Do you that feeling when you are trying to say something, but the words seem to be missing? Yet when you hear the words you’re looking for, you can recognise them? That's the difference between passive and active vocabulary.
Passive vocabulary refers to words that are known to you. These words are easy to recognise. When you see them in the text, you can understand their meaning. However, while you’re speaking, they just don’t come to mind. You don’t use them.
Active vocabulary, on the other hand, means words that you not only understand but also use in speaking and writing.
Don't worry if you think that your passive vocabulary is broader than your active vocabulary. That is usually the case, especially for advanced learners. The good news is – you can work on turning passive vocabulary into active! And it's not rocket science.
Forget Your Mother Tongue
The best method from my point of view is to stop using your mother tongue to learn a new language. Each time you learn a new word, think of an explanation in the same language.
For example, when you want to learn the phrase ‘’top-notch’’ in English, try to remember it as ‘’near perfect’’. What I usually do when I learn new words (yes, even as a teacher I still learn new words and phrases), I use the equal sign (=) in my notes. That helps me visually remember that words are equal to other expressions I already know.
Visualise It!
For those of you who have just started learning a new language, I recommend making little drawings next to new words. It may seem childish, but it does help a lot. Visualising new words either on paper or in your head helps you to remember them faster.
Organise It
The next technique is somewhat connected to the first one. I like organising the words into groups, either by topic or degree. Let's say you want to learn different ways to talk about your preferences. I would note them in the following sequence:
| I hate doing it | I don't like doing it |
I'm ok with doing it | I like doing it | I love doing it |
Then, I’d think of synonyms and simply note them under each phrase:
| I hate doing it | I don't like doing it |
I'm ok with doing it | I like doing it | I love doing it |
| I can't stand doing it | I'm not so keen on doing it | I don't mind doing it | I find it interesting /exciting /nice | I could do it all the time |
| Doing it drives me crazy | I'd rather do something else | Doing it is all right | Doing it is cool | I think doing it is wonderful |
Learning this way, you create connections in your memory that are easier to retrieve while speaking. Knowing how to say the same thing in 3 or 5 different ways will improve your speaking. Each time, you will forget one word, you will have two more alternatives.
Have a Good Plan
Lastly, as you may imagine: REPEAT, REPEAT and REPEAT again. However, do not do that without a plan. When I was learning English, each Sunday I prepared a list of words I wanted to study the following week. I would divide them into days. On Monday, I'd study three words. The very same words, I would also repeat on Tuesday, then Friday, the following Monday, and Sunday. At the end of each month, I would pick a day for a BIG RECAP of all words I've learnt that month. I always enjoy working with students to help come up with a plan that works for them.
That's a good method especially for those of you who experience a speaking barrier. I've worked with many people who were getting stressed by speaking English as they were afraid they would not know how to say something. After using this method, we've seen a positive impact on their speaking skills. What’s important to remember here is that we do not learn only words & their synonyms, but we create sentences that have the same meaning, but the words used to create them are different.
- Mary Senkowska is an English teacher on Langu. You can see her profile and book a free trial lesson with her here.