Tips on Learning Vocabulary

It is absolutely normal to have a bigger bank of passive vocabulary than active vocabulary.

This means that you are able to recognise more words that are said to you or that you read than words that you can quickly remember and use in your own spoken or written French. However, this can often end up being quite frustrating when you can’t quickly recall the word that you need to express yourself. Working on developing your active vocabulary is therefore definitely time well spent but it does need your active input.

Here are a couple of activities you could try:

1.Topic Based Recall:

• For this activity, you need to choose a topic that you have studied (not necessarily very recently) and try to say out loud and / or write down, everything that you can remember that is relevant to this topic.

• This will seem quite tough at first but, once you get going, other words will begin to flow as you will start to automatically remember patterns and word associations.

• For example, if you were to choose the topic of transport, you could give yourself a trigger word such as ‘un avion’ – this could grow in so many ways. It may lead to other forms of transport – ‘un train, ‘un autocar’, ‘un bateau’, ‘un vélo’ or maybe ‘l’aéroport’, ‘le terminal’, la navette’ – or ‘les vacances’, ‘un billet’ – each word will often trigger another and then another.

• More often than not, you will remember more than you could have ever imagined.

• Here is an example:

  2.Recycling Vocabulary:

• So many phrases and so much vocabulary are transferable from topic to topic. It is therefore useful to start a new topic by noting down all the vocab you already know that could be used in this topic too.

• There will often be lots!

• For example, if the new topic is Health and Well Being, firstly retrieving vocabulary from the Pastimes and the Food and Drink topic would be a great a starting point.

Here is an example:

3.Avoid Overload! 

• Another important point is to protect yourself from overload.

• Don’t feel that you have to write down every single new word or phrase that you learn.

• Try to focus on what is really relevant to you and what you are likely to need and use.