How to learn english words

How to learn English

One one hand I don’t want to be the final authority, but on the other hand, I’d like to share my point of view on how to learn English. The English language is not secret knowledge; it is just a lot of hard training. One of the most important bullets is constantly improving English. You should do it from day to day if you want to approach result. It must not loathe torture for you, It means that you should find out something interesting in that process.

Let’s begin

Vocabulary, grammar, reading & audition are possible to train at home without a teacher. It depends on your patience, determination & systematicity. Let’s go to tools.

This tools will not help you if you do nothing with it. If you work hard then few months or years later, as a result, you should have big enough passive vocabulary & be able to understand the English voice. The main idea of that stage is that you must do something constantly every day & it should be interesting for you.

Show must go on

At the next stage, I suppose that you would like to improve your speaking. First of all, you should convert thoughts into English speech(not translate. ). How to deal with it?

Q: Is it possible to speak English without speaking?

A: No.

Well, you can read & write at home without help, but for speaking you must talk. There are some services for that, i.e. preply, skyeng, italki, etc. From my point of view, at the beginning you don’t have to speak with a native speaker, it’s ok just talk with somebody with C2 level.

Conclusion

How to learn continuously? It’s a sophisticated question. I use something like GTD/S.M.A.R.T.

No pain, no gain.

When I was in primary school, I visited a private English coach for a year or two. However, there were no major results. A bit later, there were English lessons, when I was in secondary school, unfortunately, I was not really good in English learning. As a result, when I had graduated from school, I heard that grammar exist, could not talk at all, was able to read with a dictionary. When I was studying at a university, I had been involved in IT, so I started to read IT docs in English. Sometimes, I used to do it with a dictionary.

Just before I graduate, I had applied for international IT company. It was funny & frightful. I had to talk & chat with workmates during the day, so my English was improving forcedly & sharply. i.e.

In 2017 I applied for an international IT company and started an intermediate course again… On one hand It was strange because I finished it 6 years ago, but on the other hand, I finished it without any major efforts. However, I’ve been doing English tasks myself. i.e.:

One of the bests ways is to go to an English school, usually, they can estimate your level for free before a course. However, there are a lot of online tests:

The main problem is that there are no free online audition tests.

How to Learn New Words Fast: 13 Smart Techniques for Language Learners

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The ability to speak one, or more, foreign languages is an increasingly sought skill in today’s world. However, mastering a foreign language means more than just memorizing vocabulary words – it takes time to properly learn a language, but it is ultimately worth it as it gives us broader access to education and information and allows us to connect with people from all over the world, making life decidedly more interesting.

The importance of learning foreign languages

In an increasingly globalized world, the importance of learning foreign languages cannot be played down. Foreign languages are important because they open up new worlds of possibilities for learners:

The amount of time it takes to learn a new language from scratch

The amount of time it will take a person to learn a new language from scratch depends on a variety of factors. These include the age of the learner, their attitude, and the amount of time they spend studying and using the language. The amount of time required to learn a new language will also depend on whether the learner has previous experience with other foreign languages or not.

Another issue to consider when trying to answer the question of how long it takes to learn a new language is which language is being learned. The US Foreign Service Institute (FSI) categorizes different languages into different groups based on their difficulty for native English speakers. According to their rating, it is easier to learn French (Group 1) than it is to learn Turkish (Group 3) or Japanese (Group 4).

A rough estimate is that to reach limited working proficiency one needs to spend 480 hours on a new Group 1 language and 720 hours on a new Group 2-4 language. The amount of time will vary depending on which learning method is used: full immersion is quicker than structured weekly lessons.

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How many hours a day should you study a foreign language?

Students wishing to master a new foreign language fast should obviously dedicate as much time as possible to learning it. In the early days of foreign language study, learners should spend thirty minutes to an hour a day actively studying the basics of the language, like pronunciation and grammar.

Once more comfortable with the language, students should start incorporating language exposure to their day, which involves reading books or listening to audio in the foreign language and spend longer periods of time studying.

For those who don’t have that much free time to dedicate to learning a new language, it should be added that, according to a methodology called microlearning, a few minutes per day can be just as effective. The thinking behind is that quality matters more than quantity and, if you do one small thing every day for a short amount of time, you will gradually improve.

Can you learn a language in 15 minutes a day?

