we have, here are the Spanish nouns that start with an A:

La abeja – the bee
Abril – April
El abrelatas – the tin opener
El abrigo – the coat
La abuela – the grandma
El abuelo – the grandad
El acebo – holly
El aciete – oil
La aceituna – the olive
La acera – the pavement
El acuario – the aquarium
La adición – addition
El adulto – the adult
El aeronave cohete – the rocket
África – Africa
El agárico – the toadstool
Agosto – August
El agua
El aguacate – the avacado
El águila – the eagle
La aguja – the needle
El aire libre – the outdoors
El ala -the wing
El alacrán – the scorpion
La alcachofa – the artichoke
La alcancia – the piggy bank
El alce – the elk
La alacena – cupboard
La aldea – the village
La aleta – the fin
El alfabeto – alphabet
La alfombra – the rug
El algodón de azúcar – candy floss
El alicate – plier
El almacén – the shop
America – America
La almohada – the pillow
El almuerzo – lunch
El almanecer – sunrise
Amarillo – yellow
El ámbar – amber
La ambulancia – the ambulance
El amigo por correspondencia – pen pal
El amigo – the friend
Amor – love
La anatomía anatomy
El ancla – anchor
El ángel – the angel
La anguila – the eel
El ángulo – the angle
El anillo – the ring
El animal – animal
El año – year
El anochecer – evening
La Antártica – antarctic
El antifaz – mask
El antílope – antelope
El apio – celery
El apóstrofe – apostrophe
La araña – spider
La axila – the armpit
El árbol – tree
El arce – maple tree
El archipiélago – archipelago
La arcilla – clay
El arco – the arch
El arco – bow
El arco iris – rainbow
La ardilla – squirrel
La arena – sand
La arena movizado – quicksand
El arete – earring
El arquero – archer
El armario – wardrobe
El arpa – harp
El arrendajo – jay bird
El arte – art
El/la artista – artist
El ascensor – lift/elevator
Asia – Asia
La aspiradora – hoover
El asterisco – asterick
El asteroide – asteriod
El/la astronauta – astronaut
La astronomía – astronomy
El atardecer – sunset
El ataúd – coffin
El/la aleta – athlete
El átomo – atom
Australia – Australia
El autobús – bus
El automóvil – automobile
La avenida – avenue
La avispa – the wasp
El avestruz – ostrich
El avión – aeroplane
La azada – hoe
La azucena – lily
Azul – blue
Azulejo – blue bird

Spanish Verbs That Start With An A

These verbs aren’t too exciting and you’ve probably come across most of them before but here are a collection of Spanish verbs starting with A:

Agradecer – to thank
Amar – to love
Andar – to walk
Aplaudir – to applaud
Aprender – to learn
Arder – to burn
Arrodillarse – to kneel
Asustar – to frighten
Aventar – to throw

Spanish Adjectives That Start With An A

Here are some great Spanish adjectives that start with the letter A:

Alto – tall
Amarillo – yellow
Ancho – wide
Andar – to walk
Angosto – narrow
Asustado – scared

Interjections

Adiós – goodbye

Hopefully you’ve enjoyed our article on Spanish words that start with an A and you’ve either found it interesting or it’s helped add to your vocabulary list. If you’ve enjoyed this then take a look at one of our other articles: Spanish words starting with X. This isn’t a good way to learn Spanish if you’re just starting out but if you already have a good grasp of the language then working you way through the alphabet to find new words can be a fun and interesting way to learn. If you think there are any good words we’ve missed off then let us know in the comments below.

Italian Boy Names That Start With L

October 28, 2020 by Ana Martín Leave a Comment

Italian Boy Names That Start With L

Italian names just like French, Spanish and Portuguese names are very nice to listen to. They often have multiple syllables, they use lots of vowels, and quite frankly they’re often just beautiful names. Whether you’re Italian or not, whether you’re looking for a baby name or the name of a character in your book, if you just love names it doesn’t matter, we’re here to help you find some amazing Italian boy names that start with L. The selection might not be enormous but we believe these are some of the most common and attractive Italian boy names starting with L to give you that European sound that you’re after.

