What you can do at A1
You understand and use simple everyday phrases: you can introduce yourself, ask and answer where you live, who you know and what you have. You can get by if the other person speaks slowly and is willing to help.
Which words to learn for A1
- Greetings and introductions
- Family and people around you
- Numbers, time, days of the week
- Food and drinks
- Shopping and prices
- Town and directions
- Colours and clothes
Start with the most frequent words in these topics: they show up in every text and conversation and give you the most value.
How long it takes to reach A1
At 10 new words a day you build an A1 vocabulary in about 5 months, at 20 words a day in about 2.5 months. What matters is that the words stay: that is what spaced repetition is for.
Cambridge English does not give hours for A1: it covers the first weeks and months of study. The guideline for the next level, A2, is about 180–200 hours from zero.
→ How long does it take to learn a language to B1 and B2?
How to move to the next level
Move from single words to short phrases: learn words in chunks (“I would like…”, “where is…”) and start reading simple A1–A2 stories.
How to build an A1 vocabulary in NewLexi
- Cards on request. Ask the app to generate “A1 words for introductions and shopping”, and NewLexi builds cards for your level.
- A daily plan. Every day a portion of new words and reviews of the ones due, with no overload.
- Context. A1 stories and dialogues are written just for you from your words, so they move into your active vocabulary.
FAQ
How many words do you need for A1?
About up to 1,500 words (Milton and Alexiou, 2009). These are words you recognise when reading; your active vocabulary is usually smaller.
How long does it take to learn A1 vocabulary?
About 5 months at 10 new words a day, or about 2.5 months at 20 words a day, if you review them with spaced repetition.
Sources
- Milton, J., & Alexiou, T. (2009). Vocabulary size and the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages. In Vocabulary Studies in First and Second Language Acquisition (pp. 194–211). Palgrave Macmillan. doi.org/10.1057/9780230242258_12
- Cambridge English. Guided learning hours. support.cambridgeenglish.org/hc/en-gb/articles/202838506-Guided-learning-hours
- Council of Europe. Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR): global scale. www.coe.int/en/web/common-european-framework-reference-languages/table-1-cefr-3.3-common-reference-levels-global-scale
