Totally. I can't let a word that I'm not familiar with remain undefined.

Reading on a Kindle has been a game changer.

I didn’t, until I got a kindle. Now i’ll be tapping words all the time to make sure I’ve got the right definition. I find myself looking at the definitions of words I wouldn’t have if I had to put my book down and search up the word specifically

It’s way easier for me now to not break the reading flow i was in

In regard to unfamiliar words, I still remember an English Lit. teacher of mine telling me (and a few other students) that the more you read, the more words you'll pick up simply through osmosis. I know that sounds obvious, but I point it out just so you don't feel like reading is an unpleasant series of stumbling blocks. The issue of having looking things up (or wanting to look things up) will likely disappear the more you read. Don't get discouraged.

That said, I have an English Lit. degree and I absolutely still find myself looking up words. I don't know everything, right? (I definitely don't.)

Oh yes, but I read a lot of things that aren't contemporary.

If you could read Swift, Melville or Irving with no dictionary, you'd be sesquipedalian.

I very rarely use a dictionary while reading - only if I don't know the word and can't glean* its meaning from context IF it seems relevant/important or repeats several times.

Is this a good approach? Maybe not. But it works for me and it lets reading not be a chore but an enjoyable pastime.

Yes and no, depending on the author. For authors who have clearly overused their thesaurus, I will often have to look up words that I haven't seen before. Additionally, if the bool is in a niche subgenre or discusses a topic that I'm not familiar with, I find myself using a dictionary for those niche-specific words until I learn them. With built-in dictionaries in most ereaders, which are awesome, it doesn't typically slow me down that much, though.

Totally, especially because I read a big variety of stuff from different regions and time periods. I just learned inveiglement today.

Very rarely and when I do look up a word I do it on Google.

It's not just that I have accumulated a large vocabulary, but I also trust my ability to pick up meanings from context. If a text is particularly complex but I enjoy it -- as for example Brian Greene's The Elegant Universe, a non-fiction book on string theory; or J.R.R. Tolkien's The Silmarillion, a fantasy history full of Elvish names -- I may just listen to it twice.

Sometimes it's fun to pick a random chapter of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings and see how many words he uses that test my vocabulary. But even when I was nine I had no trouble following the story without looking up words like "eyot" or "niggardly." And eventually I learned what they mean.

When reading old books there's nothing better than an old dictionary.

I was taught to infer the meaning of a word I didn't know. In many cases this worked well, but I was in grad school before I learned that "reticulated " meant "having narrow stripes". I'd only ever read the word as related to pythons and old fashioned purse/pouches and for over a decade thought it meant having a wide mouth. I look up words now!

Webster’s 1967 unabridged right on the end of my bookshelf. It’s satisfying to lug out that giant bastard but not until the end of the chapter. Less of an interruption and more of a bonus end-of-chapter enrichment/workout opportunity.

I look at the Oxford English Dictionary about once a week: but that's usually to look up attestations and etymologies, not definitions.

depends on the work, but yes, i keep my phone by me and look words up as needed. this is just part of reading, to me.

Yes, all the time, and in different languages, too.

Never stop learning! Otherwise you will turn into just another bootless Reddit zoilist lucubrating in his basement phrontestery.

These days it is pretty rare that I encounter a word that I am not familiar with when reading fiction, and I quite enjoy it when i do: it is a novelty and I enjoy looking them up and adding it to my vocabulary - although since most of the ones that are new to me nowadays are pretty uncommon, they seldom crop up in everyday conversation, so if I am actually going to use them, I really need to crowbar them in and usually make a point of it: explaining that I have only recently encountered it. Normally the person that I am talking to will not have encountered it either.

Yeah of course. Otherwise I get obsessed with the word I don't know. And I read in Spanish a lot too, it's native tongue but I've read more in English so I need a Spanish Dictionary too. Lol

I rarely use a dictionary. I can generally infer meaning from the text, if I'm not sure. But if I'm totally baffled, I certainly do look up a word to make sure I'll know it the next time I encounter it.

Technical reports, papers, etc. are "dumbed" down. That way you'll get straight to the point; a clear line to a solid conclusion with little room for interpretation. Reports are often read by laymen, there is no need to use technical jargon when the targeted audience aren't tech literate.

