English is one of the largest languages in the world, which makes learning it quite a challenge. Depending on how you calculate it, there are somewhere between 250,000 and one million words in English. Variations in estimates depend, for example, on whether or not we include technical terminology and jargon from different fields in the total, and only root words or all the words in a word family (eg only comfort – or comfortable, uncomfortable, discomfort and comforting as well). English is also a language of synonyms. Native writers and speakers won’t limit themselves to the word wonderful, for example, when they can vary what they say and avoid repetition with synonyms like brilliant, superb, amazing, outstanding, marvelous, splendid,
excellent, and so on. In addition, the English language is growing even as you read this, especially in the fields of youth culture and technology. Thanks to digital technology and ICT, for example, we now text people on our mobiles, friend them on Facebook, and google something if we don’t know what it means. Fortunately, you don’t have to know 250,000-plus words to speak English well. You can manage with far less. But how to remember new words when you meet them, and enrich your powers of expression in the process? Clearly some words are easier to remember than others, and for different reasons. The two charts below shed some light on this puzzle.
A word or expression may be easier to learn if…
it’s similar to a word in your own language it’s short and easy to say and spell it’s a common word that you see or hear often it’s made up of two parts you already know you can recognize the root of the word it forms a common word partnership or ‘collocation’ it’s a fixed or ‘formulaic’ expression it rhymes, sounds cute or funny it’s part of the jargon you use in your job it’s a term you use during a hobby or interest
Examples
paper tram meeting foot|ball un|comfort|able golden opportunity You’re welcome! snail mail premium handicap
A word or expression may not be so easy to learn if …
it’s difficult to pronounce it’s tricky to spell it has a complicated structure it’s different in British and American English it’s long it has multiple meanings the Finnish word has several English equivalents (eg ääni) there’s no direct equivalent in Finnish it’s an idiom specific to English
Examples
subsidiary beautiful I’m used to doing it. pavement | sidewalk abbreviation point voice, sound, noise integrity the spitting image of
Bearing the above in mind, here are four strategies to help you increase your wordpower:
If you want to improve your English big time, get into the habit of using a monolingual dictionary. One of the best on the market is The Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, which also comes with a DVD-ROM which has many helpful features, such as audio pronunciation of both British and American English words. A good online dictionary is the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary.
If you’re reading a document, book or article in English, it’s time-consuming to look up every single unknown word you meet. Try using the context surrounding the word to guess its meaning instead. The word itself may also provide clues if it’s similar to a word you already know. In addition, many English words contain prefixes and suffixes which provide valuable hints. For instance, the prefix sub- very often means ‘under’ when it appears at the beginning of a word, giving us words like submarine, subordinate, and subtitles.
Underline or highlight words in a text as you read or, better still, keep a vocabulary notebook, either on paper or electronically. Organize the words in a way that suits your learning style, eg mind map, word plus definition, small illustration, lists and groups.
One of the best ways to increase your fluency is to learn whole expressions or collocations, namely words which frequently go together. When you make a note of a new word, try to record other words that go naturally before or after it (eg small print, a tight deadline). This is one of the best ways to boost your fluency as well as your powers of expression.