What determines the effectiveness of teaching a foreign language? Of course, on how rich your vocabulary will be. We talk about 10 strategies and methods for quickly memorizing words in our article.

This method of memorizing new words found a dense ranks of admirers, but also the same number of opponents. The thing is that the latter express doubts about the efficiency in the speed of remembering an associative pair. Let's take a closer look.

Let's start with how our brain works when we see a written word. Ideas, images, pictures and even feelings are formed in its bowels, a stable connection is formed between what the eyes saw and what the brain formed. Long-familiar material gets a connection with the new.

Close your eyes and imagine a tree, let it be a sprawling oak or a slender birch. Now let's learn the word "tree", add three leaves to your tree. So, in your head, the image is a tree with three leaves, which is now forever imprinted in your head like a tree.

How to make an analogy in the context of a whole sentence? Write the expression or sentence in the center of the sheet. Recorded? From the sentence, direct the rays in different directions, each of which will end with a word, or better with a picture. Do not think at the moment about how accurate and correct the associations are, the main thing is to write it down.

Now, every time you hear one of the words, the whole association and visual image of the sentence will be restored in your head.

Advice! To make the method even more effective, pronounce what is written, especially if you consider yourself to be a category of people who perceive information better by ear.

Work "in pairs" - remember phrases

Great if you have learned to quickly memorize individual words. But it is important to understand that English, like other languages, is not separate, disparate concepts, it is a system of connections for expressing thoughts. Therefore, examples of words should be looked for in context.

If you have already started a personal dictionary, and we believe that you have it, write down the words in the form of phrases. To remember the word "ugly" write down "ugly duckling" and immediately remember the work of Hans Christian Andersen "The Ugly Duckling". The next step is to compose at least 3-4 sentences with the learned phrase.

Memorize new words with pictures

According to statistics, more than 70% of people on earth are visual, which is why the learning process should be associated with the visual perception of the image. In your dictionary, opposite each word, and especially those that are difficult to remember, draw small pictures. Well, well, you shouldn't grumble that you can't draw, it's even better.

Every day our brain receives a huge amount of monotonous information, such unusual and funny pictures will become a kind of “surprise”, and surprises are very well remembered.

Write for health

A large number of words are difficult to remember and we will not deny this fact. If you have to memorize a large array of words, make up a story with them, even an absurd story will become your reliable assistant.

Let's take an example. Words needed for memorization: piano, shoes, tree, boy, bird, pencil, bus.

look! There is a piano, it is sitting under the tree and wearing shoes. As for me, the tree is so strange, little boy has stuck pencil through it. A small bird is sitting on the pencil and looking for a bus.

In translation, the text is very bizarre and could pass for an unfortunate joke, but our goal is new words, and for this it is quite suitable.

This method is suitable for learning adjectives, of which there are a huge number in English. To form pairs, you can choose antonyms or synonyms (words that are close and opposite in meaning).

The simplest example is the well-known adjectives good/bad and bad/bum. Our brain is so arranged that we remember opposite and similar things faster than disparate single concepts.

Word by composition

To parse a word by composition, you will have to remember the school curriculum, but a short memory of such concepts as a suffix, prefix and root will greatly facilitate the process of learning new words.

Let's take the word "microbiology" as an example, it is not necessary to be a polyglot to understand that the prefix "micro" means something small, and the suffix "-logy" in Latin means science. And now a chain is already being established - a science that studies something small, "bio" - living beings, which means that we have a word denoting the science of microscopic organisms.

You can guess the translation of new words by studying the meaning of the most common prefixes and suffixes. The former include ir-, im-, micro-, dis-, con-, un-, il- (usually have a negative or opposite meaning), the latter -ly, -able, -ive, -tion, -ent.

• Il-- used with words beginning with the consonant l:

  Logical - illogical (logical - illogical); legible - illegible (legible about handwriting - illegible).

• Ir-- used with words beginning with the consonant r:

  Responsible - irresponsible (responsible - irresponsible); replaceable - irreplaceable (replaceable - irreplaceable).

• Im-- usually used before adjectives beginning with the consonant r:

  Polite - impolite (polite - impolite); personal - impersonal (personal - impersonal).

Choose the right time

Psychologists who are working on the study of memorization processes have long deduced the most optimal scheme for memorizing new material.

It is necessary to use a new word immediately after meeting it, then after 10 minutes, after an hour, after a day, and definitely after a week. After that, the probability of forgetting the word is minimized.

Stickers and flashcards are a great solution for learning words

You may not like the following idea, but it will definitely make your learning fun and entertaining. Stick stickers with English names on everything that is in your apartment. Thus, you will learn not only a huge array of vocabulary, but also learn how to quickly reproduce a graphic image.

