Note: If you are really serious about improving your vocabulary, we highly recommend you check out the popular Ultimate Vocabulary Builder

Enhance Vocabulary and Grammar: Programs that Actually Work

If you really want to enhance your vocabulary and grammar, programs are a good idea. You just need to find one that really works. Most people, including software designers, approach vocabulary as sort of a memorization challenge. Like a pack of flashcards, you generally learn to automatically spit out dictionary definitions. You might learn a sentence or two that uses that word, but that won’t stop you from sounding like a complete moron the first time you try to actually use it yourself. You can tell who expanded their vocabulary with the old flashcard method, they sound like a walking thesaurus, awkward and kind of silly. Believe it or don’t you can learn a bunch of new words well enough to sound natural when you write or say them.

There are plenty of ways to enhance vocabulary and grammar, programs are everywhere. If you’re over the age of twelve though, you probably want to stick with software designed for adults. Most people who watch tv have seen a WordSmart commercial by now, and you need to learn one word about that: beware. It’s basically a scam designed to separate people from their money. Even if you fall for the whole thing and pay $300 for all the cds, you only get to learn 400 words. If they call you and say they got the number from your child’s school, they’re lying.

Vocaboly and Word Flash are two of the less expensive programs on the market that actually produce results. These are basically flashcards on your computer, so keep that in mind when checking price tags. The focus is on memorizing the dictionary definition and how to spell the word. You don’t really learn grammar or proper word use that way.

The two best programs on the market right now are Power Vocabulary Builder and Ultimate Vocabulary. While they can help you memorize if you really want to, the focus is more on internalizing the words and making them your own. You learn new words well enough that you start saying them in your head when you think. With tons of context for each word, you learn vocabulary and grammar naturally like you do when you read. Ultimate Vocabulary is definitely the better value, the program has nearly 150,000 words for you to learn. Compared to PVB’s 2,200 words, there’s really no comparison. Ultimate Vocabulary also gives you 50 different sentences using each word, plus word history and Wikipedia links for more information.