How to remember new vocabulary

Question

Hello my friendsCan you tell me some tips for remembering new English vocabulary?Thanks

Marius Hancu · Accepted Answer

Buy English books with a large margin.
Write the meaning of the new words on the margins.
Read the words for the previous day.
Also, at the end of the book, read all the words again.

Buy a notebook/booklet for new words.
Write them down there and re-read them periodically.

Pucca · Answer

Hello Juan and Marius!

I don't know if it will work for you what I do but when I come across a new word, I write it down, especially idioms, and, try to use it as soon as possible so that I can get more familiar to it.

Good luck!

Selecter · Answer

To a large extent, you can learn new words easily if you use as many brain zones as possible. The most significant ones (in descending order) are responsible for association, imagery(pictures, drawings), colors and grouping. So write new words using these. Use color, special signs that evoke some special associations only you aware of. Use pictures and, if you can draw, drawings. Also write the words down using printed letters, not handwritten. And pay attention to the size of the letters. The larger they are, the more attention your brain pays to that word.

Remember that association is the most efficient way of memorizing. So don't learn words separately, but in common phrases, collocations and sentenses you encounter. Gulping a dictionary won't do any good. Regular human brain doesn't work that way - it will get bored of list of unconnected words.

Buy a book Cambridge University Press - Vocabulary in Use. Make sure you get the last edition. And, if you like psychology, read about how to learn to learn :-) It really helps. Mind mapping is also a good read. Check youtube for demo video clip.

Yes, and don't forget to use the new words you have written down. Try to use them when you write or speak in English. Also repeat the words once a week before you go to bed :-)

OMEGA-3 improves memory and lengthens attention span. Read about it in wikipedia.

JuanZZZ · Answer

Great advice!!!

I'll try it

Anonymous · Answer

I personally have a funny way to remember a vocabulary--I try to remember it as a picture.

For example, if vocabulary is a new word for me, I focus my eyes on the whole word, then I close my eyes and force myself recall the whole word together with its shape, then I open eyes and check whether it is right, I repeat such action until I can recall it right several times. By such a way, the word occurs in my brain like a slide/flash. Such a method works great to myself.

Maybe my English here will confuse you, so would any native speaker here like to help me interpretate what I said in clearer English? Thanks.

JuanZZZHello my friends

Can you tell me some tips for remembering new English vocabulary?

Thanks

Osee · Answer

(missing image)

I personally have a funny way to remember a vocabulary--I try to remember it as a picture.

For example, if vocabulary is a new word for me, I focus my eyes on the whole word, then I close my eyes and force myself recall the whole word together with its shape, then I open eyes and check whether it is right, I repeat such action until I can recall it right several times. By such a way, the word occurs in my brain like a slide/flash. Such a method works great to myself.

Maybe my English here will confuse you, so would any native speaker here like to help me interpretate what I said in clearer English? Thanks.

Selecter · Answer

AnonymousI personally have a funny way to remember a vocabulary--I try to remember it as a picture.

For example, if vocabulary is a new word for me, I focus my eyes on the whole word, then I close my eyes and force myself recall the whole word together with its shape, then I open eyes and check whether it is right, I repeat such action until I can recall it right several times. By such a way, the word occurs in my brain like a slide/flash. Such a method works great to myself.

Maybe my English here will confuse you, so would any native speaker here like to help me interpretate what I said in clearer English? Thanks.
There's nothing funny in your way of remembering new words :-) Actually, to a certain extent, I used to use your method. Now I realise that it is really efficient. I think it's more efficient if you make these shapes more well-defined, distinct, if you use printed letters instead of handwritten, if you use color. Try that and tell me if it works :-) But anyway it shouldn't replace other techniques. Try combining your way gradually with others. Start with imagery. Imagine an object that corresponds to the word in your mind.
There's a problem with English - it lacks imagery. But some words have it. I remember once I wrote a new word - neckyoke. I highlighted it with red color and imagined it with two images - neck and yoke. It's been a while and I can still remember it in English to Russian translation and vice versa. Some languages like Japanese and Chinese didn't lose its imagery over the years. For example, word wine(???) consists of three symbols that mean fruit, truth and liquor. There are lots of words that could have been used as an example here :-) By the way, ancient Russian language used to be also picturesque.

There's a zone in our brain that is assigned to shapes. There is this autistic savant. His name is Daniel Tammet. He sees shapes before himself that represent numbers. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Tammet

Osee · Answer

Exactly!

Selecter
AnonymousI personally have a funny way to remember a vocabulary--I try to remember it as a picture.

For example, if vocabulary is a new word for me, I focus my eyes on the whole word, then I close my eyes and force myself recall the whole word together with its shape, then I open eyes and check whether it is right, I repeat such action until I can recall it right several times. By such a way, the word occurs in my brain like a slide/flash. Such a method works great to myself.

Maybe my English here will confuse you, so would any native speaker here like to help me interpretate what I said in clearer English? Thanks.

There's nothing funny in your way of remembering new words :-) Actually, to a certain extent, I used to use your method. Now I realise that it is really efficient. I think it's more efficient if you make these shapes more well-defined, distinct, if you use printed letters instead of handwritten, if you use color. Try that and tell me if it works :-) But anyway it shouldn't replace other techniques. Try combining your way gradually with others. Start with imagery. Imagine an object that corresponds to the word in your mind.

There's a problem with English - it lacks imagery. But some words have it. I remember once I wrote a new word - neckyoke. I highlighted it with red color and imagined it with two images - neck and yoke. It's been a while and I can still remember it in English to Russian translation and vice versa. Some languages like Japanese and Chinese didn't lose its imagery over the years. For example, word wine(???) consists of three symbols that mean fruit, truth and liquor. There are lots of words that could have been used as an example here :-) By the way, ancient Russian language used to be also picturesque.

There's a zone in our brain that is assigned to shapes. There is this autistic savant. His name is Daniel Tammet. He sees shapes before himself that represent numbers.

Marius Hancu · Answer

>There's a problem with English - it lacks imagery.

I'm not sure why say French, Russian or German would be any better in that respect.

CalifJim · Answer

There's a problem with English - it lacks imagery.

This is the first time I've ever heard this. Most people say that English is full of imagery, and especially useful, though subtle, imagery when it comes to many, many near-synonyms that are available to refine your way of expressing thoughts. Maybe it's a matter of becoming familiar with the imagery contained in the root syllables, much of which has been obscured through historical developments -- but it's there if you're willing to research it and "dig it out".

As for the main question, the way to remember words is to use them as much as possible. Write a lot of example sentences using the new word. Have someone knowledgeable check them to be sure you are using the word correctly, or have them help you compose sentences which show the word in its most typical uses. Then try using it in your speech as well.

CJ

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