The method has one, but a very significant drawback - it is limited to the topic "House".

If you do not want to limit yourself, replace the stickers with cards with words written on the back. At your discretion, words can be divided into topics or according to another principle convenient for you.

The undoubted advantages can be called the fact that your training material will always be at hand and you can plunge into the learning process even on a long journey.

Folklore for vocabulary replenishment

If you want to learn new words not only quickly, but also fun, use sayings, proverbs, short rhymes and tongue twisters. All this is a great way to expand your vocabulary and form the correct pronunciation. In addition, you have a great opportunity to get acquainted with the culture of the people whose language you study with such diligence.

Remember the game "Snowball", where a new word was added to each line, the English language is also full of such poems, for example, the well-known "The house that Jack built". This method of memorizing words not only expands vocabulary, but also trains memory.

We listen and read

And of course, do not forget about the lexical load that reading and listening to texts entails. The advantage of reading is that the expansion of vocabulary becomes a necessity, and memorization occurs due to the repeated repetition of words in the text. Therefore, choose for yourself interesting books that you would read with pleasure.

The audiolinguistic method will appeal to those who classify themselves as auditory and remember well the information perceived by ear. The advantage of watching movies and listening to texts is that you will quickly get rid of the accent, but it would be unfair not to mention the disadvantage - the lack of a visual image of the word in memory.

Video with tips on how to memorize new English words:

The human brain is designed in such a way that it is much easier for him to remember something familiar or associated with something already familiar. Otherwise, any foreign word will be perceived as a kind of "abracadabra", which, of course, can be remembered, but this is much more difficult to do. To facilitate the process of memorizing foreign words, we use some tricks to make the words of a foreign language more familiar and "make friends" with them.

Find similarity

In every language there are a number of words that resemble the words of their native language. The closer the languages ​​are, the higher the percentage of such words will naturally be, which will facilitate the assimilation of foreign vocabulary. Similar words can be divided into several groups.

native language words. So, for languages ​​that are based on the so-called Indo-European proto-language (and this is English, and German, and French, and other languages ​​\u200b\u200bof Eastern and Western Europe), it is quite easy to find words that are similar in sound and have a common or very close meaning. As a rule, this is the name of family members (cf. Russian “brother” and English “brother” are words identical in meaning; Russian “uncle” and English “daddy” (daddy) are words different in meaning, but denoting close male relatives) . Also, such words include the designations of natural phenomena (Russian "snow" - English "snow"), human actions (Russian "beat" - English "beat"), other words that have ancient primordial roots.

Words borrowed from Russian. Of course, in German and French, such words are most common. But, remembering these words, you need to be careful, because. the meanings of a Russian and a foreign word can either partially coincide (English "character" is translated into Russian not only as "character", but also as "character"), or not coincide at all (English "original" - Russian "original"). Although in the latter case the logic of borrowing such words is clearly traced, it is easy to find associations that allow you to remember the correct meaning of a foreign term.

Actually international words. As a rule, these are scientific terms, as well as the designations of instruments, professions, etc., which were borrowed from or Greek by both Russian and, for example, other European languages. The words "philosophy", "television" are understandable without translation.

come up with associations

If a foreign word does not resemble Russian in any way, memory can be "deceived" in order to learn it faster and better. To do this, you need to find your own, bright and witty associations that will be inextricably linked for you with this word and help you quickly restore it to memory if necessary.

This method, for example, is actively used by A. Dragunkin, known for his method of quickly learning a foreign language. So, to memorize the English "he" (he) and "she" (she), Dragunkin uses such a cheerful association: "He is Frail, and she is chic."

Just memorize

And, finally, there is no getting away from simple mechanical learning of foreign words. To speed up this process, words must be repeated as often as possible at the stage of their initial assimilation.

The following technique helps many: there are several words with transcription on the card. A person carries a card with him throughout the day, periodically looking into it and pronouncing new words for himself. As a rule, after 20-30 repetitions, the words are firmly entered into the passive vocabulary. But in order to introduce new lexical units into the active dictionary, it is necessary to use them as often as possible in speech.

You learn, you learn these words, but there is no sense! After a couple of days everything is forgotten.

Use a scientific approach to memorization! We present you three scientifically based methods that will allow you to quickly and permanently memorize foreign words.

HOW MANY WORDS SHOULD YOU KNOW?

To begin with, let's figure out how many words you need to learn in order to begin to understand most of the foreign speech, and to express your thoughts yourself. A five-year-old child living in an English-speaking country uses 4,000 - 5,000 words, and a university graduate uses about 20,000 words. However, a person who learns English as a foreign language has a vocabulary of only 5,000 words, despite several years of study.

