Logophile101

Free Online Language Courses

Here is a masterpost of MOOCs (massive open online courses) that are available, archived, or starting soon. Some are short, some are very interactive, some are very in-depth. I think they will help those that like to learn with a teacher or with videos. I checked each link to make sure they are functioning.

Arabic

Arabic for Global Exchange (in the drop down menu)

Arabic Without Walls

Intro to Arabic

Lebanese Arabic

Madinah Arabic

Moroccan Arabic

Read Arabic

Chinese

Beginner

Basic Chinese

Basic Chinese I

Basic Chinese II

Basic Chinese III

Basic Chinese IV

Basic Chinese V

Basic Mandarin Chinese I

Basic Mandarin Chinese II

Beginner’s Chinese

Chinese for Beginners

Chinese Characters

Chinese for Travelers

Chinese Made Easy

Easy Mandarin

First Year Chinese I

First Year Chinese II

HSK Level 1

Introduction to Chinese

Learn Oral Chinese

Mandarin Chinese I

More Chinese for Beginners

Speak Chinese like a Native Speaker

Start Talking Mandarin Chinese

UT Gateway to Chinese

Chino Básico (Taught in Spanish)

Intermediate

Chinese Stories

Intermediate Business Chinese

Intermediate Chinese

Intermediate Chinese Grammar

Dutch

Introduction to Dutch

English

Entire post here

Finnish

A Taste of Finnish

Basic Finnish

Finnish for Beginners

Finnish for Immigrants

Finnish for Medical Professionals

French

Beginner

AP French Language and Culture

Basic French Skills

Beginner’s French: Food & Drink

Diploma in French

Elementary French I

Elementary French II

Français Interactif

French in Action

French for Beginners

French Language Studies I

French Language Studies II

French Language Studies III

French:Ouverture

French Through Stories and Conversation

Improving Your French

Mastering French Grammar and Vocab

Intermediate

French: Le Quatorze Juillet

Passe Partout

Advanced

La Cité des Sciences et de Industrie

Reading French Literature

Frisian

Introduction to Frisian (Taught in English)

Introduction to Frisian (Taught in Dutch)

German

Beginner

Basic German

Basic Language Skills

Beginner’s German: Food & Drink

Conversational German I

Conversational German II

Conversational German III

Conversational German IV

Deutsch im Blick

Diploma in German

German Alphabet

German Modal Verbs

Rundblick-Beginner’s German

Study German 

Advanced

German:Regionen Traditionen und Geschichte

Landschaftliche Vielfalt

Reading German Literature

Hebrew

Hebrew Alphabet Crashcourse

Know the Hebrew Alphabet

Hindi

A Door into Hindi

Business Hindi

Virtual Hindi

Icelandic

Icelandic 1-5

Indonesian

Learn Indonesian

Irish

Introduction to Irish

Italian

Beginner

Beginner’s Italian: Food & Drink

Beginner’s Italian I

Oggi e Domani

Survive Italy Without Being Fluent

Intermediate

Intermediate Italian I

Advanced

Advanced Italian I

Italian Literature

Italian Novel of the Twentieth Century

La Commedia di Dante

L'innovazione Sociale (Check language under translation)

Reading Italian Literature

Japanese

Beginner’s Conversational Japanese

Genki

Japanese JOSHU

Kazakh

A1-B2 Kazakh (Taught in Russian)

Korean

Beginner

First Step Korean

How to Study Korean

Learn to Speak Korean 1

Pathway to Spoken Korean

Intermediate

Intermediate Korean

Latin

Latin I (Taught in Italian)

Nepali

Beginner’s Conversation and Grammar

Norwegian

Learn The Norwegian Language

Norwegian on the Web

Portuguese

Brazilian Portuguese for Beginners

Curso de Português para Estrangeiros 

Pluralidades em Português Brasileiro

Russian

Beginner

Basics of Russian

Easy Accelerated Learning for Russian

Russian Alphabet

Russian Essentials

Russian Phonetics and Pronunciation

Reading and Writing Russian

Travel Russian

Advanced

Reading Master and Margarita

Russian as an Instrument of Communication

Siberia: Russian for Foreigners

Spanish

Beginner

AP Spanish Language & Culture

Basic Spanish for English Speakers

Beginner’s Spanish:Food & Drink

Fastbreak Spanish

How to Self-Study Spanish

Introduction to Spanish

Restaurants and Dining Out

Spanish for Beginners

Spanish Verbs Basics

Intermediate

Español en línea

Spanish:Ciudades con Historia

Spanish:Espacios Públicos

Advanced

Corrección, Estilo y Variaciones 

La España de El Quijote

Leer a Macondo

Spanish:Con Mis Propias Manos

Spanish: Perspectivas Porteñas

Reading Spanish Literature

Swedish

Intro to Swedish

Swedish Made Easy 1

Swedish Made Easy 2

Ukrainian

Read Ukrainian

Ukrainian for Everyone

Ukrainian Language for Beginners

Welsh

Beginner’s Welsh

Discovering Wales

Multiple Languages

http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/global-studies-and-languages/ : MIT’s open courseware site has assignments and course material available.

