The most asked question by students of all ages is, “Sir, how do I increase my vocabulary?”. In fact lack of vocabulary is a big hindrance for the non-native Speakers of English.

Students at the university level who are complacent about their vocabulary are challenged often during tests, group discussions, and interviews. An easy example will bear this out. Everyone knows that when we are asked to name the tip of a mountain or the highest point of something, we use the word ‘peak’. But not everyone would know that words like ‘zenith, ‘apogee’, ‘crest’ and ‘summit’  can be possible replacements for the same word. So the same meaning used in the form of another word might leave the student flummoxed. therefore it is important to start working on one’s vocabulary as soon as possible for success in any competitive exam or environment.

Following are some of the methods and approaches that can be very helpful in enhancing and retaining one’s English Vocabulary.

1. Reading: The habit of reading is very important. This is sadly lacking in most aspirants. with the advent of television, reading has almost become passe. Reading is important not just because it increases knowledge. That it definitely does; in addition, what it does is help a student get into the habit of reading. It is also important to read a variety of subjects because each subject has its own register of language and words are used with different connotations in each register. So for success in competitive exams as well as general proficiency in English, the perusal of a few different sources of reading material is mandatory. These sources are:
   1. A general magazine like India Today, Frontline, Outlook, Reader’s Digest, Time, etc.
   2. A business magazine like Business Today, Business India, Business World, etc. 
   3. The daily newspaper like The Times of India, The Hindu, The Indian Express, etc.
2. Using a Dictionary: Even though the idea of using a dictionary does nothing to enthuse the common student, everyone owns a dictionary but treats it like a sacred cow, not to be touched and defiled; of course not that they are to be blamed too much for it; it is almost a habit now; but should be considered a necessary evil. A dictionary should be kept with the students while reading anything so that the incomprehensible word can be looked up immediately. Procrastination invariably leads to the words remaining incomprehensible due to forgetfulness in looking up the words in the dictionary.
3. Self-help Books: There a few quite useful books claiming to improve vocabulary. Students are welcome to consult these books if recommended by experts of the subject. ‘Word Power Made Easy‘ by Norman Lewis is such a book that is helpful in building vocabulary and helping students understand the process of word formation in English.
4. Thesaurus: Using thesaurus can be a very interesting alternative to a dictionary. It provides synonyms of a given word and usage of such words. The interesting and extra information provided by thesaurus can be very helpful in learning the new words of English.
5. The Word List: The word list is a comprehensive compendium of the words most commonly asked or used in the Management Examination question papers. Studying the word list also gives the student a lot of information about the origin of various words, their roots, etc. This is a particularly useful method of studying because knowledge of etymology helps the student gauge the meaning and usage of other words having the same root, regardless of whether the student has come across the word earlier or not.
   However, memorizing word lists is not recommended in general. It does not hold any good for general proficiency but for exams and test, it can help bring in extra points.
6. Sticky Notes: This is a very interesting way to learn and memorize vocabulary. The idea is to note down difficult words on these sticky notes, one or two words per day and stick it in your living room somewhere you frequent most often. Words written in this manner tend to be visualized in the mind and stay longer.
   

   

7. 1. The flip/flash cards are portable and the student can carry a card around with him/her anywhere and glance it anytime.
   2. The embarrassment of carrying an entire word list that entails is absent here.
   3. That at the time of the final run-up to the examination, the student, instead of revising the whole word list can just go through the set of Flip/Flash Cards that he/she has collected. The only problem is getting started and to mix metaphors, once the initial hurdles overcome the rest is smooth sailing!

      Readymade flash cards (GRE, GMAT, TOEFL, SAT, IELTS, CAT Flash Cards) are available in the market and online.

      Flip/Flash Cards: We strongly advocate this technique which is another tool to memorize words from the list. These are blank cards approximately double the size of your standard visiting card. After isolation of the exceptionally difficult words from the word list, the student should write approximately five words on one side of the card and the corresponding meanings on the other. The advantages of using this type of tool are:

8. Contextual Guessing: It is advisable for the student to try and guess the meaning of difficult words from context. It is possible to find out the meaning of a newly seen word just by reading the whole sentence. For example; in the sentence ‘All of us tried our best to persuade him but he remained adamant’, the student may not know the meaning of the word: adamant but it is possible to guess the meaning by reading the entire sentence i.e. unmoved, firm, intractable, etc.