According to the Babbel language learning approach, 15 minutes a day is enough to learn a new language. Studying for such a short amount of time means that our brain doesn’t overload with information that is unlikely to stick to our long-term memory. The approach builds repetition into short, dynamic lessons.

A language is a collection of words structured by a set of rules put in place to combine meaningful messages for communication. These rules are important aspects to take into consideration when learning a new foreign language.

The four main aspects to master when learning a foreign language

Language is the ability to produce and comprehend spoken and written words. All languages have underlying structural rules which make communication possible. The four main aspects one has to master when learning a foreign language are grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation, and syntax.

By mastering these aspects, we can use a foreign language to convey an infinite number of concepts.

Vocabulary Skills

Vocabulary skills refer to one’s ability to express themselves effortlessly using a wide variety of words. You can improve your vocabulary skills in a foreign language by reading, listening to songs, or watching movies in that language.

The Four Types of Vocabulary

There are four types of vocabulary, namely:

Vocabulary builder

A vocabulary builder is a popular online tool designed to teach learners specific units or themes of words briefly and in an engaging manner.

The advantages of using a vocabulary builder are:

Here are 3 good vocabulary builder apps you can download:

And in this video a talented English tutor shows how such a trivial word as tree can help you improve your vocabulary immensely!

Vocabulary list

A vocabulary list is essentially what you would expect: a list of words. Making a list of specific words that you want to learn and repeating them over and over again will help you remember them.

The 5 words most commonly used in English are, unsurprisingly, articles, verbs, prepositions and conjunctions. They are the following:

If you’re interested in finding what the 1000 most common words in English are, or any language for that matter, check out the website 1000mostcommonwords.com that is dedicated to telling you this specifically.

The Importance of Learning Vocabulary

When learning a new foreign language, it pays off to focus on growing your vocabulary. Vocabulary is essential because:

Linguists often debate the definition of fluency. What makes someone fluent in a foreign language? Is it about how many words a person knows or is it more about their comprehension? How long does it take to become fluent in a new language? We take a look at the concept of fluency right below.

Defining fluency

Defining fluency is far from simple. While the word originates from the Latin fluentem (to flow), language can “flow” comfortably for many speakers even if they are not fully fluent. People can be conversationally fluent in a language they are learning (meaning they can hold their own in a conversation) or natively fluent, which the highest standard of fluency (meaning being able to think in that language).

You are considered to be fluent when your speaking ability allows you to talk freely and without hesitation and when you are able to follow a conversation in a group of natives while talking about things you’re not used to talking about.

Fluency in numbers: How many words do you need to know to be fluent?

While it is difficult to precisely measure fluency in a number of words, there are some rough indicators of how many words you would need to learn to reach specific proficiency levels in a foreign language.

Learning 250-500 words will be enough to get you through everyday tourist situations in a foreign country, while 1,000-3,000 will mean that you are also able to have meaningful conversations. An advanced learner would know 4,000-10,000 words, including specialized vocabulary, whereas fluent speakers tend to have a vocabulary of over 10,000 words with native speakers topping the “vocabulary ranks” with their 10,000-30,000+ words.

Fluency in time: How long does it take to learn the number of words that is necessary to become fluent?

Becoming fluent in a foreign language is a process that takes time. The amount of time it takes differs from individual to individual, depending on the level of fluency they want to achieve, their familiarity with the study of foreign languages, and the method they use to learn the language.

According to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR), there are six levels of fluency, beginning with A1 and ending with mastery in C2. Each of these levels takes approximately 200 hours of study, suggesting that the highest level of fluency would take an average of 1200 hours of study to attain.

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How to Learn English Vocabulary: 5 Best Methods

Learning a foreign language isn’t always easy, especially when it comes to vocabulary. (I’ve been studying Japanese for years and still have trouble remembering words!) Luckily, there are many ways you can learn English vocabulary—and some of them are even a little fun!

In this guide, we go over the top five methods you can use to learn English words and give you a few tips on how to find English words to study.

Method 1: Make Flashcards

One of the most popular (and arguably best) ways to learn English vocabulary is to use flashcards. Each flashcard will have one English word written on the front and the word’s translation or definition on the back.

To study them, you’ll look at one side of a card and say the word on it in the opposite language before you look at the other side of the card (so if you were looking at the English side, for example, you’d say the word in your native language).