http://www.utexas.edu/cola/centers/lrc/: Ancient Languages

https://www.fun-mooc.fr/: MOOCs taught in French

http://univesptv.cmais.com.br : MOOCs taught in Portuguese

https://miriadax.net/home:MOOCs taught in Spanish & Portuguese

http://ocwus.us.es/Courses_listing: MOOCs taught in Spanish

http://www5.fgv.br/fgvonline/Cursos: MOOCs taught in Potuguese

http://interneturok.ru/: MOOCs taught in Russian

http://www.open-marhi.ru/courses/: MOOCs taught in Russian

https://www.rwaq.org/: MOOCs taught in Arabic

http://ocw.nthu.edu.tw/ocw/: MOOCs taught in Chinese

http://ocw.uab.cat/: MOOCs taught in Catalan

https://ocw.tudelft.nl/ : MOOCs taught in Dutch

http://ocw.hokudai.ac.jp/: MOOCs taught in Japanese

http://ocw.tsukuba.ac.jp/: MOOCs taught in Japanese

http://open.agh.edu.pl/ : MOOCs taught in Polish

I’ll keep an eye out for new courses and if you know of any, let me know so I can update this list.

Last updated: July 1, 2016

15 Common and Useful Chinese Idioms (Chengyu) ✨

🌷 脚踏实地 (jiǎo tà shí dì) 脚踏实地 literally means “to step on solid ground.” It means that you work hard, focus on the fundamentals, and proceed in a steady and stable fashion. It’s an extremely positive chengyu. Here’s an example : “现在我们要继续脚踏实地”   “xiànzài wǒmen yào jìxù jiǎotàshídì”   “Right now we need to continue staying grounded and pushing ahead”   

🌷 九牛一毛 (jiǔ niú yì máo) 九牛一毛 literally means “9 cows and 1 strand of cow hair.” It indicates something that’s so small that it’s like one strand of cow hair among 9 cows. Here’s an example: “电子商务的盈利在中国整体商业环境中简直是九牛一毛.”   “diànzǐ shāngwù de yínglì zài zhōngguó zhěngtǐ shāngyè huánjìng zhōng jiǎnzhí shì jiǔniúyìmáo.”   “In the entire Chinese commercial environment, the profits from E-commerce are simply just a drop in the bucket.”  

🌷 一无所有 (yìwúsuǒyǒu) 一无所有 means to have absolutely nothing at all. It’s basically being penniless. Here’s an example: “他无家可归，一无所有”   “tā wújiākěguī， yìwúsuǒyǒu”   “He was homeless, and didn’t have a penny to his name.”  

🌷 一见钟情(yí jiàn zhōng qíng) 一见钟情 means “love at first sight.” It’s generally used for people, but you can also use it for other physical objects. Here’s an example: “她就是我的一见钟情 “   “tā jiùshì wǒ de yíjiànzhōngqíng“   “She is my love at first sight.”  

🌷 自由自在 (zì yóu zì zài) 自由自在 means that something is free and easy. It can be used to describe someone’s personality, how someone behaves, or how a place makes people feel. For example: “这是一个自由自在的地方。”   “zhè shì yī gè zì yóu zì zai de dì fāng”   “This is a free and easy place”  

🌷 莫名其妙 (mò míng qí miào)  莫名其妙 literally means that it’s hard to articulate the profoundness or mystery or something. It basically means that something is baffling. For example: “他说了几句莫名其妙的话。”   “tā shuì le jī gōu mò míng qí miào de huà”   “He said some mysterious words. ”  

🌷 半途而废 (bàn tú ér fèi) 半途而废 means to start doing something, only to give up halfway. Literally, it means to walk half the road and give up. Here’s an example: “我不是半途而废的人”   “wǒ búshì bàntúérfèi de rén”   “I’m not someone who gives up halfway”

