How to improve your written English?

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05 September 2025

Readers-friendly

Oleksandra Kulish

Book expert

When learning English, we usually focus on improving our speaking skills. If you can easily communicate in English with friends, colleagues, business partners, or even strangers, that's enough for effective communication. However, written English skills will come in handy when taking international language exams, applying to a foreign university, or looking for a job abroad. In addition, written English is often necessary for conducting business correspondence with foreign partners.

To quickly improve your writing skills, use our tips on how to improve your writing!

Don't be too quick to accuse us of giving obvious advice on how to improve your English writing. Reading really does help improve your writing skills, so don't shy away from quality literature. And we mean quality! It's better to put cheap novels aside — otherwise, the effect may be the opposite. Try combining genres: read non-fiction, blogs, news, magazines, or articles.

Use a dictionary and other resources

Your new best friend for improving your writing skills is a dictionary! Use it to replace overused words with more interesting alternatives, for example: house — dwelling, work — labor, beautiful — stunning, start — commence, help — assist. Avoid clichés or overly simple options. But don't overdo it! Everything you write should sound natural and match the style of the topic. Otherwise, instead of “They are good players,” you will end up with something like “They are highly athletic representatives of the human species with optimized muscle mass” (c) White from the comedy Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story, 2004.

Expand your vocabulary

To express yourself clearly and be understood by others, you need a strong, active vocabulary. And it's not just about recognizing words, but also knowing how to use them correctly. To do this, you should learn to understand words in context (for example, in sentences) rather than just memorizing lists (although lists can be useful if you like working with vocabulary).

Tip: When learning new words, memorize all their forms and typical combinations with prepositions. For example, when learning “agree,” pay attention to the options: to agree with, to agree on, agreement, disagree, agreeable.

Master the rules of English spelling

Correct spelling is important because it reflects your literacy. Spelling mistakes can distort the meaning of a word or sentence. For example, the homophones “peace” and “piece” sound the same but have different meanings: ‘peace’ means tranquility, while “piece” means a fragment. In addition, a spelling mistake can confuse the person you are writing to.

Tip: learn spelling with flashcards — this activates your visual memory — or write words by hand, practicing mechanically. Set aside some free time for this and test yourself!

Get rid of “word pests”

Avoid overusing words like “very,” “really,” “enough,” “good,” “true,” and the like. They are unnecessary and only clutter the text. How to check if they are needed? Try reading the sentence without the word “really” — and then with it. The meaning doesn't change, does it?

Use and pay attention to set phrases

Set phrases are words that always go together. For example, “bright sun,” “soft breeze,” “save money,” “quiet night,” or “fresh start.” They will make your written English sound more natural.

To memorize fixed expressions, start with the verbs take, give, run, and turn, and find their typical combinations (a dictionary will help you with this).

Working on improving your style

Learning to write mechanically is difficult for a person, as it is a subjective and delicate process, but you can try to master a few good techniques:

Learn the art of composing complete, correct, and richly connected sentences — a “quality” sentence is the basis of good written language.
Add questions to the text — this will make it closer to conversational style.
Master the use of “emotional words” and avoid clichés to preserve the uniqueness of the text.
Ensure smooth and logical transitions between sentences and paragraphs — this will add integrity to the text.
Experiment with the “voice” of the text by playing with punctuation.
Create short, vivid phrases that will remain in the readers' memory for a long time.
Work on a “harmonious flow” by experimenting with syntax — learn this from the classics of literature, or you can take a course in literary studies to systematize your knowledge.
Enrich the text with ‘fresh’ and “melodious” metaphors.
Add mini-stories that will captivate your reader.
Write with the reader in mind. Empathy and the ability to inspire will help the reader follow your advice, especially if the text is related to the commercial sphere.
Find a unique way to address your audience and choose the appropriate tone.
Use persuasion techniques: add details that bring the text to life, provide arguments, examples, and quotes from experts.

Be inspired by sensational media headlines and the rhetoric of advertising texts. Read newspapers, poetry, and children's books, as they teach you how to explain complex things in simple words.

Explore different formats

Written English is not just about exam essays. It will come in handy in a wide variety of situations, so use every opportunity to practice. It could be an English-language letter to a hotel, a restaurant review, a blog post, a business message, or a description of your talents in a resume — all of these are also written English. Online communication in English is also a good place to start.

And don't forget about relevant literature: fiction books, dictionaries, reference books, textbooks, and other resources. You can purchase them on the Dinternal Education website — here you will find everything you need to learn English and more!