How to Build an English Vocabulary
বাংলায় পড়তে চাও? দেখো: শব্দভাণ্ডার বাড়ানোর উপায়
Vocabulary is the foundation of English — flawless grammar cannot build a sentence without words. But the commonest mistake is memorising word lists: words learned that way vanish within days, because the brain does not retain information without context.
How to learn a word properly
- Learn the word inside a sentence, not on its own.
- Alongside the meaning, note its part of speech and one synonym.
- Write your own sentence with it — one about your own life sticks best.
- Revisit the word after one, three, seven and fifteen days — spaced repetition.
- Once a week, write a short paragraph using every word from that week.
Ten words a day is seventy a week and around 3,600 a year — that arithmetic is enough. Trying to memorise fifty a day collapses within a week.
Roots and affixes — many words from one
Many English words come from Latin and Greek roots. Knowing the root and the affix lets you infer the meaning of an unfamiliar word — the most useful skill of all in an exam.
| Element | Meaning | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| pre- | before | prepare, prevent, predict |
| re- | again | rewrite, return, review |
| un-, in-, dis- | not, the opposite | unhappy, incorrect, dishonest |
| -able, -ible | able to be done | readable, visible, comfortable |
| -tion, -ment | forms a noun of action or state | education, movement, development |
| -ful, -less | full of, without | helpful, careless, hopeless |
A 20-minute daily routine
| Time | What to do |
|---|---|
| 5 minutes | Revise yesterday’s ten words |
| 10 minutes | Read an English news piece and pull out ten new words |
| 5 minutes | Write your own sentences with those ten |
The best source is whatever you would read anyway — sport, technology, the news. Words learned in a context that interests you stay, because the context means something to you.
Frequently asked questions
Ten is enough and sustainable — around 3,600 a year. Taking on more leaves no room for revision, and unrevised words are lost.
Because the brain does not retain context-free information. Seeing the word in a sentence, writing your own with it, and revisiting it days later is what makes it permanent.
Start with the synonyms, antonyms and idioms that appear in past papers — job exams recycle the same words. Add the words from your daily newspaper reading.
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