Flashcards are excellent resources because they help you memorize vocabulary words both quickly and effectively. They’re also customizable and reusable. Both paper and digital cards are available, and you can make your own cards, buy a pre-made deck, or download a deck online.

How to Use This Method Effectively

Flashcards must be used in specific ways in order to be effective for English-language learning. These methods differ depending on whether you’re studying with paper or digital flashcards.

Paper Flashcards

Paper flashcards are best for those who prefer more traditional study methods and want a break from computers and smartphones.

You can use any blank note cards to make your flashcards. Once you have some, start making your cards: with each card, write an English word (spelled correctly!) on the front and its translation in your native language (or an image of the word) on the back. You may also include on the front the word’s part of speech and/or a sample English sentence.

When finished, begin studying your flashcards using the «waterfall» method. With this method, you’ll study cards in subsets (smaller stacks of cards) and get to review harder English words more often than words you already know.

We explain the waterfall method in more detail in our guide to TOEFL vocabulary flashcards. However, to summarize briefly, here’s how it works:

#1: Go through all of your flashcards and make two piles: a «Know It» pile (with words you know) and a «Struggled» pile (with words you don’t know). Put the «Struggled» pile to the right of the «Know It» pile:

#2: Next, go through the cards in your «Struggled» pile one at a time. As you do this, make a second «Know It» pile for words you know (put this pile to the right of your original «Know It» pile). For words you don’t know, put them back in your «Struggled» pile.

#3: Continue this process of going through your «Struggled» pile and making new «Know It» piles until you only have four to five cards left in your «Struggled» pile. Here’s what your cards should look like:

#4: Now, work your way back up your «waterfall» of cards, starting with your «Struggled» pile. Go through this stack of cards until you know all of the words in it. You might have to go through it several times before you can remember all of the words.

#5: Combine the «Struggled» pile with the «Know It» pile directly to the left of it. Now, you’ll go through all of the words in both piles (combined as one) until you know all of these words.

#6: Repeat step 5 until you’ve gone through all of the cards in your deck, from right to left. You should now know the meanings of all of the English words on your flashcards!

Digital Flashcards

Some people (myself included!) prefer studying foreign languages with digital, or computerized, flashcards. These types of flashcards are accessible through software applications, websites, and/or apps.

While there are many free flashcard-making websites and programs available, my personal favorites are Anki and Memrise.

Anki is a free downloadable software through which you can make your own flashcards or download pre-made decks submitted by users. It uses spaced-repetition software (SRS) to show you difficult cards more often—similar to the waterfall method described above—making it convenient and easy to use.

Memrise, on the other hand, is a free language-learning website that offers tons of pre-made decks. It’s a little flashier and more game-like than Anki, so if you’d prefer a more «fun» way to learn English words, this is a great website (and app!) to try out.

Method 2: Make a Study List

Another helpful method is to make a list of all of the English-vocabulary words you want to learn. A list is different from flashcards in that it has all of the words you need to know in one place (instead of on separate cards). If you don’t want to deal with the hassle of using note cards, a study list is a solid option.

How to Use This Method Effectively

Write your English words on the left side of a piece of paper, from top to bottom. I suggest numbering the words and adding their parts of speech, too (this is helpful because it teaches you how to use the words).

Then, on the right side of the paper, write the translation of each word in your native language (again, from top to bottom so that each translation aligns horizontally with its English equivalent). Here’s an example:

When you’re ready to start studying, get a separate sheet of paper (or your hand) to cover up the words on the right. You’ll then move this sheet down as you read and define each English word on the left. Make sure to say each word aloud in English before translating it into your native language.

Once you’ve defined a word, move your sheet of paper down to check that you’ve translated it correctly:

As you go through your list, consider marking any words you’re having trouble remembering. This way you’ll know right away which words you need to spend a little more time on than others.

Here are some additional ways you can use your list to learn English vocabulary:

These are both great methods to use after you’ve used the main method described above and are more familiar with the English vocabulary on your list.

Method 3: Write Out Words Repeatedly

If you want to practice spelling English words and like doing something physical as you study, writing out words is a solid option to try. With this method, you’ll write out each English word several times as you say it aloud.