But there is also good news.: a vocabulary of 2,000 words is enough to understand 80% of foreign speech. The researchers came to this conclusion based on the analysis of the Brown Corpus. A linguistic corpus is a collection of texts on various topics.

Interestingly, after you have learned 2,000 words, vocabulary replenishment for each subsequent 1,000 words allows you to increase the volume of understood text by only 3-4%.

HOW TO REMEMBER A WORD QUICKLY?

The first question that interests everyone is how to quickly memorize foreign words?

Scientists have come to the conclusion that information is remembered faster, which has an emotional connotation. Accordingly, it is a good idea to learn words through games, riddles, movies. I liked the song - do not be too lazy to look at the translation of incomprehensible words. These words will forever be associated with the song you like, which means they will leave an emotional trace in your memory.

Excellent reception - mnemonics. Create colorful associations - this will allow you to remember even hard-to-pronounce words. Usage example: the word weather is similar to the Russian word wind, we build a wind-weather pair in our head, remember forever that weather translates to weather. There are special reference books where you can find various mnemonic techniques for memorizing English words. However, it is better to come up with such associations on your own, since our associations and emotions are strictly individual.

HOW CAN YOU NOT FORGET A WORD AS QUICKLY?

So, you learned a couple of hundred words, but after a week, about ten of them remained in your memory. What is the problem? This is due to the existence of short-term and long-term memory. The mechanisms of short-term memory allow you to store information for 15-30 minutes, then, noticing that this information is not used, the brain gets rid of it, as if it were something unnecessary. How can we make it clear to the brain that we really need these words? The answer is repetition. It's like with Pavlov's dog: the light bulb lights up - saliva is released. However, it is released only after 5-10 repetitions of the food + light chain. If food is not served when the light is turned on, the association of the light bulb with food in the dog's brain will be destroyed, and saliva will stop secreting.

So how many times does a word need to be repeated in order for it to stably move from short-term to long-term memory?

German psychologist Hermann Ebbinghaus developed the Forgetting Curve, which characterizes the amount of information lost over time in the absence of repetition. During the first 20 minutes after learning the words, we will already remember 60%, and within 1 hour we will lose more than 50% of the information. Then, over time, more and more information will be erased, and by day 3, only 20% of the information will remain in memory. Thus, if you miss at least one day in repetition, you will not return the forgotten words.

The conclusion is obvious: without repetition, nowhere. Use words in speech, make up stories using new words, play flashcards on your smartphone for at least a couple of minutes a day - all this will help you save the learned words. Otherwise, the time spent on their initial study will simply be wasted.

We suggest using the following repetition schedule:

• 10-15 minutes after learning the words;
• After 50-60 minutes;
• The next day;
• After 1 day;
• After 2 days.

After that, most of the information will be fixed for life.

HOW TO EXPRESS THOUGHTS FASTER?

I really want foreign words to flow from my mouth without requiring excessive brain tension and several minutes to formulate a phrase. There is an opportunity to accelerate the formation of foreign speech - this is the development of muscle memory. By muscles here we mean the muscles of our articulatory apparatus. These muscles, like the muscles of the legs when riding a bicycle or the muscles of the fingers of a pianist, have a memory that allows you to perform automated movements almost unconsciously.

In order for muscle memory to form, it is important when learning words to pronounce them out loud, making movements with the tongue and lips. It is also useful to simultaneously present an image of the subject being studied. Over time, you will no longer think about what word to say - the muscles will do it automatically.

Thus, the correct organization of the work of the brain in the formation of short-term, long-term and muscle memory will allow you to quickly and permanently replenish your vocabulary.

Good luck with your learning!

When learning a foreign language, almost every person has a question about how to memorize foreign words quickly. Currently, there are many methods and techniques that will help you expand your foreign vocabulary easily and quickly, without resorting to tedious cramming, which often does not bring any benefit.

Method of interaction of sensations

This method works most effectively when used in a duet with other ways and methods of memorizing words.

The method of interaction of sensations shows how to better memorize foreign words through sensory perception. It is based not on a simple mechanical memorization of a word or phrase, but on their presentation and comparison with any sensations. This approach helps to use the studied words more confidently in colloquial speech and not spend too much time simply remembering them. With the mere mention of a person, object, action or phenomenon, the previously used sensory associations will automatically remind the brain of the necessary word.

An example is the English word cup, translated into Russian as "cup". When using the method of interaction of sensations, one should not only memorize the pair "word - translation", but also imagine the cup itself, the manipulations that can be performed with it, as well as the sensations that can be associated with it.

The method of interaction of sensations can be combined with mnemonics based on the search for consonances in the native language and the inclusion of sound associations and translation into a common, easily remembered phrase. The English word cup is very similar to the Russian "cap". Based on a consonant association and translation, it is easy to compose a phrase like: "Water drips from a tap into a mug: drip-drip-drip." This combination of techniques perfectly shows how to memorize foreign words quickly and efficiently. Mnemonics help to translate the word into long-term memory, and the method of interaction of sensations helps to fix it in memory and remind the brain of it when it needs to be used.

