Speaker A
If you're learning a new language, there are six possible levels that you can be at, from beginner to advanced.
Explore the six CEFR language levels from beginner (A1) to intermediate (B1) and understand what skills you can expect at each stage.
Key Takeaways
- Language proficiency is categorized into six CEFR levels, each with specific skill benchmarks.
- Balanced ability in speaking, listening, reading, and writing is essential to achieve a level.
- Progressing through levels requires consistent study, vocabulary building, and practice.
- Reading simple texts is crucial at A2 for advancing to higher levels.
- At B1, learners gain confidence and enjoy more complex media, marking a significant milestone.
Summary
- The video explains the six Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) levels: A1, A2, B1, B2, C1, and C2.
- A1 level is beginner, focusing on basic vocabulary (500-700 words), simple present tense, and basic communication like greetings and directions.
- A2 level learners know about 1,500 words, can handle simple conversations, describe familiar topics, and start reading short texts.
- B1 level is intermediate with around 2,500 words, enabling more confident conversation, describing experiences, and writing simple texts.
- Each level describes competencies across four skills: speaking, listening, reading, and writing, which must all be met to claim a level.
- At A2, learners begin to use past and future tenses and can follow simple instructions and requests.
- B1 learners can cope with everyday problems, explain things clearly, and enjoy watching movies and TV with subtitles.
- The video encourages daily study and reading as key strategies to progress through the levels.
- It highlights the importance of balanced skill development rather than excelling in only one area.
- The CEFR levels provide a clear roadmap and motivation for language learners to track progress and set goals.
Full Transcript — Download SRT & Markdown
Speaker A
And in this video, you're going to find out what these language levels are, what they mean, and what level you're at right now.
Speaker A
Have you ever heard people say, I speak French at a C1 level, or I'm a B2 in Japanese?
Speaker A
Well, this alphabet soup is a system of levels called the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages, CEFR for short.
Speaker A
It organizes language ability into six levels, from A1 all the way up to C2.
Speaker A
Each level describes what you can do at the respective stage and how well you can do it.
Speaker A
Which is quite useful if you want to measure how far along you are in your language learning journey.
Speaker A
Knowing what level is coming up next can also be cool because it gives you something to aim for.
Speaker A
So, let's get measuring.
Speaker B
My my house is near the school, my home, my house is opposite the restaurant.
Speaker A
This is beginner, or A1.
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We've all been there, in fact, you have to go through it to get anywhere else.
Speaker A
So, congratulations on deciding to learn a new language.
Speaker A
You've looked into it a little bit, you know about 500-700 words.
Speaker A
Which is a great start.
Speaker A
You can speak slowly, with pauses, but you need to think about the words that you want quite carefully.
Speaker A
You can probably introduce yourself, you can tell people where you live in a simple way with basic greetings.
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You can also ask others basic questions about themselves, like what's your name, where are you from?
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And as long as the other person speaks slowly, you can probably follow them just about.
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Everything you talk about though, is in the present tense.
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Very little is happening in the past or in the future just yet.
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If you're traveling, well, you can ask for and understand very basic directions from local people.
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Or find your own way around, maybe by reading simple signs.
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You can also write very basic descriptions of things.
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For example, you can send me a postcard.
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Holiday greetings to me, or you can write down your name, your nationality, your address, something like that.
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It's a good start.
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In my experience, if you sit down and study every day, you can quite easily cross off the A1 level in a couple of months of study.
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Maybe a bit longer for harder languages.
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At the beginning, it's basically all a memory game.
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Everything that you learn is kind of new to you.
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And you've just got to remember enough to build a basic competency in the language.
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That's A1.
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What's next?
Speaker C
I get up at 8:00.
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Then I um I had breakfast with my boyfriend.
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And at 9:00 I go out and go to work.
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By A2 level, you've doubled the number of words you know to around 1,500.
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And your sentences are starting to become quite a bit smoother.
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You can take part in everyday small talk now and you can give your opinion on things.
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But still in quite simple ways and only on familiar topics.
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You know, for example, you might say, I like to go to the beach on Sundays.
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Something like that.
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You will also finally manage to be able to tell a waiter in a restaurant what food you want to order with more than just gesturing.
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Which is always a cool feeling.
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On a practical level, it's easier to approach someone now and start a conversation.
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Because at this stage, you're no longer a complete beginner.
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So you'll be able to buy things in a shop, complete simple daily tasks.
