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Widening your vocabulary | ||
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 Language Learning Forum : Learning Techniques, Methods & Strategies |  | |
| simpleasy Diglot Newbie Belgium Joined 4956 days ago 12 posts - 12 votes Speaks: Dutch*, English Studies: French, Mandarin | Message 1 of 17 03 April 2011 at 1:37pm | IP Logged | |||||
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Not only in foreign languages, but also in the language you grew up with, how would you
best widen your vocabulary? Unfortunately I have a very limited vocabulary, at least that's how I think about it myself. I have no problem understanding everyone and getting myself understood in both English and my mother tongue Dutch. Still, I find my vocabulary way too limited. I know there might already be plenty of topics about this, but most of them wonder about 'most used words', but I'm talking about the more advanced words, words you don't hear everyday. So just reading texts and learning words you don't know might not be the right way, because it might take some time before you know only a few new words. Feel free to share your techniques, even if it's only applicable to 1 language. 1 person has voted this message useful | ||||||
| Sennin Senior Member Bulgaria Joined 5997 days ago 1457 posts - 1759 votes  5 sounds | Message 2 of 17 03 April 2011 at 2:18pm | IP Logged | |||||
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Reading helps, I don't think there is any better way to extend your vocabulary. Word-frequency lists (the 'most used words') won't do you any good because you already have the core vocabulary.
Edited by Sennin on 03 April 2011 at 2:24pm 1 person has voted this message useful | ||||||
| jazzboy.bebop Senior Member Norway norwegianthroughnove Joined 5381 days ago 439 posts - 800 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Norwegian | Message 3 of 17 03 April 2011 at 7:58pm | IP Logged | |||||
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Reading is probably the best way as it is the best way of coming across lots of concentrated content which you can get through far more quickly than by listening to the radio or watching TV. Read lots of novels or articles about things you are interested in. If you are interested in Science at all, look for scientific articles about things that might interest you. Reading encyclopedias is probably a very good idea too.
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| nimchimpsky Diglot Groupie Netherlands Joined 5574 days ago 73 posts - 108 votes Speaks: Dutch*, English | Message 5 of 17 03 April 2011 at 9:43pm | IP Logged | |||||
So why do you still find your vocabulary too limited? Where are the gaps? A good strategy is, I think, to speak and listen to lots of different people. In Dutch an ordinary man would use the word 'volharden' whereas a politician would use 'persisteren'. I myself watched a television program for elderly people recently and came across the word 'sappelen,' which I had never heard before. So listen to people from a different class, age, subculture, profession etc. 6 persons have voted this message useful | ||||||
| nimchimpsky Diglot Groupie Netherlands Joined 5574 days ago 73 posts - 108 votes Speaks: Dutch*, English | Message 6 of 17 03 April 2011 at 9:47pm | IP Logged | |||||
You can't just read anything. You have to select your content very carefully if you want to expand your vocabulary. If you only read Hercule Poirot novels, you won't get very far. 1 person has voted this message useful | ||||||
| jazzboy.bebop Senior Member Norway norwegianthroughnove Joined 5381 days ago 439 posts - 800 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Norwegian | Message 7 of 17 04 April 2011 at 2:05am | IP Logged | |||||
Well yes, but going by the original poster's comments it sounded like just reading more novels in general would be of benefit though perhaps I am making an incorrect assumption. In any case, it is difficult to suggest what novels should be read but obviously a wide selection of genres and authors is a good idea and one should research who are meant to be good authors. Reading the literary classics of any language can be a good place to go, though it has to be taken into account that you are likely to come across a lot of archaic language so putting too much emphasis on the classics might not be a great idea. 1 person has voted this message useful | ||||||
| Bao Diglot Senior Member Germany tinyurl.com/pe4kqe5 Joined 5729 days ago 2256 posts - 4046 votes Speaks: German*, English Studies: French, Spanish, Japanese, Mandarin | Message 8 of 17 04 April 2011 at 3:32am | IP Logged | |||||
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The question is - why do you find your vocabulary limited? Is it your passive, or as I would rather suspect your active vocabulary that you find lacking?
If it's actually the passive vocabulary that's not your forte, getting more exposure to content you can understand but that is expressed in ways that are new to you is a good idea, as the other posters mentioned already. But if what you're lacking is active vocabulary, passive exposure won't get you anywhere. You'll have to talk about each new topic using the unfamiliar words you've just encountered, write about it, talk to yourself about it. It doesn't matter if you don't know everything about a word yet (what it means exactly in which context, and when it is appropriate to use - if ever), you've got to experiment with it or you won't even know that you lack relevant information that you'd like to have before using it in an essay or when trying to impress somebody. 4 persons have voted this message useful |
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