help...?
does anyone have a good way to help me memorize my vocabulary. I took two years of German, and I do Duolingo, and im still struggling, anything would help at this point. Tips, tricks?
23 Comments
Try using the strengthen skills feature on Duolingo to review what you've done. Eventually spaced repetition should take it's effect and you will begin to build a German vocabulary.
1749
You can do flash cards either electronic or online. Memrise has great resources for German including two for Duo's vocabulary.
- 1749
You can use any software you like or paper cards. The trick is to make them personal, if there is difficult word, try to associate an image to that word or write something to remember it. The other trick is to read them often. Recalling the word tells the brain this is important you have to remember it.
https://www.fluentin3months.com/memory-palace/
http://www.happychild.org.uk/acc/tpr/mem/0299lang.htm
Let me give you an example for a difficult word: lächerlich - ridiculous. Someone in memrise put a picture of Kobe Bryant (Lakers' player) playing a game and another player almost licking him (an accident), the text reads: Laker lick (it sounds like lacherlich) is ridiculous, the image is funny and shocking so it sticks to your mind.
You also need to use the words, you can read, write, watch TV, listen and talk.
This is interesting: http://www.linkwordlanguages.com/german/
This might sound a bit nutty, but how about talking to yourself in German. And I really do mean speaking out loud.
Is there a word you are having trouble remembering? Try this - speak English and substitute the English word for the German word. Let's use die Katze - the cat - for example. My Katze sleeps all the time, but when my Katze wants to play, the Katze goes wild. And I love watching videos about Katzen. My sister's Katze is just as lazy as my Katze. But it really is fun to watch both Katzen playing. One Katze will jump on the other Katze.
I mean I have done that... I just have a hard time , how can I say this ... remembering the words. German is a lot like english, except it's not.
Practice frequently. It really just takes time and dedication. As others have said, associating the word with an image or something that can trick your brain into recalling it can also be helpful. Try to use the words as often as possible. You will likely have difficulties remembering a word with nothing to connect it to. When you're reviewing, place the word in a sentence.
Mabye you could keep a notebook and write all your notes and vocabulary down... or you could try using quizlet .. it's a flashcard generator to help you study
sorry, I was just typing in punjabi. my bad. I said that an easy way is to find a language partner to help you. someone native german.
I use the website to learn new things, as it has essential notes but i use the phone app for revision. When i want to pass the time ill just strengthen certain parts of German i dont know. Also, ill revise it in school when not revising anything else. Finally, i have a notepad and every new word i encounter i jot it down so i can come back to it.
well mate u should get a dictionary and look for words that takes ur interest when u go for a smoke break or when u go to the loo =) u gota be curious u know Post-it papers would help you alot aswell when u go bed thats wha i do :D good luck =)
While others have success with flashcards, I have relatively little. The vocabulary only 'sticks' for a couple of days without constantly re-drilling. I have had much more success learning German vocabulary by reading in German. I have a few parallel texts (German on one page, and English translation on the opposite page) that I started with. Most of the words I have learned through reading have stuck with me because I can recall the context in which I learned them.
If you look on Amazon for "German parallel text" you should get several choices:
I loved that I could stay immersed in the story because I had the English translation right there, so I could really build a picture in my mind of the scene. Nowadays I read things only in German, looking up the words I do not know in a learner's dictionary. So to that end.... I would suggest at some point getting a single language German dictionary intended for learners of German. This can be an invaluable tool because you are also exposed to grammatically correct sentence structures that explain the words in clear, usually simple German, and often give synonyms and examples of usage. I use the Langenscheidt Großwörterbuch Deutsch als Fremdsprache:
But there are others out there. I hope that whatever methods you adopt that you reach your learning goal. Viel Erfolg beim Lernen!
