Here are a few things that we can do if we are serious about improving our vocabulary.

1. Read, read and read

Aim to read at least a book a month. Make it a habit to read magazines, newspapers and anything you can
get your hand on. Look at the way good writers write. What are the interesting phrases and words used?

2. Look it up

Is there a particular word that is always appearing when you read? Look it up. Keep a dictionary
nearby. You don't need to look up every word you don't know. That would kill the joy of reading. Look
up words which will help you understand the passage better.

3. Keep a vocabulary notebook

When I was in school, my English teacher made us keep a notebook for new words we learnt. At the end
of the year, it was fun to look back at what we had collected and used. Many words became a part of our
vocabulary daily.

4. Do word puzzles and play word games

There are many online games that will help you in improving your vocabulary. For example, go to
www.wordgames.com for games such as word search, crossword puzzle and puzzles.

5. Use online dictionaries

Use the free services of online dictionaries. Sign up to learn a word a day. Learn the pronunciation of a
new word from these websites.

6. Write daily
The fastest way of learning a new word is to use it. Write about the happenings in your school or about
your life. Look for ways to use these words aptly. There are many students who turn to the dictionary to
memorise some bombastic words to use in their essays but they ended up using them wrongly.

7. Do your own research

Find words that are associated with certain topics. Do a mind map of these words.
For example, when you think of the word 'environment', what are the words that come to your mind? Use
the Internet to help you.
 IDIOMS

Idioms help you to score better in your ESSAY

 English idioms that describe relationships.

Positive
get on like a house on fire = to get on really well with someone: "They get on like a house on fire."

have a soft spot for someone = to be very fond of someone: "She has a soft spot for her youngest
child."

go back a long way = to know someone well for a long time: "Those two go back a long way. They were
at primary school together."

be in with = to have favoured status with someone: "She's in with the management."

Negative
get off on the wrong foot with someone = to start off badly with someone: "She really got off on the
wrong foot with her new boss."

keep someone at arm's length = to keep someone at a distance: "I'm keeping her at arm's length for the
time being."

they're like cat and dog = to often argue with someone: "Those two are like cat and dog."

rub someone up the wrong way = to irritate someone: "She really rubs her sister up the wrong way."

be at loggerheads = to disagree strongly: "Charles and Henry are at loggerheads over the new policy."

sworn enemies = to hate someone: "Those two are sworn enemies."

Equality and inequality

bend over backwards for someone = do everything possible to help someone: "She bent over
backwards for them when they first arrived in the town."

be at someone's beck and call = to always be ready to do what someone wants: "As the office junior,
she was at his beck and call all day."

pull your weight = to do the right amount of work: "The kids always pull their weight around the house."

do your fair share = to do your share of the work: "He never does his fair share!"

take someone under your wing = to look after someone until they settle in: "He took her under his wing
for her first month at work."
keep tabs on someone = to watch someone carefully to check what they are doing: "He's keeping tabs
on the sales team at the moment."

wear the trousers = to be in control: "She wears the trousers in their relationship."

be under the thumb = to be controlled by someone else: "He really keeps her under the thumb."

How you communicate

get your wires crossed =to misunderstand someone because you think they are talking about
something else: "I think I've got my wires crossed. Were you talking about car or personal insurance?"

get the wrong end of the stick = to misunderstand someone and understand the opposite of what they
are saying: "You've got the wrong end of the stick. The fault was with the other driver, not with me."

be left in the dark = to be left without enough information: "We've been left in the dark over this project.
We haven't been told how to do it."

talk at cross purposes = when two people don't understand each other because they are talking about
two different things (but don't realise it): "We're talking at cross purposes here."

go round in circles = to say the same things over and again, so never resolving a problem: "We always
end up going round in circles in these meetings."

leave things up in the air = to leave something undecided: "I hate leaving things up in the air."
 SAMPLE ESSAY ON FRIENDS

Friends are people whom we turn to when our spirits need a lift. They are always by our
side through thick and thin. They stand beside us even when our disposition is not perfectly right
and will fight for us if we are oppressed. Therefore, it is clear that friends play a vital role in
shaping who we are today. But what qualities exactly do we need to look for in a friend?

A friend should always be caring towards you. He or she should take interest in your
problems no matter how big or petty your problem may be. A friend should be able to sit beside
you and encourage you to keep your chin up even when everyone else is against you. A friend’s
empathy and lovingness will also replenish your worn-out soul and will make you realize how
important a friend really is.

Apart from that, a friend should be an honest person. An honest friend will dissipate any
worries that he or she is lying towards you. A friend’s honesty will enable you to trust his or
she’s opinion when it comes to telling you the truth about yourself. For example, an honest
friend will remand you on your declining grades and will ask you to work harder while a
dishonest friend will see it with a blind eye. Therefore, an overall improvement in yourself will
be noticeable if you have an honest friend.

