Many words can be broken down into parts—a root and prefixes and suffixes that fit together like Legos and can be reused in different combinations. If you can look at them in parts and remember what the parts mean, and relate them to other words you know, that can really help a lot. This is especially useful with words that have Latin and Greek origins. And the Latin roots are very similar to words you may already know in Spanish, Italian, or French.
For example, most words with “port” in them are going to have something to do with carrying because they come from the Latin word “portare,” which means “to carry.” So such words as “portable,” “transport,” and “export” are all related. You may not be able to arrive at an exact definition that way, but you can get close enough to make a good guess or trigger what you already know.
Over time you can accumulate a lot of recurring elements, and they can give you a way of tackling new words so you don’t have to memorize each and every one as a completely new, separate unit.