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You’d love to know how to memorize vocabulary at epic speeds, right?
Whether it’s for improving your mother tongue or learning a new language, the desire to expand your vocabulary is natural. Other times, it’s required, like when I had to pass language requirements for my PhD and learn enough German to teach in the language while working at the University of Saarland as a Mercator Scholar.
Constantly expanding your vocabulary is also the key to lifelong learning. New terms appear all the time, and the more you can keep up with them, the more you’ll be able to participate in the global conversation.
Knowledge truly is power, after all, especially when you apply it to speaking with other people in an informed manner.
In sum, people who speak well and understand a large pool of words perform better at all aspects in life, love and professionalism.
If you’d like to be able to do that, learning how to memorize vocabulary on demand is the key.
Based on my experiences with using mnemonics as part of language learning and teaching these skills for over a decade, I’ll share everything you need to know on this page.
Ready?
Let’s dive in!
How To Memorize Vocabulary: 8 Powerful Tactics
Before we get to any individual steps, you likely need to tackle an issue that many people face. Overwhelm.
The first way to handle overwhelm is to face the facts:
Felling overwhelmed is normal. There are thousands upon thousands of words to learn and it’s easy to feel daunted to the point of not even knowing where to start.
After all, there are well over a million words in the English language alone.
How could you even make a dent in this number, never mind if you are learning a second or third language?
Well, let me break the process down in simple terms.
1. Your goal is to memorize the sound and the meaning of one word at a time, typically just one definition at a time.
2. You can speed up the process by using a Memory Palace Network. (We’ll discuss how in a moment.)
3. When you know how to navigate the Memory Palace Network well, you “encode” each word using Magnetic Mnemonic Imagery.
4. You use Recall Rehearsal to get the words into long term memory.
5. You use the Big 5 of Learning to speed up the process and ensure longevity.
Ideally, you do all of the above in a variety of languages. That’s because bilingualism makes for a healthier brain.
Personally, I memorize vocabulary in Latin, Sanskrit, German and Chinese each and every week. I rotate between these languages partly because it’s fun, partly because I’m harnessing the power of interleaving as a memory technique.
Finally, it’s useful to spend some time learning about memory science. When you understand even just a little about the difference between short-term and long-term memory, it makes it easier to grasp why and how the memory techniques you’re about to discover work. That way, you’ll be primed to embrace them more fully.
With all of these points in mind, let’s get into the actual techniques you can use to memorize vocabulary.
1. Use Mnemonic Devices
I mentioned the Memory Palace technique above, and it is specifically use for language learning. That’s because it lets you take a familiar location and create associations the help you remember the sound and meaning of words.
For example, in German, the word Bereich means “area.” When I was learning this language, the Memory Palace technique allowed me to turn a part of Berlin’s Tegel airport into a mental container. I placed an image of Bender from Futurama with the drummer Steve Reich in an Memory Palace while thinking about an area in Tegel.
I know this can be a bit hard to understand, so please look at the image above. It is me sitting at my desk close to where I imagined these mnemonic images in the airport using the method of loci aspect of the Memory Palace technique. Because Bender and Steve Reich together sound a bit like “Bereich,” I was able to rapidly memorize this word.
The key is that I assign the images in such a way that both sound and meaning come along for the ride. This specific mnemonic strategy is called the pegword method.
Although these mnemonic devices are not a magic bullet, when you put them into practice with the other vocabulary memorization techniques we’re about to discuss, you’ll be pleased by how quickly you can absorb new words.
2. Multisensory Visualization
In order to make sure the Memory Palace technique is as effective as possible, I suggest you spend a bit of time learning more about visual memory techniques. To work really well, they need to be multi-sensory and you will benefit by completing a few simple visualization exercises to strengthen your “mind’s eye.”
But it’s more than just seeing pictures.
When I memorize words using mnemonics, I always take a moment to hear, feel, get emotional and sometimes even smell and taste in my imagination. For example, when I memorized “expetendorum” in Latin, I imagined what it felt like to stand in front of a Pet Barn and also smelled the pet food to make the sound and meaning of the word much more memorable.
Commit to practicing a word list every single day.
The Freedom Journal used for language learning will help because I’ve shown you how to combine it with a Memory Palace technique.
Gradually you will notice improvement – if not very quickly.
Chart this improvement in your Memory Journal. You will soon see how far you’ve come.
3. The Power Of Context For Memorizing More Words Quickly
Although I don’t always memorize vocabulary in phrases, it’s generally useful to do so.
