7 Ways How to Enhance Your Writing Vocabulary

It is impossible to write well, if you have a limited vocabulary. Every writer is a craftsman in a way and the words are his tools. When a writer has few words to express oneself, which one repeats over and over again, then his creation seems awkward and poor. Thus, if a person wishes to achieve something with one’s writing then one must constantly work on improving grammar and enhancing vocabulary. Last time we talked about some ways that can help you to improve your grammar online. Today we will focus on words, as building blocks of every compelling piece of writing, and academic writing in particular. Nevertheless, don’t forget that there is another fast and secure way to improve grammar and enhance the vocabulary of your essay, or another academic paper, that is ordering professional editing services. It might be hard to find proper words that would meet the requirements of academic style, especially if you are new to this kind of writing. In this case, Royal Editing will find the right words for you quickly and for a very moderate price.

Easy Ways to Expand Your Vocabulary

Many students feel lost when a professor recommends them to work on increasing their vocabulary. They simply know no other way, but to write down the words from a dictionary. While this method also deserves some attention, it quickly gets boring and very soon students get discouraged all together, and give up trying. However, there are many other techniques, which will allow you to enhance your writing vocabulary in a fun and easy way. It will be the most effective if you combine them all and not use only one of them, although there will definitely be the favorite one. The key to enhancing your vocabulary and learning English in general, is to apply as many senses as possible. Of course, majority of methods will engage only your hearing and visual senses, but we will also share with you some techniques that would involve other senses as well. The more senses are involved when learning new words, the better you will remember them later. So here are some fun and easy ways to enhance your vocabulary:

  • Read a lot. To tell you just to read would not be enough. If you really want to expand your vocabulary you must read extensively. Moreover, you have to read a wide range of literature, from fiction books to news reports. It all depends on what type of words you want to pick up. If your purpose is to write better academic papers, then you need to read more formal texts. These could be non-fiction books, some serious analytical business or science magazines, university text-books, etc. But don’t force yourself to read only one type of literature, because, first of all, you will get bored and discouraged fast; second of all, you risk to adopt limited typical vocabulary and later to write in very one-sided manner;
  • Watch movies. Naturally the movies must be in English, if you wish to learn new English words. These can also be TV series, reality or talk shows, documentaries, news reports, etc. The main secret to it — is that you have to be interested in what you watch. The more engaged you are, the more you will remember. So don’t force yourself to watch a documentary on nuclear physics if it makes you fall asleep. Your brain will not absorb any new words in such a way;
  • Listen to audio podcasts. Listening is a good way to pick up new words if you are an audile type of learner, because this way your hearing sense will be engaged the most. Luckily, there is wide range or podcasts on any type of topic, from spirituality to programming. Whatever your interests are, you will surely be able to find a podcast that would appeal to you. Moreover, there are even podcasts that focus solely on learning new words, for example Very Vocabulary and 6 Minute Vocabulary from BBC. Their episodes are short and each episode covers just one word, its explanation and examples of usage;
  • Browse through a dictionary. You can turn it into your daily habit, just pick up a dictionary, open it at random page, and read a random word and its explanation. Learning just one word a day would not let the boredom creep over you. Make sure you use a definition dictionary and not a bilingual dictionary. If you don’t have a big paper dictionary, you can use an online version, which also has some advantages. There you can subscribe for receiving a new word at your e-mail daily. The dictionary website also regularly post interesting articles about curios words, word usage and origin. Dictionaries can be fun;
  • Use vocabulary application. After all we live in a technological era, so why not use the advantages of our time to their full extent. If you are a fan of tech and gadgets, then this method of enhancing English vocabulary is just perfect for you. You can download a free application onto your smartphone, for example, Vocabulary Builder, and learn new words whenever and wherever you like. It has various levels, from basic to advanced, audio pronunciation of each word, and it also enables you to track your progress as you learn;
  • Play word games with your friends. This is a fun way to expand your vocabulary and a great way to spend time with your friends. There are many word games out there; the most obvious one is a scrabble. But you and your friends can come up with other ideas, for example a dictionary game. It is an interesting game, which can be played even with two players. All you need is a dictionary. Open it randomly, find some word you think your game partner doesn’t know and let him guess the correct definition of that word. If you are alone, it is still possible for you to play that game. Just download Dictionary Game on your device and enjoy learning new words;
  • Write. Obviously, to write well you must write a lot. You might think that it is impossible to learn new words while writing, because you could use only those words that you already know. If you want to increase your writing vocabulary, you will have to change your strategy. From now on, when you write and at some point feel that you don’t have a precise word to express your idea, go to a dictionary and try to find it. If you notice that you repeat the same words over and over again, try to find the substitutes to them in a thesaurus. This must be the most effective method to expand your vocabulary, because once you wrote down a word, used it actively in a context, this way you created new associations in your mind, new neuron pathways in your brain. Thus, this word will definitely become a part of your active writing vocabulary. Make a regular habit of writing essays just for the sake of expanding your vocabulary and improving writing skills. Besides, you can find free samples of essays and topic ideas at Royal Editing blog.

Correct Writing Vocabulary Online

If a writer is a craftsman and words are his tools, then he must constantly polish and improve them, if he ever wishes to create a true masterpiece. However, even if you are just a student, who doesn’t dream about becoming a famous novelist, you still must write properly to achieve success in life. Professional editing and proofreading services can assist you on your way to success, choosing the right words for your academic papers. Just contact us, filling the form at the bottom of the page, and our customer support will immediately get in touch with you.