Pick your challenge

Listen & Type

Listen to sentences in English and type what you hear. 5 sentences · 3 lives.

How Listen & Type helps you learn English

Listen & Type presents a spoken English sentence and asks you to transcribe it exactly. This combines listening comprehension, spelling, and grammar awareness in one exercise — making it one of the most complete language skills trainers available.

The game uses your browser's built-in text-to-speech, so you hear natural English rhythm and intonation. You can replay the sentence as many times as you need, which mirrors real-world listening: we rarely hear things just once, and re-listening is a legitimate strategy.

Transcription training is widely used by professional language learners and translators. Typing what you hear forces you to process every word individually rather than relying on context to fill in words you didn't catch — a common listening habit that creates gaps in comprehension over time.

Tips for each CEFR level

Whether you're just starting or already advanced, here's how to get the most out of Listen & Type.

A1

Play each sentence 2-3 times before typing. Focus on individual words you recognize first, then fill the gaps.

A2

Pay attention to word boundaries — English often blends words together in speech. Replaying helps your ear separate them.

B1

After typing your answer, compare it word by word with the correct version. Each difference reveals a specific listening weakness to work on.

B2

Try to transcribe after just one listen. If you can't, listen again — but note which words required the replay. Those are your weak points.

C1

Listen for unstressed function words (the, a, of, to). These are often reduced in natural speech but are grammatically essential.

C2

Challenge yourself to type the sentence on one listen without replaying. C2 listening means understanding authentic speech at natural speed.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Listen & Type work on all browsers?

+
Listen & Type uses the Web Speech API, which is best supported on Chrome, Edge, and Safari. Firefox has limited support. If audio doesn't play, try switching to Chrome — it has the highest quality English voices.

Are the sentences read by a real person?

+
Listen & Type uses your browser's text-to-speech engine. On Chrome and Edge, the Google and Microsoft neural voices sound very natural. On mobile, device voices vary — iOS Safari typically has an excellent English voice.

Is my answer checked strictly, or does it accept minor mistakes?

+
Punctuation and capitalization are ignored, but spelling must be exact. 'He goes to school' matches 'he goes to school.' but 'He go to school' does not. This strict matching is intentional — it forces you to process every word precisely.

How long are the sentences?

+
Sentences range from 4 to 9 words — long enough to test real listening comprehension but short enough to avoid overwhelming working memory. This range is calibrated to maximize learning efficiency per session.

Can I use Listen & Type to prepare for IELTS listening?

+
Yes. The dictation format directly mirrors note-completion tasks in IELTS Listening. Regular practice improves both your ear for natural English rhythm and your ability to spell words you hear rather than see — a key IELTS skill.

More games to practice English