Moreover, a friend should be generous both emotionally and knowledge wise. A friend
who is generous ought to be able to connect with you and provide emotional support. He or she
should also be generous when it comes to sharing knowledge. A true friend must be ever-ready
to help you when you are inept in certain subjects. A friend can easily guide you towards
understanding the subject matter better as he or she is often on the same page as you. The only
difference is that you can’t quite grasp the content of the page per se.

Besides that, a friend must also be able to humour you. Humour plays a quintessential role
in making your day more lively and enjoyable. Friends who pull your leg and mess about will
indefinitely make life seem so much better. As they say, laughter is the best medicine and a little
levity on rainy days is always welcomed.

In conclusion, friends are people we spend most of our time with. Thus, we have to be selective
when it comes to choosing our friends.
 10 MOST
BEAUTIFUL WORD
IN ENGLISH

Ailurophile A cat-lover. Evocative Suggestive.

Assemblage A gathering. Fetching Pretty.
Becoming Attractive. Felicity Pleasantness.
Beleaguer To exhaust with attacks. Forbearance Withholding response to
provocation.
Brood To think alone. Fugacious Fleeting.
Bucolic In a lovely rural setting. Furtive Shifty, sneaky.
Bungalow A small, cozy cottage. Gambol To skip or leap about joyfully.
Chatoyant Like a cat's eye. Glamour Beauty.
Comely Attractive. Gossamer The finest piece of thread, a
spider's silk
Conflate To blend together. Halcyon Happy, sunny, care-free.
Cynosure A focal point of admiration. Harbinger Messenger with news of the
future.
Dalliance A brief love affair. Imbrication Overlapping and forming a
regular pattern.
Demesne Dominion, territory. Imbroglio An altercation or complicated
situation.
Demure Shy and reserved. Imbue To infuse, instill.
Denouement The resolution of a mystery. Incipient Beginning, in an early stage.
Desuetude Disuse. Ineffable Unutterable, inexpressible.
Desultory Slow, sluggish. Ingénue A naïve young woman.
Diaphanous Filmy. Inglenook A cozy nook by the hearth.
Dissemble Deceive. Insouciance Blithe nonchalance.
Dulcet Sweet, sugary. Inure To become jaded.
Ebullience Bubbling enthusiasm. Labyrinthine Twisting and turning.
Effervescent Bubbly. Lagniappe A special kind of gift.
Efflorescence Flowering, blooming. Lagoon A small gulf or inlet.
Elision Dropping a sound or syllable Languor Listlessness, inactivity.
in a word.
Elixir A good potion. Lassitude Weariness, listlessness.
Eloquence Beauty and persuasion in Leisure Free time.
speech.
Embrocation Rubbing on a lotion. Lilt To move musically or lively.
Emollient A softener. Lissome Slender and graceful.
Ephemeral Short-lived. Lithe Slender and flexible.
Epiphany A sudden revelation. Love Deep affection.
Erstwhile At one time, for a time. Mellifluous Sweet sounding.
Ethereal Gaseous, invisible but Moiety One of two equal parts.
detectable.
Evanescent Vanishing quickly, lasting a Mondegreen A slip of the ear.
very short time.
Murmurous Murmuring. Riparian By the bank of a stream.
Nemesis An unconquerable Ripple A very small wave.
archenemy.
Offing The sea between the horizon Scintilla A spark or very small thing.
and the offshore.
Onomatopoeia A word that sounds like its Sempiternal Eternal.
meaning.
Opulent Lush, luxuriant. Seraglio Rich, luxurious oriental palace or
harem.
Palimpsest A manuscript written over Serendipity Finding something nice while
earlier ones. looking for something else.
Panacea A solution for all problems Summery Light, delicate or warm and
sunny.
Panoply A complete set. Sumptuous Lush, luxurious.
Pastiche An art work combining Surreptitious Secretive, sneaky.
materials from various
sources.
Penumbra A half-shadow. Susquehanna A river in Pennsylvania.
Petrichor The smell of earth after rain. Susurrous Whispering, hissing.
Plethora A large quantity. Talisman A good luck charm.
Propinquity An inclination. Tintinnabulation Tinkling.
Pyrrhic Successful with heavy losses. Umbrella Protection from sun or rain.
Quintessential Most essential. Untoward Unseemly, inappropriate.
Ratatouille A spicy French stew. Vestigial In trace amounts.
Ravel To knit or unknit. Wafture Waving.
Redolent Fragrant. Wherewithal The means.
Woebegone Sorrowful, downcast.