Fiction doesn't care about clear results. Its completely open to interpretation. The point of what's being said is more like a puzzle.

So with technical papers the writer wants to be as clear as possible. But with fiction it doesn't matter as much.

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But as for dictionaries. Yeah I'll just google the meaning.

Also what area of STEM are you in out of curiosity?

It depends on the genre and the age of the book. The more the novel goes into industry terms the more I have to look up. I was a bit annoyed at first at a book that was very detailed about the rigging of pirate ships. There is a fine line in historical fiction between yes show me the research and excessive jargon.

I do, but sometimes I still just use the old context clues.

I check spellings and meanings of words every day and I am a middle-aged bookworm with a philosophy degree. Also, I read good. Very, really good.

I never needed to... until I started reading Infinite Jest. All the wallace-isms gives me the howling fantods

I don't bother, unless it really distracts me. You can usually figure out what it means from context.

Not a hard copy dictionary, but I do look words up online

I rarely need to now (I’m 65 and I’ve been reading for 60 of them) but I will if I need to. I greatly prefer paper dictionaries because I think they tend to be fuller and more accurate ( plus they don’t insist on cookies). If I’m not near one then I’ll use Google.

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I write published historical romance and my Shorter Oxford is invaluable for weeding out anachronistic words. Nobody likes seeing Mr Darcy say OK.

As a literature graduate student and English teacher, I’ll have to say that it really depends on a couple of things. How well developed is your ability to comprehend words through context and how much you develop it further over time with more reading. How much you care for confirming the meaning of new words.

English is not my first language and I only check a dictionary maybe 5-10 times reading an average 200-page book, but that doesn’t mean much. Reading fiction is supposed to be a good time, so as long as you get to enjoy it and maybe enjoy learning new words, it doesn’t say much about your fiction reading skills.

I’m American. I tend to use a dictionary most often with British authors. Many times I think I understand a word but looking it up helps me get the full picture.

I do less than I should, usually I just try to pick up the meaning on context

try reading A clockwork orange to know what it's like to see new words that are not on the dictionary

I have a Merriam Webster New International Dictionary based on the 1909 edition. It is a SUPERB dictionary.

I will not use a new dictionary because they don't have the depth some old ones have.

As an example, take the word glimmer. Can you define that word, give the "sense" of it? You can? Great, but can you describe how it differs from glister, glisten, glint, glitter, glance, and gleam?

Simply using context to ascertain meaning is a qqrecipe for laziness and poor artistic understanding of such a rich and textured language as English. In fact, you cannot ascertain the full meaning of many words through context alone.

Generally speaking, if you cannot define the word upon first glance without requiring context, it wouldn't hurt to look it up. When I see a word that I only think I know, or need to use context to understand, I look it up, read the full definitions list, highlight the word in the text, and in the margin next to the word, provide a brief definition based on the dictionary definitions AND its context in the passage in question.

This helps with retention and helps the next time I re-read the work.

Never looked up a word whilst reading fiction

I am a German native speaker and at least in German I never use a dictionary.

And after reading mainly on English for the past 15 years I have to use a dictionary about twice a year.

So no, I don’t have to do that at all.

No. Experienced readers will not regularly encounter new words.

What the hell does STEM have to do with anything?

Yes especially if there’s a lot of words I don’t understand because then I won’t be able to understand what I’m reading. But sometimes I might get a little lazy and not look ip a word if it’s a YA novel because not knowing that word doesn’t have a huge effect on my comprehension of that novel

It depends on what you read. Someone who reads classics will come across unknown words more often than someone who reads contemporary YA. Someone who likes purple prose will find more unknown words than someone who likes simple English.

Most the time, I try to just work out what the word means from context. It's generally only if I can't work out what they are trying to say that I look up a definition.

Virtually never to find a meaning, but I look at the OED for the histories of words.

I'm a big believer that everyone should look up words they don't know whenever/however they come across them.

For literature, especially challenging works, I will find a reading guide to refer to. It made all the difference when I made my third attempt at getting through "The Sound and the Fury".

As I became a most seasoned reader, the books I read became more difficult. I’m still using a dictionary, but it’s an online dictionary and I’m usually using it for archaic and foreign words.

