Best Resources for Intermediate English: Practice, Reading, and Speaking
Best resources for intermediate English
At the intermediate level, good English resources cover daily speaking, English media, active reading, writing, listening, and grammar study. Spend at least 10 minutes with English each day, then do more when you can. Watch movies and TV shows, and listen to news and podcasts to hear natural speech and different accents. When you can, watch and listen without subtitles.
Speaking aloud may bring the biggest improvement at the intermediate level. Find a speaking partner, a public group, a native speaker, or another learner who will talk with you and give feedback. You can use Discord, language exchange groups, and tutoring services to practise real time conversation.
Read books, articles, and other material about topics that interest you. Learn new words from context instead of relying on word lists, then try to use those words in your own speech and writing. You can use vocabulary apps to learn words and use them in daily life.
You may speak with more confidence when you study pronunciation. Start with pronunciation, prosody, and connected speech, since these areas shape the sound of spoken English. For structured grammar practice, users recommend English Grammar in Use by Murphy.
You can improve through daily problem solving in English, too. Use English to research answers to everyday questions, because this gives you a practical reason to read and understand the language. Regular contact with English through speaking, listening, reading, and writing can help you make steady progress.
Best resources
- English media Watch movies and TV shows, and listen to news and podcasts, preferably without subtitles.
- Daily practice Spend at least 10 minutes each day on speaking, listening, reading, and writing.
- Speaking partners Talk with native speakers or other learners through groups, Discord, language exchanges, or tutoring.
- Pronunciation study Learn pronunciation, prosody, and connected speech to improve spoken English.
- Books and articles Read about topics you like and learn new vocabulary from the context.
- English Grammar in Use by Murphy Use this book for structured grammar learning.
- Vocabulary apps Use a vocabulary app to learn new words and bring them into daily use.
General Strategies
Speaking and Pronunciation
Reading and Vocabulary
Recommended Communities
Would you like to explore specific resources for improving English writing skills?
Bottom line
To improve intermediate English skills, immerse yourself in English-speaking environments and consistently practice speaking, reading, writing, and listening. Users emphasize that active engagement with the language through various media and direct interaction is key to advancing.
Community answers 28
What others in the community said:
Hey Everyone!
My name is Kevin and I'm on a mission to help intermediate and advanced students like you improve your English!
I've seen a lot of posts here lately talking about the challenges of not sounding natural, having a hard time understanding the final 20% of what native speakers are saying, and a desire to find ways to better internalize expressions.
With that in mind, I decided to create a new YouTube channel that will cater specifically to intermediate & advanced students. One in which we implement techniques like active listening to dig deeper into real conversations so that you can better understand the little details that make you sound more or less natural. We'll also cover the strange ways native speakers pronounce words to help you figure out why it's hard to understand words you already know.
Finally, another common complaint is not having enough time to practice. To that end, we'll also discuss specific "deliberate practice" techniques that are more active and challenging than passive listening or reading but can be fit into short periods of time. You can visit www.deliberateenglish.com for a 15-minute workout guide if you want more details.
Ultimately I want this to be as useful as possible for you, so definitely let me know what you think. Even if you don't like it I'd love to hear why so I can make better content for you in the future!
Hope to hear from you soon!
Kevin
P.S. If you're learning English for work I'm also thinking about creating videos that discuss how to write better emails & give better presentations. If this would be of interest let me know!
Any good reaources for upper-intermediate self study ? like books for vocabulary and grammer / youtube channels for speaking & listening
Hello there, I'm currently looking for quick ways to improve my English level as an intermediate, which I think I am. I'm quite comfortable with reading and listening, I watch youtube videos with no subtitles but I need the subtitles for tv shows and movies to perfectly understand what's going on. I have been watching tv shows that way for years but I'm not improving that much. My goal is to get rid of the subtitles and improve my skills in writing and speaking, which are quite weak compared to reading and listening.
PS: I live in a francophone country.
If you haven't already, immerse yourself in English-speaking spaces and consume English-language media
Yeah I would recommend getting Tandem or going to the language exchange subreddit to try to find a partner, WhatsApp group, or discord to have real conversations. It forces your ear to adjust in real time as well as gives you a chance to practice your speaking and get feedback on words you may pronounce oddly or use incorrectly. You'll also learn looooads of slang.
Honestly, drop the subtitles. At first it will be hard and you won't be able to understand everything that's being said but you will be able to sooner than you think. It helped me tremendously with overall comprehension, and also I think with speaking skills. The more my ears are comfortable with English the less I struggle speaking, it seems.
And otherwise, read. Novels are usually written in a... Higher level of English than the one you will hear in shows and the one you'll see on Users/internet (usually). I'm starting to do that as well, author I loved reading in french, I now read in English. I read "Until I find you" by John Irving. I will try some Joyce Carol Oates next I think.
Edit : thanks to that corrected me.
From a native, your post was perfect English for me to read, obviously you know your own level the best, but just my opinion
Hey! I'm pretty new to English and want to improve my skills - from basic grammar and vocabulary to speaking, writing, and understanding complex texts.
What's the best way to start this journey? Can you recommend any free resources (YouTube channels, websites, or courses) that helped you? Also, how do you stay consistent when learning a language?
Thanks a lot in advance!
I'm a english learner. I don't know what's my exact level of english, but I think I am a B1 or a B2 learner. Recently, I almost studied english watching videos on Youtube (not related with learning) and using Users, but I think I have to do a study plan to improve my levels. I think I can listen (not in movies) and read very well, but I'm struggling with writting and speaking (a think that I never pratice). How can I organize my studies and improve my english levels?
