Make a Glossary from Any Article: Definitions, Examples & Misconceptions

Choose the Right Terms to Define

Not every unfamiliar word deserves glossary treatment. Some words are peripheral — you can understand the passage without them. Others are central — miss them and the whole argument collapses. PR019 helps you sort the difference.

The “Words I Should Know” Identifier (PR019) ranks vocabulary by importance for comprehension. It identifies which words are central to understanding, which appear in similar texts on the topic, and which have specialized meanings in this context versus everyday use.

This matters because time is limited. If an article has 20 unfamiliar terms, learning all of them equally wastes effort. Focus on the 5-7 that matter most. Those are the ones that unlock understanding — and the ones you’ll encounter again.

To create a glossary from an article efficiently, start with PR019 to identify your targets before diving into definitions.

Define Each Term in Context

Dictionary definitions fail for the same reason translations fail: they give general meanings, not specific ones. The word “culture” in a microbiology paper means something different than in an anthropology paper. Context determines meaning.

The Contextual Word Explorer (PR015) goes beyond definitions. For each term, it reveals what the word means in THIS specific context, what connotations or tone it carries, what alternative words the author could have used, and how this word choice affects meaning.

This depth matters for comprehension. When you understand not just what a word means but why the author chose it, you understand the passage at a deeper level. You see the author’s choices, not just the content.

Add Examples That Cement Understanding

Definitions tell you what a word means. Examples show you what it looks like. After getting contextual definitions, follow up with: “Give me a concrete example of [term] from a different domain.”

Cross-domain examples are especially powerful. If you’re learning about “arbitrage” in finance, an example from everyday life (buying cheap concert tickets and reselling them) makes the concept portable. You understand the principle, not just the application.

For deep vocabulary work, see the Vocabulary-in-Context Prompt Pack (C006) which includes collocations, tone analysis, and usage practice beyond what the glossary workflow covers.

Flag Common Misconceptions

Many technical terms carry baggage — common misunderstandings that persist even after you’ve read the definition. “Theory” in science doesn’t mean “guess.” “Significant” in statistics doesn’t mean “important.” “Organic” in chemistry has nothing to do with farming.

For each glossary term, ask: “What do people commonly get wrong about this term?” Then note the misconception explicitly. This preemptive correction saves you from errors that feel correct but aren’t.

The Jargon Translator (C010) handles single-term misconceptions well. For systematic glossary work, add the misconception step after defining each term.

Quick Review: Test Your Glossary

A glossary you never review is a glossary that doesn’t help. After building your glossary, close the article and try to define each term from memory. Can you explain what it means in context? Can you give an example? Can you name the misconception to avoid?

If you can’t, you’ve collected definitions — but you haven’t learned them. Go back to that section of the article. Re-read it with the definition fresh in mind. The glossary should support comprehension, not replace it.

For long-term retention, revisit the glossary a day later using spaced repetition. The Understand Difficult Text pillar has more tools for building lasting comprehension. Return to the AI for Reading hub for the complete prompt ecosystem.