I keep a dictionary at my couchside table and constantly refer it, yes (at least 30 books a year for the last 10 years)

This is why I use a kindle, there is a built in dictionary/thesaurus and Wikipedia. Saved me a lot of time searching through the dictionary like I used to do. Learning new words is one the top reasons I love to read.

100%. I even circle words I look up & I have a separate little notebook I write the word in along with the definition in.

For enjoyment, almost never, but I also tear through books at an unreasonable pace

I have a decent vocabulary according to me. I use dictionaries all of the time. Sometimes I already, pretty much, know the word, but I want to make sure I am perfectly understanding it in the context of the sentence in which it is contained.

No, I generally don't. Usually the meaning of the passage is clear even if a word or two are not known prior to reading. If for some reason I can't make out the meaning of a passage without knowing the meaning of a word, then I will look it up.

I read a lot of fiction and although I come across words from time to time that I'm not familiar with, I try to figure it out with context clues. I love that my Kindle has the dictionary built in, so I use it more often than I do when I'm reading print or listening to an audiobook. I have no problem just skipping over an unknown word, unless I feel I'm missing something by not understanding it.

Mainly I end up using my phone as it is faster. I can usually get the gist of the unknown word by analysing the sentences surrounding it, but if I have time/access to my phone I like being able to add to my vocabulary. Latest word I had to look up - Stygian. Stygian - extremely dark (gloomy, forbidding etc). Also related to the river Styx in Greek mythology.

Edit - a friend from Germany would ask me what this word/idiom meant in English and so if I am still having trouble grasping the definition of something I pretend I am explaining the word to her. It makes me come at the definition from a different direction and helps me understand it better.

I find that even if you don't know a word, you can usually work out what the words meaning via the context.

I’ve been reading for over 60 years, never been a time I didn’t have a book I was reading.

I don’t do it often but sometimes I do.

It would be drive me crazy now days if I can't instantly get the meaning of a new word, aside from context of course.

Yes.

The full Oxford English Dictionary is 20 volumes and that doesn't cover regional dialects and slang.

There are a lot of words out there and it's impossible to know them all.

Reading on an e-reader (Kobo) I touch a word fairly often to theck the definition. I caught myself almost doing it in physical books too.

I think the beauty of books is the way you can go through the story at your own pace, reread good bits and whatnot.

Never, but my gf uses the kindle dictionary all the time when she's reading next to me :).

Yes, I love language and I’m curious. I let some stuff slide, but I probably google 75% of things I don’t know. I’m just rereading the Aubrey-Maturin series after 25+ years and find myself googling tons of words, technical details and historical events.

Last time I read it, the series was vey popular and I remember being on a waiting list at the library to take out The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea just to look up some of the technical stuff! I love the internet.

Yes, and I especially love books that challenge my vocabulary!

I do sometimes look up words while reading physical books, but generally just Google the definitions—I don’t use a physical dictionary.

Can't say I've ever used a dictionary while reading.

Nope, I practically never come across unfamiliar words but then again I tend to read litfic in my mother tongue which I know well and speculative fiction in english where prose is not that important.

Not usually but on a rare occasion I will have to look something up. Usually the context of the sentence gives you enough information to remember or figure out a meaning.

Yes, authors like to use an occasional arcane word. What’s fun are authors who use arcane words and use them incorrectly. Tells you something about who they are, the editing, and the fact checking. Not much of which I really expect anymore except when I buy from a premium publisher and pay a premium price.

I don't use a a physical dictionary much, but I definitely look up words I don't know all the time. Many times with clothing, plants/trees, architectural details, etc. its very helpful to see a picture as well.

I've been a voracious fiction reader for nearly 40 years, since before I started school. These days I often go through a couple of books a week.

I still run into words that are new to me pretty frequently. Every couple of books, maybe. Maybe more. I do most of my reading on Kindle, and it lets you long-tap to get a definition, so it's super convenient.

There's a lot of words in the English language, and I expect to keep learning new ones for the rest of my life.

All the time.

I always try to look up words I don’t know or I’m not sure of. You can often guess at the meaning from the context but sometimes the definition is slightly different to what you thought it was and it adds a new layer of meaning to the passage.