If you’ve taken English courses in the past, you’ve probably had homework similar to this (I had to write out new words all the time for Japanese class in junior high and high school!). Although rote memorization isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, it can still be a highly effective way to learn English words.

How to Use This Method Effectively

The best way to write out words is to have a set number of times you’re going to write them out. Usually, 10 to 20 times is sufficient. Just make sure you’re actively thinking about each word as you write it out: look at the letters and how they’re arranged, pronounce it, and then define it.

I find that it’s helpful to note the translation of each word (in your native language) above your repetitions so that you don’t forget the meanings of any words and can more readily make associations between words in your language and in English.

Finally, I strongly suggest using this method with one of the two methods above (flashcards or a study list) to keep you from getting bored with your studies. Personally, I think the flashcard method is better as it’s more fun and doesn’t require you to make another long list of words.

Method 4: Take Vocabulary Quizzes

If you’re tired of flashcards and lists, vocabulary quizzes are a great way to test what you’ve learned and ensure you truly understand the meanings of English words.

Many English-word quizzes are available for free online. While some are traditional tests, others are more game-like; for example, you might find a matching game in which you have to match English words with their meanings (also in English!).

You can also make your own vocabulary quizzes using any of the resources above (flashcards, lists, etc.).

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To be fair, it’s possible to get a good TOEFL score studying alone. But PrepScholar is the world’s most effective TOEFL course if you are worried about the TOEFL and are struggling to improve your score.

How to Use This Method Effectively

You have two options when it comes to English-vocabulary quizzes: look for pre-made quizzes online, or make your own.

Online Quizzes

If looking for quizzes online, I recommend starting with popular learning websites.

One option is Free Rice, whose «English Vocabulary» mode tests your knowledge of various high-level English words. Each question gives you one English word and four possible synonyms; the answer choices are also in English, so you’ll need to have a high English level in order to do well. For each question you get right, Free Rice donates 10 grains of rice to help end world hunger. So this is an excellent resource to use if you like the idea of helping others as you study!

Quizlet and Cram are two other websites you can use for free. Both offer flashcards, vocabulary lists, quizzes, and games. All you do is choose an English-vocabulary deck (or make your own) and then test yourself using the site’s «Test» feature.

Both websites’ «Test» features are similar to an actual language test: you get a variety of question types, from fill-in-the-blank and matching to multiple choice and true or false. With Cram, however, you can also choose how the system grades your answers. For example, you can make it so you don’t lose any points for errors in punctuation or capitalization.

Making Your Own Quizzes

The best way to make your own English-vocabulary quiz is to use flashcards (see method 1). With flashcards, you can easily randomize the words you’ll get and can’t predict which words will come up.

To make a quiz, get out a sheet of paper and number it 1-20 (or however many questions you want to have). Then, choose a flashcard at random. On your paper, write down the English word shown and (without flipping the card over) its translation or meaning in your native language.

Don’t check your answers right away by flipping the cards over—rather, wait until you’ve finished your entire quiz and then flip over the flashcards to score your test.

Method 5: Use Vocabulary Words in Conversation and Writing

Although the methods above are extremely useful for memorizing English words, you’ll never retain the words you learn unless you actually use them in conversation and writing. In short, context is key!

How to Use This Method Effectively

If you’d like to use new English words in conversation, you’ll first need to find native English speakers or other English-language learners to practice speaking with. If you don’t live in an English-speaking country, try looking for English-language groups or clubs you can join in your area. Meetup, for example, is a handy website you can use to search for language groups around you (you can even create one yourself!).

Another option for English-speaking practice is to pay for video chat language lessons. Fees vary depending on the company you use and how many hours you want to practice. Some of the best websites to try include Live Lingua, Verbalplanet, and italki.

But what about writing in English? If you want to practice using words in writing, start keeping a journal and then have other people (preferably native English speakers) read your work to check that you’re correctly using new vocabulary.

My personal recommendation is a free website called Lang-8 on which you write various posts (such as journal entries, questions, stories, etc.) in your target language. Once you make a post, native English speakers then correct your entries and offer feedback. I’ve used this website many times before while studying Japanese, and it’s always been an extremely helpful resource!

You can also find a pen pal to write to in English—ideally, one who is a native English speaker and will write to you in your native language in return. This way you can have someone you know correct your English as you also correct his or her writing in your language!

