Quick and Effective Ways of Learning Foreign Words

How to Memorize Words in Foreign Language

The article below describes five main rules, which govern the process of learning vocabulary in any foreign language as defined by an experienced learner of languages Luca Lampariello. According to his theory, in order to learn vocabulary while mastering any foreign language, it is necessary to select, associate, revise, store and apply.

1. Select

The selection of new words to learn, which are both interesting and useful, is of primary importance. Every language contains thousands of words to learn all of which is either impossible or impractical, as we use a limited number of words in our everyday speech. Thus, the ability to “sieve” the vocabulary of a language is a highly useful skill. Start learning words with the most widely used ones, followed then by those, which you find interesting or necessary for specific needs.

2. Associate

Identifying the most useful vocabulary units is important, but learning them cut off any context will make the learning process a mere technical memorization. Try using associations instead. While making associations, you tie new information to the previously existing. For our brain, it is a natural process. To learn a chain of words, you may make up a story using all of them, creating the context and it will enable you to memorize them better.

3. Revise

It is scientifically proved that people tend to forget information because of the mechanism in our brain called a forgetting curve. Having learned new information, we remember it at first, but then it disappears from out memory. Thus, it is necessary to revise newly learned words at certain intervals of time, which will ensure memorizing them permanently. So, a good tip on how to learn words is to acquire new knowledge never ceasing to revise the vocabulary you have already learned.

4. Store

A good way of revising and thus remembering new words well is to have them written or typed. Such flashcards are very efficient in the process of learning. However, there are other methods to complement vocabulary-learning technique. You learn new words or phrases while communicating, listening, reading or watching. So, each time you are doing it, record such words or phrases for being able to re-read or re-listen them later.

5. Apply

Any newly learned word is dead and useless if not used in the communication process. It is a good idea to repeat words aloud not only to yourself, but to someone else, which is even more efficient. Becoming more fluent in a language and improving memory are greatly encouraged by participating in real life communication. Thus, use every opportunity to use the words you have learned while talking to a native speaker.

Conclusion

Learning a language is not the process of technical memorization as any language is a complex phenomenon, which requires using different techniques. The five key principles will help any language learner to memorize words on a long-term scale and use them effectively in real life situations.