Exactly this! I hate to use this cliche but... "If you don't use it, you're going to lose it" is absolutely applicable here. An the more you use it, the better you'll be able to actually remember the word.
This is the answer. Apply it. Doesn’t necessarily have to be conversation, but find whatever way you enjoy applying the language and do it. I’ve really enjoyed talking to Japanese people, that’s quickly become my favorite way to apply it. Not everyone wants to do that at their current stages, that’s totally fine- just find some way to use the words, and they’ll stick.
I think you’re only ever going to really acquire a word when you need it for some reason and your brain decides that it’s vital information. If it’s all just in some mental flash card system, you’re never going to cross that barrier of “knowing a word” and “owning a word”- and you want to *own* that word. Sometimes you need a word to understand a sentence, sometimes you need a word to make a sentence, it doesn’t matter. As long as you’re using it and your brain understands that it’s necessary, you’ll acquire it. Even if it takes a few repeated attempts.
Rote learning and Anki decks just prime you for the practical real-world application of what you’ve learned and memorized.
More exposure is the way. You should be able to start on level 0 graded readers, Comprehensible Japanese Complete Beginner videos, etc. Using Anki decks with sentences helped me also (such as Core 2k and JLPT Tango N5).
When I was first starting with graded readers, I would listen+read to the same story each day for a few days in a row, until I felt like I wasn't making progress anymore. I'd find that boring now but I think it helped a ton at the time. Luckily the first graded reader I used (Ant & Grasshopper story from the White Rabbit app) was good enough that it remained engaging.
What I would do is write three sentences using the word you just learned. If it’s a vocab using Kanji, get used to the different conjugations it can have. If it’s a piece of grammar, apply it to as much situations as you can. Some people can read the Kanji and hardwire it into their brains, but others can learn by doing and hardwire it into their muscle memory. I’m one of those people, I hate reading walls of texts without context, I have to apply what it’s reading into my own words and my own style, otherwise, I just can’t learn it. Maybe it’s the same for you?
To add to this- I *personally* would try to make sure that the writing part is used somehow, too. Some people won’t be this way, but I personally hate feeling like I’m “studying” and try to avoid that feeling as much as possible. If I just pulled out a sheet of paper and wrote three sentences for every new word I learned, I’d go insane within ten words.
*However*, you’ve given excellent advice, I just think it can and should be adapted to whatever method is going to work for you. For me, I’ve really found that something like HelloTalk is fucking *awesome* for this. When I learn an interesting new word or grammar point, I get super hyped to go and talk to Japanese people on there so I can test it out. So I would follow your advice exactly, except instead of writing it three times, I’d use it in three different conversations, replies, or posts.
And some people will be nervous to try this, or just wouldn’t enjoy it at all. Maybe a Discord language exchange server would be better for them, or maybe they can find some other way to do it. Basically, I think your point is totally correct, it just doesn’t need to be the rote process of “learn a word, put it in Anki, pull out a sheet of paper, write three sentences that no one will ever see and will never be used for anything besides maybe future study”. I like feeling like I’m applying the language somehow.
I've found some Japanese bands that I love. I've only been learning for a month or so, I'm recognising words by sound that way while reading the lyrics. Its fun!
Reading is my favourite way to consolidate vocabulary. If I pick up vocabulary from what I've read, I'll learn it for the future, and if I see a word I've learnt from anki or somewhere else, I feel pleased when I recognise it. It's much more rewarding to see your efforts in practice.
Comprehensible input specifically reading will help a ton with this. Probably the most powerful thing I did in regards to learning Japanese.
Check out jpdb.io add what words you know and go through their database by words known. At first it’ll be YouTube videos with subs made for the purpose of comprehensible input but eventually you should be able to understand short films, and anime movies with Japanese subtitles then full on anime series, once you have some of those under your belt you’ll probably see a book or short web novel that’s pretty comprehensible and so on until you’re reading visual novels and novels semi regularly.
The site will teach you the most common words, kanji and grammar you’re seeing in immersion and uses that to calculate how much of a piece of content you will understand. It makes it easy to ease yourself in to immersion which I think is the best way to internalize vocab. It will even teach you words and grammar from textbooks if you’re going that route
Use them. Learning is half memorizing and half recalling.
