The IELTS Vocabulary Struggle: How I Finally Made Words Sticks!

Have you ever learned a word, felt confident you understood it, but couldn’t recall it when needed? Maybe you knew the meaning and could recognize it when you saw it, yet struggled to use it in your IELTS writing or speaking. This phenomenon, where words seem to vanish from memory, is surprisingly common—and frustrating!

In this post, we’ll explore why this happens and how you can turn passive vocabulary into active vocabulary. Plus, I’ll share my tried-and-tested 5-step method for learning vocabulary effectively, so you can boost your IELTS band score.

Understanding Active and Passive Vocabulary

To tackle this problem, it’s important to understand the two types of vocabulary:

• Active Vocabulary: Words you can confidently use in writing and speaking without much effort.
• Passive Vocabulary: Words you recognize when reading or listening but struggle to actively use.

Our goal as IELTS learners is to expand our active vocabulary. By doing so, you’ll be better equipped to impress examiners in both writing and speaking tasks.

Why Passive Vocabulary Dominates

It’s natural to have more passive than active vocabulary. After all, understanding a word is easier than mastering its usage.

However, for IELTS preparation, you need strategies to bridge this gap. There are two ways to grow your active vocabulary:

1. Learn new words effectively.
2. Activate your existing passive vocabulary.

Let’s break down how you can do this.

Learn new words

This is what most, if not all, of us are doing. We actively seek out words we don’t know and we make it ours, as in we make it our active vocabulary. Or, at least, that’s our expectation.

But the reality is a bit different. The new word that you just learned may or may not become your active vocabulary. It may just live forever in your passive vocabulary bank until you touch on it again. Without a proper strategy, this word may never become your active vocabulary. And, of course, you don’t want that because you are trying to improve your vocabulary for IELTS.

So here is my tested “5-step Strategy to Learn New Words”.

The 5-Step Method to Learn Vocabulary

Here’s the method I use and teach to my students. It works not just for English but for any language you’re learning.

Step 1: Choose the Right Words

Unlike learning new words in general, which gives you unlimited freedom to choose whichever word you want to learn when preparing for IELTS, focus on:

• Topic-specific nouns: These are the nouns that are specific for certain topics. They pE.g., curriculum, tuition (education topic).
• High-level verbs: Verbs that have a deep, wide meaning. E.g., exaggerate (to make something seem more important than it is).
• Descriptive adjectives: Adjectives are used to describe something or someone. These words can be converted into adverbs and boost your Grammatical Range and Accuracy score. (E.g., compelling, insightful.)

These words are practical for IELTS tasks and help boost your lexical resource score.

Free IELTS Vocabulary Collection.

Let’s take an example of the word “ostensible“!

Step 2: Learn Spelling and Pronunciation

Use a reliable dictionary, like the Cambridge Dictionary, to ensure you spell and pronounce words correctly. Mistakes here are harder to fix later, so get them right from the start.

Step 3: Read the Definition in English

Reading definitions in English helps you truly understand a word’s meaning and nuances. This is especially useful since many English words lack direct equivalents in other languages. You can also check the type of word it is.

The word ‘ostensible’

• means ‘appearing or claiming to be one thing when it is really something else’
• is a formal word
• is an adjective
• normally comes with a noun (not a stand-alone word)

Step 4: Study Examples and Grammar

Pay attention to how words are used in sentences. For instance, interested is often followed by the preposition in (e.g., “I am interested in learning new methods”). Learning these patterns prevents grammar mistakes.

The word ‘ostensible’ is NOT gradable. It means it cannot be used to make comparisons.

Step 5: Make Your Own Sentences

Practice using the word in sentences. Start by mimicking dictionary examples, then create your own. The more you practice, the higher the chances of moving the word into your active vocabulary.

Start with something causal and simple like “The ostensible reason for her visit was to borrow a book, but she really wanted to catch up with her friend.”

Then, try crafting more complex sentences, such as, “The ostensible goal of the project was to improve public health, but many suspected it was more about securing funding.”

SInce ‘ostensible’ is an adjective, you can easily recognize the adverb “ostensibly” and make examples with it as well.

Activating Passive Vocabulary

What about words you already know but can’t use? Here’s how to activate them:

1. Read strategically: Use IELTS reading passages to identify words you know but don’t actively use. Write them down and revisit them.
2. Watch videos: Note any familiar words that aren’t part of your active vocabulary and apply the 5-step method.
3. Create quizzes: Test yourself regularly on these words. Tools like ChatGPT can help you generate quizzes tailored to your needs.
4. Force usage: Deliberately use these words in your writing and speaking tasks. The more you practice, the more natural they’ll feel.

Join My IELTS Vocabulary and Grammar Club

Learning vocabulary effectively takes time and the right strategies. That’s why I created the “IELTS Vocabulary and Grammar with Huyen” club. In the club, you’ll get:

• Daily vocabulary and grammar lessons
• Quizzes to reinforce learning
• Exclusive videos with tips and strategies
• Access to an exclusive group of dedicated learners

With the right methods, you’ll see improvement in no time and achieve your target band score. Click here to join.

Final Thoughts

Improving your vocabulary is one of the most effective ways to boost your IELTS score. Whether you’re learning new words or activating passive vocabulary, the key is to stay consistent and strategic.

Remember, you’re not just learning for an exam—you’re building skills that will last a lifetime. So, keep practicing, and let’s conquer the IELTS together!

For more free tips and practice tests, visit IELTS Tips. Have fun learning!