vespertine
New member
- Joined
- Oct 8, 2014
- Member Type
- Student or Learner
- Native Language
- Portuguese
- Home Country
- Brazil
- Current Location
- Brazil
First of all, hello to all. I'm new to this forum, and I'm not sure if this is in the correct section! Sorry if it isn't or if I'm breaking any rules.
English is my second language, and although I'd consider myself a fluent speaker, I have a really hard time reading books in the English language. It's probably something to do with the fact that I'm a perfectionist and whenever I encounter a word I'm not familiar with, I will immediately look it up on the dictionary. I used to think that was the correct thing to do, but then it became very exhausting and took away the pleasure I get from reading. When I read books in my native language, I usually can infer the meaning of words/expressions I'm not familiar with very easily, so it's not a problem.
Does anyone have any tips on how to deal with this? I feel like I can't keep avoiding Anglophone literature anymore because I've gotten to a level where I should be able to read books in English comfortably. But when an author starts meticulously describing things (especially places!) with all those complicated words, I get all OCD about it and instantly pull out a dictionary. Should I be focusing more on the overall meaning of things? Or should I try to expand my vocabulary even more in other ways?
Thank you!
English is my second language, and although I'd consider myself a fluent speaker, I have a really hard time reading books in the English language. It's probably something to do with the fact that I'm a perfectionist and whenever I encounter a word I'm not familiar with, I will immediately look it up on the dictionary. I used to think that was the correct thing to do, but then it became very exhausting and took away the pleasure I get from reading. When I read books in my native language, I usually can infer the meaning of words/expressions I'm not familiar with very easily, so it's not a problem.
Does anyone have any tips on how to deal with this? I feel like I can't keep avoiding Anglophone literature anymore because I've gotten to a level where I should be able to read books in English comfortably. But when an author starts meticulously describing things (especially places!) with all those complicated words, I get all OCD about it and instantly pull out a dictionary. Should I be focusing more on the overall meaning of things? Or should I try to expand my vocabulary even more in other ways?
Thank you!