Foreign language memes
Curated for your pleasure
At the company where I work for my day job, we have an internal meme site. It is the best source for hot takes on corporate policy changes, and I often have the tab open during town halls.
Memes are, dare I say, one of the greatest art forms to arise from the internet era.
Experiencing them in a language you don’t fully understand, however, is a wholesale re-purposing that I’m here for.
Memes often feature plays on words, so when you can get it you should do a congratulatory dance, you awesome polyglot you.
Memes rely on context to make them funny, so they simultaneously teach us about the culture from which they derive
The surge of mirth that comes with getting a funny joke is a powerful emotion that helps lodge the words deep in your psyche, therefore assisting in learning.
Some memes for you, friends. Click on the links below:
SpanishPlans.org has compiled some fantastic memes in Spanish here.
YouTube channel LearnAmo has this excellent video showing Italian memes, explaining why they’re funny, and as a bonus she even explains the origin of the term “meme” itself.
I’ve compiled this playlist of videos explaining French memes, designed for French learners at an A2 level. This series is by the YouTube channel FrenchComprehensibleInput.
He does one meme per video, explaining what they’re about, in simple French.
What are some of your favourite sources for comprehensible input? Leave us a comment.
Feeling the new year call to self-improvement? Well, first of all you’re perfect exactly as you are in this moment.
Second, I’d be quite happy to sell you a copy of one of my bilingual books for adult language learners.
Bilingual Bridge: Classic Science Fiction Stories for Beginners
Bilingual Bridge: Classic Fairy Tales for Intermediate Readers
