Features of Academic Vocabulary

The video from EAP Foundation focuses on the comprehensive understanding of vocabulary, particularly academic vocabulary, beyond mere translation. It emphasizes the importance of grasping nine key features: meaning, frequency, pronunciation, spelling, word form, word family, register, usage, and collocations. These elements are crucial for using vocabulary effectively in reading, writing, speaking, and listening. The video illustrates this with the example of the word "conclusion," demonstrating how these features apply. It also highlights resources like the General Service List and Academic Word List to aid vocabulary learning for academic purposes.

• Understanding vocabulary requires more than just knowing the meaning; it involves understanding multiple aspects of a word to use it effectively in speaking and writing.
• The video discusses nine essential features of vocabulary that are crucial for a comprehensive understanding of any word, specifically in an academic context.

• A word's meaning is fundamental for understanding and usage, whether in reading, listening, speaking, or writing.
• Words often have multiple meanings, and it is advisable to focus on the most common or context-specific meaning when learning a new word.
• For example, the word "head" has numerous meanings, with the most common being the upper part of the body.

"The word head, for example, has 32 different meanings for the noun and nine different meanings for the verb."

• This illustrates the complexity of vocabulary, emphasizing the need to focus on relevant meanings for effective communication.

"A tip for when using a dictionary: the lower the number, the more common the meaning."

• When consulting a dictionary, prioritize the meanings listed first as they are typically the most common and thus more useful for general understanding.

• English contains an extensive vocabulary, estimated at around a million words, making it impractical to learn all of them.
• Focus should be on high-frequency words, particularly the most common 2,000 words which cover approximately 90% of spoken and written texts.
• High-frequency words are crucial as they form the backbone of everyday language and academic texts.

"Words that you should focus on in particular are high frequency words, especially the most common 2,000 words in English which cover around 90% of words in spoken and written texts."

• Prioritizing high-frequency words ensures efficient learning and understanding of the majority of language used in daily and academic contexts.

"Many linguists actually think that high-frequency words means the most common 3,000 words in English which cover around 95% of words in written or spoken texts."

• Expanding to the most frequent 3,000 words can further enhance comprehension and communication skills, covering a larger portion of language use.

• Academic Word Lists: Essential tools for identifying frequently used academic words not covered by general English lists.
• Technical Words: Subject-specific vocabulary crucial for understanding and communication within particular fields of study.

"The most well-known source for these is the academic word list, the AWL, which lists the most frequent words in academic English not contained in the GSL."

• The Academic Word List (AWL) is a key resource for identifying essential academic vocabulary not found in the General Service List (GSL).

"There are, however, other academic word lists which can be useful, for example, the academic vocabulary list or the AVL."

• Other lists like the Academic Vocabulary List (AVL) provide additional resources for academic vocabulary.

"Technical words... are actually low frequency in everyday English but will be high frequency in particular subject areas."

• Technical words are specialized vocabulary that is commonly used in specific academic disciplines but not in everyday language.

"For example, if you're studying biology, we have the words mitosis, osmosis, cell membrane."

• Examples of technical words in biology include "mitosis," "osmosis," and "cell membrane."

"In economics, we have elasticity, externality, aggregate."

• Examples of technical words in economics include "elasticity," "externality," and "aggregate."

"There are also word lists for studying technical words, there's the secondary school vocabulary lists or SVL and the middle school vocabulary lists or MSVL."

• The Secondary School Vocabulary Lists (SVL) and Middle School Vocabulary Lists (MSVL) are resources for studying technical vocabulary.

• Importance of Pronunciation: Essential for understanding and using words in spoken English.
• Challenges in English Pronunciation: English has many vowel sounds and words with similar spellings but different pronunciations.

"Pronunciation in English is especially difficult, especially because of the large number of vowel sounds compared to other languages."

• English pronunciation is challenging due to its extensive range of vowel sounds.

"The difficulty of pronunciation can also be seen in words which are spelled similarly but which are pronounced very differently."

• Words with similar spellings can have different pronunciations, adding to the complexity of English pronunciation.

"For example, these three words which all contain the letters O-U-G but which have very different vowel sounds: tough, though, and thought."

• Examples of words with similar spellings but different pronunciations include "tough," "though," and "thought."

• Syllable Stress: The emphasis placed on certain syllables in multi-syllable words, affecting pronunciation and meaning.

"Something else to consider and maybe make note of is stress in words with more than one syllable."

• Stress in multi-syllable words is crucial for correct pronunciation and comprehension.

"For example, the word syllable has three syllables and the stress is on the first one: syllable."

• In the word "syllable," the stress is on the first syllable, demonstrating the importance of syllable stress.

• Challenges in English Spelling: English spelling can be difficult due to inconsistencies between spelling and pronunciation.
• Homophones: Words that sound the same but have different meanings and spellings.

"Spelling in English can also be very difficult because words are often not spelled the way they sound."

• English spelling often does not correspond with pronunciation, making it challenging.

"We can see this most clearly using homophones, which are words which sound the same but have different meaning and spelling."

• Homophones exemplify the challenges of English spelling, as they sound the same but differ in meaning and spelling.

"For example, tough which can be spelled T-U-G meaning difficult or T-U-U-F-F which is a kind of hard volcanic rock."

• "Tough" and "tuff" are homophones with different meanings and spellings.

"Or 'tor' which can be spelled T-A-G-H-T and is the past of the verb 'teach' or can be spelled T-O-R-T meaning a legal wrongdoing."

