English memory problem,help!

When I find a word on the dictionary-Oxford Advanced Learner's English-I hvae a serios problem,please my knowlege friends or English experts to help
me,
When I find a word on the dictionary-Oxford Advanced Learner's English-Chinese Dictionary.Suppose I found a word ------encourage(v)[VN]~ sb(in sth) 1.to give sb support,courage or hope .e,g. My parents have always encouraged me in my choice of career.e.g. We were greatly encouraged by the positive response of the public.
2.to persuade sb to do sth bymaking it easier for them and making them believe it is a good thing to do [VN to inf] e.g. Banks actively encourage people to borrow money.[also V-ing]
3.~sth(in sb/sth)to make sth more likely to happen or develop [VN ]They claim that some computer games encourage violent behaviour in young children.[VN to inf] Music and lighting are used to encourage shoppers to buy

now the question time:::
1.What is the meanig of [VN] ?
2.How can I memory all meaning of a word ? (included the chinese meaning!)
3.How can I recite the phrase systematically?
Please suggest me some methods to memory these things,thx a lot,