We know that many of the people who read this blog and use the Ultimate Vocabulary software are doing so because they want to improve their vocabularies and enjoy all of the benefits that a wide-ranging and comprehensive English vocabulary provides to their personal communication skills, their professional development, and their academic achievements. Others might be looking for quick, simple, and stress-free ways to fit in a little vocabulary improvement into their lives, because they don’t think that they have the time for a more formal study program. We think that there are advantages to both formal and informal vocabulary study, for children as well as adults. While there’s no doubt that a daily routine of focused English vocabulary study will greatly enhance your skills in reading, writing, and presentation, learning to take advantage of the learning opportunities around you every day will also add to your abilities.

Do you do the crossword puzzle in the newspaper every day? If you don’t, give that a try. Crosswords are a perfect place to learn new words and get practice in recalling ones that you already know but haven’t used in a while. Because many of the clues are often written in a quirky or indirect way, this will give you a chance to stretch your brain and think about words in a way you might not have considered before.

Do you play word-based board or card games? The next time you have a card party, put away the poker deck and bring out the Quiddler deck. You’ll improve your word skills and have fun at the same time – and you can use poker chips to keep score here, too! Other games that will improve your vocabulary and spelling skills are Scrabble, Bananagrams, Royalty, Perquacky, and Boggle.

Do you play word games in the car with your children? We’ve gotten used to handing out the iPods and portable DVD players to occupy their time, but your children will benefit more from a few easy word games that will stimulate their brains and their interest in vocabulary. Try a “word string” game with them on the next long trip instead. The rules are easy: from any starting letter, continue to add letters one at a time anywhere in the word to make longer and longer words. The person who can make the longest word wins. Here are a few sample word strings:

N
IN
SIN
SING
STING
STRING
STARING

O
ON
ONE
LONE
ALONE

A
AT
RAT
RATE
IRATE
PIRATE
PIRATED

Real vocabulary improvement comes from consistent, dedicated study – but there’s always room for some fun and games in your study program. Enjoy the process of English vocabulary study, and you’ll enjoy the results even more.