Tips to Enlarge the Vocabulary While Having Fun
Our modern languages all have roots in the ancient languages from the past. English words in particular stem from Latin or Greek and as such, many of the meanings to these can be traced back directly to those original languages. Vocabulary quizzes gives everyone a chance to try out their knowledge of the language and is a useful tool to improve language skills.
Of course, these days, many slang expressions have come up from the type of language that we use in day to day life. Take, for example, some of the ruder phrases in the language. These stem from Anglo Saxon times and probably had nothing to do with the meanings that we have for them today.
Even well known sayings spring from what was normal for the time that they were coined. For example, who has heard of the expression ‘three square meals a day?’ This actually came from ships of old where plates were made from timber. Each plate was a square of wood, hence the three square meals saying that still exists today.
For those who want to improve their language skills, finding out about the origin or the language can help tremendously. It is sometimes quite easy to figure out the meaning of some of the individual parts of the language just by splitting it into several pieces. This is called working out the root and will give the student a good start in learning or expanding their language skills.
For others, challenging themselves with competitions is probably the fastest way to work out and learn the language. Everyone learns better when they are rushed to think of the language without hesitating. Family groups will also benefit from this type of game where everyone must choose a letter and then write down things in specific categories beginning with that letter. A flower, fruit, name of a girl and boy etc. If they have the same name as another player then they lose a point. This gets people to think outside the box, so to speak, and think of unusual words that they would not normally think about.
Of course, it does not have to be this complicated. Merely learning a different phrase every day, and using it when they can fit it into normal conversation, will also improve skills when it comes to languages.
Children unhesitatingly pick up the language just by listening and repeating the phrase parrot fashion. This also sometimes helps with adults who are expanding their language skills. After some time, it suddenly ‘clicks’ in the brain what this phrase actually means. Although some may think that this is only for the children, it has been proved to work with adults who may have had some problems when they were younger.
If the adult is an executive, or is planning to be, it is of the utmost importance that their language be as broad as possible. Otherwise, it may reflect badly on them when they meet people who are more educated than them.
By: Connor R Sullivan