What’s the best way to build my French vocabulary?

Question

One of the best ways to build French vocabulary is through regular exposure and use. Reading short stories, articles, or even song lyrics in French helps you see words in context. It’s also helpful to keep a personal word list or use flashcards—digital or handwritten—to review new vocabulary often. Try grouping words by theme (like food, travel, or school), and use them in sentences or conversations. The more you see, hear, and use new words, the better you’ll remember them.

Answer 1

When I was first learning French, I kept a notebook of new words as I encountered them. I always wrote down the definite article that goes with the word. For example, I would not just write "robe" for "dress." I would

write, "la robe." For another example, "cahier" means notebook. In my "cahier," I would write "le cahier."

If a noun began with a vowel and requires l', I would still indicate the gender. For example, the French for

"age" is l'âge." (Quel âge avez-vous?) This is a masculine noun. A way to make memorizing masculine and feminine even easier, divide your vocabulary notebook into sections: masculine and feminine.

In learning new vocabulary, it is vitally important that you know how to pronounce the word you want to

remember. Go to Google and ask, "French pronunciation for 'cahier.' Listening to

a word many times, spoken in French, will help you to remember the word.

Mentally picture something that brings up a certain French word. For example, for "le chien" (the male dog), picture your own dog or a friend's dog. Every time you see that dog, say the word "le chien" to yourself. If you

have forgotten the word, simply look it up in your vocabulary notebook. It's always good, in my experience, to connect a word with a visual picture.

Outside any classroom vocabulary words your teacher requires, look up words that are particularly

interesting to you. For example, I am a writer. If I wanted to write a letter in French or carry on a conversation with a Frenchman, I would want to tell the French person that I am a poet. "Je suis poète." That is one word added! If you are interested in reading, you will want to learn the word for "book," which is "le livre." And so on!

I have used only nouns here. Verbs, adjectives, and adverbs can also be a part of your new vocabulary word notebook!

Bonne chance!

Bonnie