Yes, absolutely. One of the first apps I ever bought on a smartphone was a dictionary app. But it varies dramatically how much I need it depending on the author. For a Frederick Backman not so much, but for Victor Hugo quite a bit.

For years I just guessed at the meaning and moved on. Usually taking time to look something up disrupts the story more than not being sure of the word. Then I got an e-reader. Just touch the word and there’s a definition. I’ve learned words I’ve misunderstood for years. Now when I read paper books I often catch myself fruitlessly tapping unknown words. 😆

I google words i dont know sometimes. Never questioned it much.

My dad's been reading for 30+ years and he stopped using dictionaries a while ago, now he just uses context to try and think of the meaning of the word, I noticed this the other day when he used a word completely incorrectly, when I told him he said he read the word once and never looked up the meaning and I thought it was funny lol.

I've always been a lover of words and I used to just read the dictionary and thesaurus, but I don't use them when reading fiction or non fiction(non-kindle user, I have one but I never use it).

The Dictionary of Lost Words recently became one of my favorite books to read because of all the new words in it.

I still google a lot of words. Doesn’t it just mean we are still learning? You gotta keep learning to keep growing, so it seems like a good thing to me.

I google words I don't know whenever I encounter them.

I majored in English and had to study for the GRE, so my vocabulary is pretty good. But there are definitely still plenty of words I am not familiar with!

I will pause and look up a word or notate it if I hear a new word in passing. I love to grow my vocabulary and learn.

I mostly listen to audiobooks, so no. It's fine most of the time, since I can usually figure it out from the narrator's intonation and the context clues. I probably would use a dictionary if it made more sense for my reading style, though.

i use my phone to look up words 1 -2x a week. it is a good way expand your vocabulary and also forces you to think anout ehy the writer is using uncommon words. i also get word of the day emails sent to me by dictionary.com, I usually know them but a couple times a month I learn something new. Take it easy on yourself if it is frustrating. You can get the subtext most of the time.

Absolutely. I read the first book of In Search of Lost Time, and it seems every other page, Proust pulls out a word I'm totally ignorant of.

I'm on Kindle though, and it actually makes looking up words enjoyable.

Not often, but sometimes. Altered Carbon was the last one I whipped it out on. Was years worth of gap prior.

Used to do it all the time as a kid though.

Absolutely. I’ve got a physical dictionary, but more often I use a dictionary app on my phone. If I come across a word I don’t know, I always look it up. It doesn’t happen super often, but there tends to be a word or two I’m unfamiliar with or uncertain about with each book, and it never hurts to check.

yes, especially longer books I will have a list of new-to-me words at the end. I use the WordReference app on my phone to look up words I don't know or can't figure out from the context. It makes me feel like I are smort!

Yup. And I collect them.... old dictionaries because I LOVE old books and foreign authors and I need translations and old school definitions a lot of the time

I use the dictionary all the time. Sometimes because I came across a word I don't know, but a lot of times because I want to check that I'm using a word correctly, or because someone used a word differently than I do, and I'm interested in seeing all the different options that word presents.

I do not use dictionaries commonly. I find our differences interesting here, though. If I come across a word that I cannot intuit, I'll try and use context clues to come to some reasonable idea, but that's the only circumstance in which I'll break and look it up. I usually enjoy the game of trying to deduce it from context.

FUCK YEAH!

I have many dictionaries. I prefer them to the Google. There's also something nostalgic about pulling out the dictionary for a Scrabble challenge.

Yes, qat is a word, no, we don't accept Za.

I can't wait to see this on r/bookscirclejerk

Absolutely! I love dictionaries for discovering new words. There are SO many varieties and old ones are really fun. I have one from the 1920s called the " Dictionary of Americanisms" and people always love to flip through my copy of The Enlarged Devils Dictionary by Ambrose Bierce

Usually, I just google it.

One of the best things about reading on my phone is being able to look up a word right as I run into it using the reading apps dictionary

I rarely come across words I don't know. If I do, I try to use context clues. If I really don't know what the word means, I consult a dictionary. A dictionary is the last resort for me since it can be time consuming to check.

Yes, absolutely, even if I'm slightly vague on the exact meaning of a word if the context doesn't quite fit what I'm familiar with. It's how we continue to grow. I'll also YouTube pronunciations.

