Language Memory

Learnt English Words (20 April 10)

admin — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 11:46:54 +0000

verisimilitude - see definition

- Dmitry Vostokov @ LanguageMemory.com -

Learnt English Words (21 December 09)

admin — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 14:14:47 +0000

inebriation - alcohol intoxication, complete drunkeness

- Dmitry Vostokov @ LanguageMemory.com -

Learnt German Words (16 November 09)

admin — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 14:16:18 +0000

der Abend, abends, das Abendessen - evening, in the evening, evening meal

die Gesellschaft, gesellschaftlich - society (company), social gathering

das Haar - hair

- Dmitry Vostokov @ LanguageMemory.com -

Foreign Language Reading System

admin — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 11:45:48 +0000

Here is the reading system I devised and now adapting to the study of foreign languages:

Mod N Reading System

Long time ago I planned and attempted to study German language and bought a dozen of basic level books and a few of intermediate and advanced. Now I repeat this attempt because I have a goal: to be able to read volumes of “Das Deutsche Reich und der Zweite Weltkrieg”.

The reading system is supplemented by listening to VocabuLearn CDs when I cannot read while commuting.

Learnt English Words (11 October 09)

admin — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 11:36:45 +0000

stuck up - snobbish

curtsy - (v. & n.) when a woman formally greets an important person (also in dance) like Queen

- Dmitry Vostokov @ LanguageMemory.com -

Learnt English Words (10 March 09)

admin — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 11:46:01 +0000

brow of the hill - the top of the hill

humpback bridge - very steep on both sides

newt - “triton” (in Russian)

- Dmitry Vostokov @ LanguageMemory.com -

Learnt English Words (18 Feb 09)

admin — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 07:50:18 +0000

wuthering - (alt. of whithering), blowing with a dull roaring sound (like a wind I guess)

ruffian - a violent person (a man committing crimes)

vivacious - a lively and attractive person (a woman)

weedy - with thin weak body

sleazy - socially unacceptable, unpleasant

bumbling - making careless mistakes in a confused way

tumbledown - (building) in a poor condition (old) as if falling down

gambol - jump lively around

shaggy - long untidy (hair)

cribbage - a type of card games

withered - old looking, thin and weak with dry skin (people)

pluck - (n.) determination and courage

- Dmitry Vostokov @ LanguageMemory.com -

Learnt English Words (17 Feb 09)

admin — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 17:48:38 +0000

bedeck - to cover/adorn with decorations

chalet - Swiss wooden house

huddle - crowded mass

heave - to lift with effort

quarry - excavation where stone is got from ground for building

janitor - caretaker

shibboleth

excoriate - vehemently denounce

satiate - satisfy to the full

rapacious - greedy

usufract (usufractuary) - the right to use and enjoy something that belongs to others

bourse - continental Europe stock exchange

sassy - rude and lacking respect

gruel - oatmeal boiled in milk/water

- Dmitry Vostokov @ LanguageMemory.com -

Vocabulary Learning Tips (Part 1)

admin — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 17:24:13 +0000

In the past, 5 years ago, I was writing down any new word I encountered while reading technical books together with their IPA pronunciation. I remember that greatly reduced my pronunciation errors and improved my vocabulary so I almost never see unknown words now in technical and science books. The downside was slow reading. A few years ago I started reading non-technical books, for example, about history and philosophy, where I see some unknown words. Usually I skip them and most of the time I infer their meaning from the context. As I read these books while commuting to work on a train I started today to mark unknown words in them with a pen. This doesn’t decrease my reading speed because I process marked words later on this blog.

- Dmitry Vostokov @ LanguageMemory.com -

Learnt English Words (15 Feb 09)

admin — Sun, 15 Feb 2009 12:35:36 +0000

cloying - so sweet to become unpleasant

- Dmitry Vostokov @ LanguageMemory.com -