English levels explained: A1, A2 and B1
Every story on English Newsroom is written three times, once for each of the first three CEFR levels. This page explains what each level means, what our stories look like at that level, and how to choose yours.
What the CEFR levels mean
The Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) describes what a learner can do in a language on six levels, from A1 (beginner) to C2 (mastery). Most English exams — Cambridge, IELTS, TOEFL, Trinity — report results on this scale, and most coursebooks are organised by it. We publish at the first three levels.
| Level | Also called | You can… | Our stories | Vocabulary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A1 | Beginner | At A1 you can understand and use very simple everyday expressions, introduce yourself, and ask and answer simple questions about where you live, people you know and things you have. | Our A1 stories use short sentences (usually under 12 words), the present simple and past simple, and the most common 500–800 words of English. | ~500 words |
| A2 | Elementary | At A2 you can understand sentences and frequently used expressions about everyday topics — shopping, work, family, travel — and describe your background and immediate needs in simple terms. | A2 stories use sentences of up to about 20 words, link ideas with because, but, so and when, and add the present perfect and simple future. | ~1,000 words |
| B1 | Intermediate | At B1 you can understand the main points of clear standard texts on familiar matters, deal with most situations while travelling, and describe experiences, events, hopes and opinions with reasons. | B1 stories are written in natural journalistic English — longer sentences, the passive voice, reported speech and quotes from the people involved — but without idioms or rare words. | ~2,000 words |
A1 — Beginner
A1 is the first level of the CEFR, the European framework used by schools and exams worldwide. At A1 you can understand and use very simple everyday expressions, introduce yourself, and ask and answer simple questions about where you live, people you know and things you have.
Our A1 stories use short sentences (usually under 12 words), the present simple and past simple, and the most common 500–800 words of English. Numbers, names and places are kept exactly as in the real news, so you learn to recognise them.
A2 — Elementary
A2 is the second CEFR level, often called elementary or pre-intermediate. At A2 you can understand sentences and frequently used expressions about everyday topics — shopping, work, family, travel — and describe your background and immediate needs in simple terms.
A2 stories use sentences of up to about 20 words, link ideas with because, but, so and when, and add the present perfect and simple future. The vocabulary grows to roughly 1,000 words, and every story still explains the difficult ones.
B1 — Intermediate
B1 is the CEFR intermediate level. At B1 you can understand the main points of clear standard texts on familiar matters, deal with most situations while travelling, and describe experiences, events, hopes and opinions with reasons.
B1 stories are written in natural journalistic English — longer sentences, the passive voice, reported speech and quotes from the people involved — but without idioms or rare words. Around 2,000 words of vocabulary is enough, and the hardest ones are explained.
How to choose your level
- Open any story and read the first paragraph at A2.
- If you understood it without stopping, switch to B1 and read the whole story.
- If you had to stop at several words, switch to A1.
- Do the quiz. Three correct answers means the level is right for you — or a little easy. Two means it is right. One means go down a level for now.
- Move up when you understand a story at your level without using the vocabulary list.
How the three versions are written
Our editors start from the original reporting, keep every fact, name, number and date, and rewrite the text three times. At A1 that means short sentences, the present and past simple, and the most common words of English. At A2 the sentences get longer and are joined with because, but, so and when. At B1 the story reads like a real newspaper article — quotes, the passive, reported speech — with idioms and rare words removed. Read more in how we write the news.
Questions about levels
What does CEFR mean?
CEFR is the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages. It describes language ability on six levels — A1, A2, B1, B2, C1, C2 — and is used by schools, universities and exam boards all over the world, not only in Europe.
Which level should I choose?
Read the first paragraph of a story at A2. If you understand it easily, try B1. If you need to stop at several words, start at A1. There is no wrong choice: you can switch levels on every story, and your choice is remembered.
Why do you stop at B1?
From B2 upwards, learners can read original news with a dictionary. Our job is the bridge from beginner to that point — the levels where real newspapers are still too hard and textbook texts are too artificial.
Are the stories real news?
Yes. Every story is a real event reported by a named source (the BBC, the Guardian, Good News Network and others), which we link under the story. Our editors rewrite the facts at three levels. We never invent details.
How many words do I need at each level?
Roughly 500 words for A1, 1,000 for A2 and 2,000 for B1. Our stories stay inside those limits and explain the harder words in the vocabulary list.