How to Find English Vocabulary to Study: 3 Options

Now that we’ve given you a handful of methods you can use for learning English vocabulary, here are a few tips on where to actually find new English words to study.

#1: Write Down Words You Hear and Read

This is perhaps one of the most practical methods for learning English vocabulary, and one I often used while living in Japan. Basically, you’ll keep a running list of any unfamiliar English words you hear or read in both your day-to-day life and studies.

For listening, some of the best resources to use for finding new words are as follows:

For reading, try looking for new English words to practice in these resources:

Once you’ve found vocabulary words you want to study, open a Word document on your computer and start making a list. You can then add words to this list whenever you come across ones you don’t know in your listening and reading practice.

Make sure to include most or all of the following elements on your vocabulary list:

You can then use this list as your primary study list or to help you make flashcards and quizzes.

#2: Look for Free Word Lists Online

Another helpful option is to seek out pre-made English word lists. Waiting to hear or read new English vocabulary isn’t always practical for language learners, but you can luckily find many free English-word lists online using the websites mentioned above (e.g., Quizlet, Cram, Memrise, etc.).

If you want to study upper-level academic vocabulary, try looking specifically for vocabulary lists targeting popular college-admission tests, such as the TOEFL, GRE, SAT, and ACT. At PrepScholar, we’ve gathered all high-frequency words for these exams and even created free downloadable flashcards for the TOEFL and GRE.

#3: Use a Textbook

If you like having structure in your vocabulary studies, consider buying an English-language textbook or workbook. These books should give you plenty of new vocabulary words to study as well as lots of relevant exercises to help you memorize and retain them. Oftentimes, textbooks come with a built-in dictionary, too!

Make sure you’re choosing a book that’s highly reviewed and geared toward your English level. You can also try looking at books that specifically target the TOEFL. Unfortunately, English-language textbooks cater mostly to beginner and intermediate learners, so if you’re an advanced English speaker, you’ll likely benefit more from the two options above.

Conclusion: How to Learn English Vocabulary

There are many different ways to learn English vocabulary, from rote memorization and repetition to flashcards and quizzes. But in the end, it’s up to you to figure out which methods will work best for your learning style.

Here are some final pieces of advice to remember when studying English vocabulary:

Good luck with your English studies!

What’s Next?

Need English-vocabulary words to study? Take a look at our list of 300+ high-frequency TOEFL words today! We also have created a free TOEFL vocabulary flashcards PDF here.

Want more tips on how to learn English? Start with our guide to learning English and figuring out your language goals. Then, move on to our article on the best English-language games you can play, with others or by yourself!

Planning to take the TOEFL? Then you’ll definitely want to read our expert tips on how to prepare for this tricky English test.

Taking the TOEFL and need to boost your score? We have the world’s leading TOEFL course.

Built by world-class instructors from Harvard and MIT, our TOEFL course offers individual review, interactive lessons, and realistic online practice, at an affordable price! It’s the fastest way to get your target TOEFL score. And the best part? You can try it out for 5 days absolutely free of charge!

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Hannah received her MA in Japanese Studies from the University of Michigan and holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Southern California. From 2013 to 2015, she taught English in Japan via the JET Program. She is passionate about education, writing, and travel.

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How to Learn English Words

Learn English words quickly and easily with these tips and resources.

We all know we must learn English words—and lots of them—to speak the language well. A native English speaker knows approximately 12,000 to 20,000 words according to experts.

Mother tongue English speakers learn these words over a lifetime of informal daily life and in formal schooling.

There are anywhere from 450,000 to one million English words depending on whether you count words separately (e.g., sit, sitting, sat, sitter) or as part of a word family (e.g., sit).

We also learn words as part of idiomatic phrases (a set group of words that together have a meaning that’s different than the separate words. e.g., sitting on top of the world).

Before we look at which words to learn and how to learn them, please note that this website includes many vocabulary word lists and lessons as you can see below.

Get Your Free Vocabulary Puzzles eBook

Solving puzzles is a great way to learn vocabulary. This book contains more than 25 crossword, word search and word scramble puzzles on 20 different topics.

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Oyster English’s vocabulary lessons

Frequently used words: learn English words strategically

So which words should you learn first? The average spoken or written English text has many frequently-used words.