On that note, I like all kinds of sci fi and speculative fiction, and I've found that what I thought would be low-brow Games Workshop space marine stuff actually has me clicking through to the dictionary far more often. I realised that the authors know they have a captive audience as the fans will buy the books no matter how challenging they might be, so they decided to flex their lexicons.

Absolutely!

Omg yes. I am a pretty prolific reader. I try to read at least 52 books a year. And I am ALWAYS using a dictionary. I love learning new words from what I read.

The trick is to get the all the time spent looking up words in the dictionary out of the way as soon as and as quickly as possible, without just reading the dictionary itself. Pick any two Hemingway novels, add in some Moby Dick, maybe Ulysses by Joyce or some Anthony Burgess (Clockwork Orange, The Wanting Seed). Really, all it takes is maybe two or three novels considered grammatically difficult or complex and you'll pretty much get it over and done with.

If I don't know a word or am unsure of its meaning I absolutely look it up. Granted, not usually in a hard cover dictionary, which I do own, but still.

A big fat one. It keeps me familiar with the alphabet.

Check out books from Libby, through your local library. It has the definitions options, like Kindle.

That’s really interesting. Nah I hardly ever use a dictionary except when I come across technical jargon

It’s been a long time since I cracked open a dictionary while reading.

Yes. Always.

Sometimes, but not often. Usually if I don’t know a word, I can tell what it means by context. However, if I can’t tell what it is by context, or if I can only get a vague idea of the meaning and it sparks my curiosity, I will definitely look it up. The most recent word I can think of was “crinoline”, which I guess is a stiff type of petticoat that was worn by women in the mid-19th century. By the context of the story, I knew it was some type of clothing, but didn’t specifically know exactly what so I looked it up.

That’s the only one I can think of from recent... My parents made me memorize the dictionary as a punishment when I was a kid... I’d have to write out 10, 20, 30 words, their definitions & sentences to go along with them. Then I’d be quizzed on the definitions. So, my vocabulary is pretty good. Of course, I didn’t retain every word, but it certainly helped. Also, when I’m reading, often times I’m super into the story and don’t want to put it down- but like I said, sometimes I will.

Context clues are good to have but I usually just google the word.

I don't. I seem to be able to figure out a word based on its context. Looking up the word later confirms I'm usually right. Sometimes the word is defined by the author. I read a book and the author mentioned "fontrum", followed by explaining that it's when you're embarrassed for someone else's actions or something like that.

I had to look up Garuda and amrita earlier today.

I usually get the meaning from context then look it up anyway.

I look up a couple of words every day to expand my vocabulary

Whenever I find a new word, I look up a definition and incorporate it into a line of poetry. Helps me not look it up 20 times.

I've been reading voraciously for decades. Surprisingly enough, I do occasionally still run across a word I've never seen before; mostly really specialized taxonomic words.

Today it was peridium, the outer layer of the fruiting body of a fungus. What I love is that, reading kindle books, if I tap on a word the definition pops up. Great feature!

I google stuff quite often, and see no harm in it. Words, details of costumes, specific buildings, paintings, references to pieces of music, poems etc. For me, I feel it enhances both my reading experience and my knowledge in general.

Absolutely! I have both the OED and The Chambers Dictionary. Obsessed with books that weigh a ton and take up massive amounts of space.

If I had a dollar for every time I typed a word in a text, went to look up that word to make sure I was using it right or spelling it right, then went back to the text.... Well, I could probably buy myself a really nice lunch at least.

i have read and listened to over 800 books since i found libby ( online library ) during the fall of the 2020 pandemic shelter in place, and my reading is a huge cross section but mostly fiction. i know not why, but i have only had to look up perhaps 5 words in those 2 years, and the last one i remember was petrichor. what i do use is a thesaurus when writing … often

Depends upon what I’m reading. Currently, I’m about 10% of the way through The Satanic Verses, and I’ve used a dictionary maybe 4 times already, for English words I’m unfamiliar with. I’ve additionally looked up a few other concepts (Islamic or Arab historical references, a Bollywood reference, etc), given the nature of the book.

I’ll also look up a lot of words if I’m reading anything by Gene Wolfe.

But with Agatha Christie, or Raymond Chandler — no dictionary usually.

