Hello! Have you been putting any of my Top Tips into practise? Here are a few more to help you out.

• Learn Antonyms

Last time, we talked about learning synonyms (words with a similar meaning) but it’s just as important to learn antonyms, which are words with an opposite meaning. Many of these will be familiar to you already, such as night and day, hot and cold, slow and fast, but most other words have an opposite, and if you can learn them, you will build your vocabulary even more.

Just think about how many new words you can learn every time you look up one new word: you start with your new word – let’s say “hot”. Then you look up five synonyms, so you have learnt a total of six new words. If you then go on to look up five antonyms as well, you have eleven new words ready to use, and it won’t have taken you that much extra time.

If you can make this part of your normal learning routine, you will soon have a fantastic vocabulary bank, and will be the envy of all your friends. Give it a try, you’ll be delighted when you see how many new words you can learn!

• Take a Virtual Trip.

It’s not always possible to visit an English-speaking country in person, but there is nothing to stop you planning your ideal trip! Get online and research places to visit in the country of your choice. Look at tourist information sites, find out about places of interest, look at advertising literature and read reviews that have been left by other travellers about the places you are interested in visiting. By doing this, not only will you build your knowledge of the culture, people and places of that country, but you will also add to your vocabulary bank.

Why not present your findings to your friends and family (in English, of course!) – imagine that you are trying to encourage them to visit the country you have researched, and let them see how much you know. You could even make some food from that country to offer to them and add to the experience.

There is, of course, another bonus to this exercise: if you ever find yourself in a position to visit the country that you have researched, you will already know a lot about it, so you will have a good idea about the best places to visit before you even get off the plane!

• Ask Questions

Do you worry about looking foolish if you ask a question when you don’t understand something? You are not alone, but you really don’t need to worry!

When you ask your teacher – or even your friends or family members – to explain something that you’re struggling with, you will strengthen your understanding of a concept and be able to make progress.

Remember, your teachers are there to help you, so if you let them know when you’re finding something difficult – whether it’s the meaning of a word, a grammatical concept, or even the entire lesson – they will work with you to help you understand. Your teachers want you to progress and do well, so they don’t mind helping you to achieve that goal.

By asking questions and fully understanding the things that you’re struggling with, you will find that your lessons are less frustrating, and you will feel a sense of achievement because you have learnt something new, meaning that you will progress more easily.

• Read Newspapers and Magazines

If you make a habit of regularly reading English language newspapers and magazines, you will benefit in many different ways. Not only will you improve your comprehension skills, but you will also build your vocabulary within specific topic areas, encounter a range of different writing styles and learn about different viewpoints to the topics of the day.

All of these skills are important, as they will help you to better understand things what you read, and enable you to improve your own written English, by using the same styles of writing, or simply by giving you a wider range of vocabulary to choose from.

Younger learners (or older beginners) can read magazines that are designed for children, as the language will be easier to understand and more engaging for them.

Aim to make reading English a daily habit, even if you only manage ten minutes a day. Whatever you read, it will definitely help to build your language skills.

If you are finding these tips helpful, or have any of your own that you would like to share, please feel free to leave a comment below!