Use correct reading techniques to improve vocabulary
It is a well-known fact that reading is an excellent approach if you want to improve your vocabulary. However, most adults do not practice the correct technique to maximize their learning potential from reading.
When faced with an unknown word while reading, a typical adult automatically skips over that word and usually just bases a sentence's meaning on the other words involved. Most people don’t even do this consciously – it is like a developed reflex. In this section of our course, you will learn ways to maximize the learning you get out of reading.
See if you can use context to infer the definition
Every time you find an unknown word in your book or magazine, stop for a minute and see if you can figure out the word's meaning based on the context. Even if you have already figured out what the sentence is all about, you should still try to determine what the unknown word means, if you really want to improve vocabulary.
Look it up and jot it down
After guessing the meaning based on context, you should still look the word up in a dictionary for the actual meaning. It is best if you can do this right away, if you have a dictionary close at hand. If this is not possible, list down all the unfamiliar words that you see and look them all up later.
You should read your word list everyday until you master the meanings. You can also do this with our recommended software, Ultimate Vocabulary. It allows you to improve vocabulary by giving you the meanings of words and keeping them in a list that you can update regularly.
Broaden your reading range
Everybody has their own interests and hobbies, and usually people's reading material is limited to those within their interests. To improve vocabulary, you must first broaden your reading range.
If all you've been reading in the office for the past 10 years is industry-related books, why not try relaxing one weekend with a nature magazine. Or you can learn a new hobby like gardening or baking, and start reading books on those topics.
Using Computer Software to improve your reading skills
Our recommended choice in software, Ultimate Vocabulary, offers many effective ways to maximize your reading experience. When you encounter new words while reading, Ultimate Vocabulary can help you create a word list and will give you word meanings. You can update this list by deleting words from it as you improve vocabulary.