how do you study your new words

[TheWind]

I'm curious to learn other people's methods of improving their vocab, something I've felt I've always had room for improvement on.  Especially now since I've been exposing myself to new media.

 

Because of this I'm learning many new words but I haven't necessarily had the chance to retain them all and truly understand the words various uses

 

Generally speaking I will do one of the following for my vocab practice:

 

1. learn a new word then create a Italki notebook entry that practices this amongst other new words

 

2. write words down and will try using a few of them when doing a language exchange with a friend. 

 

3 anki decks

 

I know SRS systems are very popular like anki decks, but I find there are 2 inherent problems with anki.  1- eventually the daily reviews reach a number that's just too much to be considered a daily review.  2.  your just memorizing a card not really seeing or getting practical use with it

 

I've heard mixed reviews on writing down all the new words, but I've never personally done that as practice - so I can't say. 

 

interested to hear what you guys have to say. 

 

[david387]

I like to write practice sentences that use the new words. The LINE dictionary has a lot of good practice sentences for just about any word. You might have to occasionally scan through a few sentences that don't fit what you're trying to do, but overall you can find plenty of good ones.

 

I used to write five practice sentences for a word, and then within those sentences were also some new words, and that would lead me to the next new world that I wanted to use to write 5 practice sentences. I lost count now, and this isn't the only thing I did, but I wrote something like 500000 characters in those notebooks with the squares. I know how many I wrote because I could count the squares that were filled.

 

But overall I'm a proponent of using those words in sentences. Just memorizing words I find does not help me to remember them all that well. But when I make the connection with other words and when I think of that word and I think of how I'll use it in a sentence it's much easier for me to retain it.

[Flickserve]

@david387

 

Did you look for example sentences from near the beginning of your studies? Or was it something you started when say at an early intermediate stage with the language? Did you find the utility increase as you advanced in familiarity with the language? If so, from what stage onwards?

 

Rote learning by writing. I wonder how many do that nowadays.

[abcdefg]

10 hours ago, david387 said:

But overall I'm a proponent of using those words in sentences. Just memorizing words I find does not help me to remember them all that well. But when I make the connection with other words and when I think of that word and I think of how I'll use it in a sentence it's much easier for me to retain it.

 

Agree 100%.

[Tomsima]

I do word lists in anki, where for every new word that goes in, I build up notes, pictures and example sentences on every card. then I go and actively use them. when I use a word in the wrong register or an inappropriate regional word in a standard putonghua register I'll note it down. once the deck hits around 600 cards i usually archive it then delete it from anki and start again.

 

Been doing this for years and the thing I've noticed about this method is that new words sick really well in short term, but it's still up to you to go and use them in real life situations for them to enter long term memory: you need all the extra memory links and emotional attachment for it to not be forgotten

[Jan Finster]

11 hours ago, david387 said:

I like to write practice sentences that use the new words. The LINE dictionary has a lot of good practice sentences for just about any word. You might have to occasionally scan through a few sentences that don't fit what you're trying to do, but overall you can find plenty of good ones.

 

 

Another one for sample sentences is: https://www.xyzdict.com/en/english-chinese

 

How do you ascertain that your sentences are correct? Do you have them reviewed by a tutor? Or do you just change the noun/verb etc of a sample sentence you found online?

 

[imron]

Don’t try and learn every new word, just learn 5-10 a day.

 

Focus on quality rather than quantity. You can still look the other words up, just don’t put any effort in to learning them beyond making a mental note of the pronunciation and meaning.  Then put all your effort in to learning those main 5-10 words well. 
 

Don’t worry about missing out on useful words. If the word is useful it will show again up another day, and if it doesn’t show up another day then by definition it’s not useful to you yet, so you can ignore it to focus on the words that are showing up instead. 
 

As for Anki, I’d highly suggest using Pleco with the paid dictionaries and paid flash card option. Yes it’s less flexible than Anki, but it also saves you time because once set up you’ll spend zero time on deck maintenance. Just look up a word and hit +
 

If you find your decks getting too big, and reviews taking up too much time just delete them and start again. Nothing of importance will be lost - see here for discussion of why.  I typically do this if I’m spending more than 30 min a day reviewing. 

[david387]

8 minutes ago, Jan Finster said:

How do you ascertain that your sentences are correct? Do you have them reviewed by a tutor? Or do you just change the noun/verb etc of a sample sentence you found online?

