For many, writing may come easy; hence, making some writers a natural at expressing their emotions in the form of words on paper and pen. However, there is no shame in improving and enhancing how you write by upgrading your word game to another level. After all, the better you write, the more benefits you reap.
If you’re aiming to strengthen your word game, you’re going to have to truly understand the value of word choices when drafting your literary pieces. Using strong word choices can enhance your vocabulary, making your stories, poems, and blogs more powerful and vivid.
Importance of Enhancing Your Word Choices
Every word you write certainly packs a punch, which is why it is important to use the right words at the right time. This can only be done by enhancing your word choices. Having a strong vocabulary up your sleeves automatically means that you’re able to convey your emotions on paper without jumbling up the words. This can help you create a more responsive environment for your reader, ultimately helping them find a point of connection with your story.
So, what are you waiting for?
Let’s Get Started!
In its true essence, enhancing your word choices go far beyond choosing the right words to use. However, today, we will focus on balancing a great vocabulary with a great understanding of nuances in your writing. Here are some of the ways to upgrade your word game to another level:
1. Taking Help from Flashcards
One of the easiest and probably the quickest ways of bolstering your existing writing skills is to add new words to your vocabulary. You can do this by picking up some flashcards and understanding the meaning behind a new word every day. If you can’t squeeze flashcards in your schedule, subscribe to a “word of the day” feed or application on your phone, which works just like flashcards do, except are more effective when on the run.
At the end of the day, the English language is one of the most voluminous languages; hence, knowing too many words are never enough in drafting good pieces of writing.
2. Playing Word Games
Are you a fan of the classic board game scabble, or perhaps occasionally indulge in the crossword puzzles present in your daily newspaper? If not, it is time to find some interest in them. Such games and activities are a fun way of expanding your English vocabulary. While you’re playing these games, keep a list of the different words you find during the game so that you’re able to look their definitions up for better understanding.
Moreover, you can make building a stronger vocabulary competitive by challenging a friend to partake in playing word games with you. Don’t worry! Unlike many competitive games, these word games do absolutely no harm.
3. Introducing Anagram Solvers
If you’re new to the concept of anagrams, they’re simply a word or a phrase formed by rearranging the letters of a different word or phrase, using all the original letters exactly once in the new word or phrase. While this may seem like a challenging task, it is one of the best ways of introducing new words to your vocabulary.
Use an anagram solver, especially those that are designed specifically to help you grow your word choices, to assist you in your efforts. Unscramble has a pretty quick and easy to use anagram solver that truly helps you grow your word list.
The best part? You’re stepping into a word binary, which is improving your cognitive development just as much.
4. Investing in a Mnemonic
A mnemonic device is a form of word association that assists you in remembering words, their definitions, and their proper use in different sentences. The device helps you break down words into various components, allowing you to think of big words to add to your vocabulary, all while guessing their right application.
For instance, think of the word “obsequious”, which means: “an attempt to win favour from powerful people by flattering them.” The mnemonic device will break it down into components like “obse”, “qui”, and “us”, all of which will help you associate the word with different, smaller words for easier understanding and retention.
5. Joining Classes and Workshops
What can be a better way of upgrading your word game than by getting mentored by professionals, right? Opt for joining an English language or vocabulary building class or workshops, whichever one fits your needs best, to get a hold of proper word usage. Most of the times, such classes have interactive sessions that allow you to learn a lot more from strangers with the same goals as you.
Just one quick google search, and you’ll find thousands of options to choose from – at least this way you’re definitely not going to have to sit under the burden of unfinished classical novels hidden away in your desk drawer.
6. Clarifying your Pronouns and Sentence Voice
Most of the times, it can be difficult for writers to clarify their pronouns, resulting in a terrible sentence structure, tone, and voice. When using pronouns, ask yourself whether the reader will be able to understand what you’re delivering without them reading the whole paragraph. If your sentence is difficult to decipher, the chances are that you need to work on your pronouns.
Similarly, it is best to always opt for an active voice over a passive voice when writing. Part of choosing the right words come solely down to the sentence structure and tone of writing. If you’re unable to tell the difference between active and passive voice, ask yourself whether the subject of your sentence is doing an action or is being acted upon.
Distinguishing between the two is a great skill to take up, especially when aiming to use strong words the right way. Here is an example to get you kickstarted:
Passive Voice: The Amazon forest is where the wild birds live.
Active Voice: Wild birds live in the Amazon forest.
And that’s all that you need to positively upgrade your word game to another level!
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