HOW TO IMPROVE YOUR VOCABULARY

Tips to improve your  vocabulary

We have a series of vocabulary blog posts such as This one and This one

• Start by learning practical vocabulary.  Learn words that are actually important to you at work, at home and out and about. 
• Use stick it notes and label things around your home.
• Use self-study vocabulary books, these should include a good dictionary, and a thesaurus.
• Expose yourself to as much English as possible by reading, watching the TV, films or the news and listening to the radio or music.
• Read an English magazine. If you can afford it take out a subscription to a magazine or newspaper.
• Do online exercises. Keep a note of how you did and go back in a few weeks / months to see how you have improved.
• Try to memorize whole sentences, not just individual words. When you have learnt a word, write about it in context.
• Create or play word games. Scrabble, Crossword Puzzles, Hangman, and Dingthings are all great ways to play with words.
• When you know you need to learn a particular word list for a test, start using the words immediately, use them in context and frequently. See if anyone is talking about those words online and comment on people's blogs or pages in Facebook, or on Google Plus.
• Review, revise, review.  These are my 3 rs.  Review your word lists.  Revise the ones you keep getting stuck on.  Review the list ... ad infinitum.
• No one said it was going to be easy, but unless you are studying to become an  Aerospace  engineer, it's not rocket science.

Notebooks

• Keep a notebook to help you remember what you've learnt.
• Here's a guide to keeping an English notebook.
• Vocabulary webs
• Build a vocabulary web to organise your vocabulary about certain subjects.
• For example your personal life:-

and then extend it:-

• and then extend it further...
• Flash cards
• Start a flash cards box.
• Buy or cut out some cards all the same size.
• Draw or cut out some pictures.
• Paste the pictures onto one side of the card and write the correct word on the other side.
• Put new words in the front of the box.
• Test yourself using either the pictures, the words or both.
• If you have forgotten a word bring it to the front of the box.
• For more advanced vocabulary, write the word on one side and the dictionary definition on the other.

And finally, try learning the words to English ads, flyers and all readable materials. 

Find a friend and practice with him.

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