Another way to add context to words that you’re learning is to add stories to them. There’s actually a mnemonic strategy called the story method.
For example, to memorize the word “expetendorum,” I not only used the Pet Barn as a Memory Palace. I had a story in which an X-Man with a ten of spades on his claws pounded the door while drinking rum. That little story gave the word a larger context and made it easier to memorize the entire phrase I found it in.
4. Use Spaced Repetition Properly
Especially when learning vocabulary from a foreign language, it’s important to repeat the words frequently.
But not randomly.
When you use a process scientists call this process spaced repetition you can easily cut down on the amount of repetition you need.
5. Chant Or Sing When Memorizing Vocabulary? Yes!
I’ve memorized over 1700 Sanskrit words, a goal I’ve been able to push through largely thanks to chanting them to a bit of a tune.
It might sound silly, but it’s worked for thousands of years. In fact, recent research further validates the notion that the signing and chanting element also play a role in memory formation. Anecdotally, my friend Luke Ranieri also used signing to memorize the first 100 lines of the Iliad.
Just to drive the point home, you can also watch this video where I sang a Mandarin song I later performed at my wedding:
This song endeared me to my new family and my wife. But it also helped me learn a lot of vocabulary in Mandarin very quickly.
So, pick a song in any language, memorize it using a Memory Palace and before you know it, you’ll have an expanded vocabulary. The more song lyrics you memorize, the more vocabulary you’ll be able to access from memory and recognize while reading, speaking, listening and writing.
6. Use Self-Testing
In addition to spaced repetition, it’s important to challenge yourself using tests. Scientists call this process active recall.
Let’s pretend we’re learning English and take the word “account” as an example.
The first step is to select a Memory Palace. Then assign a mnemonic image. I grew up with Big Bird, Oscar the Grouch, and a host of other characters on the children’s show Sesame Street. So when I think of the word “account,” Count von Count immediately comes to mind.
But we have an additional “AC” to add to that word. So I think of an air conditioner falling out of a window onto the Count. Just like you see in the feature image at the top of this post.
To get the meaning into the image, this air conditioner also looks a fair amount like a calculator – the tool used by an accountant while engaged in the act of accounting.
This action and object-based visualization with a meaningful character from pop culture almost guarantees you’ll not forget that word.
To add self-testing, the process is easy.
Get out a pen and some paper.
Bring the Memory Palace to mind first, then the mnemonic image.
Finally, write it down.
This process has been proven in studies like this one to help form memories faster and I used it a lot, especially for my Mandarin exam, where I also needed to know Chinese characters on top of sounds and meanings.
Cloze tests are another form of self-testing you can explore. I used the test you see above to help me remember Chinese vocabulary for my level III test in Mandarin.
Basically, cloze tests simply leave out a piece of information. Whenever you self test using flashcards in the way we’re about to discuss, don’t include all of the answer on the back. Always leave an element out so that it’s like a puzzle you have to solve. This will help you memorize the sound and meaning of words much, much faster.
7. Use Optimized Flashcards
A lot of people like to use Anki for learning vocabulary.
I’ve never found it that helpful, largely because it’s boring to me and feels like rote learning.
As an alternative, I like to create my own flashcards in ways that use the active recall process we just discussed.
Take the own in the shoe above, for example.
I created it by hand to learn some cool slang in French.
Instead of repeating the same phrase over and over again, simply by creating the card and then looking at the card 3-4 times, the sound and meaning entered long-term memory much for effectively.
8. Read More Often To Re-Encounter Vocabulary
When I started learning German, I waited far too long to start reading books and articles.
This is a problem because reading is one of the best forms of spaced repetition you can get.
To give you a concrete example of a strategy that helped me a ton: I’m very interested in music. So in German, I found interviews with one of my favorite bands in this language.
Not only did this choice help give me interesting material to read. It also gave me examples of the kinds of vocabulary used by people in everyday speed.
This makes interviews a somewhat better source of vocabulary than novels and books for kids. That said, language learning expert Olly Richards has recognized the dearth of good material for language learners to read. His story books for language learners is excellent and the vocabulary selections are geared to giving you words you actually need to progress in a language. And they repeat in just the right doses.
Other ways to read include how you use your Netflix settings while watching foreign language movies. I often re-watch my favorite movies with subtitles on in languages I want to learn, giving me lots of repeated exposure to core vocabulary. It’s not exactly learning by osmosis, but close.
