Gabriel Wyner

learn pronunciation first

spaced repetition systems

ten books, wrote seventy pages’ worth of essays, and my vocabulary grew to forty-five hundred words

We’ll make the most of your limited time, investigating which words to learn first, how to use mnemonics to memorize abstract concepts faster, and how to improve your reading, writing, listening, and speaking skills as quickly and effectively as possible.

PERSONAL CONNECTIONS: I can’t give you your personal connections, but I can give you questions to help spur your memories. Use them whenever you have trouble finding a good memory for a new word. When you do, ask yourself about your new word rather than its English translation. Instead of asking about the last time you saw your mother, ask about the last time you saw your mère. Even when the words sound almost the same (timid/timide), you’ll create more useful connections when you mentally hear those words in the accent of your new language:

Concrete Nouns: When’s the last time I saw my mère (mother)?

Concrete Nouns: When’s the first