| Your computer can be used as a creative
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| | provide audio clips. Others will allow
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| tool in your quest to learn a foreign
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| | users to submit new words and
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| language. Some innovative ideas can turn
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| | expressions. (Be aware that not all user
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| your language education into an
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| | submissions will be 100% accurate.) The
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| entertaining, truly memorable experience.
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| | best dictionaries will clearly indicate
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| Audio Modification
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| | 'verified' user submissions and will mark
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| Many companies produce software packages
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| | colloquial and dialect expressions
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| that enable you to transform your voice
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| | appropriately.
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| (or someone else's). You can make your
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| | Are you a poet? Help is as close as your
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| voice feminine, masculine, or robotic. It
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| | computer. Online language resources
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| can be raised to a high pitch or lowered
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| | include helpful rhyming dictionaries. An
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| to bass tones.
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| | internet search for 'rhyming dictionary
|
| So how does this help you learn a new
| |
| | French', 'rhyming dictionary German',
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| language?
| |
| | 'rhyming dictionary Spanish' etc. will
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| Many foreign languages (French and
| |
| | give you good results.
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| German, for example) assign gender to
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| | Try to rely on accredited educational
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| nouns. When learning new vocabulary, why
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| | sites (domains ending in .edu) when doing
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| not record feminine nouns in a female
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| | grammar research. For instance, if you
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| voice, masculine nouns in a male voice,
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| | are looking for Hungarian verb
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| and neuter nouns in a robotic voice? This
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| | conjugations, try a search like
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| approach can also be used with other
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| | 'Hungarian verb conjugations site:.edu'.
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| types of vocabulary learning. Perhaps you
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| | Although at the time of writing the
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| could record a list of German dative
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| | previous search doesn't work at MSN, it
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| verbs in a woman's voice and a list of
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| | does work at Google, Yahoo!, Ask.com, and
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| German accusative verbs in a male voice.
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| | many others. The 'site:edu' portion of
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| You can even take audio files that have
| |
| | the search restricts results to domains
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| been recorded by other people and make
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| | ending in '.edu' - which are usually
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| them more interesting by morphing voices
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| | universities and other similar
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| or adding sound effects.
| |
| | educational institutions.
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| An internet search for 'voice cloaking'
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| | Online Chatting and Video Conferencing
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| or 'voice modification software' will
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| | Video-cams, VOIP, microphones . . . put
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| provide numerous resources to choose
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| | them all together and talk with foreign
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| from.
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| | friends from all over the world. Using a
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| Don't Just Print
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| | language in conversation is probably the
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| If you own a color printer you can spice
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| | quickest way to learn.
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| up your vocabulary lists with bursts of
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| | Whatever you do, remember that the more
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| color - perhaps feminine nouns in red,
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| | senses you stimulate during the learning
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| masculine nouns in blue, and neuter in
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| | process, the more firmly imprinted the
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| dark grey. You might want to highlight
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| | learning becomes. Turn your language
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| irregular verbs in another color - or
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| | education into a fun-filled sensory
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| perhaps apply bold or italics to make
| |
| | experience and you will probably stick
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| them stand out on the page. Experiment
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| | with it. If it becomes monotonous, you
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| with various fonts and weights.
| |
| | may lose interest.
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| Websites and Online Sources
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| | ©Copyright Kathy Steinemann: This
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| Every language student should have at
| |
| | article is free to publish only if this
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| least one online dictionary bookmarked
| |
| | copyright notice, the byline, and the
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| (preferably several). Each dictionary
| |
| | author's note below (with active links)
|
| will work a little differently. Some
| |
| | are included.
|