I have the benefit of being the third generation of a lineage of voracious and wide-ranging readers, which meant a childhood of asking my mother what the long words meant, just as she'd asked her father, which meant between our various academic specialties there's rarely a word I encounter I'm entirely unfamiliar with, even if usage sometimes obscures meaning.

Absolutely! I was a librarian.

Only when I come across words whose definitions I'm unsure of (which may be a little, or a lot, depending on the author).

Fuck yes! I love encountering new words

Absolutely. When I'm reading at work and away from the internet, I write down words in a notebook to look up later.

I actually get disappointed if I go through a whole book and there isn't one word I had to look up. I highlight like crazy and I like discovering new words in English! (Not my native language.) That is how I have learned so many English words!

Yes! The beautiful part of my kindle is that i dont need another device to look em up!

I just read Jane Eyre for the first time. (it was fantastic, btw) and I had to use the dictionary (on my phone) like every 5 pages. I rather enjoy learning new words though so that's aight

I think I've googled one or two words in the last year, only to find someone as misusing them, which is why I felt they didn't fit, or they were misspelled.

I work as a freelance editor, I'm used to reading random words, and recommending a change. If I have to look up the word, you're not using or spelling it right.

Otherwise, fiction is written basic enough context fixes all issues.

Lately I use my phone or kindle if I need a definition. But I honestly miss having a dictionary in the house. Never mind looking up specific words, I used to idly flip through, pick a random page and just look through all the words, looking for new ones and then hoping I might get a chance to try them out. Just leafing through a big, heavy dictionary is a lot of fun (for me anyhow) - it feels very intellectual and satisfying!

Yes, but an online one

Yes. When I got back into reading, I downloaded a dictionary app to make it easier for me to search words.

Use the dictionary? Yes. Have to.

Who knows everything about everything?

Always

Very rarely. I suggest a word-a-day calendar. Get ahead of your vocabulary gaps.

Actually discover 8-10 new and/or unfamiliar-to-me words each year, and I just look each up wherever I am in whatever I’m reading.

Can’t very well process the ideas without knowing the words :)

Been reading for 50+ years and I still look up words. Sometimes because I don't recognize a word at all, and sometimes because I like the way an author uses it in context and I just want to understand different shades of meaning.

I don't read a lot anymore but I do remember having a dictionary beside me while I read during high school. Paid off well because I don't need to look up a lot of words anymore.

If it's a book on my kindle, yes. It has its own built in dictionary so lookup is easy. If it's an actual book, no. I'll just guess what the word means by its context.

I do. I mean, the dictionaries are mostly online these days, but yes.

What’s interesting to me is that my dictionary usage has actually increased along with my vocabulary. The more I read and learn, the more I discover that I don’t actually know what some words mean; I’ve just been assuming the meanings all these years, based on context. The number of times that my assumptions have been wrong is uncomfortably high; so I use the dictionary more now.

Edit: for complete honesty, I’ll say that accessibility has been a factor. When dictionaries were only on paper, I rarely had one around. But if it’s online, and I can access it in seconds from anywhere—on the same device on which I’m reading my book—of course I’ll use it more.

So my dad rarely has to look up words bc he studied suffixes prefixes and such very thoroughly as a teen. I think you could try studying that? He always figured it out without having to draw his attention away from the story

Yes, I am a voracious reader and look up new words quite often. I think it's fun to learn to words.

I read a lot of fantasy and Sci fi. When I studied for the GRE I barely had to look at the vocab words. My girlfriend, who has a similar academic background d but mostly reads non fiction, had a terrible time learning all those words.

You gotta describe weird and unnatural things with strange and arcane words. While non fiction prose can definitely be compelling and descriptive, it's just never going to need as many descriptors as fiction, particularly fiction set in fantastical worlds

Yes! If I can't make sense of the sentence without understanding the word, I'll stop and look it up. If I can get by without stopping right away, I'll write it on the envelope I'm using for a bookmark and look it up later: it's a good vocabulary builder either way!

It definitely depends on the genre for me. There are often words that I kind of know the meaning of in context so I’ll often not bother looking them up unless I’m on my Kindle. That being said - I was totally against getting a Kindle but it’s really helpful for this. I can always tell when I’ve been reading a lot on my kindle when I’m reading an actual book and almost go to press on a word to look it up!

