5 Whys of Having Trouble Learning New Words
Revisit the way you are learning new words to boost your language acquisition game with less effort.
WordUp Team
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12/7/2023
Why Are Words Difficult to Learn?
Do you struggle with learning new words? Having the right tools, like an English learning app, can make all the difference. Have you ever wondered why it is difficult to learn vocabulary? Learning new words in general is like solving a puzzle, but sometimes it feels like a tough one. In this exploration, we’ll look into why it sometimes feels like a hard thing to do.
Our brains are amazing, but they have limits. Learning a new word means not just understanding what it means but also remembering how to use it. With so much to remember every day, it can feel like a lot of work. It is important to understand what it is that might make the process difficult to tackle them head on.
Without further ado, let’s check out the 5 primary reasons for our struggle to learn vocabulary:
1. Not Having a Proper Learning System
A proper system works like a roadmap. It shows you where you are standing and where you want to be. It will also provide you with what you need on your journey to make the process both efficient and amusing. One of the common mistakes among language learners is that they start memorizing long lists of vocabulary without having an organized plan. That is why no matter how many times they read a new piece of information, they forget them eventually.
So, the first thing you should do if you want to get rid of the problems you have while practicing new English words is to develop a practical system. It should include what is more essential for you to learn keeping in mind your use for them. In case you don’t want to go through that trouble, you can use an English learning app like WordUp.
WordUp’s knowledge map will be made uniquely for you according to your priorities in life and interests that you select during the app’s onboarding process. It also shows you where you stand and where you need to go. You can track your progress all the time. What’s more, you can plan your study time and amount that you want to learn. It’s totally your choice!
2. Not Having a Regular Time to Practice
Imagine a world without words—a world where ideas, emotions, and stories remain unspoken. They breathe life into our thoughts and connect us to the universal human expressions. Our capability to form complex thoughts depends on our knowledge of vocabulary. To truly grasp their power, we need to surround ourselves with different vocabulary in various forms and contexts.
Whether you like it or not, learning new English vocabulary occurs through constant language exposure. This means that the more you see what is new to you in different texts and hear it in various conversations, the more likely you are to pick them up and learn how to use them. That is called language exposure. When you practice English regularly, you are constantly exposing yourself to the language.
Set reminders on your English learning app to study according to your schedule and track your activity during the week. If you struggle with keeping a routine, WordUp is the English learning app for you! It will help you with setting your daily goal and tracking your progress. We all need help to plan and optimize our time and having the right can make all the difference.
3. Choosing the Worst Time to Review
The purpose of using memory techniques is to figure out the best timing to repeat what you have learned. Consider the following assumption:
“If you repeat your target vocabulary everyday, you will remember them for life.”
In your opinion, is this statement right or wrong? Previously, it was believed that with more repetition, the chance of remembering what is new to you increases. However, based on studies, That is not actually true. Your brain tends to forget when it has not been exposed to a specific piece of information for a while.
Repeating what you learned 24-48 hours after first seeing it can give you the best results. When you are learning something new everyday, it is important to dedicate some time in your daily schedule to reviewing the previously gained knowledge as well. This is best done when you are trying to focus on deepening your knowledge of the same vocabulary within their right context.
Studies show that when the brain is about to lose a piece of information, it shows some resistance. Because of that resistance, it has more potential to retain that piece of information if we are exposed to it again. That is the best time to review your target vocabulary. This is, in fact, the logic behind memory techniques like Spaced Repetition.
How to Find the Right Time to Study
Now, you might think it would be difficult to find the right time to study. The good news is that you don’t have to set the best review time manually. You can simply use spaced repetition software or an app that works based on one, like WordUp. WordUp shows you the best time to review the new English words you uncovered and the best time to study them next. It’s so much easier to return to an app you can easily access on your cell phone than plan it yourself.
Each of us has a unique internal clock, a biological rhythm that dictates when our cognitive abilities peak. Some are early birds who have their best performance in the early morning light, while others find their mental acuity sharpening as the day progresses. Discovering these optimal hours is what it takes to unlock productivity.
Once we've identified our peak productivity hours, the next step is crafting a schedule that capitalizes on these intervals. Whether it's dedicating the early morning to focused practice or reserving afternoons for deep work, tailoring our daily routines to match our cognitive peaks is a strategic approach to sustainable productivity.
4. Learning What Is Impractical for You
As mentioned before, we can’t learn something we never use. In all languages there are parts of the vocabulary that are not commonly used among that language’s native speakers. Also, some parts of the vocabulary is only used in special fields of studies or professions, which you may never need. Learning those parts is practically useless and can get you discouraged after a while. So, why should you spend your precious time on something like that?
The more reasonable course of action is to choose what is most commonly used in conversation among native speakers. Practicing things that you are more likely to see used increases chances of language exposure. Consequently, you will learn them faster and are more likely to remember the meaning in the next encounter. So, what is the next step?
The next step is to find a reliable source showing you the most used vocabulary in the order you might need. That way, you can learn English vocabulary more effectively. WordUp, an AI-powered English learning app, provides you with such wordlists. You can easily find out what you already know and identify the ones you need to learn. With WordUp, you can learn only what matters.
5. Lack of Proper Context
Context plays a key role in learning words. Practicing what something means is very challenging when they stand by themselves. In the right context, you can find connections between different things, which will help you transfer the information to your long-term memory.
The reason is that our brain tends to store the data connected to already stored data in the brain. A context assists your brain in gathering more connections to store new things. Without the proper context, it is less likely to understand the meaning of new English words, how to use them in different sentences, and remember them at the time of need. That is why it is important to learn new words in context.
However, seeing them in only one context is not helpful most of the time because your brain may not find a good connection between that particular context and the data stored in the long-time memory. That is why you need to read and hear the new English words in several contexts to make sure your brain has enough information to create a memory.
That is where WordUp shines. For every single word, you can read several examples taken from different texts, watch many videos from the news and your favourite TV shows, or listen to some pieces of podcasts. We expose you to so many contexts that your brain has no choice but to create a memory.
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