TL;DR:
A word learned inside a sentence tells you how it is used, not just what it means.
Pick a small set of useful words from something you read, and write one sentence card for each.
Learn collocations, the words that go with a word, and review on a spaced schedule.
You learn a list of twenty words with their translations, and a week later you can recall perhaps a few, and cannot use any of them in a sentence. The problem is not your memory. A bare word on a card does not tell you which words go with it, what grammar it needs or where it fits. A word inside a sentence does.
Why context sentences work
A sentence gives you the word's meaning, its grammar and its company in one chunk. When you recall the sentence, you recall how the word behaves. You also remember it better because there is more to hang the memory on than a single translation.
This is especially useful when a word has several meanings. The sentence shows which one you are learning, and you can add other senses later with other sentences.
Worked example: ten words from one short article
Here is a short invented passage in Spanish for a learner at about a beginner-to-intermediate level:
Todos los sábados mi abuela va al mercado. Compra verduras frescas y un poco de queso. Siempre regatea con el vendedor, pero al final se ríen juntos. Después vuelve a casa y prepara una sopa para toda la familia.
Do not pick every unknown word. Pick words you will meet again and need. Say you choose ten, shown here with a sentence card for each.
Word | Meaning | Sentence card |
|---|---|---|
mercado | market | Mi abuela va al mercado los sábados. |
comprar | to buy | Compra verduras frescas. |
verduras | vegetables | Las verduras frescas son más baratas aquí. |
fresco | fresh | El queso fresco está en la mesa. |
queso | cheese | Quiero un poco de queso. |
regatear | to haggle | Mi abuela siempre regatea con el vendedor. |
vendedor | seller | El vendedor sonríe. |
reírse | to laugh | Los dos se ríen juntos. |
volver | to come back | Después vuelve a casa. |
sopa | soup | Prepara una sopa para la familia. |
Count the set: ten words, ten cards. Notice that the cards are short, built from words you already know, and that each has just one new item. A card with three unknown words is too heavy, and you will not be able to tell which one you missed.
Collocations: the company a word keeps
A collocation is a word pair or phrase that speakers use together. From this passage: verduras frescas (fresh vegetables), regatear con el vendedor (haggle with the seller), volver a casa (go back home), un poco de queso (a little cheese). Learn these as units. If you only learn fresco, you may not know it goes after the noun and changes to match it (verduras frescas), whereas the unit teaches you that for free.
Review spacing
Words fade if you do not revisit them, and each review pushes them further out. A simple schedule is enough. As an example, review a new card the next day, then three days later, then a week later, then two weeks later. If you forget a card, bring it back to the next day. Use whatever flashcard method you like, as long as hard cards come back sooner than easy ones.
Tip: When you review, produce the word before you flip. Cover the Spanish and try to say it from the English meaning or from a gap in the sentence. Active recall holds memories better than simply recognising a word.
Where to find the text
Use something you would read anyway: a graded reader, a news story written for learners, a short story, a recipe or a message from a friend. You will care about the words more, and those words are more likely to appear again. If you can choose, aim for a text where you already know most of the words, so that the unknown ones can be guessed from the surrounding sentences.
Guessing from context is itself a skill. Before you look up a word, read the whole sentence and make a guess. Then check. Even a wrong guess prepares your memory for the right answer, so the lookup sticks better.
Make good cards
One new item per card. Everything else should be familiar.
A sentence you could say. Make it about your life when you can.
A gap or a prompt on one side. For example, "Mi abuela va al ___ los sábados" with the meaning as a hint.
Keep the source. Note where you met the word, so you can look it up again.
Common mistakes
Choosing words that are too rare. Pick words that appear often in what you read or hear.
Copying a long sentence from the text with many unknown words.
Making huge batches. Ten new words a session is plenty for many learners.
Skipping review because new words feel more exciting.
Your plan for this week
Find one short text at your level. Choose ten useful words, write a card for each with a collocation, and review on the schedule above. If you would like to hear the words in a conversation, you can ask DuckyHelper to use them in short spoken sentences with you, but the cards you write yourself are the part that sticks.
Frequently asked questions
How many new words per day is right?
Enough that you can review them all. Many learners find five to ten comfortable. More only helps if you keep up with reviews.
Should I use translations or definitions in the target language?
Translations are quicker for beginners. Move to definitions and gap-fill cards as your level rises.
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