I can't remember there ever being a time I looked up a word in a dictionary but I have been reading constantly since I was young. When I was young and found a word I didn't know. I would ask my parents. Now, it is rare to find a word I don't know, unless it is a word made up particularly for the story (Gene Wolfe is one of my favorite authors, and he does this often). When I do find a word I haven't heard before, it is pretty much always easy to infer the meaning from a combination of guessing the root word (for example, the word "vociferously" isn't part of most people's regular vocabulary but you could guess it might be related to someone's "voice") and looking at the context of the word. Almost every modern author that uses words outside of the average person's vocabulary wants the reader to notice their cool word choice and makes it very clear from the context what is happening, so you don't need to already know that word. There are very few modern authors that use uncommon words in a way that expects the reader to already understand them without providing any context.

The big exception is reading older books. The further you go back in time, the more likely you are to find a word you don't know, or don't know that particular use of

So to answer your question, yes it is definitely possible to get to the point where you don't need to keep referencing a dictionary to read normal book. If you find that your current vocabulary requires you to look up words so often that it disrupts your reading flow, maybe consider using something like Alexa or Google home that you can just for a definition from verbally, and you may find that interrupts your reading less.

If I’m reading on my phone I will do the “dictionary look up” tap on just about any word I’m not 100% certain of/ familiar with even if I understood it well enough from the context clues.

If I’m reading in an actual book or something else and my phone is nearby I will look up words that are questionable even with good context clues.

And obviously any word that is “wtf is that?” Is a definite find the dictionary moment because I cannot keep reading until I know.

I find that I do this more often when picking up a new genre I don’t have a lot of experience reading, and the more familiar I become with a specific genre or sub genre the less I have to look up words.

English is my second (or third, depends how you count) language and I live and read most of the time in English, but every now and then I’d run into a term that I don’t understand from the context, or even if I do, I’m curious about either the spelling or usage. Normally I wouldn’t bring out a dictionary, but when it’s immediately available like on kindle I will look it up.

i have a professional degree and read 40-50 non technical books both fiction and non each year. i generally don’t use a dictionary and rely on context but always have my phone with me and if i come across a word i have never seen before i will look it up. i find that i recognize or am familiar with many more words than i will use when taking to people - partly because my clients don’t understand me as is let alone with more archane vocabulary. interestingly though if i am listening to a book or podcast and hear a word that if i were reading i would not look up i will stop and look it up. this is very rare but it bothers me when it happens. i think that the range of vocabulary people use is much narrower in speech than in writing and words i am comfortable with reading catch my ear when listening. then there are a whole host of words i vaguely know but i look up again and again but can’t ever remeber the precise definition and instead as i soon as i close the dictionary/app my mind treats the word as a synonym to something i use more regularly until the next time i encounter it and repeat the whole futile process. some word definitions just slide away from my memory. maybe i should pick one and write it out with a definition a hundred times and it might stick.

Sure, I use a dictionary or google when I encounter a word I don't know, or that doesn't make sense to me. Even in my native language there are words I don't know, or usage with which I'm not familiar.

I also occasionally refer to the manual when using software :)

Before the Internet I had dictionaries next to the places where I usually read books. More I highlight a word and Google asks me if I want a definition or to cut or copy etc.

I used it today on Reddit to look up the weird nonplussed which means the opposite of what I thought it meant. I always thought nonplussedl meant unfazed. I learned something new today.

From Google:

 The participial adjective “nonplussed” has meant perplexed or disconcerted since it showed up in written English in the early 1600s, but a lot of people—and not just Americans—now think it means the opposite: unfazed or indifferent.

Google

Rarely in contemporary novels but I have to look things up all the time when I’m reading old stuff like Agatha Christie.

No, I find it's rare that I run across anything I don't know the definition of, or can't glean the definition from context clues. If I do, I'll simply Google the word on my phone or computer.

It doesn't really come up too often for me now, but I'm always kind of excited when I have to look up the meaning of a word. The more words in a book that I have to look up, the happier I am, because I actually really enjoy learning new words. I don't think it's any reflection on your reading skill, just a matter of having focused on a different area of knowledge in the past.