Why Memorizing Vocabulary Is The Most Important Skill In The World
Memorizing vocabulary is not only the easiest skill, but it’s also the most important skill you’ll ever have. It’s also the path to start to remembering all kinds of other things.
Almost all of the most important information we use to survive is transmitted through words. They are the building blocks of all language and information.
If you’d like more help, please get my free course here:
It will help you master the Memory Palace technique and other approaches we discussed above.
Vocabulary is crucial and essential to improvement in all areas of life. Again, words are fundamental to success as a lifelong learner. Especially if you want to become a polymath (like I do).
The only catch is that to grow, you must have a solid foundation.
So now that you’ve got all these tips under your belt, please let me know:
What vocabulary are you going to memorize now that you know these memorization secrets?
21 Responses
Anthony Metivier’s article entitled “How to Memorize Vocabulary – A Step-By-Step Guide” is worthy of close scrutiny. The author offers a solid foundation to understanding and practicing valuable memorization skills.
Anthony describes the importance of planning, use of mnemonics, and context – these and several other principles are rarely taught in traditional language learning. The claim is made that memorizing vocabulary is the most important skill in the world.
Anthony supports this contention with the explanation: “Almost all of the most important information we use to survive is transmitted through words. They are the building blocks of all language and information.” The article merits study and indeed memorization of its life-enhancing skills.
Thanks for this comment, John.
Planning is indeed sadly absent from so much language learning instruction. Yet, it is easy and fun to do and primes the mind and memory for the encoding to come.
Thanks again and look forward to your next post on the MMM blog. 🙂
I’m Martin from Peru and I really appreciate what you do for all of us to improve our awesome tool we have “our memory”
Thanks a bunch It’s really really useful all these techniques to improve our memory.
I’m glad you found this useful, Martin. Thanks for taking a moment to let me know and look forward to your next comment on the blog!
Thanks, for the deep introduction to memorize vocabulary, Anthony!
I like that you are giving details about the words. (examples). I am curious about other vocabulary when i am reading the Toefl. In this group there are different people from other countries. Even right now i have enough to memorize when i get my goals of Health and life Insurance, Math, Pedagogy and the Toefl I want to get immersed in Hebrew, Sanskrit, …I want to get my Freedom Journal also.
Thanks for this, Maricela.
I understand just how much desire most of us have for multiple languages, so do enjoy the emotions around that.
From a learning and memory perspective, most of us are likely to get better results from focusing on one language first for a decent amount of time. Familiarity with that process then creates skills and decision parameters that make the next language easier – especially when you have a whole extra set of colors to paint with using mnemonics.
Thanks as ever for your comments on this blog and look forward to your next post!
Thanks for writing this informative guide! These resources are really helping me step up my language learning. Reading this has left me wondering something:
Is it possible to use the same location of the same memory palace to memorize multiple words in different languages? For instance, do you think it would be effective to put a Chinese word in my bedroom closet and a week later put a Spanish word in there as well, or would it be better to make separate memory palaces?
Thanks in advance for any thoughts on the matter!
Thanks for this question, Jeremy. I’m glad you’re finding these resources helpful.
It is entirely possible to memorize the vocabulary of more than one language on a station by station basis in a Memory Palace.
In your case, Spanish and Chinese are different enough that you should be able to do manage this without one image interfering with the other, provided you’ve gotten the first word into long term memory and you are skilled in dealing with “ghosting” and/or “The Ugly Sister Effect.”
(If you want to search Magnetic Memory Method + Ugly Sister Effect in Google, you’ll find a whole blog post about this issue on that page and podcast. There’s also an interesting discussion on that page you will likely benefit from.
The reason I’m not posting the link directly in this discussion for you is because we’ve been seeing a speed penalty when linking in the comments and don’t want to harm the performance of the site. I appreciate your understanding and for looking up that previous resource manually if you’re interested in learning about dealing with “ghosting.”)
About “better” questions, generally, I would say that for most people it is better to use separate Memory Palaces for a few reasons:
1. They don’t have to deal with intermediate issues like “ghosting.” It’s actually not a problem as you’ll learn from the other resource. But new people can experience it as a problem if they don’t see it for the memory triumph that it really is.
2. Creating multiple Memory Palaces is beneficial for helping unlock more spatial mapping skills, spatial memory, autobiographical memory, episodic memory, figural memory and other levels. Without enough Memory Palaces, it is unlikely for the full competence that anyone can achieve with these memory techniques to emerge.
