ChatGPT prompts for reading in a foreign language

Make a text readable at your level

Reading is easiest when you know about 98 of every 100 words (the 98% rule). These prompts bring a text down to that level or tell you how far it is from it.

1. Rewrite at a CEFR level

Rewrite the text below in [language] at CEFR level [A2/B1/B2]. Keep the meaning and the names, use only common words and short sentences, and do not translate it. Text: [paste]

2. Check whether a text is right for you

I read [language] at about level [B1]. Estimate the CEFR level of the text below and list the 10 words a [B1] reader is least likely to know, with a short translation into [native language]. Text: [paste]

3. Make a glossary before you read

Make a glossary for the text below for a [B1] learner whose native language is [English]: a table with the word as it appears, its dictionary form, a translation and the sentence it comes from. Only words above [B1]. Text: [paste]

Understand what you are reading

This is where a chat beats any dictionary: it can explain why, not only what.

4. Explain one sentence

Explain this [language] sentence to a [B1] learner whose native language is [English]: translate it literally word by word, then naturally, then explain the grammar that makes it hard. Sentence: [paste]

5. Explain an idiom or a word in context

In the passage below, what does "[word or phrase]" mean here? Give the meaning in this context, how it differs from its usual meaning, and two more natural examples. Passage: [paste]

6. Summarise a chapter in simple language

Summarise the text below in [language] at level [A2], in 5 short sentences, so I can check that I understood the main events. Text: [paste]

Check yourself

7. Comprehension questions

Write 5 comprehension questions in [language] about the text below, from easy to hard. Do not give the answers until I reply. Text: [paste]

8. Correct your summary

Here is my summary of a chapter, written in [language] at level [B1]. Correct the mistakes, show each correction with a short reason, and then give the corrected version. Summary: [paste]

9. Quiz on the words you looked up

Quiz me on these [language] words one at a time: give me a sentence with a gap, wait for my answer, then tell me if it is right. Words: [list]

Turn your words into new reading

The words you looked up are the most useful vocabulary you have, because they come from texts you chose. These two prompts recycle them.

10. A story from your word list

Write a short story in [language] at level [B1], about 300 words, that uses all of these words naturally. Put each of them in bold. Words: [list]

11. Flashcards from a passage

From the text below, make flashcards for a [B1] learner as a table with three columns: the word in its dictionary form, the translation into [English], and the sentence from the text with the word replaced by ___. Text: [paste]

The limit of all eleven is the same: they work on a paragraph, not on a book. A novel copied in piece by piece is a novel you stop reading, and the words you looked up stay in old chats unless you copy them out.

What ChatGPT gets wrong

• Confident mistakes. Explanations of rare words, idioms and regional usage can be wrong and sound certain. OpenAI tells users to check important information; for a learner that means checking a surprising meaning in a dictionary.
• Levels drift. Ask for A2 and some sentences come out at B1. If the rewrite feels hard, say so and ask for shorter sentences.
• Long texts get shortened. Paste a long chapter and the summary or rewrite may leave parts out. Work a page at a time.

Questions people ask