It's been a while, hasn't it?

But we're back with another very special video.

In this one, I'll both tell you and show you through real-life examples how I increase my vocabulary in English, as this is the only method I use because it is natural and the most effective for me.

You know how I always tell you not to learn random words just for the sake of learning or aim for 10 new words a day?

When you learn words without purpose and out of context, and then don't really use them in real life, there's a 99.9% chance you will forget them.

This is just how our brains work, they eliminate everything we don't use.

If you don't use it, then you don't need it, and it gets deleted to make space for something useful.

I've tried different methods to increase my vocabulary, and not only that to be honest, it applies to everything.

Grammar, speaking, listening skills, and so on.

So the best and the most effective method for me is to learn as I go.

If I read something and come across the same words over and over again, I look them up, I see them in context, I see them recurring, I remember them.

When I hear phrases or words repeated constantly and I can't quite figure them out from the Most of the time though, you will be able to figure out the meaning of a word based on the context.

However, if you're not sure about the meaning and you either ask someone or look it up, when you make this extra effort, your brain considers it to be important information and transfers it into a folder named Important.

Do not forget in your brain.

So in this video, instead of just telling you all of this, I'll give you some examples from my own life to demonstrate what I mean and how this works.

I constantly learn new things and words, especially after moving to the US.

And I understand that concepts like learn as you go or learn naturally might sound too abstract.

One more thing that I'd like to say is that even if you watch a video giving you 100 advanced words in English or 500 casual words, it doesn't mean that you remember at least half of them.

And there's no shade to such videos.

I make them myself, I have videos like this on my channel.

But truth be told, you're better off spending that time communicating in English and engaging in real life conversations.

I know what you might be thinking.

But how do I talk to someone in English if my grammar and vocabulary are so bad?

Well, the fact of the matter is that people will understand you and talk to you despite your mistakes and your accent.

Moreover, they will help you say something, find the right words or correct you if you ask them.

It's you they are interested in, not your perfect English.

And the fact that you're making an effort will mean a lot to them.

So the sooner you understand this and let go of your fears, the faster you'll improve.

If you have no one to talk to or you're still not ready to venture out into the world to have real life conversations, I have a very good solution for you, so stay tuned to find out.

My husband and I always discover new words and phrases during our conversations with Like, oh, so this is how and where you use this word.

Or oh, so that's what this phrase means.

The same goes for developing your listening skills.

To this day, I watch my favorite shows, which I've probably watched hundreds of times.

And it seems like every time I understand more and have these aha moments, it's constant improvement.

In this video, I'll be using kitchen vocabulary as an example, and you might pick up some new words for yourself.

Okay, so you see this thing over here?

I never knew its name.

I had seen it in some people's places, and I might have even heard someone mention it.

But it wasn't important to me, so I either didn't pay attention or simply forgot.

That was until I decided that I needed one of these things.

So this is a sink caddy.

It's funny because I knew the word caddy when we were looking for our bathroom caddy.

I learned it back then, but I didn't associate it with this thing.

Well, as it turns out, things like these are called caddies.

So now after looking it up, searching for this thing, and using it basically twice in real life, I don't think that I will forget it.

It's just there.

Another interesting word that I learned and had never even heard before coming to the US is skillet.

A skillet is a type of frying pan used in cooking, characterized by its flat bottom and typically flared or sloped sides, which make it easy to toss and turn food.

Not only is it the type of frying pan, but skillet is also the name of a dish in restaurants.

When you see the word skillet on a restaurant menu, it usually refers to a dish that has been cooked in a skillet.

And that's where I heard it for the first time, in a restaurant.

A waitress was going through the day's specials and she mentioned skillet.

I had no idea what that was, so naturally when she left, I asked my friend and he explained it to me.

I think that being in that kind of awkward situation, not knowing something and having to ask about it made me remember it.

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Hello, yesterday I bought a TV from you and it doesn't work.

I'm sorry to hear that.

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So as you can see, guys, you can have a very realistic conversation with Elsa AI and you can play around with it and talk to it for as long as you want.

I personally think that it's a great way to practice and improve your English.

So give it a try and let me know what you think.

All right, now back to the video.

Another word that was new to me was dressing, which I also heard for the first time in a restaurant.

When a waitress asked me which dressing I preferred for my salad, I honestly only figured out the meaning of this word when she started listing them.

So I understood that it referred to a mixture of oil, vinegar, or lemon juice and various seasonings and herbs used to add flavor to salads, vegetables, and other dishes.

Speaking of seasoning, while watching a vlog one day, the person was talking about their sandwiches and bagels.

I wasn't familiar with that word, but as she was showing it, I naturally understood what it was.

Oddly enough, after this, this word came up multiple times in conversations with native speakers.

A seasoning is a substance added to food to enhance its flavor, and it can include herbs, salt, pepper, spices, or other flavorings.

For instance, this one is my favorite.

And this word can also be used as a verb, as in, I like to season my food generously.

When I was giving a baking recipe, I didn't know how to call this action.

It's called sifting.

And this tool is called a sieve, though some people also call it a strainer.

So I looked it up, and after using it a couple of times, I remembered it.

When I was making a sandwich, my son asked me if I was spreading butter on the bread.

And I thought to myself, hmm, so I'm spreading butter on the bread.

Then I looked it up to see if he was right, considering that he was only 5 at the time, and indeed he was.

Just to give you some context, English is not his first language, but it's essentially his native language already.

When we needed to buy this item, I needed to find out its name to look it up online or ask a store associate about it.

So this is a dish drying rack.

Now, what do you do when you have no one to talk to, but you want to use those new words you just learned?

The easiest yet very effective way is to simply describe what you're doing to yourself.

If you feel awkward talking to yourself aloud, do it in your mind.

Think about what you're doing.

For instance, you might think, alright, let's get a peeler and peel the skin off this cucumber.

Or let's do the dishes and put them on the dish rack.

You get the idea.

Well guys, that'll be it for this video.

If you found it to be useful, please give it a like and leave your comments in the comment section, and I'll see you in the next one.

Bye!