Method of cards and stickers

Based on the repetition of 10-20 words during the day. Small rectangles are cut from thick paper or cardboard. On one side words are written in a foreign language, on the other - a Russian translation. Words are viewed at any free moment: at breakfast, lunch or dinner, in transport, at work, etc. You can view both foreign words and their translation in Russian. The main thing - when viewing, try to remember the translation of the word or its original sound and spelling in a foreign language.

Lessons with cards can be made more effective if carried out in several stages:

1. Introduction to new words. Pronunciation, search for associations, initial memorization.
2. Memorization of new foreign words. Restoration of the translation into Russian in memory, constant shuffling of cards until all the words are learned.
3. A stage similar to the previous one, but in reverse order - working with words in Russian.
4. Consolidation of learned words. The fastest repetition of words using a stopwatch. The purpose of this stage is to recognize words without translation.

The original version of the card method is the use of stickers. With their help, you can learn the names of surrounding objects and actions that can be performed with them. For example, you can stick the English "door" on the door, and "push" on the side from which the door needs to be pushed, and "pull" on the side where the door is pulled into, on its handle.

Another option for working with stickers is sticking them in those places where the student can most often see them. This could be computer space (including screen), bathroom mirror, kitchen shelves, etc. Any foreign words can be written on stickers. The main condition is that the stickers should often catch the eye.

The use of stickers clearly shows how to memorize the words of a foreign language using visual information.

Associations

This is a very interesting and easy way to learn, which is suitable even for toddlers. Methods of lexical or phonetic associations tell how to memorize foreign words using Russian consonant with them. At the same time, a foreign and a Russian word consonant with it must be related in meaning. If such a semantic connection is not clearly visible, it should be invented independently.

For example, the English word palm in translation into Russian means "palm" and is consonant with Russian "palm". To memorize the meaning of the word palm with the help of association, one should think that palm leaves are like human palms with spread fingers.

Don't think that there are exceptions for association methods. It is quite easy to pick up similar-sounding words in Russian for one foreign word, while another is completely inconsonant with nothing. However, for any foreign word, you can choose either a consonant variant, or divide it into its component parts and look for a similar phrase in Russian.

Or divide one compound word into two, simple ones already known to the student of the language, and by combining their translations, make up a single association. For example, the English word butterfly (butterfly) is easily divided into butter (oil) and fly (fly, fly). Thus, the butterfly is easily remembered with the help of such associations as "a fly in butter" or "oil flies".

Association methods are described in many works of professional linguists and are widely used in the practice of language schools. Some of the most interesting works and effective methods were proposed by Igor Yuryevich Matyugin, the developer of a special technique that develops attention and memory. To make it easier to understand how to memorize foreign words, I.Yu. Matyugin presented the world with a book containing 2,500 English words with vivid and interesting associations.

Yartsev method

It is best suited for those who are easier to perceive information visually. This method will not tell you how to memorize hundreds of foreign words a day, but it will definitely help to significantly expand your vocabulary, fixing it in long-term memory.

The essence of the Yartsev method lies in a certain recording of words. An ordinary notebook sheet is divided into 3 columns. In the first one the word is written, in the second - its translation. The third column is for synonyms and antonyms, as well as examples of phrases and phrases that will contain the word being studied.

A pleasant moment of using this technique is the absence of cramming. The written words should be reread from time to time, thus gradually fixing them in memory. But one reading will not be enough. Words, in addition to lists, should also appear in articles, films, etc. Thus, they must be activated in memory.

Grouping Methods

This technique helps to figure out how to quickly memorize foreign words. Combining them into groups can occur:

• Within the meaning of.
• On grammatical grounds.

In the case of grouping by meaning, words that are synonyms or antonyms are collected together. The purpose of this grouping is to maximize the enrichment of the vocabulary. An example is the following group of words translated into any foreign language:

good, great, great, great, bad, unimportant, etc.

There can be a lot of options for grouping words according to grammatical features. When compiling groups, you can rely on words with the same root, on nouns of the same gender, on verbs with a certain ending, etc. Such a grouping helps not only to replenish vocabulary, but also to improve understanding of the basics of the grammar of the language.

Mnemonic associations

Mnemonics is a creative approach to the question of how to memorize foreign words and enter them into long-term memory. According to this method, for each foreign word it is necessary to come up with a consonant Russian that will be associated with the foreign original. Then the sound association and translation are combined into a phrase or story that needs to be remembered. The repetition algorithm looks like this:

• foreign word.
• Consonant association in Russian.
• Phrase or story.
• Translation.

