Building up the vocabulary of a foreign language is undeniably hard for anyone, especially if you don’t use the language often in day-to-day life. So it’s highly understandable if you are feeling anxious about your upcoming TOEFL test. But don’t worry, here are 5 tips to help you effectively build up your vocabulary for TOEFL. 1) Read plenty of reading materials that interest you You don’t have to force yourself to read only educational books that bore you. Read plenty of books that interest you. Try to vary the styles of books to read and don’t bother to read books that bore you. Then pick out the words that you don’t know the meaning to and look them up in the dictionary. 2) Design the most effective way for you to build vocabulary Everyone has different learning styles. There are quite a few effective ways to build vocabulary. The first method is to use vocabulary trees that help to provide context. Map out a few vocabulary trees and you’ll automatically start thinking in vocabulary groups. When you see a cup, your mind will quickly relate to words such as knife, fork, late, dishes, etc. An alternative method is to create vocabulary themes. This method includes listing down vocabulary themes by arranging them according to the vocabulary itself, definition and a sample sentence. Try out both methods and find out which way helps you to build your vocabulary quicker and easier. 3) Try to put the newly learned words into practice Even if you are rarely in an English-speaking environment, try to put the newly learned words into practice. Include these words into conversations or e-mails. If you cannot find any opportunities to use those words, speak to yourself using these words. The most important thing you have to do is to activate your knowledge. 4) Use technology Watching English movies is a fun and effective way to understand English speakers. You can also make use of software programmes and TOEFL preparation DVDs designed to build power vocabulary. Using technology will save time in comparison to the old-fashioned ways of learning words. 5) Create specific goals It helps to create specific goals to build your vocabulary. For example, choose a different topic each week and find out all the necessary vocabulary associated with the topic. Give yourself a small reward at the end of the week to motivate yourself to continue building up your vocabulary until your test day. 6) Picture your words When you try to memorise the words that you’ve just learned, use your imagination. Picture the word in your mind. This is the easiest and most effective way for you to remember new words. Since bolstering your English vocabulary is a very important factor to ace the TOEFL test, full preparation for the test will take a good few months. But follow the given tips and you should be able to handle the test. If you require further discipline to work on your vocabulary however, don’t sweat it. Consider taking up a TOEFL course to help you prepare for the test. Joel Lee is an independent test preparation consultant specializing in TOEFL preparation. Apart from helping candidates to improve their scores through customized a TOEFL course, he actively contributes to websites related to TOEFL test.

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