Increasing Your Vocabulary Through Facebook

You, like most of the world, may be addicted to Facebook (if you don't have an account yet, chances are you are either younger than 12 or older than 40). You may also be absolutely fed up with all of those application requests you get on an hourly basis from the guy who sat next to you in biology class three years ago. So, why not use your current addiction and those annoying applications to your advantage? Applications have made Facebook more than just a networking tool--it is now a tool that can help you increase your vocabulary.The Plan

You may be wondering at this point how in the world you are going to increase your vocabulary, especially since you have no time at all with classes and stalking the guy/girl you had a crush on in 6th grade (you know you do...) taking up most of your time. You can begin to increase your vocabulary in just four easy steps.

1. Find the right application. There are several word game applications that your friends might already be playing. If your friends are playing any word realated games, try those first. Otherwise, look for Text Twirl, Scrabulous, and Scramble. Text Twirl is a copy of Text Twist, Scrabulous copies Boggle, and Scramble is your good old Scrabble. I personally play Scrabulous and Scramble on a daily basis.

2. Look at the words you missed. For Scrabulous and Text Twirl, look at the words you missed and write down any that you don't know and look interesting. For Scramble, watch out for words your opponent uses that you may not have ever seen before, or you might want to check out the list of 2-letter words. If you see a word that you don't recognize, write it down.

3. Get out your dictionary. The best way to find out what a word means is to look it up. You don't even have to own your own dictionary now that websites like Dictionary.com and Wikipedia exist. Don't forget to look at the etymology (the history of where the word came from). Some words have very interesting histories behind where it came from--more than just the language it was derived from. If you don't believe me, check out the word bedlam.

4. Use it. Don't get bogged down in trying to memorze the definititions of hundreds of words. Just find two or three words that you thought had interesting definitions, sounded funny, or word that you think you ought to know just for the sake of knowing it. If it something that interests you, you will remember. Now, think of a situation or conversation in which you could use that word. You will get your chance eventually.
Keep it Up

Like anything, practice makes perfect. Even if you just play once a week, you will be finding two or three words a week. This may not seem like a lot, but don't forget that you are a very busy person. Not everyone will have time to play word games all day long and have dictionary.com as their home page. But, everyone does have time to at least look up one word a week. You never know what kind of jewels you will find (like snafu). Also, if you try a game and don't like it, find another one. If you keep playing a game you don't like, you won't last long on your quest to sound smarter than your friends (even if your facade is bettering yourself). When you do find a game that you like, badger your friends into playing with you. With your new vocabulary, you'll be sure to beat them every time!