【推荐2】Elements of Latin have made their way into many western countries. Data varies, but as much as 70% of words in English have a Latin or Greek root. By learning more about these roots and how they combine (结合) to create words, you will have an advantage in understanding new words, even if you’ve never seen them before.

The great thing is that you’re not learning the whole language with its grammar. You just need to memorize some parts of the vocabulary that you often see in English. So how do word roots work?

Every word has a root. This part contains the key to a word’s meaning. Take the word “happy”, for example. This word only contains the root, which means full of joy. Some words, however, have extra parts. We call these affixes (词缀), including prefixes, the part attached before the root, and suffixes, the part attached behind the root. Based on the additional meaning of the prefixes and suffixes, the meaning of the final word will be shaped to mean something new.

Take the word “autobiography” for example. The root is “bio”, meaning life. You may have noticed that many words with “bio” have something to do with life or living beings—biology, biography, and so on. When the suffixes “graph”, meaning to write, is added to it, it means a story about someone’s or something’s life. “Auto” means by oneself. Altogether, an “autobiography” is a story about a person’s life, written by the person himself or herself.

In a word, a better grasp of word roots can make you understand the English language better, and will help you with your vocabulary recognition and memory skills.

【推荐3】I’ve been keeping an English blog for many years. These practical tips have helped me over the course of my blogging.

Read quality books, blogs, journals, etc. which are written in English.

Blogging is not always about writing.     1     Reading also improves your English comprehension, grammar, spelling, vocabulary and writing.

Practice helps, so continue writing.

    2     Trying to make a perfect post free from grammar and spelling mistakes is good but you’re not making use of your time efficiently.

    3    

Think about the main points you want to raise. I prepare an outline of my post and a list of the points I want to talk about. Doing this has helped me stay on track and centre on my main points. The outline and the list of points I want to write about serve as my guidelines when I’m writing.

When writing, use simple words and sentences.

Using simple sentences makes your job as a blogger easier.     4     Always remember this: The aim of your writing is to get your message across and the only way to become an effective writer is successfully getting your message across to your readers.

Write your posts ahead of time.

    5     To free yourself from the pressure of making a post on daily basis, which might influence your writing, consider making your posts ahead of time.