3. The purpose of the Memory Palace is to have a “canvas” for both encoding and decoding, but especially decoding so that the information gets into long term memory as quickly, efficiently and thoroughly as possible.
Depending on your existing level of skill, it is completely possible that you really can hunt two rabbits at once and catch both. That’s up for each individual to decide.
I am currently memorizing two long form texts in the same Memory Palace as a means of stretching my skills. I was trying for 3 texts, but the challenge was too much, so I scaled back to two.
And that is my final point: You need to balance what I call the “Challenge-Frustration Curve.”
If you’re not being challenged, you won’t grow with these techniques. But if you get frustrated, you will understandably give up.
So always keep yourself challenged, but scale back from frustration until your skills can handle the higher levels of challenge.
And keep your outcome in mind.
If you really want to have the information you’re dealing with in your memory, then frustration is much less likely to arise because your strategy will be more precious to you. It’s the old Abraham Lincoln line:
“Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe.”
The only point to add to this quote is that one should spend a bit of time fully deciding that they actually want to chop the tree in question down. A lot of people go after entire forests with dull axes before they’ve even properly assessed that they really want even the bark of one tree.
I hope these pointers help and look forward to your next post here on the blog soon! 🙂
Thanks for the reply! I think I’ll give using the same palace for Spanish and Chinese a shot, though I think I’ll use a different one for French due to its similarity, and I’ll share the French one with Russian words when I start learning it.
Do you think that organizing memory palaces by letter of the alphabet would be the best way to organize words? That would involve creating over 50 memory palaces, but I’m eager to do so if it would be a good memory technique.
Dive in an give it a shot.
If you use the Magnetic Memory Method and the principle of alphabetization along with the other tools we teach, you won’t need 50 Memory Palaces.
You will likely create many more than that after feeling the benefits of having them.
As for “the best way” and this being a “good” memory technique, here’s the reality:
The best way and the good way is the one you actually use to get results.
So many people hop around from technique to technique without giving any single one of them their due. It’s like flipping between piano, saxophone and sitar and then wondering why you’re not getting anywhere. But the “best” instrument that is “good” to play is the one you devote yourself to learning how to play.
It’s the same thing with memory techniques. When you devote yourself to one kind of memory instrument, learn its “keys” and play the “compositions” as described, you’ll develop mastery with it.
Then, it’s much easier to hop over to another instrument (or memory technique) and hit the ground running with it.
In sum, if you want to master memory techniques for language learning, pick one, learn it to the point that you can use it predictably, and then continue to study the other approaches out there to supplement your core skills.
Hope this helps!
Thanks for the reply! I think I’ll give using the same palace for Spanish and Chinese a shot, though I think I’ll use a different one for French due to its similarity, and I’ll share the French one with Russian words when I start learning it.
Do you think that organizing memory palaces by letter of the alphabet would be the best way to organize words? That would involve creating over 50 memory palaces between the two language sets, but I’m eager to do so if it would be a good memory technique.
That was really helpful.
I’m glad to hear that, Farzaneh. Thanks for letting me know!
These suggestions really are useful for learning new vocabulary. I’ve tried similar ways and it really works with both simple words and harder ones. Thanks.
Thanks for sharing your experience, Shery. It’s great to know that you’ve used similar approaches before.
I’ve been working on improving my vocabulary for the last two months. I found that it was difficult to begin, but once I started with these techniques, it became much easier.
That’s great, Bahar. Thanks for letting us know that this approach is working so well for you. Having a better vocabulary is a great way to get a better career, improve your professionalism and enjoy language so much more.
Ok 👌 I’m going to take toefl and Cambridge English exams.
What do you suggest to do or read to memorise English structure and grammar for a test?
Waiting for your answer.
Thanks for stopping by to read this post.
I don’t recommend memorizing grammar as such, though you certainly can.
One way to do it is to identify a grammar rule you want to absorb.
Then, create a Memory Palace with enough space for ten or so examples of that rule in action.
Memorize those ten sentences using that Memory Palace. Then move on to the next grammar principle.
But overall, if you’re focused on memorizing vocabulary and getting lots of reading, writing, speaking and listening in, grammar is usually learned in the background.
However, I do appreciate that TOEFL is its own kettle of fish, so if I were in your position, memorizing examples of grammatical rules and principles is what I would do.
That was enlightening. Thank you for the article.
You’re welcome!