As part of the methodology, the algorithm for each word is spoken 4 times a day for two days. The result is the exclusion of the "association" and "history, phrase" stages from the algorithm and the transfer of the "foreign word - translation" pair to the part of the brain responsible for long-term memory.

Initially, the story gets into it, while the translation is delayed in fast memory by only 30 minutes. In the future, at one glance at the word, a sound association will pop up in memory, a phrase will be remembered with it, and then a translation is extracted from the phrase. The algorithm will also work in the opposite direction: the translation helps the brain to remember the phrase, and a sound analogy is extracted from it or the story, which reminds of the original foreign word. Thus, the technique of mnemonic associations shows how to effectively memorize foreign words, leaving them in memory for a long time.

An example is the English word puddle, which means "puddle" in Russian. The sound association for him will be the Russian "fell", and as a phrase it will do: "Nikita fell into a puddle many times." The word repetition algorithm would look like this:

• Puddle (original foreign word).
• Falling (sound association).
• Nikita fell into a puddle many times (a phrase or story containing a consonant association and translation).
• Puddle (translation).

Using the method of mnemonic associations, in order to easily memorize foreign words, it is not necessary to come up with consonances and examples of phrases on your own. Currently, there are a large number of information resources that offer ready-made algorithms for memorizing foreign words and phrases.

Spaced repetitions

The spaced repetition method also suggests learning foreign words using flashcards. Its main difference from the card method is the suggestion of how to memorize foreign words. The spaced repetition method assumes that the words on the cards will be viewed and pronounced at certain intervals. Thanks to this repetition algorithm, the studied foreign words will be fixed in the long-term memory of the brain. But without the absence of repetition, the brain will "delete" unnecessary (in its opinion) information.

The spaced repetition method is not always useful and appropriate. For example, when learning frequently used words (days of the week, frequent actions, etc.), which are constantly heard and regularly used in speech, the repetition of words will become a natural process - they will often occur in conversations, when reading and watching videos.

Listening

This method will be ideal for those who like to listen to music or any information. It is based on listening to foreign words that must be pronounced correctly, as well as their repetition. Both special educational audio recordings and various videos with a detailed analysis of words, phrases and sentences can serve as materials.

Reading

When deciding how to memorize foreign words, books, articles and other printed materials in the target language can be of great help. Learning words while reading texts in a foreign language is appropriate when a person studying a language already knows about 2-3 thousand words. It is with the presence of such a vocabulary that the understanding of simple texts comes.

The best option for memorizing through reading is to write out unknown words from texts. In this case, you do not need to write out all the incomprehensible phrases in a row. Attention should be paid only to those without which it is impossible to understand the general meaning of the sentences. Surely they will come in handy in the further use of a foreign language. Such memorization will be much more efficient, since new information is "extracted" from the context, forming more vivid and pronounced associations in memory.

The number of written words should also be limited. To replenish vocabulary without interrupting reading, it is enough to write out just a few of them from one read page.

If you wish, you can do without writing out, as the vocabulary is replenished even in the process of continuous reading. But memorizing words and fixing them in long-term memory in this case is much slower.

Video viewing

Learning new words from videos also requires the learner to have certain knowledge of the language. Otherwise, it will be quite difficult to understand which foreign word, still unknown to the student, was uttered. Watching videos in a foreign language allows you to achieve two results at once: expand your vocabulary and improve your listening comprehension skills.

The easiest approach in this technique is to watch the video without the distraction of writing out unknown words. But the most positive result will be achieved only if, during the viewing, you stop the film, take notes and parse new words and phrases for the language learner.

It would seem that a simple math problem from the fourth grade: if you learn 30-35 English words a day every day, How many English words can you learn in a month and a year?

Of course, you easily calculated: you can learn about a thousand English words in a month and, accordingly, 12,000 words in a year. Interesting, but what does experience and practice say?

As vocabulary is reduced , so are the number of feelings you can express, the number of events you can describe, the number of the things you can identify! Not only understanding is limited, but also experience. Man grows by language. Whenever he limits language he retrogresses!

As vocabulary shrinks, so does the number of feelings you can express, the number of events you can describe, the number of things you can name. Not only understanding is limited, but also experience. Man grows through language. Whenever he restricts language, he goes into decline.

~ Sheri S. Tepper

As practice shows, it is possible to learn something, but it will not work to keep it in an active reserve and use it regularly in speech. Words without practice and associative links are quickly forgotten, which the creators are silent about.

True, you always have a chance memorize a large number of English words- it all depends on the characteristics of memory and techniques for memorizing English words, which we will talk about today.

How to learn a lot of English words quickly

Learning English words is not as difficult as it might seem at first glance. Signing the names of unfamiliar words is one of the effective methods for remembering.