In fact, certain words are used so often that if you know the 2,000 most frequently-used words you’ll understand 80% of the words in an average text.

Most students learning English as a second language will only need to learn 2,000 to 5,000 of the most common words in order to reach a high level of English.

Several dictionaries, such as the Oxford American dictionary, note to which words are the most frequently-used words.

There are also specialized dictionaries that have just the most frequently-used words (a good choice is Routledge frequency dictionary: A Frequency Dictionary of Contemporary American English).

Sounds difficult but not impossible to learn 2,000 words, right?

Well, it’s a little bit more complicated that that! Words are just part of the story.

It’s the way that we COMBINE words into phrases and clauses; what form of the word we are using (e.g., using the word as a noun or verb), etc. that helps us understand and communicate in English.

Collocations: Learn English words in chunks (groups of words)

The best advice I can give you for learning English vocabulary is to learn them in groups of words rather than individual words.

We call these collocations, which are two or more words that usually go together.

For example, when talking about sports, we say «go skiing» not play skiing or do skiing. However, we say «play tennis» not go tennis or do tennis.

And we say «do karate» not play karate or go karate.

You also may know about idioms, which are expressions whose meaning is different from the individual words that make up the phrase.

For example, «hit the sack» means to go to bed (and not take a stick and hit a sack).

There are also many phrasal verbs, which are two- or three-word phrases that have a verb and a preposition and or adverb. (e.g., «turn down» the radio means to lower the volume).

So how exactly do you learn collocations, idioms, and phrasal verbs? My top recommendations are:

Learner’s Dictionaries

One of the best ways is to learn English words is to use a quality dictionary. A learner’s dictionary provides information about all of three of these types of language chunks for every word in the dictionary.

They also provide sample sentences.

I really cannot recommend getting a quality learner’s dictionary strongly enough!

A key to learning English words is to see the word many times and in different contexts and examples.

You’ll also have to preferably say a word out loud or use it in conversation, write it, and hear it in addition to reading it.

A learner usually has to experience the word 5 to 15 times before it’s firm in the learner’s memory.

Reading (especially graded readers and audio books)

My number one recommendation for learning English words is reading.

When you read, you see the word in a real context.

As noted above, this is going to be helpful because you’ll see how the word collocates with other words. So you get to see the surrounding words.

There are some excellent books, called graded readers.

Graded readers will help you learn vocabulary very quickly and learn words at your level of English. Click here to read more about graded readers and why they are so excellent for helping you learn English words.

Another great resource are audiobooks.

Many graded readers also come with audiobooks so you get the best of both worlds.

In English, you can find audiobooks for most popular books these days and you can buy them easily online.

For example you can order them from Amazon.com’s partner company Audible.com.

If you buy the original book you can follow along and practice listening to the words used by a native speaker and this will help you with pronunciation too.

Learn English with Flashcards

Flashcards are very basic but effective way to learn targeted words.

Many students use Anki which you can download for free from the Internet, to make electronic flashcards with pictures and audio.

The advantage of Anki is that you can use it to practice words at intervals so that you can review a word a few days weeks or months later.

As I’ve said above, repetition is the key and you’ll need to read and/or hear a word 5-15 times on average to memorize the word.

Anki uses «spaced repetition» to make sure that you don’t forget the words.

A good notebook is another basic but effective tool for helping you to learn English words.

Students underestimate this basic tool.

This is something that’s really important to stop and recognize in a digital age, where we use computers and smart phones to do almost everything.

It has been scientifically studied and proven that writing things down improves memory retention.

I encourage my students to draw pictures or diagrams. For example if they’re going to learn the parts of the body they can draw the body and label the parts. This helps students remember better than just a list of words.

Being creative with vocabulary words really helps. Just use your imagination.

For example, you can use Post-it notes to label everything in your house in English. Put a Post-it note on the table, on the telephone, on the refrigerator and every appliance on your counter top, etc.

Using a calendar is another great way to practice.

Simply buy yourself a new calendar or use the one on your phone or computer, and select one word per day. You can review your calendar at the end of each week, the end of each month and then randomly pick a few days to practice.

Learn English words with games

Games are another great option.

You can buy ESL word search and cross-word puzzle books and language arts activity books for English-speaking children. Have you checked out our FREE vocabulary puzzles?

