What is language? In simple terms, it is our ability to express our thoughts with words, either spoken or written.
When you just begin your journey you may feel overwhelmed by the sheer number of words you think you should know.
Have a dictionary with pronunciation and learn not just the meaning but also how the word is pronunced. Focus on the stressed syllable, even if your pronunciation is not perfect, if you just get the stress right, you are likely to be understood.
For example, in the Polish language the stress is usually put on the second but last syllable so when they learn to speak English they often tend to copy this pattern into English. But in English the stessed syllable is more varied.
- range of vocaulary in different languages
- what words to learn first?
- 200/300 most essential words in any languge: nouns, verbs, connectors
- reading as a top methid to improve your vocabulary range
- how to approach new words in a text
- how to learn pronunciation: the importance of stress; in Polish it is usually at the second syllabe from the end so not that much problem but with Elngish you often have to guess when you first see the word ( not to mention the problems with spelling)
- how to work with flashcards: handmade physical vs online, mobile systems
- cant stress enough – always learn in context: maybe synonym, a sentence, 2 or 3 collocations
- A great way to build up you vocabulary is to have a go at reading books, magazines, newspapers or comics written in your L2. Ideally look for reading material covering topics you find interesting. When reading, try to guess the meanings of any words you don’t know and then check them in a dictionary to see if your guesses were correct. You don’t have to look up every unfamiliar word as long as you can get the gist of the text.
try Dual-language books, which are also known as parallel texts are a good way to get into literature in foreign languages. They usually have the original language on one page, and the translation on the opposite page. This saves you the trouble of looking up words in a dictionary.
1.Never learn a single word by itself. Learn groups of words that “travel” together.
For example, instead of memorizing the word “flock”, memorize the phrase “a flock of sheep”. Instead of remembering the verb “occur”, remember the phrase “if any problems occur”.
When you remember phrases instead of single words, you ensure that you know how to actually use the word in at least one sentence.
2. There’s just no way around memorizing a bunch of words. So put the words where you’ll see them as often as possible: on a wall, in a notebook you carry around, on your computer desktop, etc. That way you can get in more review “reps” and memorize them more easily.
3.
My personal favorite however is learning languages through creative storytelling.
By reading engaging stories (aimed at the student’s level) language learners can begin to build emotional and sensory contexts around new vocabulary.
Instead of just studying isolated words by rote, new vocabulary can be memorized quicker and deeper because it is linked to characters, places and relationships, just like in real life.
If there is one recommendation for language learners that I have, it’s to learn a dedicated memorization strategy that uses some form of mnemonics and steers clear of rote learning as a stand-alone method.
for beginners:
The key when learning a new piece of vocab is to engage with it. To think about it.
Once you have actually thought about a word, given your mind a way to engage with it and to put it into some sort of context – even an imaginary one – your brain has got something to grip onto and can remember it.
The trouble with learning new words in a foreign language is that you don’t have any context to link it to. So you need to find a way to make some context. Finding English words that sound a bit like the foreign word can be a huge help – the sillier, the more ridiculous the better. That is a mnemonic.
write the word, then the word in a short sentence.
Make the sentence close to “home” – use real people / facts in your life, it will help your brain remember it better.
5. Trying to describe the world around me regularly in the language I’m learning. This exposes gaps in my vocabulary and gives me ample opportunities for active recall.
For example, I may try to describe what a man crossing the street is wearing. And then I’ll ask myself:
- Do I know the name for all his items of clothing in my target language?
- Do I know all of the colors?
- If there’s a woman pushing a pram, do I know the word for “pram” in my foreign language?
When I’m exposed to something I don’t know I write it down and look it up later.
The possibilities for this method are endless. And it’s one of my favorite ways for learning and practicing vocabulary because I can do it at any time of the day and all I need is something to write down new words to look up later.
6.
the stronger one’s mastery of the sounds and “flow” of the language, the easier it is to pick up new vocab and expressions through simple listening and interaction.
