Who wouldn’t like to be a little more successful when it comes to a game of Scrabble or Balderdash? Indeed, having a rich, robust and extensive range of vocabulary allows one to excel in these board games. More importantly, vocabulary is an extremely vital cog needed for students in Singapore to excel in the English language examinations. Students studying for PSLE English, O-level English and A-Level General Paper have always been told to build a strong vocabulary base. However, not many of them are aware of the value of building a strong vocabulary foundation. The virtues of expanding a student’s vocabulary range have always been said to be important but never really explained why. The importance of vocabulary building is frequently forgotten, ignored, or simply not appreciated amongst many students.
SO WHY VOCABULARY IS IMPORTANT?
1. Ability to Explain
An expanded range of vocabulary allows a student to articulate ideas, thoughts and feelings more accurately. Students need to communicate (in spoken and written forms) more effectively. Tone, syntax and intonation are all essential components of communicating well. However, all these rely upon a student’s vocabulary to provide the right words. Without the right words, it can seem impossible to describe what the student is thinking or feeling. A case in point, how many times have you mentally reached for a word, but were unable to find it? This experience can be both frustrating and demotivating for students. Moreover, students who have the ability to express their unique individuality in writing are always rewarded, owing to the marking predisposition examiners can never objectify. Using appropriate and not-so-common vocabulary might just be what is needed to tip a student’s grade up by one or two notches against the ever-so-present bell curve (i.e. neck-breaking competition).
2. To Deduce Everything
Vocabulary doesn’t just enhance a student’s ability to express himself or herself, it also increases the student’s ability to interpret the world meaningfully. A student’s vocabulary can limit a student’s line or pattern of thought. When a student thinks or acts, he or she does so in relation to what he or she understands by applying learnt vocabulary. As a result, a small vocabulary can cause a student to block out new insights and lines of reasoning without realising it consciously.
Therefore, a large vocabulary allows students to negate the undesirable consequences above. Each new word learnt opens the mind to new patterns of thought and reasoning that help interpret the world intelligently and prudently. Essentially, the larger the student’s vocabulary, the greater the student’s ability to master the English language and understand the world.
HOW DOES A STUDENT IMPROVE HIS OR HER VOCABULARY?
We often post this question to parents and amusingly, the most popular answer is to memorise the entire dictionary. Theoretically, this strategy may work. However, it is not practical and sustainable. Learning vocabulary and English in general should always be fun, stimulating and engaging. The key is to continuously use creative and robust teaching pedagogies/methods coupled with systematic and well-crafted teaching materials which allow for step-by-step compartmentalised and holistic learning at different phases of the learning curve. That is why at our English tuition centre, The Useful English Tutor, we strive hard to continuously perfect a time-honoured teaching curriculum that will not only prepare students well for all the essential components tested in their English language examinations, but to also help learners achieve a profound sense of appreciation for the language.
For example, one of the numerous techniques we deploy in our classes is to provide students with a compiled list of the most commonly used words in students’ writing, which are in bold below, (and their corresponding synonyms) that we have identified and amassed over decades of teaching and marking experience. The synonyms are not to be randomly used as they often bear a specific meaning that has to be interpreted in a particular context. The golden tip for students is thus to avoid using the boring and overused words (in bold) and use the most appropriate/felicitous synonym to not only impress but to communicate with relevance and clarity to the examiners. For the existing students who are reading this article: Please be reminded that you are highly encouraged to incorporate the synonyms by executing the rubric-based schematic exercise on your ‘Useful Vocab Builder’ to inch closer to your vocabulary success. Good luck!
COMMON WORDS FOR DESCRIPTIONS
Amazing: extraordinary, astounding, incredible, unbelievable, astonishing, improbable, fabulous, wonderful, fantastic
Good: excellent, fine, superior, reliable, wonderful, marvelous, advantageous, qualified, suited, suitable, apt, proper, capable, generous, kindly, friendly, gracious, obliging, pleasant, agreeable, pleasurable, satisfactory, well-behaved, obedient, honorable, reliable, trustworthy, safe, favorable, profitable, righteous, expedient, helpful, valid, genuine, ample, salubrious, estimable, beneficial, splendid, great, noble, worthy, first-rate, top-notch, grand, sterling, superb, respectable, edifying
Great: worthy, noteworthy, distinguished, remarkable, grand, considerable, much, powerful, mighty
Bad: evil, unfavorable, immoral, wicked, nasty, corrupt, sinful, depraved, rotten, wrong, contaminated, spoiled, tainted, harmful, horrible, injurious, defective, inferior, imperfect, substandard, faulty, improper, inappropriate, unsuitable, disagreeable, unpleasant, cross, unfriendly, irascible, atrocious, outrageous, scandalous, infamous, noxious, sinister, snide, deplorable, dismal, gross, heinous, nefarious, base, obnoxious, detestable, despicable, contemptible, foul, rank, ghastly, putrid, execrable
False: fake, counterfeit, fraudulent, spurious, untrue, unfounded, erroneous, groundless, fallacious, deceptive