Want to learn a lot of English words in a short time? The German scientist Ebinghaus found that with rote memorization, that is, when a person does not understand the meaning of the material and does not use mnemonics, after an hour only 44% of the information remains in memory, and after a week - less than 25%. Fortunately, with conscious memorization, information is forgotten much more slowly.

First of all, it is necessary to determine how it is easier for you to absorb new information: by ear, by sight or by writing down?

This will not take much time, but will greatly facilitate the learning and selection of effective techniques for you in the future. One of the tests that will help you determine how easy it is for you to remember new information is presented on this site. By answering 30 questions, you can know exactly what type you are.

In short, we recall that visuals easily memorize new words by seeing or reading, audials - by ear, and kinesthetics need to be in motion, for example, write down information on paper.

In the modern world, most people are dominated by a visual type of perception of new information. Remember how long annoying commercials seen on TV, or posters and banners that are full of city streets, are stored in our memory.

You also need to know that there are no 100% visuals or audials. But some channel is still dominant, and it is this channel that should be used if your goal is learn a lot of english words fast.

Visual method of memorizing English words

Characteristics and scheme of perception of information by visuals.

If you have read the novel “Martin Eden” by Jack London, then most likely you remember that the main character learned a huge number of academic words, posting leaflets with new words at home.

visual method for memorizing English words is pasting all the objects that surround you with stickers with new words. How does the visual method work? You constantly come across an abundance of English words, read, memorize and, of course, use English words.

Purchase from the store or make your own cards with new words, translation, transcription, and even an example of use. It is convenient to take such cards with you if you have a long commute to work or constantly disappear in lines. They can be classically made on paper or downloaded to your phone.

On a note:

On the Internet you can find download apps for mobile phones which use a visual way to expand vocabulary. The most popular are Words, Easy Ten and Duolingo: Learn Languages ​​for Free.

Bright pictures with captions, memory simulators, verification tests that use these mobile applications will help you learn a lot of English words in a short time. And most importantly, they are always at hand!

If your level is not beginner (Pre-Intermediate and above), you can watch movies, shows and videos with and without subtitles, writing out not only new words, but also useful colloquial phrases.

English audio tutorials and podcasts

Characteristics and scheme of perception of information by auditory people.

If you belong to a rare category of people (about 10%) who love and remember with their ears, then this method is for you.

The main conditions for vocabulary expansion- constantly listen to English speech, whether at home in the kitchen or in a car in a traffic jam. New words and expressions can be written down and repeated periodically.

With this method, you will not be afraid to listen to speech, and your listening skills will improve.

TPR method for expanding vocabulary

Characteristics and scheme of perception of information by kinesthetics.

The third type of perception of information, which includes kinesthetics, prefers movement to static learning. If you are a kinesthetic learner, don't forget to write down new words on paper. It is better if you have a diary dictionary that you can refer to from time to time.

Often used in teaching children TPR (Total Physical Response) method. But believe me, if you are a kinesthetic learner, this method is also for you: with its help, you can easily learn English words and phrases.

The essence of the method is to memorize new words, phrases and lexical constructions using gestures, command execution, pantomime and games. For example, on the word ball (ball) you need to perform an action associated with this subject, for example, a ball game.

Simple and effective ways to memorize English words

Mnemonics and memorization of English words

A good example of how mnemonics works.

One of the most effective ways to memorize English, and indeed foreign words, is mnemonics. The method of mnemonics (or mnemonics) is based on creating images in your mind. You take the information you need to remember and turn it into an image through association.

First you need to understand that the brain does not remember the images themselves that arise in the head, but links between multiple images. This is very important to remember, because right at the time of memorization, you need to focus on this.

Mnemonics actively develops memory and thinking. The main task is to create images that are connected in the imagination in various ways. The images must be colored, large and detailed.

Learning English words with the help of mnemonics is incredibly easy! We select the most consonant word (or several words) from the native language to the foreign word.

How mnemonics works when memorizing English words, let's look at an example:

puddle ["pʌdl] puddle

Approximate pronunciation (phonetic association) - "bad"

Mnemonic model: "I kept falling and falling into a puddle" .

Examples of using mnemonics in teaching English:

If you are using mnemonics to expand vocabulary, it is important to remember that you need not only to link words together and express them as a sentence, but also to present a specific situation in which this happens or is said.

For example, do not just say: "A nervous person is walking along a narrow alley," but imagine a nervous person, you can know your friend, who walks, looking around and shuddering at every sound, along a narrow dark alley. In this case, you will definitely not forget this foreign word.

On a note:

An association or a bunch of words that has arisen is necessary only for 2-3 repetitions from memory in order to remember a foreign word and its translation. Then it disappears behind uselessness, so you don’t have to worry that any nonsense will be stored in your memory.

