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How many different words do you know? The average English speaker is thought to have a vocabulary of about 20,000 to 35,000 words. That’s only a fraction of the total words in circulation – over 170,000 words!
There are many benefits to developing a large vocabulary. Not only can it make you more articulate in conversation, but it can help you to understand more challenging texts and dive deeper into subjects. You won’t just sound smart, but you’ll also become smarter.
Just what is the best way to build a bigger vocabulary? It’s possible to learn new words from all kinds of places. However, there are a few ways in which you can be certain to pick up new lingo. Here are a few examples.
Unlock Your Word Power: Best Ways to Build a Bigger Vocabulary
Read books, blogs and articles
Reading a variety of different texts is one of the best ways to stumble across new words. Both fiction and non-fiction texts can introduce us to new terms and phrases. This includes books, blogs and articles.
To help you learn new words, try to get out of your comfort zone. When selecting novels, consider books from award-winning authors that are based around topics you know little about. A novel set in Tudor England or a novel about a nuclear power plant worker could introduce you to all kinds of new terminology if you know little about the Tudors or nuclear power. Similarly engaging in articles and blog posts about subjects that you only have a surface level knowledge of could help you to learn all kinds of new terminology.
Of course, reading anything is better than nothing. If you don’t have any book on the go, consider whether it’s time to pick up one. Similarly, if you rarely read news stories or blog posts, consider following some media outlets on social media and make it an active effort to read something each day.
Look up a new daily word in the dictionary
Another way to improve your vocabulary is to buy yourself a dictionary. Make it part of your morning routine to look up a new word each day. You could do this simply by flipping open to a random page and looking for a word you’ve never heard.
There are also social media accounts that you can follow that post a ‘word of the day’. This could be another fun way to pick up new unusual terminology, although some of it may not always be practical.
Thesauruses can also be used to learn new words. These are like dictionaries, but instead of providing definitions of words they provide synonyms (words that have a similar meaning). If you want to find out a new way of saying something, you can simply look up the word and discover new related words to use instead. This could allow you to be more expressive by trying out a great range of adjectives to describe things.
Play word games and solve word puzzles
Games and puzzles can be a fun way to discover new words and increase your vocabulary. These come in many different forms from physical games to online games.
Scrabble is perhaps the most popular word-based board game. This game challenges players to build words using letter tiles and score points. While playing Scrabble, you can discover new words by trying out new combinations of letters and looking up their meaning or by learning from the words that your opponents lay down. A Scrabble app allows you to play this game against a computer or against online players. Alternatively, you can buy the board game and play it with friends and family.
Traditional word puzzles like crosswords and word searches are also great for discovering new terms. Crosswords require you to fill in blank spaces by guessing words based off of hints, while word search puzzles challenge you to find different words in a letter grid. You can find these puzzles in magazines, newspapers, puzzle books and on various sites online. Such puzzles may come in different difficulties.
There are also a number of newer word games that you can try to also help learn new words. Wordle is one popular example that has taken over the world – this game challenges players to guess a five-letter word in six attempts. There is also Wordscapes, which challenges players to find different words out of a combination of letters. You’ll find a number of apps inspired by these games which can be a fun and addictive way to improve your literacy.
Search unfamiliar words on Google
While many of us stumble across new words on a daily basis, a lot of us never think to look up these words. This can lead us to be familiar with words, but unable to incorporate them into our vocabulary, because we do not know what they truly mean.
Remember that you constantly have search engines at your fingertips. If you come across a new word while reading a book, while watching a movie, while reading an article or even by listening to a song, consider Googling it there and then so that you can add it to your lexicon. In some cases, you may be able to figure out the meaning based on the context of its use, but just in case you’ve misinterpreted it, it can still be worth double-checking its definition so that you use it properly.
It’s particularly important to look up the meaning of words that you keep on hearing or seeing. Don’t keep ignoring these words as it will continue to be an annoying blindspot.
Start using new words in conversation
Once you’ve learnt new words, you then need to start building the confidence to use them in conversation. Obviously, you should try to use any word naturally and with the right audience – otherwise you’re just being pretentious.
When sharing things you’ve learned recently with people, this can be a great time to educate people on new words. Of course, if you’re talking to people who are likely already experts in a certain field, you don’t have to explain the words you use. Using certain words may even help you to gain certain people’s trust when it comes to working in certain industries or joining clubs based around certain passions.
Start writing for fun
Writing can also be a good opportunity to try out new words. It can even encourage you to look for new words in order to make your writing more engaging.
There are so many ways to write for fun and test out your vocabulary. Starting a blog around a passion of yours could be a great way to pour out your feelings through text and start putting new words to use.
Alternatively, you could get into creative writing such as writing stories or poetry. Joining a local creative writing club could be great fun if you’ve always felt you have a story to tell, but have never found the right setting to do it. These clubs are a great chance to meet budding creative writers and share your works.
Social media itself can also be a way to express yourself through writing. You can share facts, humorous observations or even get into friendly debates. In the process, you can put new words to use and potentially even discover new words.
Conclusion
There are many ways to expand your vocabulary. Start by exploring new ways of discovering words such as reading, playing word games and looking up words in a dictionary. Then start making a conscious effort to use some of these words in your speech and your writing.
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