You can memorize an entire dictionary of vocab on paper, but that information is useless if you can’t recognize the sounds of those words in real speech or wrap your mouth around their articulation when trying to express yourself.
7.
Not being a language teacher, I can only tell you what I do: read, READ, READ.
And to be more specific: begin by reading children’s books, and then pass on to the harder stuff.
8.
There are many powerful techniques one can use to acquire vocabulary more efficiently (e.g. spaced repetition, creative mnemonics, strong emotional connections, etc.), but no matter the method, the key is to focus on learning vocabulary in context.
Focus on topics and materials you enjoy, avoiding rote memory, non-contextual vocabulary lists, and flashcards with only single words. If you do use flashcards, make sure they include complete sentences (preferably taken from authentic content you have heard or read).
9
Language Immersion for Chrome. This neat little Google Chrome browser extension means that you can pick your language and your immersion level, and it translates individual words on the webpage you’re reading.
When you mouse-over a word you don’t know, it’s translated back into English, so you are subconsciously learning while you work/study!
2. Listen while you read. A cunning tactic is to listen to an unabridged audiobook read in English, while reading the same book in a foreign language.
It really works!
10 I personally used to use a little note-book which I’d carry around everywhere and write down new words, and nowadays it’s easy to do on your phone or iPad.
11 the golden rule is, whatever the method, to spend some time on language learning every day, even if it’s just 20 minutes, rather than, say, an extended session once a week.
look at the translation on the facing page.
poke araounf
12
Step 1: Listen and repeat
You shouldn’t be aware of the word’s meaning. Just practice saying it. This mimics how children learn: They hear words first, and deduce the meanings later. Unfortunately, most people’s encounter with a new word will be with the meaning already attached, as in: “The Spanish word for ‘beach’ is ‘playa.’”
Step 2: Determine meaning from context.
The ideal is to learn all new words from the context of sentences in that language, but if you’re a beginner, then you need to learn it from the context of an English sentence (or whatever your native tongue is). Take the Russian word “pivo”. (Sounds like “PEE-vuh”)
Contextual phrases:
Coors and Heineken are my two favorite types of pivo.
In that bar, the only pivo they have on tap is Budweiser.
As children we figured out the meaning of virtually every word we know in this same way.
Step 3: Create a mnemonic device.
For the word ‘pivo,’ I’d use: Every time I drink BEER, I have to pee.
The above phrase has the English meaning (beer), and the start of our target word (“pee” which leads us to the word “pivo.”)
Step 4: Write the word onto a flashcard. By hand. On cardstock.
The physical act of writing helps in remembering. Also, put an ‘X’ on the corner of the card each time you get it wrong, to keep track of your progress. As you become more advanced, your cards should include phrases featuring the most common constructions of the language.
Step 5: Use the new word right away, even if it’s the first word you’ve learned in that language.
13.Your brain loves context.
14. take a mental snapshot of
I now live in a place where I have no chance to hear or speak Hungarian. I try to talk to myself in this language each night before I fall asleep. It is soothing and surprisingly, words that I couldn’t remember suddenly appear.
15.
Music activates more parts of the brain than language does. So when you listen to a song or advertising jingle, you are more likely to recall the words from the song or jingle than if you just read them or heard them spoken.
Find songs where the words are not sung very fast so that you can hear each word distinctly. Mana for Spanish learners, is a good choice.
Find music that you like and that you can easily decipher and learn the lyrics of the songs. You can find song lyrics easily online at www.lyrics.com and other websites
16.I’m using Memrise for learning Chinese vocab, and it really is excellent, but it’s only occasionally that I find an existing mem that grabs my attention – and memory! It’s the thinking up of a suitable mem for myself that I find most useful for learning. Though even that doesn’t always work. As others have said above, it’s finding contexts for the vocab and *using* it that’s of the utmost importance.
17.