Undoubtedly, in order to quickly and efficiently memorize foreign words, you need to practice, find your own approach, learn how to create your own associations, and even quickly. The process of creating associations will be slow at first, but be patient and keep practicing. As a rule, the speed and quality of association creation improves after the first thousands of memorized words.

It remains to be added that with the help of this technique it is possible to memorize words of any foreign language .

Mind halls for expanding vocabulary in English

Many people use flashcards to remember new words, but these flashcards are not always at hand, especially at the right moment.

There is a great way to memorize new words and expressions - this is the power of your mind. It is called Method of loci (locus method).

You can also see names such as “mind halls”, “memory palaces”, “method of loci”, “spatial mnemonics”, “method of Cicero”.

When Sherlock Holmes, the world-famous detective, wanted to remember something important, he closed his eyes and plunged into the halls of the mind ( ‘mind palace’). Like Sherlock Holmes, you can also use this Method of loci to memorize new words and phrases. How it looks visually you can see in the video.

Video “The Hound of the Baskervilles” - “mind palaces” by Sherlock Holmes.

How does the locus method work?

We're building an imaginary place imaginary place) in our mind and put things and people there that will help us remember new words. You can store images both on the shelves and randomly. The main thing is that you yourself know where everything is and can quickly remember. The best activators are either completely ridiculous or very logical. It's even better to mix and match.

Remember the simple rules that in no case should be violated in the process of creating a connection:

• Represent images large(even if the items to be remembered are of different sizes, make them the same: be it a ship, a coconut or a bee. Small images should not be presented. Connections between such images will be recorded very poorly.
• The images must be voluminous. For example, holographic images or images created on 3D graphics programs. Such images can be rotated and viewed from different angles.
• Images must be submitted colored. If these are the leaves of trees, then they must be green, the tree itself - brown, etc.
• The images presented must be detailed. If you imagine the image of a “phone”, you need to mentally consider it and clearly see what parts the phone you represent consists of. If it is a cell phone, then you can identify the following images in it: antenna, display, buttons, cover, strap, leather case, battery.

Then we apply the main mental operation in mnemonics - this is "connection of images". Let's look at how this is applied in the practice of learning English words.

Let's say we need to memorize the words associated with the word run, as well as its forms, so we will make up the following story in our minds: the imaginary setting of the city - the imaginary place is a city .

This is just a small example of how to memorize english words, Related run, and its forms. Of course, you can add other phrases with this word, of which there are actually many, and as my imaginary city grows, I can use more and more words, and thereby expand my vocabulary.

More details about memorization technique "memory palace" you can learn more from the video:

Any imaginary place can be, even a room in your house, and you try to come up with a situation that will be close to you, and the words will be remembered much easier.

In this manner easy to learn words on different topics, such as “food”, “kitchen”, “clothing”, etc. Arrange the items however you like, and then it will be easier for you to remember the name of the item by its location in your "memory" palace.

And of course, develop deduction, attention to detail and creativity. Develop associative thinking.

Another tip applies to all "memory palaces", regardless of the purpose of their "construction". If you want to remember something for a long time (and not in the "passed - forgot" mode), you will have to periodically "walk" around the "palace".

Audiolingual Method in English

Automation of skills occurs in the process of training by repeated repetition of speech samples.

Audiolingual method- this is one of the methods of teaching a language, in which it is necessary to repeatedly listen and pronounce words, phrases and sentences, which leads to their automation.

This method has its pros and cons, but will suit mainly auditory speakers, since there is no visual support. The main focus here is on oral speech.

When using the audiolingual method, no explanations are given, since all the proposed material is simply worked out and memorized in the form of set expressions so that students can use them without hesitation in the future.

Training in this case is based on the development of some static models that students cannot change at all or almost at all. In this respect, this teaching method is the direct opposite of the communicative method.

let's consider positive and negative sides audiolingual method.

Positive sides

Negative sides

When developing this method, attention was focused not only on the content of the material offered to the student, but also on the very process of memorizing this material by the student. The very system of presenting new information and repeated repetitions lead to the inevitable memorization of the past. In the process of repetition, not only the memorization of the material takes place, but also the pronunciation is worked out, as well as the removal of the language barrier. Memorizing set expressions leads to the fact that, if necessary, they come to mind automatically, as when communicating in their native language.

The main disadvantage of the audiolingual method (not unreasonably) is that it does not pay due attention to the independent study of grammar. Pupils, especially at the initial stage of learning, are deprived of the opportunity to understand why the phrase is built this way and not otherwise, or why the word is used in one form and not in another. As they learn, students have to independently, on the basis of the material covered, build for themselves certain grammatical constructions. This undoubtedly contributes to a more solid assimilation of such constructions, but only if the student is able to construct them. And this is not always possible, since there are exceptions to the rules that can confuse a person who is not familiar with the basics of the grammar of the language being studied.

