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I think everyone who tries to learn a new language makes the mistake of writing down definitions of words and phrases and try to memorize them. This may work for some people, but if you want to boost your comprehension of the language, reading, as I always say, is the cheat code.
When you read, you get so much exposure to the language. You see how words are used instead of trying to memorize them. If you were to memorize a word, it will confuse you when you see that word in an expression. When you read, you may see the same common words so much that you instantly recognize them.
Reading is like doing drills over and over again, but without forcing yourself to memorize the words. When you see high-frequency words over and over again, these words will stick in your brain longer organically. There will be low-frequency words that you may keep forgetting each time you see them pop up. If you read a lot of books, you may see those low frequency words thoughtout the years and they'll start to stick after a while.
Think about how well people speak when they read a lot. Even if what they read are romance novels or sci-fi. There will be a lot of words you don't use in your everyday life, but being an avid reader, you will understand a lot of these words even though you don't use them often.
The way we learn in school by memorization is only good for studying to pass a test. If you want something to last a lifetime, you need to utilize it at a higher rate. Even if you haven't seen this word in months or years, when you see it, your brain could instantly recognize it and you won't need to look it up.
I highly suggest you read in your target language every single day as much as you feel like it…even if you only feel like reading a sentence for that day. If you're watching movies, don't be afraid to turn on the subtitles.
Consistency with massive exposure to your target language over time will get you to fluency, not trying to memorize a bunch of words in a matter of months. Stop trying to become fluent and just stick with the language. Your fluency only gets better the more you stick with the language. Imagine a baby stop learning their mother tongue after a few months. Will they ever be fluent? Of course not. However, due to the high usage of the language, and lifetime use of the language, they only become more fluent each passing year. If you add reading to that, their command of the language just gets better and better.
Don't forget to get your copy of my free eBook, Own Your Audience Using The Power of Email. Click the link below