Whenever we want to learn a new language,
the one thing we all want to be able to do is speak it fluently.
The problem is, though, what does 'speaking a language fluently' actually mean?
We all speak at least one language fluently, which is our native language.
But is speaking a foreign language fluently necessarily the same as speaking our first language fluently?
And if it is, is it even possible to get to that level of fluency in a non-native language?
There are a lot of different definitions for fluency, and a lot of people think of it in different ways.
I like to think about it in the most simple way possible:
Fluency, for me, is when I am able to open my mouth and start speaking.
It's when my language is flowing. That's when I would say that it's fluent.
However, what I also think is that you can have fluency at different stages of learning a language.
You can have elementary fluency, intermediate fluency, and advanced fluency,
all of which allow you to do different things at different times.
In order to tell the difference between these different stages of fluency,
some people tend to use something which is called the Common European Framework of Reference.
This break this thing down into six different stages.
So, right down at the bottom, we have A1,
then, A2, B1, then B2, C1, and then finally C2.
If you imagine this as like a mountain, A1 would be the very first place you would reach on that mountain,
and C2 would be somewhere near the top.
However, this analogy can be a little bit confusing,
because the distance between each of these stages is not the same.
If we look at this more like a funnel or a cup, what you'll notice is,
to reach each different stage, we need more water each time.
Each of the stages, as you get through them, gets progressively harder and will require a bit more work.
It's useful to know what stage you're at when learning a language,
not least of all because a lot of courses are designed to reach that level.
There are plenty of level testings that you can do for free online to find out where you should be
and what you should able to do at each level.
Share your language-learning tips and experiences by leaving a comment below
and make sure you check out the other videos in this series.