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Ask HN: Tips for improving mental word retrieval?

6 pointsby pikewoodalmost 5 years ago
I suffer from words being at the &quot;tip-of-my-tongue&quot; often. I know the basic definition of what I&#x27;m trying to say, but I just can&#x27;t bring up the word I want to say fast enough. I sometimes talk in a staccato rhythm as I&#x27;m seeking for the right word to say. I may use a wordy sentence around the point, or a complex GRE-level vocabulary word, instead of the succinct word that I could&#x27;ve used.<p>Have any of you had this and improved your word retrieval? Are there mind exercises I can use to improve this? &quot;Aphasia&quot; seems to be the closest term, but I feel that is lot more severe and against a simpler vocabulary. And regardless, are there ways to strengthen word retrieval to be a more fluent or clearer speaker?<p>I don&#x27;t know if I&#x27;ve addled my brain by being so reliant on auto-correct, if the majority of my communication being written (email&#x2F;chat) has softened my speaking ability, or if this is just aging. Or perhaps I shouldn&#x27;t have eaten ground beef in the UK 20 years ago.<p>Any tips would be appreciated!

3 comments

tucazalmost 5 years ago
It seems to me that you are going through a path.<p>You have discovered that you can be clearer in the communication if you can articulate better and use more precise words.<p>You are getting the hang of it. I don’t think it’s a matter of just remembering the words as much as it is about improving your thinking.<p>Keep actively thinking about how to be more articulate and also practicing and you will get better and better everyday.<p>Like everything else in life, it’s a matter of practice.
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rocketGeorgealmost 5 years ago
One thing that might help is reading; so you know more words (eg synonyms for words I you can&#x27;t retrieve). You also can try to imagine how word is written and then I &quot;read&quot; it from visual memory - it could take longer but should do the trick.<p>I read that that kind of problems can be connected with communication between broca and wernicke areas in brain.<p>Good luck:)
pikewoodalmost 5 years ago
Some things I have thought about looking into:<p>* Reading aloud text in a very quick speed. Maybe I need more practice in just brain-to-mouth coordination?<p>* Flash card style training, from just words to even actor headshots (because that feeling of &quot;I know that person but I can&#x27;t remember their name&quot; is a similar feeling).<p>* Just speaking more, maybe getting into VR Chat or something similar.