Lando
Largo
Lave
Lazaro
Lazzaro
Leandro
Leo
Leonardo
Leone
Lorenzo
Luca
Lucan
Lucca
Luciano
Lucio
Ludo
Luigi
Luka

The great thing with Italian boy names that start with L is that there are many famous Italians with these kinds of names. Everyone’s heard of Leonardo da Vinci and Leonardo DiCaprio so if you choose to name your child this it might be unusual but people will have heard of it and they know how to pronounce it.

Italian names are also often associated with the renaissance or Rome or the mystique of being European which seems to attract people from Anglophonic countries. If you’re choosing an Italian name for your child then this could work to their advantage. If you’re looking for something unusual but you still want to pick something that is actually a name then choosing an Italian name could be a great compromise as they are real names but if you live in Australia, the UK, Canada or the USA there aren’t going to be many people that also have that name which will make your child stand out.

As you can see many of the names in the list have multiple syllables, it isn’t often you will find monosyllabic names in Italian which gives them part of their charm. Two and three syllable names are probably the most common but you’ll be able to see three and four syllable names in the list as well. You’ll also probably notice that not one name in our list only has one vowel. Vowels are one of the things that make Italian so pleasing to the ear so it should come as no surprise to you that these Italian boys names that start with L are packed with vowels.

If you’re not only interested in Italian boy names that start with L but you’re also interested in learning a bit of Italian then why not take a look at some of our favourite Italian textbooks to get you started. And if you think we’ve missed any great Italian boys names off our list then let us know in the comments below so we can add them.

Is It Hard To Learn Korean?

October 23, 2020 by Ana Martín Leave a Comment

Is It Hard To Learn Korean?

So you want to know is it hard to learn Korean? We’re not going to give you the answer that you’re looking for, unfortunately yes it is relatively difficult to learn Korean but don’t lose hope!

Why Korean Is Difficult

For a start learning any language is difficult, and Korean is more difficult than many European languages as it is not related to English, it doesn’t use the same writing system and they have very few words in common. Korean is also difficult for English speakers grammar is quite different, for example in English we use and SVO sentence structure which stands for subject – verb – object, where as in Korean they use SOV which means subject – object – verb. Let’s take a look at this with an example:

In English:
I speak Korean
I = subject
Speak = verb
Korean = object

In Korean this would use an SOV structure so would be:
I Korean speak
I = subject
Korean = object
Speak = verb

This of course can be quite difficult to get used to.

Another grammar difference is that English used prepositions where as Korean uses both prepositions and postpositions. When learning Korean people think that the alphabet will be the most difficult but it’s surprisingly easy to manage and it is the grammar that people seem to struggle with.

But don’t lose hope, we’ve covered the more difficult aspects of the language, let’s take a look at why Korean might be easier than we think.

Why Korean May Be Easier

For a start Korean isn’t a tonal language! That’s right, you heard us correctly. Unlike most forms of Chinese and Vietnamese, Korean doesn’t use tones which is one of the things that people struggle with the most when learning an Asian language.

Secondly people tend to look at the Korean writing system and panic. Quite frankly it looks like alien script. However you shouldn’t worry about this, Korean is thought of as the most intuitive writing system in the world. If you concentrated on nothing but the Korean alphabet for a week you would easily be able to learn it as it is a phonetic alphabet you would be able to pronounce any Korean word you read (you just might not understand what it means yet).

These two factors may not seem like a lot but they really set Korean aside from other Asian languages and make them much more accessible for English speakers. So when someone asks is it hard to learn Korean? You can say it depends what you find difficult. If you struggle with tones and new writing systems then no, you’re probably going to be just fine.

Resources For Learning Korean

Although it’s difficult to learn a language like Korean, luckily there are many resources available now to help you. Apps like Duolingo make learning Korean fun and provide you with immediate feedback. There are also a load of learn Korean websites that can help you to work through grammar, vocab and writing in a systematic way. And of course don’t forget the textbooks you can use. If you prefer to cram vocab then you have anki to help you.

If you don’t like this learning approach and prefer a more real life way of learning then why not look for a language partner on italki? Or take skype classes where you can see your teacher face to face and interact with them. Whatever your learning method, with the internet and changing attitudes to languages there should be something that works for you.

So there you have it, our answer to is it hard to learn Korean? Yes it is difficult, especially compared to European languages, however it is not a tonal language which gives it an advantage over many other Asian languages and people say that the Korean alphabet is the easiest alphabet to master in the world.