Edit Article

wikiHow to Be Brilliant at English

Community Q&A

English is a tough topic to master, with all the spelling and the writing, but how do you become brilliant at this? All will be revealed...


  1. 1
    Read things. You'll never be good at English unless you read things. For most of you, this is a seriously big yawn, but when I say "read", I don't mean boring things like non-fiction texts. Fictions, magazines, catalogues, online articles, newspapers, as long as you can read it, great.
  2. 2
    Pay attention. No way will anyone get anywhere unless they listen to what's being said during a lesson. It doesn't brand you as a geek because you pay attention.
  3. 3
    Practice your new skills as you learn them. If you enjoy what you're learning, write things at home. Begin trying to use brackets (like that ), or colons; they can help with your level.
  4. 4
    Take on challenges and challenge yourself. You know when things are too easy for you, so make a point of saying so ( but not bragging ), and challenging yourself to something harder. You'll learn more this way.
  5. 5
    Read aloud. Believe it or not, reading aloud makes you more fluent, and understand words better.
  6. 6
    Ask if you need to. Asking questions about what you're reading develops your knowledge even further, giving you better vocabulary.
  7. 7
    Join a club. After school clubs, local clubs, library reads, they're a brilliant way to get you reading for fun, or in a competition.
  8. 8
    Read often. Every time you read, something brilliant happens to your knowledge and understanding of English. You learn more words, you get new ideas etc...
  9. 9
    Enjoy it! Reading shouldn't be a boring task; there's always the right book for you somewhere. Keep reading, and keep having fun!

Community Q&A

Add New Question
  • How can I force myself to read a lot?
    wikiHow Contributor
    Try to enjoy reading! If you're reading for school and you don't have a choice, just try to appreciate how interesting the story is, the vivid detail the author provides, the characters and how they overcome their conflicts, etc. Get lost in your reading. If it's something you just can't get into, buckle down and read in 30 minute increments with 10 minute breaks in between sessions.
  • How do I read for an exam?
    wikiHow Contributor
    Make a routine. Make sure you leave ample space for a break or walk. While reading, try to concentrate as much as you can.
Ask a Question
200 characters left


  • Read more.
  • Try your hardest when writing, and let your teacher know when you need the next step.
  • Enjoy what you read, and enjoy writing.
  • Keep continually reading. It will develop your vocabulary range, and it will have punctuation in the text. This can help you when you're writing a story in the future, to know where to put full stops, quotation marks, etc.
  • Read as much as you can.
  • Write when you want to.
  • Read little but often.


  • Don't force yourself to read if you don't want to. It's not a command, and there won't be a punishment if you don't read.
  • Don't read for however longer than suits you. You can still feel a bit unsteady, even when you're not in a vehicle.
  • Don't read in cars. It can make you carsick.

Article Info

Categories: English Grammar

Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 16,336 times.

Did this article help you?