I Finished ALL (3,800) Finnish Glossika Sentences - Was it Worth it? [Review]
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Contents
Why I decided to use Glossika
How I used Glossika in my day-to-day life
My Finnish level before and after Glossika
Should you use it?
The Good
The Bad
Who is Glossika for?
Who it’s not for
Can you get the same results without Glossika?
Where does Glossika take you?
Glossika pricing
4 different plans
Conclusion
In my last post about Glossika, I shared my initial positive experiences using it to try to improve my Finnish grammar and speaking.
Now that I have finished all of Glossika’s 3,800 Finnish sentences I feel I have an even better picture of it.
If you’re reading this post, you’re probably wondering:
“Is Glossika for me?”
That’s what I aim to help you answer.
7-Day Free Trial + $5 OFF your first purchase:
(No credit card required)
If you’d like to support Lingtuitive, make sure to complete your purchase through the Glossika website (not the phone app). You can sign up and use whatever platform you want, but if you make your purchase using the website I make a small commission. Thanks!
Why I decided to use Glossika
1) To up-level my grammar, intuitively
My main goal in using Glossika was to naturally boost my sense of grammar. Intuitively. Not learning the rules (I talked about why in this post).
I wanted to get used to the patterns of Finnish. In a way where the language would just flow out naturally. So I no longer had to think when talking to people. In my experience there is one activity that does this better than anything:
Learning full sentences.
I’m a big believer in learning words together, not just individually. Most words only take on real meaning once they are placed together with other words. In a full sentence. This is especially true with Finnish where the words change so much depending on the context.
Once you know the patterns it becomes easy to just switch out words and form new sentences using those same patterns.
Glossika is basically just a mass sentence trainer. Which made it an obvious choice for me.
Especially since there aren’t many options for learning Finnish, especially spoken Finnish.
2) To make things easy for myself
I’m always looking for ways to make my language learning easier.
More doable.
To be able to get more results with less effort. Glossika’s automatic way of serving me sentences appealed to me since it makes things convenient.
I just open up the app (or website), press play, and follow along with the sentences. Hearing them and repeating them out loud.
Having a low barrier of entry is really important in order to get the learning done.
If it ain’t easy enough then I’m not gonna do it.
3) It made progress measurable
One feature that made Glossika appealing to me was that it made learning Finnish measurable. Knowing how many sentences I have learned, time spent, how many reps I have done, makes things more concrete. This is especially helpful for something as abstract as learning a language.
Once we get past the beginning stages it can get a bit tricky to know if we’re actually improving.
It can be difficult to notice and feel the progress we’re making.
Making things measurable helps a lot. It gives us get a visual confirmation of progress, which is very motivating.
How I used Glossika in my day-to-day life
The pattern of Glossika is simple:
You hear a sentence in your Base language
You hear the same sentence in your Target language
Repeat the sentence out loud in your target language
I only did my Glossika while doing other things such as cooking, doing the dishes, and getting ready in the morning. About 40 mins a day on average.
I never sat down to only do Glossika. Its repetitive nature makes it quickly boring to just sit and do it by itself. But at the same time, this makes it very easy to do when doing other things.
Learning new sentences
I usually did 20 new sentences per day (each new sentence is repeated 5 times at first, so this amounts to 100 reps). Sometimes I did 40 new (200 reps) of new sentences.
The reps do rack up after a while, it’s a good idea to try to do a bit less in the beginning. Just so it doesn’t become overwhelming once the reviews start pouring in.
If a sentence is too easy, just press “skip”. I did this with quite a few, which is why in reality I only did 3,655 sentences in total. It helped me not waste time on things I already knew well.
Reviewing sentences
Glossika uses an SRS algorithm to repeat the sentences you have already “learned” (it takes many repetitions until you actually learn them - i.e. they become second nature).
This means that the new sentence you get today will repeat tomorrow and so on. With increased intervals. So the “older” a sentence is, the fewer times you’re going to see it.
It makes sense as you’re most likely to know the sentences you’ve reviewed the most the best.
Initially, I would just repeat the sentence after having heard it in Finnish (my target language). But after a sentence had become more familiar, I would try to say it out loud after I had heard it in my Base language. In other words, before I heard it in my target language (there’s a pause in between that gives you enough time to do this. The length is adjustable).
This was a fun way to see if I could get it right. I could then compare it to how the native speaker said it and that way get instant feedback. It helped me become more aware.
There’s also a recording function that could be beneficial to help you improve your pronunciation and intonation. I personally didn’t use this though. I just wanted to focus on doing more reps instead.
Do you have to repeat the sentences out loud?
In my opinion, no.
But it is beneficial.
The most important thing is to listen to the sentences in your target language. To absorb how they sound and how they are structured.
So if you’re out walking where there are people around you might not want to say them out loud (like a crazy person speaking to yourself). That’s fine. You can just listen to the sentences.
My preference was to say them out loud though, as I mostly did Glossika at home. It helped train my muscles to be able to produce the sentences with flow.
And more importantly, it gave me a clear confirmation whether I had actually “heard” the sentences. You can only repeat what you’re able to hear.
How long did it take to finish all the sentences?
