The fastest way to learn Slovenian is to spend most of your study time on Slovenian you can mostly understand. That kind of Slovenian is called comprehensible input. What you read and listen to should change as you improve, so the plan below shows what to do at each level and how to split an hour of study.
What to Do at Each Level
Find the level that sounds like you. Its bar shows how to spend an hour of study.
- Level 1
I'm just starting out or know only a few words.
Read and listen 35 min. Review 15 min. Speak 10 min.
Work through the short dialogues in Slovene Learning Online, the free course from the University of Ljubljana, and listen to each one twice. Then read LingQ's Mini Stories, and say a few lines out loud.
- Level 2
I can read simple sentences.
Read and listen 40 min. Review 10 min. Speak 10 min.
Hide the translation and look up only the words that stop you. Watch the short everyday dialogues from Slovenščina skozi dialog, listen to Fluent Fiction's Slovenian stories, and start short talks with a tutor or a friend.
- Level 3
I can read short stories and messages.
Read and listen 40 min. Review 5 min. Speak 15 min.
Read the news in easy Slovenian on Enostavno, and play each story slowly before you play it at normal speed. Listen to the bedtime stories in Lahko noč, otroci!, and talk about what you heard for longer.
- Level 4
I can read longer texts about everyday life.
- Level 5
I can follow complex topics, but miss some details.
Read and watch 50 min. Speak 10 min.
Read articles about things you like with Readlang, which shows what a word means when you tap it, and look up only the words that block the story. Watch RTV Slovenija's series and the news without subtitles.
- Level 6
I can follow detailed arguments and different writing styles.
Read and watch 50 min. Speak 10 min.
Read Slovenian novels and newspapers, and talk about them, for their own sake. When you want a word explained in Slovenian, look it up on Fran, the main online dictionary portal for Slovenian.
Move up a level when the Slovenian you read and hear starts to feel easy, and move back down if you lose the thread by the third line.
How Long Does It Take to Learn Slovenian?
Slovenian takes about 1,012 class hours, or 44 weeks of full-time study, to reach professional fluency, according to the U.S. Foreign Service Institute. That puts Slovenian in the third of its four groups for English speakers, with Slovak, Polish and Russian.
| Language | FSI group | Full-time weeks |
|---|---|---|
| Spanish | Category I | 30 |
| German | Category II | 36 |
| Slovenian, Polish | Category III | 44 |
| Japanese | Category IV | 88 |
The adult education program from the University of Ljubljana's Centre for Slovene as a Second and Foreign Language suggests about 120 to 180 hours of classes for a beginner to reach the entry level, A1. It then suggests 120 to 300 hours for the basic level, A2 to B1, and 250 hours for the higher level, B2. Adding the top of each range gives 480 hours to reach the basic level and 730 to reach B2. Here is how long those take at different amounts of study a week:
| Study per week | Basic level, A2–B1 (480 hours) | Higher level, B2 (730 hours) | FSI professional fluency (1,012 hours) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3½ hours | About 2⅔ years | About 4 years | About 5½ years |
| 7 hours | About 16 months | About 2 years | About 2¾ years |
| 14 hours | About 8 months | About 1 year | About 17 months |
| 28 hours | About 4 months | About 6 months | About 8 months |
These are class hours, so treat them as a rough guide. Time you spend understanding Slovenian on your own counts too.
What Slows Learners Down
- Guessing Sounds From SpellingEveryday Slovenian writing doesn't mark which syllable is stressed, and the letter e can stand for three different sounds. Hear each new word before you say it.
- Case and Dual Tables AloneSlovenian nouns change their endings across six cases, and Slovenian has a dual, a set of forms for exactly two people or things, such as midva (we two). A table of these forms is hard to use until you have read each one in many sentences.
- Content Far Too HardMuch of the Slovenian on radio and TV is made for people who already speak it. A show where you know one word in five teaches you very little.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which Slovenian app should a beginner choose?
If you are serious about learning Slovenian, start with Bubblegum. Poppy writes lessons at your level about things you like. Our Slovenian app comparison covers courses, tutors and speaking apps too.
Can I learn Slovenian in three months?
You can learn enough Slovenian to talk about yourself and handle simple, everyday needs. At 14 hours a week, three months is about 180 hours, which is the top of the Centre for Slovene's estimate of 120 to 180 hours for the entry level, A1.
How much should I study Slovenian each week?
Aim for three to five hours a week of Slovenian you understand, in sessions of at least 15 to 30 minutes. A longer session lets you get lost in a story, which teaches more than five minutes a day, and steady time each week matters more than a daily streak. Our post on deep sessions over daily streaks explains why.
Is Slovenian hard for English speakers?
Yes, by the Foreign Service Institute's measure: it puts Slovenian in its third group of four, so Slovenian takes longer than Spanish or German and half as long as Japanese. Slovenian uses the alphabet you already read, plus the letters č, š and ž. Most of the time goes into the words and the endings, which you pick up fastest from Slovenian you understand.
Is Bubblegum free?
Yes. The lesson library is free for everyone, because we believe everyone should be able to learn. It holds lessons that other learners asked Poppy for. A new custom lesson costs us real money to make, so your first one is free, and Bubblegum Pro gives you unlimited custom lessons.
Sources
- U.S. Department of State, Foreign Language Training (FSI language categories)
- Centre for Slovene as a Second and Foreign Language, University of Ljubljana: Slovenščina kot drugi in tuji jezik, adult education program, 2020 (120 to 180 hours for A1, 120 to 300 for A2–B1, 250 for B2)
- Wikipedia: Slovene alphabet (stress marks only in dictionaries and textbooks; e stands for three sounds)
- Wikipedia: Slovene grammar (six cases; singular, dual and plural)