Board games like Scrabble or Pictionary are also great games to play with your friends who are also keen to improve their English skills.

These are just a few tips and I hope some of them will be helpful for you.

26 Best Ways to Learn Vocabulary Words Fast and Effectively

There are many languages which are spoken all over the world. To have good communication skills, a person must have good command over the language. People want to have good command over the language, but they never know which is the best way to accomplish their requirement. People often get confused about how to learn or best ways to learn vocabulary words fast and effectively.

Best Techniques for Learning Vocabulary:

Vocabulary acts as a strong basis for any language. You cannot be good at any language if you lack proper vocabulary. If you want to learn any language fluently then you need to get a strong grip on vocabulary. Moreover, it is the one ingredient that beautifies the language in the right way.

Now, it is not so tough as it sounds, but learning vocabulary can be considered as an advanced topic in language learning. Be it any language, target it and learn it as much as possible by following the steps mentioned below.

How to Learn Vocabulary Words Fast and Effectively?

The following mentioned tips explain to you how to learn vocabulary quickly, fast and in an easy way.

1. Talk to yourself whenever possible:

People who want to learn a new language, do not know the new words and they don’t have any idea as to how to fill the gaps in between. Whenever a person wants to learn a new language, then he should continuously talk to himself about various things like what he likes or what he wants to be…and so on.

By doing this, he will be able to understand the areas where he is lacking and he can make the necessary corrections.

2. Write down all the points which you want to remember:

One of the best ways to memorize things is to make a list of all the things that a person wants to remember. Always keep a book and whenever there are words which need to be remembered, then list them and make use of them whenever required.

By maintaining the list the person can have his own pocket dictionary and he can carry it wherever he wants to.

3. Read as much as possible:

If a person gets into the habit of reading, then a person is exposed to new words. Always make it a habit to underline the new words and refer to them in the context section and try to understand their meaning. By doing this, you will remember the words and will be able to make its correct usage.

4. Try to improve the context skills:

People always make use of context section whenever they are introduced to a new word. While a person reads or writes, always pay attention to the usage of the words. This will allow a person to know the correct usage of the word and will remember it for lifelong. There are various online sites that give detailed classes as to how to improve upon the context skills.

5. Practice is the key:

The best way to learn any language is to practice it. A person can practice it by writing it on a daily basis. For this, a person can write the word at least 10 times daily and also make sentences with its meaning. This will help not only to learn words, but also the meaning as well.

By maintaining the dictionary, a person can write 5 to 10 words to learn on a daily basis and refer to it whenever needed.

6. Try to make connections with the words:

Whenever a person listens to a word, he should try to connect it to a word of similar meaning or words which help you to remember them.

For example: If a person wants to remember the word gigantic, then he should connect it with Godzilla or any other rhyming word. This will create a picture in the mind of a person and he will be able to remember the meaning as well.

7. Make use of mnemonics:

People often don’t know about mnemonics. It is the device which is used to make people learn about the new good vocabulary words. This device helps to create a story in the mind of its reader so whenever he listens to it, he can connect it with that word and know its meaning.

There are different ways under this technique and a person can choose from a variety of ways, as every person has his own best way to learn vocabulary.

8. Keep searching the new words:

Always make it a habit to look out for new best vocabulary words every now and then. These days there are a variety of online dictionaries that are available. These programs provide a chance to the reader to go through a variety of words and introduce them with new words every time they search for them.

9. Play and have fun with the words:

Make it a habit to play with words through various board games like Scrabble, crossword puzzles and many other for your vocabulary improvement. These days to play these games a person doesn’t need partners as a person can play with the computer as a partner.

Also make it a habit to solve the crossword puzzle that are published in the newspaper for daily practice.

10. Make use of the vocabulary word lists:

Make use of the vocabulary word lists for the serious knowledge of the new words. These days there are many books available in the market for the knowledge of the words that are used in the competitive examinations. Also, various online sites are available where they provide knowledge about these words.

11. Take your own vocabulary tests:

One of the best ways to learn vocabulary is take your own tests. By taking your own tests, a person can easily evaluate the areas where he needs to work harder. Taking your own test will highlight your weaknesses and the corrective measures can be taken. These days online vocabulary tests are also available, so take these online vocabulary tests and find the areas of correction.