Tips on how to improve your English vocabulary?

By knowing many words, you will be able to express yourself in many different ways.

To replenish vocabulary, first of all, you need to systematically and regularly, preferably every day. There are many ways and they all work.

Choose the one that suits you best, and you can easily improve your English vocabulary. Let's take a closer look at each of them.

Expand your English vocabulary with lists

Words surround us. Just looking up words in a dictionary may not be as interesting or exciting. Pay attention to English words around you - during TV shows and programs in English, reading the news - everywhere, at any time.

Important!

Regardless of whether you do it or not, we recommend that you write down what part of speech this or that word is (verb, noun, adjective), as well as the derivatives of this word. For example, "fish" - fishing, fishy, ​​fisherman, etc. It will also be helpful if you add sentences with examples of these words.

You can also use the notepad on your mobile phone. As soon as you hear an unfamiliar word, write it down. Make sure you have enough free space around it to make appropriate notes.

When you have free time, write down its meaning or translation, and possibly the context in which it can be used.

Learn English words by practice

As you make word lists, it is very easy to forget the words that were at the very beginning. All words are required use in your speech. The more we use them, the better we remember them.

Reread your lists, for example, at the end of each week. How well do you remember old words?

If any words are hard to remember, but they are very common, it is likely that you will meet them in the future. Therefore, add them again to new lists and over time you will remember them.

Games will help memorize English words

Scrabble is an effective way to learn English words and have fun with family and friends.

Who said learning new words is not fun?! Games like Scrabble or Vocabador offer great ways to learn new words .

Games are a great way to learn, not only because they're fun, but also because they give you context for new words. Believe me, you will very quickly remember the word that your friend was laughing at.

We also want to draw your attention to the free game Free Rice. This game gives you a word, and you need to find the right definition for it. If you answer incorrectly, the next word will become easier. If it's correct, it's harder.

By playing this game, you not only improve your vocabulary but also help the world in the fight against hunger. How? Try to play it!

Increase English vocabulary with context

As mentioned earlier, it's better (and easier) memorize new words in context. One way is to write a sentence with this word. You will not only memorize this word, but you can easily use it in a conversation.

Another way - memorize words in groups. If you want to remember a word humongous (very large), it will be easier for you to remember it from a chain of words: getting bigger and bigger-large, huge, humongous. It also makes it possible to memorize more words at a time.

For example, large, humongous, gargantuan. What do you think the word means gargantuan?

Dictionaries and social networks for memorizing words

Of course, you can look up an unfamiliar word in the dictionary! Especially since modern online dictionaries offer many additional options.

Many online dictionaries have interesting articles, games, and also a word of the day section.

And if you feel confident that you can read literature in the original language, check out the article.

Sites for learning English words

Below you will find best sites to increase and practice vocabulary which can be of maximum benefit to you.

Business English Site

BusinessEnglishSite - site for learning business vocabulary

This is one of the best and most popular sites to study. Here you can fill up the vocabulary with useful phrases, expressions and even business jargon.

All words are divided into topics, for example, "Accounting", "Project Management", "IT" etc.

For each topic there are exercises to consolidate, which train not only vocabulary, but also grammar.

Blair English

With Blair English you can learn English words from scratch

All exercises and lessons on this site have been specially designed to increase and enrich your English vocabulary .

Here you will find over 190 free interactive exercises on various topics such as IT-technology, Business, Communication and many others.

Also on the site there is a database of exercises to improve listening and pronunciation skills.

Lingualeo

Lingualeo - word practice resource

A very famous interactive resource that is interesting not only for children. It helps make language learning fun and visual, and also contains unlimited number of words for different levels.

To feed the lion cub and get a new portion of words, registration is required.

british council

British Council - The most British way to learn words

The British Council website has not left us without the practice of truly British phrases, idioms and expressions. You can also learn a few new words a day there.

Words filtered out by topic and level, which makes navigation extremely convenient, and the process of cramming English words - an exciting experience.

For teachers, there are lesson plans for various levels with handouts.

Test Your Vocabulary

On this site, you can not with 100% probability, but at least approximately understand what kind of vocabulary you have and what you need to improve.

The test interface in English is simple. The site is designed for users who study English or even are native speakers.

By ticking the words you know the translation of and answering a few questions about yourself, you will very likely know how many english words is in your active supply.

Instead of a conclusion

As you can see, there are plenty of methods and resources to enrich your vocabulary in various fields. The most important thing is to constantly work on it, and here everything depends on you. The daily work will then pay off in full when you communicate with English speakers without any problems.

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