I used Glossika for a total of 7-8 months.
I spent 40 mins per day on average.
Total time repping was 176 hours.
It took slightly under 6 months total to go through all sentences (plus 1-2 months of just reviewing).
My Finnish level before and after Glossika
Before I started Glossika I had quite a big vocabulary from doing a lot of reading with LingQ (← get an extended free trial & 37% off).
But I struggled to form correct sentences. It was still difficult to intuitively know what case and endings to use.
Speaking was a pain. By the time I could formulate my sentences the conversation had moved on to something else. I lacked confidence because I wasn’t sure if what I was saying was correct or not.
After using Glossika for several months I saw a big improvement.
Just the other day I was speaking Finnish to my wife (who is a native Finn). I corrected myself after having said a certain sentence. I changed the case I was using. My wife asked:
“How did you know to use that?”
I answered:
“I actually don’t know, it just felt intuitively right.”
If you have downloaded my free guide Intuitive Language Secrets you know what I’m talking about here.
Does this mean I have mastered using Finnish perfectly?
Not quite.
I still make all sorts of mistakes. But I’m way more aware and can more often self-correct myself.
I have a greater intuitive awareness of how the language functions. When I listen to people speak I’m able to notice things much more.
It’s like Glossika worked as a magnifying glass for Finnish. I can see and most of all feel it clearer.
Using Glossika bridged that gap that I needed to get over a certain hump.
It’s a lot more fun to listen to podcasts and interact with people. It just feels way easier because things make more “sense”. Most of it is on an unconscious level.
I’m struggling way less speaking Finnish, and getting better has gotten much easier since Improving in the language feels more effortless.
This is something that you need to know about Finnish. It’s very challenging for a very long time. But once you get over a certain hump (which took years for me) it gets much easier.
Now that’s good news. Most people just aren’t willing to stick around long enough to experience it.
If you do, the reward will be worth it, I promise.
A hotel weekend with friends
Recently, my wife and I were away at a hotel weekend with family and friends. One evening we were having dinner and talking about our favorite travel memories and places we’d like to visit. All in Finnish. One of our friends told me during our conversation:
“It’s so great that you have this level of Finnish where you can just talk without any problems”.
Isn’t that what we all want?
To just be able to use the language, without thinking. To just enjoy ourselves with friends and people we meet when using the language.
Glossika played a major part in me being able to do this.
Unexpected benefits
One thing I didn’t expect was that Glossika was gonna improve my listening comprehension.
I mean I thought it might help a tiny bit, but not that much. I even told someone who asked me about this when I had just started Glossika. That I didn’t think it would help much with improving listening.
Turns out I was wrong.
It made me realize that when we internalize the most common patterns in a language, it really boosts our listening comprehension. Our brain doesn’t have to process as much. Which frees it up to focus on other things. Our ears recognize the patterns more quickly and instantely turns it into meaning.
Should you use it?
Whether Glossika is right for you depends on a few things:
What your goals are.
Your personality.
The language you’re learning.
Let’s go through what I like about Glossika and what some of the downsides are.
This should hopefully help you determine if it’s right for you or not.
The Bad
Some mismatches in audio and text (about 1% of the Finnish sentences).
Less relevant features of dictation and writing.
The Good
Very clear audio.
Easy to do on-the-go.
Effectively improves your intuitive sense of the language, comprehension, and speaking.
Clean, simple, and nice-looking mobile
app (supports offline use).Supports a good cause of
preserving minoritized languages.Excellent customer support.
The Good
The method is effective and it works. Really well. It’s based on the principles of getting used to a language, rather than studying it to try to understand it.
All Finnish sentences are spoken very clearly by a female native speaker. The audio is very high quality. The language used is natural and what you would hear in everyday speech. My wife, who is a native Finnish speaker, confirmed this.
The simplicity of it makes it very easy to do. Especially while doing other things, which is a big time-saver.
The phone app is especially user-friendly and clean-looking.
Glossika is also serving a good cause - to preserve minoritized languages. This is done by offering certain languages completely free (see the pricing section below to find out which ones). As someone who cares about the preservation of less common languages, this is especially heart-warming to me.
Glossika also has some of the friendliest and most helpful customer service that I have experienced.
The Bad
The main criticism Glossika has gotten is that it has mismatches in audio and text. I actually kept track of these throughout my Glossika journey. Just to see how many there were. It was about 1% of the sentences.
Sometimes it was that the audio was cut off in the middle of a sentence. But mostly it was just that the audio was slightly different than the text. Different word choices. While it would be nice to have these corrected, the few inconsistencies didn’t affect my overall experience.
I personally didn’t see the benefit of using features like dictation and writing. While it’s not a problem that those features are there (I just skipped doing them) I would have preferred to have more sentences in Finnish instead.
These activities rely more on producing and recalling, rather than absorbing the language that you do through the mass sentences. The latter I believe is way more effective and beneficial.
But again, this is just my personal opinion. Others might enjoy and find value in these tools.
Who is Glossika for?
You want a natural way to improve your grammar, without learning grammar rules.
You want to get over the so-called “intermediate plateau”.
You enjoy stats and tracking your progress.
