Today, I decided to focus on using context clues to enhance my vocabulary. I came across a few new words while reading an article and applied this strategy to understand their meanings without immediately reaching for a dictionary.
For instance, I encountered the word "anathema" in a sentence discussing someone’s feelings about cooking daily. The sentence read: "Cooking dinner day in, day out is anathema to Yvette, yet she loves to cook for friends on special occasions." By examining the surrounding context, I inferred that "anathema" likely referred to something Yvette strongly dislikes, which helped me deduce that it means "something hated."
This strategy worked well for me, as it not only allowed me to understand the meaning of the word in context, but it also helped me retain it better. Instead of just memorizing definitions, I connected the word to the situation described.
I learned several new words today, including "lethargic" and "dilapidated," using the same approach. Each time I encountered a new word, I paused to think about its meaning based on how it was used in the sentence.
In conclusion, using context clues was an effective strategy for expanding my vocabulary today. I plan to continue using this method while reading to deepen my understanding of new words.