In order to communicate we utilize words to express ourselves in both written as well as in verbal form, and when we don’t have a strong vocabulary it can become rather difficult to understand not only what the words mean that have been spoken or written, but also because we lack that, such is subject to being misunderstood. So then, it behooves all of us to desire to increase our vocabulary, and one of the best ways to do so is to make it our point, to not only learn the definition of a given word, but to see that same word subsequently used in various sentences, and then to utilize that word in our own sentence, correctly. None of this is especially easy, but given enough time and with dedicated effort, we will in short order, improve our vocabulary, which will typically mean that we will be able to better communicate with others.
It's important to recognize that the reason that we have so many words in the English language is that it permits us to be more specific about what we are trying to say, rather than leaving it up to the individual to try to decipher what we meant to convey because, despite the context of what has been spoken, we still aren’t sure what has been said. Indeed, those who have a strong vocabulary are the very same who put themselves in a strong place to have a vibrant and successful life, for those who are able to comprehend and understand the other are in a pole position to communicate with others in a way and manner that is more satisfying, as opposed to someone that simply looks stupefied or has tuned out, because they don’t really understand what has been written or said.
While there are a multitude of ways to increase our vocabulary, from something as simple as looking up words in a dictionary and then trying to memorize such, a far better way though is that whenever we come across an unknown written word, to first try to figure out what that word might possibly mean, by the context of the sentence that it is written in, as well as our experience in deciphering similar words. Next, we should look up the definition of that word to find out if we were right or wrong, and then we need to see that same word utilized in various sentences so that we can understand it better, and finally, the true test of whether we grasp the definition and purpose of a given word, is to create our own sentences that utilize that new word. Indeed, in order to retain new knowledge, we need to actively communicate utilizing that word, to the best of our ability, so as to retain that memory and appropriate usage of that word.
There is never a great shame in not knowing what a particular word means, or in our misunderstanding or even in our complete lack of comprehension of a given sentence, because we do not yet know the meaning of too many of those words — but given enough time, and given enough effort, we can make inroads into becoming more proficient with our vocabulary, which will present to us, a greater appreciation of dialog, communication, reading, as well as the understanding of the other