Interesting: fascinating, lively, engaging, sharp, entertaining, enthralling, keen, bright, intelligent, animated, spirited, attractive, inviting, intriguing, provocative, thought-provoking, challenging, inspiring, involving, moving, titillating, tantalizing, exciting, piquant, racy, spicy, engrossing, absorbing, consuming, gripping, arresting, spellbinding, curious, captivating, enchanting, bewitching, appealing
Beautiful: pretty, pleasing, lovely, handsome, attractive, graceful, gorgeous, dazzling, splendid, magnificent, comely, fair, ravishing, elegant, fine, exquisite, aesthetic, shapely, delicate, glorious, heavenly, resplendent, radiant, glowing, blooming, sparkling, stunning
Old: used, feeble, frail, ancient, weak, aged, worn, dilapidated, faded, broken-down, former, old-fashioned, outmoded, passe, veteran, mature, venerable, primitive, traditional, conventional, customary, stale, ragged, musty, obsolete, archaic, extinct
Big: enormous, expansive, huge, large, immense, gigantic, vast, colossal, gargantuan, sizable, great, tall, substantial, mammoth, astronomical, ample, broad, spacious, stout, tremendous, titanic, mountainous, grand
Little: tiny, puny, small, diminutive, limited, shrimp, runt, miniature, exiguous, dinky, cramped, itsy-bitsy, microscopic, petite, minute, slight
Cool: chilly, icy, cold, wintry, frigid, frosty
Funny: laughable, humorous, droll, amusing, comic, comical, silly
Important: necessary, vital, critical, indispensable, valuable, essential, significant, primary, principal, considerable, famous, distinguished, notable, well-known
Fast: quick, rapid, speedy, fleet, hasty, snappy, mercurial, swiftly, rapidly, quickly, snappily, speedily, lickety-split, posthaste, hastily, expeditiously, like a flash
Dangerous: unsafe, risky, perilous, hazardous, uncertain,
Delicious: savory, delectable, appetizing, luscious, scrumptious, palatable, delightful, enjoyable, toothsome, exquisite
Fat: stout, bulky, chubby, corpulent, fleshy, beefy, plump, full, paunchy, rotund, tubby, pudgy, chunky, burly, elephantine
COMMON WORDS FOR ACTIONS
Ask: question, enquire, inquire, request, seek information from, put a question to, demand, expect, query, interrogate, examine, quiz
Say/Tell: voice, inform, notify, advise, allege, relate, recount, narrate, explain, exclaim, reveal, disclose, divulge, declare, command, order, bid, enlighten, instruct, insist, teach, train, direct, issue, remark, converse, speak, affirm, suppose, utter, negate, express, verbalize, articulate, pronounce, deliver, convey, impart, assert, state, mutter, mumble, whisper, sigh, yell, sing, yelp, snarl, hiss, grunt, snort, roar, bellow, thunder, boom, squawk, whine, philosophize, stammer, stutter, lisp, drawl, jabber, protest, announce, swear, vow, content, assure, deny, dispute, scream, shriek, screech
Plan: plot, scheme, map, design, draw, intention, device, diagram, procedure, arrangement, contrivance, way, blueprint, method
Get: acquire, obtain, accept, secure, procure, collect, gain, find, score, accumulate, win, earn, rep, catch, net, bag, derive, gather, fetch, glean, pick up, come by, regain, salvage
Do: accomplish, execute, enact, carry out, finish, conclude, effect, achieve, attain
Make: create, obtain, originate, invent, beget, compose, perform, form, construct, design, fabricate, manufacture, produce, build, develop, do, effect, execute, accomplish, earn, gain, acquire, get
Put: place, set, attach, establish, achieve, assign, keep, save, set aside, effect, do, build
Move: plod, go, creep, accelerate, crawl, inch, poke, drag, toddle, shuffle, trot, dawdle, walk, traipse, mosey, jog, plug, trudge, slump, lumber, trail, lag, run, sprint, trip, bound, hotfoot, high-tail, streak, rush, dash, dart, bolt, fling, scamper, scurry, skedaddle, scoot, scuttle, scramble, race, chase, hasten, hurry, hump, gallop, lope, stir, budge, travel, wander, roam, journey, trek, ride, spin, slip, glide, slide, slither, coast, flow, sail, saunter, hobble, stride, tear, breeze, whisk, amble, stagger, paddle, slouch, prance, straggle, meander, perambulate, waddle, wobble, pace, swagger, promenade, lunge
Go: move, recede, depart, travel, fade, disappear, proceed
Come: approach, advance, near, arrive, reach
Look: gaze, eye, see, glance, watch, discover, notice, survey, study, seek, search for, peek, peep, glimpse, stare, contemplate, examine, gape, ogle, scrutinize, inspect, leer, behold, observe, view, witness, perceive, spy, sight, recognize, peer, gawk, peruse, explore
Cry: sob, shout, yell, yowl, scream, roar, bellow, weep, wail, bawl
Break: demolish, shatter, fracture, rupture, smash, wreck, crash, atomize
Cut: gash, slash, prick, nick, sever, slice, carve, cleave, slit, chop, crop, lop, reduce
Destroy: ruin, extinguish, demolish, raze, waste, kill, slay, end
End: stop, cessation, finish, terminate, conclude, close, halt, discontinuance
Have: maintain, hold, possess, own, contain, acquire, gain, believe, bear, beget, occupy, absorb, fill, enjoy
Enjoy: appreciate, indulge in, delight in, be pleased, luxuriate in, bask in, relish, devour, savor, like
COMMON WORDS FOR FEELINGS
Happy: delighted, pleased, contented, satisfied, cheerful, ecstatic, jubilant, gay, tickled, gratified, glad, blissful, overjoyed, elated, joyful
Unhappy: glum, gloomy, miserable, uncomfortable, wretched, heart-broken, unfortunate, poor, downhearted, sorrowful, depressed, dejected, melancholy, dismal, discouraged, sad
Fear: fright, dread, terror, alarm, dismay, anxiety, scare, awe, horror, panic, apprehension
Scared: afraid, worried, vexed, frightened, alarmed, terrified, panicked, fearful, unnerved, insecure, timid, shy, skittish, jumpy, disquieted, troubled, disturbed, horrified, terrorized, shocked, petrified, haunted, timorous, shrinking, tremulous, stupefied, paralyzed, stunned, apprehensive
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