They’ll be new to you if you haven’t been reading The Vocabulary Builder’s Blog, in any event. And if you’re new to the Ultimate Vocabulary system, then these techniques may seem to be an unprecedented advancement in vocabulary training, although they’re really quite simple. The importance of these techniques lies in your ability to combine them to be even more effective than they are when used one at a time. For more information on how these techniques are used in the Ultimate Vocabulary system, click here for more information.
For those of you who aren’t using the software, here are 5 top vocabulary-building techniques, all of which you can start using right away to learn new words. As an example, let’s consider a word from the previous paragraph you might not know: unprecedented.
Technique #1: Break the word down to its roots. A dictionary will help you discover how to segment a word by syllable and by root word. Here’s an example:
un | pre | cede | (e)nt | ed
We’ll talk about how to use this breakdown later to help understand the word’s definition. First, however, focus on using the syllable breakdown to …
Technique #2: Learn how to pronounce the word correctly. Communication is done both in writing and in conversation, and many people forget that a major component of spoken communication is pronunciation. You may know useful and powerful English vocabulary words, but if you’re not pronouncing them right, people won’t understand you and the value of your vocabulary will be lost. Again, a good dictionary will give you a word’s pronunciation; systems like Ultimate Vocabulary have audio links so you can hear the word being spoken correctly out loud.
uhn-PREH-seh-dehn-tehd
If you know how a word is pronounced, it will help you …
Technique #3: Learn to spell the word correctly. Just as no one will miss your pronunciation errors in a written document, you won’t make any spelling mistakes when you’re talking – but even one error in a document will make the reader doubt your knowledge and competence on the subject. Practice the word’s spelling, writing it out several times so that your hand and eyes automatically reinforce your brain’s knowledge of the proper order of the letters. A good way to practice spelling a word is to …
Technique #4: Create sample sentences using the word. The best way to learn how to use a word correctly in context is to practice making up sentences with that word. Of course, in order to do this you need to know what the word means, so check the dictionary: in this case, you’ll find that unprecedented is an adjective meaning “new, not like anything previously seen.” Knowing the meaning of a word lets you use it correctly, but you might find it hard to remember the definition. That’s why you need to …
Technique #5: Look up the word’s etymology. Go back to Technique #1 and look at the breakdown of the word. In this breakdown you can find the word’s meaning, and other words related to it.
un is a prefix meaning “not”
pre is a prefix meaning “before”
cede comes from the Latin root word cedere, “to go”
the suffix (e)nt turns the verb into a noun
the suffix ed turns the noun into an adjective
Putting this all together, you get the meaning “not (something that has) gone before” – in other words, “new, not like anything previously seen” as we said above. You’ll also notice the word precede, which is a verb meaning “to come (or go) before.” By looking at the roots of the larger word, you’ve added another word to your vocabulary without even trying.
Using the techniques in combination. By using all of these vocabulary study techniques together, you reinforce your knowledge of the word, making it easier to remember and use correctly. Keep practicing, and you’ll experience an unprecedented increase in your vocabulary skills!