Hi everyone! I'm curious what materials you use and love: things like apps, courses, books and anything else that helps you study. Free and paid. Materials that you feel have actually helped you improve and weren't a waste of time and money, the ones you'd recommend to your friends. I'm asking to find good materials to use with or recommend to my students (I'm an English teacher working with adults) and to learn from to make better products of my own (I've made a free course and a vocabulary workbook, and I'm planning on making another, better course; I've got some ideas, but I'd really like to understand what language learners need).
P.S. To all creators who'd like to use this post to promote their materials: please say honestly that it's something you've made. I understand the need to promote your work, but I'd also like unbiased opinions from English learners. Thank you!
This method has helped me massively
It is not an app or a course. It is a mindset and a framework that can be used in combination with most courses or apps.
I am staying consistent by taking every opportunity to use the language. Here are some examples:
- Google only in English
- Use ChatGPT only in English
- Need to understand something? Find the appropriate material in English
- Love a song? Learn it by heart and sing along with a singer
Figuratively speaking, you have an opportunity to use English every time you open a browser. You can take this opportunity to your advantage. It's okay if you failed to understand something - you can always fall back to your mother tongue. The more you try, the better it gets.
I've been successfully applying this method for the past 11 years. Here are some observations I want to share:
- Get the basics of grammar. Reach A2 by any means - any app or course on the market can bring you there. If you are an absolute beginner, you'll need ~200 hours of study to get there.
- You want to get used to translating words and short phrases, not sentences. Avoid Google Translate. Google Translate is a fantastic tool for translating sentences, but it's terrible for translating individual words.
- Love all your mistakes. So many people think, "first I will learn English, and then I will start using it" - this is a limiting belief that keeps the majority of people stuck at the A2-B1 level for ages. Making mistakes is not a failure. Avoiding the use of English is a failure. It is akin my mom would say when I was 2 years old, "Your Russian is too bad, don't use it. Try Duolingo first."
There are no easy ways. As other people have said, speak, listen, read and write in English. Try to combine these as much as possible. Emphasise meaningful communication.
Hi, I already have some level of English, but I would like to improve it at least to B2, starting from the absolute bottomless bottom - as if I know nothing perfectly. Could you recommend some simple online sites for learning English, like just go to the right page and start. Something like This site sounds perfect to me, is there anything similar but for English? Whether it's developed by the community or by some company - it doesn't matter, the main thing is that it's free. But, of course, the emphasis on something from the community, because in the second option in most cases you need money. Important note: I would like to emphasize grammar, from the basics to the desired level. Of course, if you know some great and wonderful sites for learning words, listening or something cooler - I will be only glad, but the emphasis is on grammar. Thank you, and I will be glad to have your experience of learning English and recommendations!
Solve your daily informational problems with English.
Some time ago, I realized that the biggest difference between “a child learning their first language” and “an adult learning their second language” lies in the way they utilize the language:
- A child mostly asks questions (and complains a lot, too)
- An adult mostly answers questions from a teacher or a book
A child is more motivated to acquire the language because they get immediate value out of it - their problems get solved, or they get a new crucial piece of information.
If you start solving your daily informational problems with English, you will grow fast and naturally.
I wrote a post in a Dutch-learning community about how I solved it for myself. Maybe it can help you too.
I went from b2 to c2 on standardized tests doing the following:
- probably to move from b2 above the best thing is to get a tutor to practice with, but it's not necessary (eg. if you don't need to take IELTS or CAE etc then you might not need that).
- switch all your content to English (social media, tv series, podcasts) - here I'd recommend watching some movies or tv series with interesting vocabulary - that will improve your overall understanding how people speak and you'll learn some native vocab and expressions you can use later on in writing or speaking.
- use more advanced vocabulary daily - that can be either by learning few words a day and incorporating them in conversations / texts with friends etc.
- since you want to improve your writing skills, it's best to daily / weekly write some short essay using that advanced vocab.
- highlight vocab you don't understand.
- you can also look at some vocab learning apps (I use WURRD on iOS). Some of them are really good, eg. this one makes you use the vocabulary in text conversation with AI tutor and remember it better.
- talk talk talk - to yourself, to the mirror, to your friends.
Hope that helps :)
Hi, the question must have been asked a lot but I would like my customised answer! I would say my English level is decent but I am still making mistakes (like forgetting s when speaking for example) or lack vocabulary sometimes. I daily speak english with friends through voice chat or text, yet I would like to improve my english even more and be extra confident, completely fluent. I was wondering what is the best way or app to achieve my goal. I've heard of Duolingo but it seems good for beginners only? Is there alternatives? Books maybe, I also know there is AI apps now but after trying I am not a big fan of it. I really don't know so I am open to any alternatives!
Greetings! Guys who have C1 or C2, give me some advice on what to start with? I'm stuck at B1 and this plateau is driving me crazy... but I simply forget basic words and feel extremely lost whenever it comes to speaking. Next month i'm gonna take up some lessons, but still terrified of speaking... I dont even know methods for learning words, structures that are really worthy of my attention. Give me some tips and thanks for your feedback!
I'm a english learner.
*an English
"A" is used before words that start with a consonant sound, and "an" is used before words that start with a vowel sound.
Language names are proper nouns, so they should always be capitalized.
I don't know what's my exact level of english
*I don't know what my exact level of English is
Recently, I almost studied english watching videos on Youtube (not related with learning) and using Users, but I think I have to do a study plan to improve my levels.
*English by watching
writting
*writing
a think that I never pratice
*thing
*practice
my english levels?
*English
I have supported students from beginner level to Intermediate. DM me for more information.
Hours, lods of hours of exposure to the language.
There's no other way.
Find a tutor. Depends on where you from the price can be different. To hire someone from US or UK it’s probably $20-40 per hour
Use a self-paced learning platform. I use this one. It has reading, writing, speaking, vocabulary building all-in-one. It’s insanely helpful to me.
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