Unfortunately, many of us do not have enough time for learning a foreign language of our choice. Those, who still manage to do it, usually have to do it on the go. Fortunately, there is a variety of useful extensions for your browser which will help you to practise foreign languages while working on other tasks.
Here, you will find a list of such extension which are working with the majority of the most popular browsers. A great variety of them will help you to translate texts written in foreign languages in a convenient way, yet, for many of them it is just one of multiple interesting functions.
Learn and practise new vocabulary
One of the best ways to fill your vocabulary with new words is through getting simultaneous translation of these words while reading texts written in a foreign language. There is an entire variety of extensions for popular browsers which will allow you to complete these tasks easily.
Google Dictionary/Translate
As you can imagine, this is an official Google extension. With its help, you can highlight a word or an entire phrase and immediately get the translation. of course, in such a way, you will get a quick translation of the word, however, it is possible to get a full explanation offered by the Google translator.
There is also a possibility of saving the translations right on the page which you are currently reading.
Note that this extension has less language options than Google Translate itself. Even though it is not working with all of the Google Translate languages, their choice is still pretty big being equal to 18 languages.
Flashcards for Google Dictionary/Translate
If you choose the previous extension for translating your texts, do not forget to install another useful one which is can be found as Flashcards for Google Dictionary/Translate. This extension will help you to create flashcards for repeating words and phrases which you have translated with Google Dictionary/Translate and saved. When you make your set of flashcards, you can start practising new vocabulary.
Rememberry
Rememberry has the functions of the both previous Google extensions. This extension will also show you the translation of unknown words. At the same time, the extension will also allow you to create flashcards which can be used for practising the new material.
Rememberry is also equipped into other useful features. The extension will also give you the transcription of new words, will help you to practise pronunciation and will show you the synonyms and the usage of the new words in context.
By the way, the flashcard tool of this extension is quite advanced allowing you to divide your cards in sets and choose one from several modes of learning.
Reverso
You can get an even more extended version of a translator which will work not only with texts but also with subtitles available on TED Talks, YouTube and Netflix as well as many other services. This extension is Reverso and it will also translate the new vocabulary and show you its usage in context so that you will be able to remember the words and expressions better. This tool will allow you to save the vocabulary for further practice.
Avac Translate
In case you are a more advanced user of a foreign language, you can try another extension known as Avac Translate. This tool can analyse the text taking into consideration the level of knowledge of a language which is needed for their comprehension. In such a way, you will see the translation of all of the unknown words. You can also set how many times you want the programme to highlight a particular word for you in the text.
Other useful tools
There are some other interesting extensions for your browser which will help you to practise other fields of the knowledge of a foreign language.
Grammarly
Whether you need some help during writing texts in your own language or you want to practise writing in a foreign language, Grammarly will be a highly handy tool for you. This powerful extension has an ability of analysing a large amount of text in several ways. Certainly, it has a basic feature of checking the orthographic mistakes. Yet, there are also many other features which you will hardly find in any other extension or programme. For instance, Grammarly can also identify misuse of various words and expressions, offer you a better option and even detect a general style of the text giving you suggestions for making it even more expressive.
Read Aloud
One more peculiar tool is Read Aloud. This one is focusing on your listening comprehension skills. With the help of this unique extension for browsers, you will be able to hear the audio of the reading of any text you choose. This is very convenient for listening to a text in a foreign language and keeping a track of the written text at the same time.
Furthermore, this extension can be used with over forty different languages.