Keys to Better Vocabulary

Introduction Opportunities and Activities Get a notebook Write down any new words you come across Use word cards Get a dictionary Use the dictionary Build word networks Categorise your words Use labels Use newspapers and magazines Use pictures Cultural translation References

Introduction

In this series of worksheets, we provide opportunities and activities to help you to improve different aspects of your English language skills. In this case, we will look at vocabulary, or your knowledge of words and how to use them.

Opportunities and Activities

Here are some things you can do yourself simply by taking advantage of what is available.

• Get a notebook - This is the most important thing you can do. When you come across new vocabulary, you need to be able to write it down. Your notebook should be small enough to be carried around but big enough to enable you to categorise the words you find in the ways described in this handout.

• Write down any new words you come across - Write them down and also write what they mean. You can write what they mean in a number of ways, for example:

spanner

If you are not sure what these new words mean, then write what you think they mean. Inferring, or guessing the meaning of a word from the context, is the best way of learning new vocabulary. Later, you can check the meaning in a dictionary.

• Use word cards - Write the new word that you wish to learn on one side of a 3 x 5 card. On the other side, copy the phrase you read or heard in which the new word is used. Then try to use the word in an original sentence. This procedure will help you to reinforce the word and retain it. Once you have built up a collection of cards, try to classify them. You can put them into groups under one heading, such as words to do with family, work, sport, transport, the world, education, etc.

• Get a dictionary - It is, of course, necessary for you to have a dictionary. You can have either an English-Chinese dictionary or an English-English dictionary. We recommend that you have both. An English-Chinese dictionary can enable you to find the meanings of words quickly, while with an English-English dictionary you can find out much more about the word (see below). At least you should have a good Learner's dictionary such as The Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary or The Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English (available in ELC Resource Room).

• Use the dictionary - when you look up a word in the dictionary, find out all you can about the word. Is it a noun or a verb? What are the other forms of the word? How is the word used in sentences? Try filling in a table like the one below for each word:

How is the word pronounced and stressed? (See Keys to Better Pronunciation) Can you think of the opposite or antonym of the word? If you are not sure how to read the dictionary, you can consult the Longman Dictionary Skills Handbook (available in ELC Resource Room).

• Categorise your words - Use the following headings to describe how much you know a word by putting a tick in the appropriate box:

Your aim, of course, is to reach Stage 5 with all the words you learn.

• Build word networks - when you learn a new word, write it down in the centre of a page in your notebook. Then, think of another word connected with it. Write that word down and join it to the first word. Continue in this way, adding new words as you think of them:      

A similar activity you can try is word scales, in which two words at either end of a scale are thought of and you have to think of words to fit between:

crawl ________ ________ jog ________ _________ ________ sprint

You can also look in the ELSC Resource Room for word games like Scrabble and Word Madness.

• Use labels - A good way to help yourself  remember new words is to label things. Use Post-It labels to identify objects around the house or on your wall so that you will see them all the time.

• Use newspapers and magazines - When you read an article in an English newspaper, try to find an article about the same subject in the Chinese newspaper first so that you will know what the content is about. Then, when you come across new words, you will be able to guess what they mean. Another good source for this kind of activity is advertising leaflets which have both English and Chinese text.

• Use pictures - Collect pictures from newspapers or magazines that you find interesting . Try to describe everything in each picture, such as: names of objects; features of people; what people are doing / have done / intend to do; expressions on people's faces; adjectives which describe things in the picture, etc. If you are not sure of the names of things, you can try looking in a picture dictionary like the Longman Photo Dictionary (available in ELC Resource Room).

• Cultural translation activity - You will find that very often English words are difficult to translate into Chinese because of differences in culture, and the same is true of Chinese terms into English. For example, the words "bachelor" and "spinster'' mean an unmarried man and woman respectively. However, it is regarded as a compliment to call a man a bachelor (meaning young, attractive, etc.), but an insult to call a woman a spinster (meaning old, unattractive). A certain knowledge of cultural implications is required. To help you to think about such differences, when you come across a word you are not sure about, you can put it into a table like that below, then try to think of one way in which the meaning is similar in Chinese and in English and one way in which it is different. If you don't know the correct answers, then try to guess using your knowledge of Chinese and Western cultures. Or, you can look in a Chinese-English dictionary and an English-English dictionary to see if there are any differences.

English word	Chinese word	Similarities	Differences
high school		Both mean a school for students who have graduated from primary school.	In English can have a "junior" or "senior high" school based on age. In Chinese can have "middle school" or "secondary school" based on language of instruction.
breakfast		Both mean a meal eaten at the beginning of the day.	The foods eaten are very different.

Finally, remember that there are plenty of resources to help you to improve your vocabulary, in the library the ELSC and CILL. The activities described above are things which you can do together with your classmates or friends.

Now it is up to you!

References

Ellis, G. & Sinclair, B. (1989). Learning to Learn English. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge. [PE 1128. A2. E443 cir]

Gough, C. (1995). Actually activating vocabulary. Modern English Teacher. V4, (2), pp. 35-38. [OE 1128. M61 per]

McAlpin, J (1988). Longman Dictionary Skills Handbook. Longman. London

Rinsky, L.A. & Wassman, R. (1996). Vocabulary Strategies for Success. Harcourt Brace College. Fort Worth. [PE 1449. R56 cir]

Rosenthal, M.S. & Freeman, D.B. (1988). Longman Photo Dictionary. Longman. London.

Last revised: 15 Sepember 1998

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