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But you still have to grope for words and maybe get a little help along the way.
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If people are chatting around you, you can probably catch the topic and some of the main points they're making.
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As long as they're speaking clearly, you can hear clearly and they're not speaking too fast.
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As you get better, you can start to describe your environment, the things around you.
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Things that are familiar, essentially, so your job, your pets, your family, your routines.
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And then if you're talking to someone, well, as long as someone's telling you something directly.
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You can also now follow simple instructions and requests.
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You can ask people to do things yourself.
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Even make some simpler arrangements to meet somebody.
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One cool thing is that you're no longer stuck in the present tense at A2.
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So you're able to talk about your own past and things on the bucket list for the future.
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Like.
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So you could say, I used to live in Portugal.
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Next year, I am going to South America.
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Your repertoire is expanding.
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With writing, you can manage a simple letter, maybe tell someone what you've been doing.
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It'll still be pretty basic, but you know at least where the nouns and the verbs go.
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Now, vitally, at A2 level, reading will start to be possible.
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Because short, simple texts or stories will make sense to you now.
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And this is really important because reading is the real bridge to higher levels.
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Which means that A2 is the perfect time to start reading in the language that you're learning.
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Nothing too hard, my books of short stories, for example, were written for exactly this level in mind.
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And the more you read, the faster you'll get to the B levels, so start reading.
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And if you've found this useful so far, hit the like button and subscribe to the channel.
Speaker A
It really does help us out.
Speaker D
When we're at the school, there were like characters.
Speaker D
One is a boy and one is a girl.
Speaker D
The boy's name was Chulsu.
Speaker D
And the girl name was Younghee.
Speaker E
Of course, I don't like horror movies because I don't think that is funny to be scared.
Speaker E
And I don't like these scary movies.
Speaker A
Now, by the time you get to B1 level, commonly known as intermediate.
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You'll know about 2,500 words.
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And this is a big step up.
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In fact, B1 is an awesome place to be because you feel like you've arrived at the language.
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Things are starting to click.
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Don't go writing bilingual down on your CV just yet though.
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Because B does not stand for bilingual.
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It's just a letter.
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So, what are your awesome language skills at B1?
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Well, you've reached a place where you feel confident to speak.
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Conversation, for one, is way easier than before, and as long as someone speaks to you in a standard dialect, you can keep a conversation going and you can get your meaning across quite well.
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Your sentences are still going to feel slow and a bit difficult.
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But you can describe experiences you've had, what your dreams and ambitions are.
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And what your opinion is about something.
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You can say what you think.
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You won't be using any fancy words just yet, but you will make sense and you'll get your point across.
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Okay, some people will still find you difficult to follow.
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You will pause to think about the grammar.
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You don't know all the right words yet, but you can keep going.
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So it's a big step.
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At B1, you'll find it quite easy to cope with problems in everyday life.
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Like you have to ask for information or ask someone to repeat what they've said, for example.
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And you can also explain things quite well.
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So you will be able to tell a doctor what's wrong with you, for example.
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As for your writing, well, at B1, your writing has improved quite a bit.
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You can probably write a whole page of text or an entire email about something simple.
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Uh, what you did at the weekend, you know, for example, you know, that classic language school activity.
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And on the topic of the four skills, by the way, in order to say that you have reached a particular level.
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Like I am an A2, I'm a B1.
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You have to be able to meet the competencies in all four skills.
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So, for example, it's quite common for a language learner to be great at speaking, say B1 at speaking.
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But has never studied writing at all and can't write with any accuracy.
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Now, technically speaking, this person is not a B1.
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Because they can't write.
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Does this matter?
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Well, you be the judge of that.
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But it's interesting to know.
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And here is a cool bonus at this level.
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Entertainment.
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See, B1 is the point where watching movies and TV shows gets more enjoyable.
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Because you can likely follow the plot, as long as it's not some kind of crazy accent or some crazy topic.
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And this opens the door to a lot more input, even if you still need the subtitles on for now.
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B2, now this level for me is the holy grail of language learning.
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And I will explain why in just a minute.
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So, at B2, you know about 4,000 words.
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And that feels really, really good.
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Because at this point, you've built much more confidence and control in all of the learning areas.
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And strangers will find that they can randomly just start chatting to you.
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And you will feel comfortable to join in, even if it's in a noisy environment, like a cafe or a bar or something.
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Now, there is always this caveat whereby if if someone speaks super fast or with a really strong accent.