12. Play online vocabulary games:

Today the technology has advanced to a great level. There are so many online vocabulary games available that makes learning a complete fun. These games make learning not only entertaining but much easier. Another important feature of these games is that they make learning much easier as well as the kids at a very young age can start learning through these games.

13. Communicate more with people:

Practical experience of any knowledge is the best way to determine the level at which a person stands. Through communication with more and more people a person can get the actual learning process to start. When we communicate with more people we get a better understanding of the language and we get to know the correct usage of the language.

14. Imagine things in relation to the words:

Try to imagine things whenever you listen to new words. This will automatically become your habit once you start practicing this thing. Like it is done in school where teachers make the students remember things by telling them a story and creating a picture in their minds. This habit of a person will help him to create a picture in the mind of its listeners.

15. Try to remember in small portions:

Never try to remember too many things at one go because this will create confusion and make it difficult to remember. Language is a way to express things and not a tool where you just have to apply a formula.

Always try to connect the words with certain adjectives as they will add more meaning to the word and make it easier to remember.

16. Make use of pictures:

Whenever a person listens to a new word, draw a picture that will make a person remember it for a long time. For example, when a person is talking to another person in a new language and is unable to remember some words, then with the help of those pictures he can remember those words and can converse easily.

Just like in small classes where teachers use pictures to make students remember alphabets and they recall them by remembering those pictures.

17. Try to remember words with opposite meanings:

Whenever we hear a word we try to know its meaning as well. So, whenever a person listens to a word try to remember its opposite as well because sometimes it is easier to remember the opposite rather than the word itself. By doing this you can remember the word as well as the opposite as well. This helps to learn two words at a time.

18. A person should set realistic goals for himself:

Every individual has his own caliber to do things, although there are some exceptional cases. Generally, on average a person can remember only 10 words that he learns at a time.

So, try to set goals that are realistic rather than goals which are difficult to achieve. Even if a person sets higher goals for himself, then he has to put in extra efforts which may sometimes become an overburden.

19. Try to learn in clusters:

Always try to learn in cluster because it is difficult to remember a single word. Words, when learnt in a cluster, is a easy to remember. Whenever a person tries to remember words in a cluster he creates a picture in his mind and in the times of its usage there flows a chain in his mind. By doing this he can actually remember a large number of words at a time.

20. Learn words by breaking them:

Try to remember words by breaking them. There are certain words that have a suffix or a prefix attached to them. By dividing these words it becomes easier to remember them as they become two words to be remembered. Also, it helps to study the conjugations that are attached in these words.

21. Try to focus on phrases rather than a word:

Try to focus on phrases that are commonly used because it is easier to words which are commonly used in day to day conversation because our minds tend to remember them more easily.

This way the words are easily remembered and when combined in different combinations we get to frame new sentences easily. This is an easy way to remember a new language very easily.

22. Learn through music:

It is difficult to learn words when remembered in a theoretical manner. Music is that one thing which is loved by all, even kids can easily relate to it. Words can be easily remembered when learned in the form of a song.

Whenever a person sings a song he can remember the lyrics of the song as well. Similarly, any language when converted in the form of a song can be easily remembered and when sung the words flow automatically.

23. Take your dictionary to the gym:

It is a well-known fact that whenever we do any form of physical exercise our brain tends to do work at a faster rate than normal.

So, whenever you hit the gym do take your dictionary with you and with the repetition of the exercise repeat the words along. As you know that by repeating the exercise we become perfect in them, same goes with the words also.

24. Give color schemes to the words:

Often it happens that we are very close to remember the word, but it is not possible for us to recollect that word because it is not photostatted on our memory. This problem can be solved by a simple technique of color scheme. Like we can write all the words in negative in red color and words with positive meaning in green color. This way you can easily recollect the words whenever you come across them.

25. Make a list of all the important word’s sequence wise:

An effective tool for remembering the words is making the list of important words in order of the priority of their usage. This way whenever you go through a list of important words the ones that are important are revised earlier.

26. Use FluentU:

Fluentu is an application that converts real-world videos, trailers into personalized learning lessons. There are various levels in this application and the lessons depend on the level selected. Once it is turned to lesson mode the lessons automatically starts.

Conclusion:

Learning any language is a task when done in a boring way, but when done in an interesting way it becomes fun. So, use the above-listed techniques and get that command over the language.