VOCABULARY
• Vocabulary is a powerful carrier of meaning. Beginners
often manage to communicate in English by using the
accumulative effect of individual words. E.g. Yesterday. Go
disco. And friends. Dancing : the meaning can be conveyed
by the vocabulary alone.
• A good knowledge of grammar, on the other hand, is not
such a powerful tool. E.g. “I wonder if you could lend me
your ……” means little without a word to fill the gap.
THINGS to CONSIDER in
LEARNING VOCABULARY
A learner, recognizing the communicative power of vocabulary, might
aim to acquire a working knowledge of a large number of words. But,
getting to be on familiar terms with vocabulary is quite difficult. The
dictionary translation can give introduction to the meaning of a word but
there are still some questions to answer :
1.
What words have a similar meaning to this word ? How do they
differ in meaning ?
2.
Is this word part of a family or group of related words ? What are
the other members ? How do they relate to each other ?
3.
What other words typically keep company with this word ( often
coming before or after it in a sentence ) ?
4.
What other words can be formed by adding to or taking away bits
of this word ?
5. What are the situations and contexts where this word is
typically found out or not found ?
STAGES of LEARNING
VOCABULARY
LEARNERS :
• Meet new words and understand their meaning(s) and the
ways they are used;
• Practice using the words;
• Find ways that help them memorize the words;
• Recall and use the words appropriately.