🌷 抛砖引玉 (pāo zhuān yǐn yù) 抛砖引玉 (pāo zhuān yǐn yù) basically means you’re “just tossing an idea out there.” It literally means “to cast a brick to attract jade.” You’re basically saying, “this idea I’m tossing out there is garbage, but perhaps it will lead one of you to make a better contribution.” It’s a humble way to contribute to a conversation. Here’s an example: “我的建议还不够成熟，算是抛砖引玉吧 “   “wǒ de jiàn yì hái bú gòu chéng shú, suàn shì pāo zhuān yǐn yù ba “   “My suggestion is still half-baked — you could see it as just me tossing an idea out there“  

🌷 豁然开朗 (huò rán kāi lǎng) 豁然开朗 (huò rán kāi lǎng) has two meanings which are linked. The first meaning is the refreshing and liberating feeling you get when you see a beautiful, open area. Typically, immediately before this moment, the beautiful area is not visible and you might be feeling a little stuffy. Second, it’s also used for the feeling you get when you achieve an “aha” or “eureka!” moment. Here’s an example: “大学时期，乔尼开始有机会用Mac做设计，那是一种豁然开朗的体验“   “dàxué shíqí, qiáoní kāishǐ yǒujīhuì yòng Mac zuò shèjì, nàshì yīzhǒng huòránkāilǎng de tǐyàn”   “During college, Jony began to have opportunities to use a Mac to design, and that was a refreshing, eye-opening experience”  

🌷  津津有味 (jīn jīn yǒu wèi) 津津有味 means to eat something deliciously. Also, it can be used for activities beyond just eating, as long as the person doing the activity finds it engaging. It’s not something that people typically use to describe themselves, but you can liberally use it on your friends as it has a positive tone. Here’s an expressive example: “津津有味地看报”   “jīnjīnyǒuwèi de kànbào”   “to devour the newspaper”  

🌷  理所当然 (lǐ suǒ dāng rán) 理所当然 sounds like “to go without saying” or “as a matter of course,” but literally means that “according to reason, it should be the case.” Here’s an example: “Some things which are obvious or natural in the course of a marriage…”   “。。。在婚姻中的一些～的事。。。”   “。。。zài hūnyīn zhōng de yīxiē ～de shì 。。。”  

🌷  全力以赴 (quán lì yǐ fù) 全力以赴 basically means to give it your all (literally “exert all your strength”) for a goal. It has a positive tone, and is somewhat formal but can still be used in everyday speech. It’s important to note that 全力以赴 is typically used for actions that haven’t finished yet, rather than actions that have already been completed. Here’s an example: “无论考生的笔试成绩如何，都要全力以赴准备面试”   “wúlùn kǎoshēng de bǐshì chéngjì rúhé ，dōuyào quánlìyǐfù zhǔnbèi miànshì”   “No matter how the student’s written test score is, he/she needs to give 100% to prepare for the interview”  

🌷  心血来潮 (xīn xuè lái cháo) 心血来潮 basically means “spur of the moment” or “on a whim.” Literally, it evokes the image of blood rushing to your heart (of course in English we’d say head). It’s a perfect chengyu for when you’re telling a story a friend. For example: “某日他们心血来潮，决定比拼一下各自的脚法“   “mǒu rì tāmen xīnxuèláicháo,juédìng bǐpīn yíxià gèzì de jiǎofǎ”   “One day, on a spur of the moment, they decided to compare and compete to see whose footwork was best”  

🌷  乱七八糟 (luàn qī bā zāo) 乱七八糟 means that something is a total mess. You can use it to describe tangible things like messy rooms, or more abstract things, like a messed up life. For example: 是谁弄得乱七八糟的？   “shì shéi nòng de luàn qī bā zāo de?”   “who made this mess?”  

🌷  不可思议 (bù kě sī yì) 不可思议 means that something is noteworthy or amazing in an unexpected way. It can be used for things which are really amazing (eg. magic or larger phenomena) but also for unexpected, everyday occurrences. For example: “真是不可思议，我的名字跟你一样！”   “zhēn shi bù kĕ sī yì wŏ de míng zi gēn nĭ yī yàng”   “It’s incredible, I have the same name as you!”  

我的生命中充满了一次又一次的失败，也因为如此，我才得以成功。

I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.

迈克尔·乔丹 Michael Jordan

专心 (zhuan1 xin1) - to be attentive; focused

Eg. I have to be 专心 during my studies. Good luck back to school everyone! To be honest I’m actually pretty excited for the new semester.

