In Your Mind's Eye

Create a mental picture

Imagery is simply the association of a visual image to a word. When you think of a word, use your imagination to see in your mind what it looks like. Each time you encounter that word in the future, you will be able to associate it with the visual image that you created.

This method for learning words is not only used by vocabulary software programs, in fact, dictionaries for kids all have illustrations to help them remember words. Imagery is one of the reasons why children learn words so quickly. If you master this method, you will learn words faster, just like children do.

This method however, is not applicable to all words. Usually it only works for concrete words, or those that correspond to an actual object, rather than abstract words like "ominous"(marked by a presentiment of evil) or "covenant" (an agreement between two or more persons).

Recite the word

Saying the word to yourself, or hearing it aloud, will not just demonstrate to you the right pronunciation. It also gives you a better chance of remembering the word faster. Hearing a word as well as seeing it somehow makes it more real and easier to learn. The word becomes more familiar because you experience it in different ways. Ultimate Vocabulary is a vocabulary software program that has an audio tool designed especially for this purpose.