We love words. They are “verbal brushes” for us to paint images in our minds and our listeners’ minds.
Language is never exact, yet we need and want to know and learn new words, because with their help we can get closer to expressing what we mean.
We find new words everywhere. In conversations, books, movies etc.
When we collect words, we also need to review them at some point.
(By the way, if you haven’t read my articles on how to collect vocabulary and how to learn new vocabulary, then check the comments below, I’ll put the link there. Reading those articles will help you develop a fuller vocabulary learning experience).
When I was learning Spanish, spending time in Spain, I remember I always carried a little paper notebook with me everywhere. (No smartphones yet at the time 🙂
I jotted down every interesting new word and expression I bumped into during the day.
Be it conversations, ads in the street, signposts, songs etc.
At the end of the day, before going to sleep, I took out the notebook and went through the list of words.
Never all of them, always in parts. Checking the new words for the day, and picking randomly from some of the phrases of previous days.
Then, lights off and good night.
Next day in the morning my mind was just pouring out the new vocabulary at a very high accuracy rate. I got most of them right.
Effortlessly.
My mind was a great companion, and I learnt to co-work with it.
I made my mind work before going to sleep, and it did the processing during the night.
Fabulous.
You could try it as well.
1-Minute Tip ⏳
Try reviewing your new vocabulary before going to sleep.
Next morning check two things:
- how many of the words you remember
- how easily (or not) you can remember them
This can be a barometer for you to see whether this method is one that works for you.
Good luck!
👋 Hi, I’m Gábor
I help Spanish speaking small businesses sell their products and services successfully in English.
Talk to you next time. 🙂
Gábor 🙂
Connect | Gábor Légrádi | MA, RSA/CTEFLA