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Or maybe on an unfamiliar topic, you're always going to struggle at first.
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You can make your own arguments at B2.
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You can give good explanations and explain the advantages or disadvantages of something like that.
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Now, in B2, you've also developed a lot of useful speaking strategies.
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So, for example, if you need to buy time to think of an answer.
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So someone asks you something and you're not quite sure.
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You're able to say things like.
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That's a difficult question to answer.
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That's an interesting point.
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You're buying you time and then making your conversation much more natural.
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And another skill is, and this is a useful one.
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You can notice if you said something wrong and be able to correct your own mistakes.
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Again, another really important bridge to being able to improve by yourself.
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And what about reading?
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Well, I love this stage.
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You're able to enjoy much longer text, you can understand the main ideas of a story or a news article.
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Say things about what are going on in the world, whatever it may be.
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You might want to switch your social media over to the new language now.
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And you'll probably be completely fine.
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If you love writing.
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Uh, well, you know, essays, blog posts, emails.
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By now, you can write pretty much anything that you want on any different kind of topic.
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Especially things that you're interested in.
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Using details and getting all of the different tenses right, for example.
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The best way to judge a B2 level is something that I like to call the pub test.
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So if we can go down to the pub, sit down, order a beer.
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And chat for a couple of hours without me having to strain to understand you.
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Or or you having to kind of like stress what really get find yourself getting stressed to say the things you want to say.
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In other words, it's a fully natural conversation in terms of how we enjoy that time ourselves.
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That is B2 level.
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That's the pub test.
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And it is absolutely awesome.
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The other crazy thing about B2 is that once you've reached this level.
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You will probably find that you never forget the language that you've learned.
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Now, I don't know why this happens.
Speaker A
But it's a it's a phenomenon that a lot of people report.
Speaker A
So, I've studied around 10 languages to different degrees.
Speaker A
And without fail, the languages that I've gotten to a B2 level, I've never forgotten.
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Even languages like French for me that I learned to a B2 level.
Speaker A
Uh, over 20 years ago, and I've barely spoken it since, once or twice a year.
Speaker A
I still remember almost everything.
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And although I'm a bit rusty, it's all still there.
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Now, other languages that I've only gotten to say A2 or B1 level and then dropped.
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I forget really, really quickly.
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And I feel like it's it's all gone.
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It's really interesting how this happens.
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And so, if you find yourself at a, let's say you're at a B1 level, so like a newly intermediate level in a language.
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You're wondering whether to continue or not.
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I would highly recommend that you carry on until you get to a solid B2 level, because then you will have that language for life.
Speaker A
Whatever happens.
Speaker A
And how do you get from B1 to B2?
Speaker A
Well.
Speaker A
You sign up for my StoryLearning newsletter, of course.
Speaker A
I send you regular emails with language learning tips, uh, things that I've learned over the years about learning languages the right way.
Speaker A
And a few entertaining stories along the way as well, which people seem to really like.
Speaker A
It's completely free this newsletter.
Speaker A
So click the link in the description to sign up.
Speaker A
So we are at B2.
Speaker A
You want more?
Speaker A
Of course you do.
Speaker G
Well, I think having a few friends that you really know are your friends and are and are not going to let you down.
Speaker G
It's really important.
Speaker G
But having a white list of contacts.
Speaker G
Which you can contact and talk with, talk to.
Speaker G
If you want something or another thing.
Speaker G
That's also kind of really important.
Speaker A
At C1 level, you're going to know about 8,000 words.
Speaker A
And almost understand the language effortlessly.
Speaker A
Now, I say almost because difficult subjects will still trip you up at C1.
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Are you fluent yet?
Speaker A
At C1?
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Well, let's see.
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You are a very flexible speaker, you can have long conversations about pretty much anything.
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It doesn't matter who you're talking to.
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Friends, strangers, officials, your boss.
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It doesn't matter.
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You can even hold your own when people are speaking fast.
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Sometimes words will still get lost in your memory a little bit.
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But if you don't know the word, you will easily find another way to say it by paraphrasing.
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Which is a really vital skill.
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And with reading by this point, you can understand pretty much anything you read.
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Even complex topics.
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Not because you know every word in the language, but because you've developed enough peripheral skills to be able to cope, even when you don't understand a specific thing.
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Which, by the way, is something that native speakers have to do as well.
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At C1, you can create quite detailed writing as well.