In LINE Dictionary the English sentences are sometimes poor, but the Chinese sentences are dependably correct. 

[Jan Finster]

18 minutes ago, david387 said:

but the Chinese sentences are dependably correct. 

Sure, but if I understood you correctly, you are not just mining sentences from LINE dict, but rather you write (create) your own sentences (?) How do you know the sentences you made up are correct (grammar, synthax, etc)?

[david387]

34 minutes ago, Jan Finster said:

Sure, but if I understood you correctly, you are not just mining sentences from LINE dict, but rather you write (create) your own sentences (?) How do you know the sentences you made up are correct (grammar, synthax, etc)?

I suggest using sentences from the line dictionary by first writing a few down that you found are good for the word you are practicing. Then write them again if they are still difficult to grasp. When it comes to your ability to use the new word in your own sentence, you will be better able to do that. What you can do is then post your own sentences in HelloTalk moments, and ask if the grammar seems good. Very likely you will get good corrections. And of course you could ask a professional tutor if you need that extra boost.

 

I occasionally hire a tutor, but mostly I just practice on my own. Recently I have been doing some live streams on HelloPal for fun and practice. My grammar is far from perfect, but I can talk about most topics and get through it just fine, listening and speaking, but often with questions for more clarification.

[abcdefg]

22 hours ago, Tomsima said:

Been doing this for years and the thing I've noticed about this method is that new words sick really well in short term, but it's still up to you to go and use them in real life situations for them to enter long term memory: you need all the extra memory links and emotional attachment for it to not be forgotten

 

I do that too. Sometimes my friends tease me about it. "Hey, you have used XYZ word five times in the last hour. What's going on? Is it one of your "words du jour?" 

 

One weekend early on I wanted to "cement" the terms for toilet or rest room. Every place I went that weekend, restaurants, stores, bus station, I asked for the toilet using the various words I was trying to learn, 厕所，卫生间 and so on. A friend who spent one afternoon with me finally asked, "What's wrong with you? Do you need to go to the hospital?" 

[NinjaTurtle]

On 4/13/2020 at 8:46 AM, TheWind said:

I'm curious to learn other people's methods of improving their vocab....

 

Windy,

 

In my opinion, the best thing to do when learning a new word is immediately use it in a question. Immediately ask someone a question using the new word. I have found this to be the most important thing when you have just learned a new word.

 

But you may be learning lists of new words everyday. This will make using each new word in a sentence difficult, but the more you can do it, the better.

 

Also, you may be studying by yourself, or there may be some other reason you do not have access to a native Chinese speaker. Do what you can to find one, even online if you can. The other thing I cannot stress enough is that, if you do not have a native Chinese speakers you can speak with, then find other English-speaking students who are learning Chinese and practice speaking Chinese with them. You must practice speaking, even if with other English-speakers. I know it sounds like something you do not want to do, but it essential you do it.

 

[Tomsima]

16 minutes ago, NinjaTurtle said:

find other English-speaking students who are learning Chinese and practice speaking Chinese with them.

 

I strongly disagree with this statement, its a disaster waiting to happen, not only do you pick up bad habits and get false confirmation on what is correct, but there is no room for improving tonal accuracy, and the whole process can often be demotivating in the long run as a result.

[abcdefg]

12 hours ago, Tomsima said:

I strongly disagree with this statement, its a disaster waiting to happen, not only do you pick up bad habits and get false confirmation on what is correct, but there is no room for improving tonal accuracy, and the whole process can often be demotivating in the long run as a result.

 

Agree! 

 

If a foreigner wants to practice Chinese with me, I run the other way as fast as I can. 

 

Several years ago I was taking a one-to-one class in Kunming and the individual classrooms were very small. I could hear the student in the next room practicing with his teacher because he spoke in a real loud voice. His pronunciation was awful, pretty much flat without any variations in tone or sentence-appropriate infections. He sounded like a robotic disembodied voice such as one hears over the loudspeakers making automated announcements at the bank or the train station. 

 

We finished class at about the same time and were riding the elevator down to the street to go home. I casually asked him how long he had been studying. He smiled proudly and explained, "Only three weeks but the reason I sound so good is that I've studied several Asian languages before. That has allowed me to make extremely fast progress." 

 

I smiled and nodded. We said our goodbyes. 

