One of the fundamental keys to speaking a second language is to have a wide range of vocabulary. Thanks to it, we can form sentences that allow us to have an efficient communication. Today, we bring you 10 ways to improve your vocabulary in English for effective communication.
📖 Read regularly:
Reading on a daily basis helps a lot in acquiring vocabulary. You can read 10 minutes a day by using books, magazines, online articles and other English materials. This will expose you to a variety of words and expressions. In addition, it will also help your writing skills, as your brain acquires syntactic forms that improve your written communication.
You can find articles on official websites such as:
The New York Times
British Council
Breaking New English
📗Keep a dictionary handy:
The use of a dictionary is fundamental when learning a second language. When you see an unfamiliar word, you can underline it, look it up in the dictionary and make a sentence, so it will be easier to remember the word, its context and its function in the sentence.
Recommended online dictionaries:
Wordreference
Reverso
Cambridge Dictionary
✍🏼 Write down new words:
It is essential to carry a notebook or a note app on your phone, there you can write down words you do not know to later look up their meaning.
🤳🏼 WordBit:
The use of technology facilitates everyday tasks. Do you know how many times you unlock your cell phone in a day? This time, with the help of WordBit, you can learn new words: this application will give you a new word every time you unlock your phone and until you learn it, it will not stop showing you a new one. Best of all, you can select the level (elementary, intermediate, advanced), the category (fruits, verbs, nouns), or even exam topics such as vocabulary for TOEFL, IELTS, and other international exams.
🗂️Flashcards:
Create flashcards with the English word on one side and its meaning on the other, you can also print an image of the word and create a memory game. So that you find both the image and the word and you make associations with those words; if you could play with friends much better because you may help each other and remember or make examples.
🎼 Music and movies:
Listen to music in English and watch movies or TV shows in English (even if the movie was released in your native language. This will help you become familiar with colloquial expressions and everyday vocabulary. You can listen to music or watch movies and write down all the unknown words and then look up their meaning. You can also look at the lyrics of your favorite songs in your native language, and try to translate them into English and sing them; this way, you can review not only vocabulary but also sentence structure and verb tenses.
📱 Educational applications:
Use online applications and resources designed to improve English vocabulary, such as Duolingo, Aba English or Busuu. These platforms will help you improve your English on a routine basis, and you can even interact with other people, correct their writing, pronunciation, and point out words that will allow you to expand your vocabulary.
🗣️ Surround yourself with an English speaking environment:
Your technological devices are an ally to learn English, try to put your phone in English, just like your TV, your computer. If it seems too drastic at the beginning, you can start with everyday applications, as you already know the interface, you will not be able to get lost because you interact with the application; for example, Whatsapp, you already know which is the tab for chats, statuses, calls and settings, but why not change the language to English and start reading the settings to find the equivalence in English? The interface is the same, but the language changes and your mind improves.
If you follow these recommendations, you will be able to improve your English vocabulary. However, remember that consistency and patience are key to learning a language. Don't be discouraged if you seem to be progressing slowly; over time, you will see significant results that will benefit you and allow you to interact with your environment and others.
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