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You're you're still going to wonder about, is this the best way to express it?
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Is that the word?
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Or the grammar I really need?
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But it won't hold you back.
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Grammar is quite natural at this point.
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And you'll be able to write well.
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It is a good day when you realize that you think in the new language.
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And it's also mostly right.
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Now, one more thing that's wonderful at C1 level is that you can understand more and more subtle things.
Speaker A
Like jokes or sarcasm and inferences and so on.
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One thing that I always remember is the first successful joke that I tell in another language.
Speaker A
A joke that actually works and people laugh at.
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I think that's a real sign of C1.
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It's a kind of confidence that just builds over the years.
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So, are you fluent at C1?
Speaker A
Well, in my book, and this is a personal opinion, you're already fluent at B2.
Speaker A
Well before C1, actually.
Speaker A
Uh, but I think I'm going to neatly sidestep the topic of how you define fluency here.
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Because honestly, it's a minefield.
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And I know pretty much everyone is going to disagree with me.
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So, let's leave that to one side.
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In most cases, it's going to take you at least a couple of years to reach C1 in a foreign language.
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It does depend on the language, it depends on your own language background, to be sure.
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But if you've reached a solid C1 level, advanced in two years, you've done really well.
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And it may well take a lot longer, and that's completely fine.
Speaker H
I was obsessed with working on the dialogue for the character, but then when when we had a read-through.
Speaker H
Or conversations about the characters or rehearsals with the other actors.
Speaker H
I had no clue what they were talking about.
Speaker H
And that made me furious.
Speaker H
Because I don't like missing, you know, information and more when I am working.
Speaker H
So I remember I used to go into the bathroom and hide and cry and release all that frustration.
Speaker A
C2, now at long last, you know about 16,000 words.
Speaker A
And crying in the bathroom is ancient history.
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That's right, you are now a master of the language.
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So we could say that you're as close as you can be to native speaker level.
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But not quite native.
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Truthfully, even at C2 level, native speakers will still be able to tell that you are not yourself a native speaker.
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Little clues here and there, most likely in your accent, but also the occasional choice of word or a little grammar slip here and there.
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The tiniest things that give you away.
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You are going to be very confident in the language at this point.
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You have great control, which means you understand almost everything, even complex and technical things that you read.
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When you talk to people, you can express yourself with the exact words that you want and the exact meaning that you want to convey.
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Even if it's complicated, and you won't have to think much about it.
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It basically feels completely natural.
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Even if you want to be really subtle.
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You know how to do it.
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And you can work out a good argument as well if you disagree with someone.
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In fact, if you do get stuck on something, you can talk around it so smoothly that other people won't even notice your mistakes.
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So, to a native speaker listening to you, you sound intelligent and educated when you speak their language.
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Even if it's not completely the same as how they would talk.
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And in case it sounds like a bit of a tall order to reach C2.
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Well, it is.
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In fact, many native speakers would not test in at C2 themselves.
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Because not everyone in society is educated, able to write well, or able to to sustain a serious discussion or argument.
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So to reach C2 really is an incredible achievement.
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And let's not forget another pretty cool thing, switching off those subtitles.
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On those movies for good.
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You can easily watch any movie or TV series you want, you can watch the news, you can read pretty much any book, any literature.
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Write about any subject.
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And pretty much live in the language.
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And surprise, surprise.
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Reaching C2 level takes years.
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In fact, a handy rule of thumb for progressing through the levels is that each level takes twice as long as the previous level to reach.
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So, for example, going at a very, very fast pace of intensive study.
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You might expect it to take A1, a month, A2, two months, B1, four months, B2, eight months, C1, 16 months, and C2, 32 months.
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To reach C2 in a new language at the absolute fastest.
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And more than likely double that if you are an English speaker learning a very distant language, like Mandarin or Korean, for example.
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Long time?
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Yeah.
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But as long as you're enjoying the journey, which is the point, remember.
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Who cares how long it takes?
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Of course, you can always speed up the process by learning in a smart way.
Speaker A
And in this video, I show you how to learn a new language fast using the power of stories.
Speaker A
Stories, after all, they're how you learned your native language.
Speaker A
So make yourself a cup of tea, settle in, and learn about a truly magical way of learning a new language.
Topics:language learningCEFR levelsA1 language levelA2 language levelB1 language levellanguage proficiencylanguage skillslanguage study tipslanguage learning journeyOlly Richards