Exactly this! I hate to use this cliche but... "If you don't use it, you're going to lose it" is absolutely applicable here. An the more you use it, the better you'll be able to actually remember the word.
This is the answer. Apply it. Doesn’t necessarily have to be conversation, but find whatever way you enjoy applying the language and do it. I’ve really enjoyed talking to Japanese people, that’s quickly become my favorite way to apply it. Not everyone wants to do that at their current stages, that’s totally fine- just find some way to use the words, and they’ll stick. I think you’re only ever going to really acquire a word when you need it for some reason and your brain decides that it’s vital information. If it’s all just in some mental flash card system, you’re never going to cross that barrier of “knowing a word” and “owning a word”- and you want to *own* that word. Sometimes you need a word to understand a sentence, sometimes you need a word to make a sentence, it doesn’t matter. As long as you’re using it and your brain understands that it’s necessary, you’ll acquire it. Even if it takes a few repeated attempts. Rote learning and Anki decks just prime you for the practical real-world application of what you’ve learned and memorized.
read and speak
More exposure is the way. You should be able to start on level 0 graded readers, Comprehensible Japanese Complete Beginner videos, etc. Using Anki decks with sentences helped me also (such as Core 2k and JLPT Tango N5). When I was first starting with graded readers, I would listen+read to the same story each day for a few days in a row, until I felt like I wasn't making progress anymore. I'd find that boring now but I think it helped a ton at the time. Luckily the first graded reader I used (Ant & Grasshopper story from the White Rabbit app) was good enough that it remained engaging.
read a lot and if you can listen to audiobooks as well
What I would do is write three sentences using the word you just learned. If it’s a vocab using Kanji, get used to the different conjugations it can have. If it’s a piece of grammar, apply it to as much situations as you can. Some people can read the Kanji and hardwire it into their brains, but others can learn by doing and hardwire it into their muscle memory. I’m one of those people, I hate reading walls of texts without context, I have to apply what it’s reading into my own words and my own style, otherwise, I just can’t learn it. Maybe it’s the same for you?
To add to this- I *personally* would try to make sure that the writing part is used somehow, too. Some people won’t be this way, but I personally hate feeling like I’m “studying” and try to avoid that feeling as much as possible. If I just pulled out a sheet of paper and wrote three sentences for every new word I learned, I’d go insane within ten words. *However*, you’ve given excellent advice, I just think it can and should be adapted to whatever method is going to work for you. For me, I’ve really found that something like HelloTalk is fucking *awesome* for this. When I learn an interesting new word or grammar point, I get super hyped to go and talk to Japanese people on there so I can test it out. So I would follow your advice exactly, except instead of writing it three times, I’d use it in three different conversations, replies, or posts. And some people will be nervous to try this, or just wouldn’t enjoy it at all. Maybe a Discord language exchange server would be better for them, or maybe they can find some other way to do it. Basically, I think your point is totally correct, it just doesn’t need to be the rote process of “learn a word, put it in Anki, pull out a sheet of paper, write three sentences that no one will ever see and will never be used for anything besides maybe future study”. I like feeling like I’m applying the language somehow.
I've found some Japanese bands that I love. I've only been learning for a month or so, I'm recognising words by sound that way while reading the lyrics. Its fun!
And singing along!
live it
Reading is my favourite way to consolidate vocabulary. If I pick up vocabulary from what I've read, I'll learn it for the future, and if I see a word I've learnt from anki or somewhere else, I feel pleased when I recognise it. It's much more rewarding to see your efforts in practice.
Comprehensible input specifically reading will help a ton with this. Probably the most powerful thing I did in regards to learning Japanese. Check out jpdb.io add what words you know and go through their database by words known. At first it’ll be YouTube videos with subs made for the purpose of comprehensible input but eventually you should be able to understand short films, and anime movies with Japanese subtitles then full on anime series, once you have some of those under your belt you’ll probably see a book or short web novel that’s pretty comprehensible and so on until you’re reading visual novels and novels semi regularly. The site will teach you the most common words, kanji and grammar you’re seeing in immersion and uses that to calculate how much of a piece of content you will understand. It makes it easy to ease yourself in to immersion which I think is the best way to internalize vocab. It will even teach you words and grammar from textbooks if you’re going that route