Vocabulary Tricks
OK - so as a part of your language homework you have been given a task of learning
some vocabulary. You will probably be tested on this stuff at school so just how
do you remember the French for 'door', or the German for 'street'?
Take a look at the list of words you have been asked to remember. You need to:
- remember the words
- how to spell them
- how to say them
- what they mean
- the gender of the words
- any special characters
There are a number of ways of learning your foreign language vocabulary.
Here are a few suggestions:
A lot of European foreign words are the same as the English
word with a minor spelling difference.
Try these:
The French for 'television' is 'television'. Boy that was hard
- if you get that one wrong on your test you need to write to Agony Elephant!
The French for 'similar' is 'similar'. Most modern technology
words tend to be the same, and a number of useful words are identical - all
you need to add is the accent when you speak it out!!
At one point or other a lot of words have been 'borrowed' from
other European languages, and this can help you to remember you vocabulary.
So you will find that the foreign word sounds similar to an English word which
is not commonly used, or was used once but is now used to describe something
else.
If you can find the common ground it can often help you to remember
what the correct word is, how to pronounce and spell it - all in one go!
Try these:
The French for 'sky' is 'ciel'. What words do you know in English
that start with a similar sound? Think about it and you may have found the word
'ceiling'. Can you see where the words may have once had a common meaning?
The French for 'door' is 'porte'. In English we have the word
'portal' which is used to describe a door of some sort. Again we have a word
that has been borrowed from one language and changed a bit.
You will find that many words have similar words in English,
maybe that are not used as commonly (like portal), but these will help you to
remember the word.
Often you will have words that start with the same letter, or
have a similar sound to the English word it represents.
Try these:
In German the word for 'street' is 'strasse'. Although it is
not identical it starts with the same letters 'str'. If you remember this it
should enable you to remember the rest of the word (this is how you learned
to read English so why not do the same for your foreign language).
In French the word for 'butter' is 'beure'. It starts with the
same letter, but apart from that the only other common thing is the sound. Try
it now - say 'butter', then say 'beure'.
Write each of the words you need to remember on a piece of paper
and sticking them to the object they represent (use blu tak as it does not damage
most surfaces).
You will remember the words as you write them down, and as you
stick them on the object they represent, and whenever you look at the word you
will remember its meaning. Try saying the words out loud when you write them,
and when you see them.
For a week use the foreign word instead of the English word
(this will really fox your Mum and Dad. You can always tell them that you are
revising your vocabulary
Have you ever wondered how 'marvo the memory man' manages to
remember everything that he does. Well using a simple memory trick it is possible
to remember words, places, people - and you are just about to learn how it is
done!
You need to think of something outrageous and then link it to
the word you are trying to remember.
Try this:
Lets assume that you are trying to remember that the French
for 'piece' is 'morceau'.
Think of a large cake, with lots of icing and decorations -
then notice that a piece of the case has been cut out and has been eaten. Then
think of a hungry child begging for a small morsel of cake. Now keep that image
in your head - you have all you need to link the word 'piece' to 'morceau'
A brilliant new idea from lucy - go round the house looking
for the objects that you are learning and make a collection of all of the things
you have to learn. When you find the object, say the word as you pick up the
object and place it with the others.
More Links
Top revision aids for learning Vocabulary
- Same words
- Similar to another word
- Words that sound similar
- Flash Cards
- Word Swap
- Memory Links
- Scavenger Hunt
Got your own idea?
Why don't you tell us how you do
your vocabulary revision and we will add it to the list - and give you the credit.
Have you finished your Homework?
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