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One of the best ways to increase your chances of attaining success in life is to build your vocabulary. ‘Vocabulary is one indication of intelligence. Learning power measurably sharpens when vocabulary increases,’ (Funk, W & Lewis, N 1970, p. 4).

Reading is a very effective method to build your vocabulary. In general, people who read more tend to have a larger vocabulary than other people. ‘The large differences in lexical richness between speech and print are a major source of individual differences in vocabulary development,’ (Cunningham, A E & Stanovich K E 2001, p. 140).

But even if you are an avid reader, you may not be acquiring knowledge of words as you should. Many readers are just interested in knowing the overall story or meaning of the book or article.

To build your vocabulary during reading, identify the words you don’t know, and try to infer their meaning from their context. Then verify your assumptions using other materials such as a dictionary or Internet resources. Try to find more information about the word, such as its grammatical points, usage, synonyms, antonyms, and other relevant matter.

Repetition is an important method to build your vocabulary. Once you have learned a new word, repeat it a number of times. Try to use them in your conversation and writing frequently, until you are completely familiar with the word. Once you have preserved the word in your memory, you will not forget it unless you ignore the word completely for a long period.

When you learn a new word, create a visual impression in your mind. Illustrations and pictures are ideal for this purpose. Or just form the image of the object in your mind, especially if you have seen the object or its pictures before. The word and the image should become imprinted on your mind, so that whenever you encounter one, the other instantly comes to your mind. This technique cannot be applied for all words, but chiefly for words that can be associated with physical entities.

Every time you study a word, try to study it in context of situations or incidents you are familiar with. This form of contextualisation will create a strong impression about the word and its implications in your mind, thereby enabling you to build your vocabulary.

When you learn a new word, try to associate the word with people or things you know. Not every word is suited to this technique. Words indicating persons or tangible objects, or qualities belonging to these people or objects, are appropriate for this type of association. The imagery serves to emphasise the word and instil it in your mind.

These are just a few of the numerous techniques you can use to build your vocabulary. You can refer to various books and articles for other methods, and use your personal preferences to come up with new methods that will serve you well.

REFERENCES

Cunningham, A E & Stanovich, K E 2001, ‘What Reading Does for the Mind,’ Journal of Direct Instruction, vol. 1, no. 2, pp. 137-149.

Funk, W & Lewis, N 1991, 30 Days to a More Powerful Vocabulary, Revised edn, Pocket Books, 1230 Avenue of the Americas, NY.