Using a dictionary can be very tricky when trying to learn a foreign language. It becomes too easy to just depend on it when you come across a word you don’t know.
When reading a text in a foreign language, it is more useful to understand the words in the context of what is being said rather than looking up the word individually. You will also be able to use them in a conversation. Indeed, learning a language word by word, does not prepare you for the practical side of it.
Even though understanding words in context works better in order to remember the parts of a language, dictionaries provide the grammatical details of the new word. Yes, the context may provide meaning, but the dictionary gives you the technicalities – is it feminine, is it a noun, can it be a verb, and so on and so forth. This is something which is limited when learning in context.
Strictly speaking, learning a language is a memory game. But it shouldn’t be done in parrot mode. When you come across a new word in a sentence, you are more likely to remember that word later on. If it is simply looked up in a dictionary, you may understand it but remembering it, is another story.
When a word is put into context, and a picture is built around it, language learners are given a much higher chance of retaining the word in their long-term memory. Alternatively, the language learner can learn different vocabulary in clusters. This would mean choosing a word and learning it within a group of different words that revolve around the same meaning. For example, if a learner chooses the word ‘overjoyed’, learnt with ‘excited’, ‘happy’, and ‘cheerful’, it becomes quite easy to decipher the meaning of the word.
Learning words from a dictionary can also be done as a sort of memory exercise. The recommended number of words one should learn, each day, would be between 10 and 12. Picking out 10 words from a dictionary, be it online or paper, and trying to work on them and memorise them can increase your vocabulary repertoire significantly, within a matter of days. The important thing, in this case, would be to refer back to each word over and over again.
This is a fun exercise that can easily be done between a group of friends. When a learner takes on a new language alone, it can be quite difficult to keep up with immersing into that language significantly. However, having another person to lean on and practice with, can make all the difference. It is quite common for a group of friends to take on a foreign language together and they truly feel the effects group work has on their individual learning skills.