我一个人时很少觉得孤独；却经常在人群和团体中感到孤独。

I’m rarely bored alone; I am often bored in groups and crowds.

知识好像地下的泉水，掘得越深，水就越清。

Knowledge is like the spring underground — the deeper you dig, the clearer the water is.

100 days of languages: day 5

day 5: memorize a poem

我坐在这里 by 刘霞

(I Sit Here by Liu Xia, translation by Ming Di and Jennifer Stern)

我坐在这里

I sit here

看天色由明到暗

watching the sky go

倾听最后一缕阳光

from light to dark,

发出呻吟

listening to the last of the sun

等待等一滴泪

groan, waiting for the first drop to

敲响敞开的窗户玻璃

knock on the open window.

.

一个词等待另一个词

One word waiting for another–

永不相遇

they will never meet.

一滴雨

A drop of rain

使天地浑然一体

makes the sky and earth one piece.

在静止的时间里

In stilled time,

雨的灵魂

the soul of rain

悄悄的降临

quietly comes down.

生活是一场漫长的旅行，不要浪费时间，去等待那些不愿与你携手同行的人。

Life is a long journey. Don’t waste your time waiting for people who are not willing to walk with you.

Hello this is Nina, your local depressed college girl that’s decided to work on turning her life around and starting the new year with a more positive and happy attitude.

I know there a hundreds of similar lists and tips out there but I just thought I’d get all my favourites in one place and that way maybe motivate myself to actually follow them for once. I know my wording isn’t the best but I tried. 

Here’s the few tips I’ve picked up so far and I hope they might help some of you if you are struggling a bit also:

Physical:

Space - your personal/work/study space plays a big role in making you feel productive and motivated. Doesn’t matter if its your dorm room, bedroom, office…you should make it your own as much as you can. Put a plant on your desk, get a nice picture for the wall, hang some fairy lights, get a fluffy blanket for your bed, repaint your walls in your favourite color if you can, just make it cozy and comfy and nice to look at and I guarantee you’ll start to feel better. Try to keep it clean and neat, I know it’s hard sometimes, but working in a clean space makes you ten times more productive.

Self care - start with physical things, drink those 8 glasses of water and keep a tab on it until you get used to it, use handcream everytime you wash your hands, put on moisturizer every morning and sunscreen when you go out, go for a walk around the park at least every other day, and for fucks sake go to sleep at a reasonable hour, you’ll be so grateful in the morning if you do. Show your body some appreciation. 

Mental:

Take some ‘me’ time - we might we don’t have time for this, but it’s so important we make some time. First thing in the morning, during the day or before bed, just take a few minutes and relax. Put on your favourite song, burn a scented candle, drink a hot cup of tea, sit down and just breathe. 

Be proud of yourself regardless - take that ‘me’ time and reflect on your day, pat yourself on the back for everything you did even if it was just getting out of bed. Life is a bitch sometimes and you should be just as proud of yourself for the little things. It’s okay to sometimes be lazy, to procrastinate, to not do anything. You aren’t a machine, you’ll burn out if all you do is work.

Appreciate the little things - on those lazy days it’s sometimes hard to not feel miserable about it. That’s when you should appreciate the little things in life. Get yourself that coffee you love so much and enjoy it, go to a roof, watch the sunset and appreciate the colors, take a photo of anything you find pretty and look back at them when you feel down…make yourself believe those moments made your whole day and suddenly it’ll feel like your life’s meaning isn’t just getting up and working/studying all the time, but enjoying everything you get to do and see in between too.

Other:

Find your interests - and stick to them!! We all like to give up on things if we aren’t immediately good at them. But no one was born an expert. And as cliché as it sounds practise does make perfect. Join a drawing class, a dance club, a writing class, get a course book on your target language, download editing softwear and play around with it, watch documentaries about your favourite subject. If you fall out of your hobby in the end it’s no big deal, but you’ll know you gave it a try and didn’t miss an opportunity to learn something new. 

Journaling - this might not be for everybody, but I found it helps me clear my mind a lot to put my thoughts on paper and have everything organized in written form. I just love having all my things in one place where I can just look and see where I’m at, whether it’s plans for the day, my thoughts, my playlists, pretty pictures, anything really. It’s also a great way to be creative. 

Start now - this is the most important one! Kick yourself in the ass and start taking care of yourself today! Get that glass of water right now, light a scented candle, read that book you’ve been putting off, watch that documentary about your favourite thing. Start enjoying your life right now, even if it’s only for a second, tommorow it’ll be two and three the day after and hopefully soon it’ll be a whole day.