My guide to learning vocab
Which English words should you be learning?
When you are learning vocab to help you with English at work, remember real life it is not an English exam.
This may sound obvious but so many of my clients worry that their English sounds too simple, or for example, that they need to show a great range of adjectives or use long words. However, the audience is not there to assess your English, they are there because they are interested in the content of what you are saying.
You will benefit much more (and stress yourself out much less!) if you focus your efforts on learning a shorter list, full of really useful words, rather than a long list full of words you might never need. Therefore, be very selective about the words you want to learn. Before you add a word to you list, always ask yourself:
‘Will this word really help me be able to do my job better in English?’
For this reason, I rarely recommend learning set lists of words from books, podcasts etc.
Instead, to make your vocab list as relevant to you as possible, the words should be taken from your life:
1) If you find you are missing an English word you need, take the time to look it up and add it to your list.
2) If you hear/read a word and think that would be useful for me, put it on your list.
Where to store your words:
Whether you have a special notebook for your vocab, a file on your computer or use a vocab app is a matter of personal preference. In general, I recommend an app as they have many useful functions. However, apps are not for everyone, so choose whichever way you are most likely to use.
Whichever way you choose, you need to have your list easily accessible whenever you are using English so you can add your words straight away. Writing words down on random bits of paper with the intention of adding them to your list later, very rarely works!
If you want to use as app, the app I recommend is the free version of Quizlet (Quizlet.com).
It is far from perfect, but it is the best app I have found for inputting your own words.
The main useful functions are:
-It has several different ways to test yourself
-You can prioritise the words you want to practise
-You have automatic translations
-You can listen to the word being pronounced.
However, be warned: Quizlet is not user-friendly. If you are interested in using Quizlet, watch this walk-through video where I explain the most useful functions and how to set them up.
How often to learn your vocab:
You need to actively learn your vocab. Having a list of great words is no help if you never look at it!
The learning time should be short and spaced out, circa 10 minutes per day, and don't forget to review your old words as well as learning brand new ones. An example schedule would be;
day 1 new words, day 2 review of old words, day 3 repeat new words, day 4 review of other old words, day 5 repeat new words again etc.
The best way to ensure you learn regularly, is to have a set point each day when you learn - maybe first thing in the morning, on your commute, the start of your lunch break etc, whatever works for you. Rather than choosing an exact time e.g. 11am, attach it to an existing habit/routine so 'during my coffee break' or 'the moment I stop work for the day'. Take the time to work out the best time slot for you and which day you are going to start and then stick to it. Creating a new habit is hard, but once it really becomes a habit (research shows this takes around 30 days), it is easy to keep going.
Tips for learning:
Research shows that for long-term memory, your brain remembers best when it is really pushed. Therefore, learning words in one big group of 20 is more effective than studying the same words in 4 x small groups of 5 words. No-one knows the magic number but learning in groups of around 20 words is a good starting point.
Your brain remembers better if you can attach a new piece of information to an existing piece of information. Therefore, rather than learning the word with the translation from your own language, put the word into an English sentence or think about it in relation to a person you know or a personal experience
e.g. 'intimidating' - match it to a colleague who you find intimidating
'repetitive' - That job was boring as I found it repetitive.
You can use AI to help you: Write the words that you want to practice into ChatGPT (or similar). Then prompt it to ‘show example sentences containing these words’ or ‘ask me one question to practice each of the words in the list’.
In summary:
👉Have a designated place specifically for storing your vocab and choose what is best for you
👉Be selective: Only add words to your list if they will help you with the English you need to speak
👉Add words straight away
👉Have a fixed routine for learning vocab- short and often is most effective
👉Pushing your brain and remembering with context will help your learn more efficiently
All these points are summarised in a PDF which you can look at or download here:
Good luck!
When you are learning vocab to help you with English at work, remember real life it is not an English exam.
This may sound obvious but so many of my clients worry that their English sounds too simple, or for example, that they need to show a great range of adjectives or use long words. However, the audience is not there to assess your English, they are there because they are interested in the content of what you are saying.
You will benefit much more (and stress yourself out much less!) if you focus your efforts on learning a shorter list, full of really useful words, rather than a long list full of words you might never need. Therefore, be very selective about the words you want to learn. Before you add a word to you list, always ask yourself:
‘Will this word really help me be able to do my job better in English?’
For this reason, I rarely recommend learning set lists of words from books, podcasts etc.
Instead, to make your vocab list as relevant to you as possible, the words should be taken from your life:
1) If you find you are missing an English word you need, take the time to look it up and add it to your list.
2) If you hear/read a word and think that would be useful for me, put it on your list.
Where to store your words:
Whether you have a special notebook for your vocab, a file on your computer or use a vocab app is a matter of personal preference. In general, I recommend an app as they have many useful functions. However, apps are not for everyone, so choose whichever way you are most likely to use.
Whichever way you choose, you need to have your list easily accessible whenever you are using English so you can add your words straight away. Writing words down on random bits of paper with the intention of adding them to your list later, very rarely works!
If you want to use as app, the app I recommend is the free version of Quizlet (Quizlet.com).
It is far from perfect, but it is the best app I have found for inputting your own words.
The main useful functions are:
-It has several different ways to test yourself
-You can prioritise the words you want to practise
-You have automatic translations
-You can listen to the word being pronounced.
However, be warned: Quizlet is not user-friendly. If you are interested in using Quizlet, watch this walk-through video where I explain the most useful functions and how to set them up.
How often to learn your vocab:
You need to actively learn your vocab. Having a list of great words is no help if you never look at it!
The learning time should be short and spaced out, circa 10 minutes per day, and don't forget to review your old words as well as learning brand new ones. An example schedule would be;
day 1 new words, day 2 review of old words, day 3 repeat new words, day 4 review of other old words, day 5 repeat new words again etc.
The best way to ensure you learn regularly, is to have a set point each day when you learn - maybe first thing in the morning, on your commute, the start of your lunch break etc, whatever works for you. Rather than choosing an exact time e.g. 11am, attach it to an existing habit/routine so 'during my coffee break' or 'the moment I stop work for the day'. Take the time to work out the best time slot for you and which day you are going to start and then stick to it. Creating a new habit is hard, but once it really becomes a habit (research shows this takes around 30 days), it is easy to keep going.
Tips for learning:
Research shows that for long-term memory, your brain remembers best when it is really pushed. Therefore, learning words in one big group of 20 is more effective than studying the same words in 4 x small groups of 5 words. No-one knows the magic number but learning in groups of around 20 words is a good starting point.
Your brain remembers better if you can attach a new piece of information to an existing piece of information. Therefore, rather than learning the word with the translation from your own language, put the word into an English sentence or think about it in relation to a person you know or a personal experience
e.g. 'intimidating' - match it to a colleague who you find intimidating
'repetitive' - That job was boring as I found it repetitive.
You can use AI to help you: Write the words that you want to practice into ChatGPT (or similar). Then prompt it to ‘show example sentences containing these words’ or ‘ask me one question to practice each of the words in the list’.
In summary:
👉Have a designated place specifically for storing your vocab and choose what is best for you
👉Be selective: Only add words to your list if they will help you with the English you need to speak
👉Add words straight away
👉Have a fixed routine for learning vocab- short and often is most effective
👉Pushing your brain and remembering with context will help your learn more efficiently
All these points are summarised in a PDF which you can look at or download here:
Good luck!