STEP TO SUCCESS….
 TRANSITIONAL WORDS
AND
PHRASES

This structured list of commonly used English transition words — approximately 200, can be
considered as quasi complete. It can be used (by students and teachers alike) to find the right
expression. English transition words are essential, since they not only connect ideas, but also
can introduce a certain shift, contrast or opposition, emphasis or agreement, purpose, result or
conclusion, etc. in the line of argument.
There is some overlapping with preposition and postposition, but for the purpose of clarity and
completeness of this concise guide, I did not differentiate.

Agreement / Addition / Similarity

The transition words like also, in addition, and, likewise, add information, reinforce
ideas, and express agreement with preceding material.

in the first place then

not only ... but also equally
as a matter of fact identically
in like manner uniquely
in addition like
coupled with as
in the same fashion / way too
first, second, third moreover
in the light of as well as
not to mention together with
to say nothing of of course
equally important likewise
by the same token comparatively
again correspondingly
to similarly
and furthermore
also additionally
Opposition / Limitation / Contradiction

Transition phrases like but, rather and or, express that there is evidence to
the contraryor point out alternatives, and thus introduce a change the line of reasoning
(contrast).

although this may be then again although

true
above all instead
in contrast
in reality whereas
different from
after all despite
of course ..., but
but conversely
on the other hand
(and) still otherwise
on the contrary
unlike however
at the same time
or (and) yet rather
in spite of
while nevertheless
even so / though
albeit nonetheless
be that as it may
even though regardless
notwithstanding

Cause / Condition / Purpose

These transitional phrases present specific conditions or intentions.

in the event that seeing / being while

that
granted (that) lest
in view of
as / so long as in case
If
on (the) condition provided that
(that) ... then
given that
for the purpose of unless
only / even if
with this intention since
so that
with this in mind when
so as to
in the hope that whenever
owing to
to the end that while
inasmuch as
for fear that because of
due to
in order to as
Examples / Support / Emphasis

These transitional devices (like especially) are used to introduce examples as support,
to indicate importance or as an illustration so that an idea is cued to the reader.
in other words to point out expressively
to put it differently on the positive surprisingly
/ negative side
for one thing frequently
with this in
as an illustration mind significantly
in this case notably in fact
for this reason including in general
to put it another way like in particular
that is to say to be sure in detail
with attention to namely for example
by all means chiefly for instance
important to realize truly to demonstrate
another key point indeed to emphasize
first thing to certainly to repeat
remember
surely to clarify
most compelling
evidence markedly to explain

must be remembered especially to enumerate

point often overlooked specifically such as

Effect / Consequence / Result

Some of these transition words (thus, then, accordingly, consequently, therefore,
henceforth) are time words that are used to show that after a particular time there was
aconsequence or an effect.

Note that for and because are placed before the cause/reason. The other devices are
placed before the consequences or effects.

as a result for thereupon

under those thus forthwith
circumstances
because the accordingly
in that case
hence henceforth
for this reason
consequently then
in effect
therefore
 Conclusion / Summary / Restatement
These transition words and phrases conclude, summarize and / or restate ideas, or
indicate a final general statement. Also some words (like therefore) from the Effect /
Consequence category can be used to summarize.

as can be seen for the most part ordinarily

generally speaking after all usually
in the final analysis in fact by and large
all things in summary to sum up
considered
in conclusion on the whole
as shown above
in short in any event
in the long run
in brief in either case
given these points
in essence all in all
as has been noted
to summarize Obviously
in a word
on balance Ultimately
altogether
overall Definitely

Time / Chronology / Sequence

These transitional words (like finally) have the function of limiting, restricting, and
definingtime. They can be used either alone or as part of adverbial expressions.

at the present without meanwhile

then
time delay
further
before
from time to in the first
time during
place hence
sooner or in time
all of a since
later sudden prior to
when
at the same at this forthwith
time instant once
straightaway
up to the first, second about
present time by the time
immediately next
to begin with whenever
quickly now
in due time until now
finally formerly
as soon as now that
after suddenly
as long as instantly
later shortly
in the presently
last henceforth
meantime
occasionally
until whenever
in a moment since
till eventually
 Many transition words in the time category (consequently; first,
second, third; further; hence; henceforth; since; then, when; and whenever) have
other uses.

Except for the numbers (first, second, third) and further they add a meaning of time in
expressing conditions, qualifications, or reasons. The numbers are also used to add
information or list examples. Further is also used to indicate added space as well as
added time.

Space / Location / Place

These transition words are often used as part of adverbial expressions and have the
function to restrict, limit or qualify space. Quite a few of these are also found in
the Timecategory and can be used to describe spatial order or spatial reference.

in the middle where wherever

to the left/right from around
in front of over between
on this side near before
in the distance above alongside
here and there below amid
in the foreground down among
in the background up beneath
in the center of under beside
adjacent to further behind
opposite to beyond across
here nearby
there
next

People say you can’t live

without love …
I think oxygen is more
important.