You’re learning an unusual language.
If you’d like to improve your grammar in a natural way, without having to study it, then Glossika is a great way to do that.
The bite-sized pieces of language through sentences make learning less intimidating. Even though you’re actually learning through full-speed, native-level speech.
It’s an effective way of getting over that hump when you’re around an intermediate level. It trains your comprehension, your intuitive sense of the language structure, and your speaking abilities.
If you’re someone who likes stats and numbers, then you’re going to enjoy seeing how much time you’ve spent, how many sentences you’ve learned, reps done, etc.
I personally don’t recommend studying grammar the traditional way. However, if you already have grammar knowledge then Glossika will help you put it into practice.
If you are learning a more unusual language, Glossika becomes even more of a necessity. It could even be that it’s your only option. Some languages they have courses for I have never even seen material for anywhere else.
Who Glossika is not for
Complete beginners.
People who can’t stand repetitive practice.
You need grammar explanations.
Your primary focus is on expanding your vocabulary.
As I’ve already mentioned, Glossika is simple.
This is either its strength or weakness, depending on your personality.
It makes it very easy to do. You don’t have to think about it. But if you’re someone who can’t stand repetitious practice, then you’re probably not going to enjoy Glossika. Chances are you won’t be able to use Glossika long enough to see the results.
For someone like me that is not a problem (except the occasional day when it felt tedious). But if you’re anything like my wife, who needs way more variety, then I would use something else.
If you need logical explanations behind the grammar then Glossika is not for you. It doesn’t offer that. It’s about improving your language skills, not your language knowledge.
For complete beginners, there might be some utility in using it. But it’s going to get challenging very quickly.
The sweet spot I would say is around A2-B1 (I was around a high B1 when I started). The stage where it’s not quite comfortable to watch native material yet (where you would understand most of it without too much problem).
While you will learn new words using Glossika, if expanding your vocabulary is your main goal I would instead focus on reading with an app like LingQ.
Can you get the same results without Glossika?
You sure could.
I’m a firm believer that everything clears up with enough exposure to the language. By getting enough input.
So in a sense, there’s no magic in Glossika per se. It’s just a way to get targeted practice in a way that’s especially helpful when you’re at a certain level.
The biggest challenge in language learning is often just getting things done. If things are too difficult to do consistently then we as people tend to avoid doing it (I’m not different).
Glossika provides targeted practice delivered to you automatically. It’s a tool and resource to help make things easier for you.
If I would not have used Glossika, I personally wouldn’t have gotten the practice I needed in this area (there is very little intermediate listening material in Finnish). I would have just put it off for later. It would have felt like too much of an effort to try to accomplish on my own.
Where will Glossika take you?
If you’re intermediate, and you use it consistently every day for several months, then expect to:
Speak with more ease and fluidity.
Improve your intuitive sense of grammar.
Increase your listening comprehension.
I would see Glossika as a resource you use for a certain time. Once you’re done, move on to other things. That’s the whole purpose of using it. To prepare you for more challenging content.
It’s like a bridge. Once you cross it, it has served its purpose.
For me, it achieved what I wanted it to. I don’t have to think as much when speaking, because my Finnish instinct is much better.
It has also made it a lot easier to listen and learn from content such as podcasts. I’m more aware and notice things in the language much better.
Glossika pricing
Glossika has 4 different subscriptions:
Freemium
The following languages are completely free:
Catalan,
Gaelic (Scottish)
Hakka (Hailu)
Hakka (Sixian)
Kurdish (Sorani)
Manx
Taiwanese Hokkien
Welsh
Wenzhounese.
Basic plan
Unlimited access to 1 language - $16.99/month, or $13.33/month (paid annually).
Can change Base and Target Language once every 30 days.
Download 100 sentence pairs for offline use.
Pro plan
Unlimited access to 60+ languages - $30.99/month, or $25/month (paid annually).
Train as many languages as you wish.
Download 500 sentence pairs for offline use.
Student Discount
Glossika offers a special discount for students - 55% off.
The basic plan then becomes $7.65 instead of $16.99.
This is a super generous discount. A very nice move by them to make it more affordable for students.
7-Day Free Trial + $5 OFF your first purchase:
(No credit card required)
If you’d like to support Lingtuitive, make sure to complete your purchase through the Glossika website (not the phone app). You can sign up and use whatever platform you want, but if you make your purchase using the website I make a small commission. Thanks!
Conclusion
Glossika is essentially 3 things:
A comprehension trainer
A pronunciation & speaking trainer
A sentence structure trainer
It works effectively and is an efficient use of time. You just have to stick with it long enough to really see the results.
After 176 hours spent with Glossika in Finnish and 73 hours with Glossika in Cantonese I can confidently say that I believe it’s an excellent product. One that I can warmly recommend and that I’m likely to use in the future.
If you’re looking for a no-nonsense approach that is focused on the results, then I recommend you to check it out. You will quickly feel if it’s for you or not.
The results will take some time and repping to add up. But once they do, the improvements are (in my experience) significant.
Let me know in the comments if you have a question about Glossika that wasn’t covered in this post.
I’ll be happy to answer it!
