If you watched the videos on the previous page, you already know how important comprehensible input is, but most interesting forms of input (movies, novels, etc) are not comprehensible for beginner language learners. Never fear! You do not need to study for years before language input becomes comprehensible to you. There are ways to find input that is comprehensible up front, even if you are a beginner.

If you don't know anything in your target language, the best thing to do is to find content that is designed specifically to be comprehensible input for language learners (like my books listed on the next page). If something like that doesn't exist in your target language, there are still ways of making other types of input more comprehensible.

Subtitles can help make content more comprehensible by giving you a second indication of what is being said (beyond the pure audio). When we speak, we tend to run all of our words together, so it can be difficult to see where one word ends and the next begins. If you are learning a language that uses spaces between words, this can be a huge help. If you like to use music as comprehensible input, reading the lyrics as you listen can have the same effect.

Subtitles can aid in comprehension whether they're in your target language, or in your native language, but you will get a much more immersive experience if you use subtitles in the target language. However, sometimes I'm in the mood to just relax and watch something without working too hard, and I'll opt for subtitles in English. That's okay from time to time, and it can still offer some level of benefit, but don't allow yourself to get too comfortable with subtitles in your native language.

It is generally discouraged to look up words while you are consuming comprehensible input. The reasons for this are:

1. It is time consuming
2. You can learn more words by spending that time reading more instead
3. You are likely to forget the word soon after you look it up
4. You can often figure out the meaning based on context (Otherwise it wasn't an important word)

On occasion I allow myself to look up an unknown word if it seems to come up a lot and I can't figure it out by context. I try to limit this to the most extreme occasions though. And when I do look up a word, I use a dictionary on my phone to save time. Some apps like LingQ make it very easy to look up words without wasting much time. In these cases, I allow myself the luxury of looking up words a litte more frequently.

If you have a favorite book you've already read a dozen times, or a movie that you know all the lines to, this can be very useful. If you can find a translation in your target language, then you instantly have a source of content that is very comprehensible because you already know the storyline. For me, this was reading Harry Potter in French, and watching Star Wars in Spanish.

One common way people try to get comprehensible input is to use books, movie, or tv shows designed for children. This method is okay but not great. The good part about childrens content is that it is usually simple with easy vocabulary, and they tend to have lots of clear visualizations. But don't be fooled. Childrens books and shows are still designed for native speakers, which you are not. Children often have a surprising understanding of slang and culture that is lost on the average adult language learner, so don't be discouraged if that kids show is still a bit advanced for you.