Welcome to MicroEnglish!
MicroEnglish exercises are simple to use but powerful for developing your listening skills. This guide will show you exactly how everything works.
How Each Exercise Works
1. Listen to the Audio
Click the play button to hear a short section of natural spoken English. Listen as many times as you need – there’s no limit! Use the settings button to slow down the audio if it’s too fast.
2. Choose Your Difficulty Level
Easy and Medium show some words to help you focus on the difficult parts. Hard is usually just empty gaps. Start with Medium if you’re unsure, then challenge yourself with Hard mode.
3. Type What You Hear
Write exactly what you hear in the gaps. Don’t worry about getting it wrong – that’s how you learn! As you type, you’ll see instant feedback showing whether you’re on the right track.
Understanding the Instant Feedback
MicroEnglish gives you real-time feedback as you type, helping you learn faster. Here’s what each color means:
- Dotted blue line: You’re typing correctly so far – keep going!
- Dotted red line: Something’s wrong with what you’ve typed – try again or listen again
- Solid blue line: Perfect! You got that word completely correct
- Solid red line: That word is wrong – click the hint button (?) or reveal the answer
- Grey line: You’ve revealed this answer – no problem, learning from the correct answer helps too!
Helpful Tools During Practice
If you’re stuck, several tools can help:
- Slow audio – Reduces playback speed to 75% to help you hear individual words
- Hint – This will reveal the word you’re working one one letter at a time. Keep clicking this if you want to reveal the whole word.
- Reveal all – Shows all answers at once if you want to see the full sentence
- Restart – Clears your answers and lets you try again.
- Sound effects – Toggle the success/error sounds on or off
Important: Using hints or revealing answers is fine! Learning what you missed is part of the process. There’s no scoring or judgment – this is about learning, not testing.
Learn About the Vocabulary and Grammar
After completing the dictation, click “About the sentence” to see:
- Meanings of interesting language used in the sentence
- Examples showing how to use the vocabulary
- Explanations of grammar points
- Context about why the sentence might be challenging
Think of this as a way to learn English while improving your listening skills.
Your First Exercise
Ready to start? Try this exercise, or open a free account to access any five exercises (20-30 dictations) every month.
Why This Method Works
Dictation practice trains your ears to recognize individual words in natural speech – something passive listening alone can’t do. The instant feedback shows you exactly what you’re missing, helping you improve faster.
Want to understand the science behind this method? Read this guide on how dictation exercises improve English listening skills.
Tips for Effective Practice
Practice Daily
15-20 minutes every day is better than 2 hours once a week. Regular practice trains your ears to recognize patterns in English speech.
Start at Your Level
If you understand 60-70% on first listen, you’re at the right difficulty. Too easy (90%+)? Try micro-listenings for a challenge. Too hard (less than 40%)? Start with clearer exercises and work your way up.
Listen Multiple Times
Don’t expect to catch everything on first listen. Listen 2-3 times before checking the answer. On the first listen, get the general meaning. On subsequent listens, focus on the words you missed.
Learn From Your Mistakes
When you miss a word, ask yourself:
- Did I not know this word? → Add it to your vocabulary list
- Did the pronunciation surprise me? → This is connected speech – a valuable pattern to learn
- Was it too fast? → Use the slow audio feature and gradually increase speed
- Did I mishear the sounds? → Replay it multiple times to train your ears
Don’t Rely on Reveals Too Much
It’s tempting to reveal answers quickly, but struggling with a word for 30 seconds (replaying, thinking, trying different spellings) teaches you more than seeing the answer immediately. Use hints and reveals when you’re genuinely stuck, not just when it’s challenging.
Combine with Extensive Listening
Dictation is intensive practice – it develops skills. Combine it with extensive listening (podcasts, TV, conversations) for balanced improvement. Think of dictation as targeted exercise and extensive listening as real-world practice.
Questions or Problems?
I’m here to help! If you have questions about how to use the site, encounter any technical issues, or want advice on improving your listening skills:
- Ask in comments – Leave a question on any exercise post
- Email me – Get in touch directly
I always respond and I’m happy to provide more detailed explanations or suggest exercises for your level.
Ready to Start Improving Your Listening?
Open your free account to access 5 exercises per month.