[Flickserve]

Finding people to practice talking to using hellotalk app should be fairly straightforward. Insist on using Chinese first.

[PerpetualChange]

20 hours ago, Tomsima said:

I strongly disagree with this statement, its a disaster waiting to happen, not only do you pick up bad habits and get false confirmation on what is correct, but there is no room for improving tonal accuracy, and the whole process can often be demotivating in the long run as a result.

 

Not so cool of you to remove the qualifier of his post, if you have no other choice. Part of studying a language and learning to use it is being able to articulate yourself, i.e., being able to put your thoughts into words and get them out so that someone else understands. That itself is a skill that requires practice, and that practice need not be with a native speaker. The idea that you would pick up a fellow student's bad habits seems unlikely, and even paranoid, unless that person was going to become your longterm, exclusive study partner. Actually, it was a fellow American who helped me point out how lazy my own tones were several years ago... 

 

8 hours ago, abcdefg said:

If a foreigner wants to practice Chinese with me, I run the other way as fast as I can. 

 

Your loss, really. Fellow foreigners, even newbies, can teach you a lot about learning Chinese, things that native speakers can never do. Why? Because only other foreigners know what it's like to learn Chinese as a foreign language. The vein of thought - that only a native can teach you their language - leads to tokenism and a loss of valuable perspective. 

 

Both these posts also would seem refuted by the millions of Chinese who speak English at a level far beyond what a fraction of Westerners will ever attain with their Chinese, despite many never having even met a native speaker. 

[david387]

You start with what you have and you build from there. Nearly every new student has limitations. Intermediate students have fewer limitations. Advanced students have even fewer limitations. There are very few methods of studying that I would discourage. The amount of time you spend learning is going to be one of the biggest determining factors in reaching fluency. 

 

To give an example, I often like to study Chinese poetry. I like Chinese poetry. There are often several new words I haven't seen before, and it keeps me focused on the pinyin, because that is part of what makes it beautiful.

 

Some people have told me that studying things like this are of little value. Even worse is if I study books that are a hundred years old or so. They tell me there's no value in it because this is not how Chinese people speak now.

 

But it's up to each student to make Chinese their own. They have to decide the way they want to study. In the beginning certainly there will be some basic skills that are needed like pinyin, and hopefully writing too. But once the journey has begun students are going to develop in different ways. We don't have to discourage them for doing things a little weird at first.

[Tomsima]

1 hour ago, PerpetualChange said:

Not so cool of you to remove the qualifier of his post, if you have no other choice. 

 

I didn't remove the qualifier 'if you have no other choice' because that is not what they wrote, those are your own words. The op even pointed out that one always has the choice of seeking out online native speakers.

 

1 hour ago, PerpetualChange said:

Your loss, really. Fellow foreigners, even newbies, can teach you a lot about learning Chinese, things that native speakers can never do. Why? Because only other foreigners know what it's like to learn Chinese as a foreign language.

 

I am currently preparing to begin working as a Chinese teacher here in the UK, so I completely agree with this statement. The point that I disagreed with was:

 

22 hours ago, NinjaTurtle said:

...practice speaking Chinese with them. You must practice speaking, even if with other English-speakers

 

Non-native speakers can teach you a lot about Chinese and how to learn it, but in my opinion we should not be language partners for speaking practice.

 

[david387]

5 minutes ago, Tomsima said:

Non-native speakers can teach you a lot about Chinese and how to learn it, but in my opinion we should not be language partners for speaking practice.

Are you saying classmates should not study together? 

[NinjaTurtle]

3 hours ago, PerpetualChange said:

Both these posts also would seem refuted by the millions of Chinese who speak English at a level far beyond what a fraction of Westerners will ever attain with their Chinese, despite many never having even met a native speaker. 

 

I agree. In addition, I have dealt with thousands of Chinese students who have studied English for almost ten years, yet can’t even carry a simple conversation in English! Many of them have shown an interest in learning to speak English, but the vast majority of them will never have a chance to speak English with a foreigner. Yet they hate the very idea of practicing speaking English with the only speaking partners they will ever have have — their classmates. It is clear they have decided, “either I will practice speaking English with a foreigner or I will not practice speaking at all.” Perhaps we should call this philosophy Guaranteed Failure.

 

If one of my students refuses to practice speaking English with their classmates (resulting in a zero-increase in speaking ability), I am more than happy to give them a failing grade for the speaking part of their grade.