• "Taught" and "tort" are homophones with distinct meanings and spellings.

"The word 'there' which can be spelled T-H-E-R-E or T-H-E-I-R, and those two spellings are ones which even native speakers get confused with."

• "There" and "their" are common homophones that often confuse even native speakers.

• Word Form: The role of a word in a sentence, such as noun, verb, adjective, or adverb.
• Word Family: A group of related words sharing a common base word.

"Word form, also called part of speech, is important if we want to use the word appropriately in our writing or our speaking."

• Understanding word forms is crucial for using words correctly in writing and speaking.

"A word family is a group of words which are related by a common base word."

• Word families consist of words that share a common base, facilitating vocabulary expansion.

"For example, the verb create has quite a large word family: we have creator, a noun, the person who creates something."

• The word "create" belongs to a family that includes "creator," a noun meaning the person who creates.

"We have creativity, also a noun, the act of creating."

• "Creativity" is part of the "create" word family, representing the act of creating.

"We have creation, another noun meaning the thing being created."

• "Creation" is another noun in the "create" word family, referring to the thing being created.

• Understanding word families is crucial for expanding vocabulary and enhancing writing and speaking skills.
• Studying word families helps in using words flexibly in academic writing, especially when paraphrasing.
• Common prefixes and suffixes can aid in identifying and understanding word families.

"If you know the meaning of the base word, you can probably understand the meaning of the other members of the word family when you're reading or listening, but unless you study them, it can be difficult to use them properly in your writing or your speaking."

• Knowing the base word helps in comprehension, but active study is needed for proper usage in writing and speaking.

"Studying the word family is especially helpful for your writing and your speaking to enable you to use the word flexibly in academic writing."

• Word families enhance flexibility in academic writing, aiding in paraphrasing and varied expression.

• Register refers to the appropriateness of language in different social settings or purposes.
• Academic English is generally formal, but not all formal words are suitable for academic contexts.
• Certain formal words are more appropriate for legal or contractual language than academic writing.

"Register refers to the language which is used for a particular purpose or in a particular social setting."

• Understanding register helps in choosing the right words for academic writing or speaking.

"Words like 'okay' or 'but' or 'so' don't seem suitable for academic English, which is true if we're talking about writing, but actually these words are fine and even recommended if we're giving an academic presentation or an academic lecture."

• Some informal words are acceptable in spoken academic contexts, highlighting the importance of context in language use.

• Usage involves understanding how to correctly use a word within a sentence, focusing on its grammatical application.
• Knowledge of common prepositions that follow certain words is essential for correct usage.

"For example, the word 'prepare' is often followed by the preposition 'for': prepare for something."

• Correct usage involves knowing which prepositions commonly follow certain words.

"The word 'skilled' is often followed by the preposition 'in': skilled in something."

• Understanding word usage helps in constructing grammatically correct sentences.

• Collocation refers to words that frequently occur together, and is essential for natural language use.
• Studying collocations helps in understanding how words combine, enhancing fluency in English.

"Collocation means two or more words which frequently go together, and this is important because when studying words, we shouldn't just study single words in isolation."

• Recognizing collocations is crucial for using words correctly in context, avoiding unnatural combinations.

"Examples of academic collocations are 'academic achievement' and 'cultural diversity,' and these are adjective and noun collocations."

• Familiarity with common collocations aids in producing more native-like speech and writing.

• Vocabulary features are essential for improving both written and spoken English.
• The nine features of vocabulary include meaning, frequency, pronunciation, spelling, word form, word family, register, usage, and collocations.

"Studying collocations is going to be especially important for our written or our spoken English."

• Collocations are crucial for natural-sounding language use in both writing and speaking.

• The word "conclusion" means a position, opinion, or judgment reached after consideration.
• Its frequency is higher in academic English compared to fiction, spoken English, or news.

"Conclusion means a position or opinion or judgment reached after consideration."

• The definition of "conclusion" highlights its use in forming judgments or opinions.

"We can see here it's far more common in academic English than in fiction or spoken English or news."

• "Conclusion" is predominantly used in academic contexts, making it a vital word for academic studies.

• "Conclusion" is part of the academic word list and technical word lists (MSVL and SVL).
• It is also among the first 3,000 words of the BNC Coca Corpus, indicating its commonality in academic settings.

"It's in the academic word list sublist 2, the academic vocabulary list, and both of the technical word list we mentioned earlier."

• The inclusion in multiple lists underscores its importance in academic vocabulary.

• The word "conclusion" has three syllables with the stress on the second syllable.
• Spelling is straightforward without special rules.

"Conclusion, let's also make a note of the stress so it has three syllables and the stress is on the second one."

• Understanding pronunciation and stress is crucial for correct usage in speech.

• "Conclusion" is a noun with related forms including the verb "conclude" and adjectives "conclusive" and "inconclusive."
• The adverb form is "conclusively" with its opposite "inconclusively."

"Word family: the verb is conclude, the adjective is conclusive which has an opposite inconclusive."

• Recognizing word forms and families aids in expanding vocabulary usage.

• Common collocations with "conclusion" include "draw a conclusion," "reach the conclusion," "logical conclusion," and "general conclusion."
• Adjective-noun collocations include "conclusive evidence" and "concluding remarks."

"Verb and noun collocations: we have to draw a conclusion, to reach the conclusion; adjective and noun collocations: logical conclusion, general conclusion."

• Familiarity with collocations enhances fluency and accuracy in language use.

• To fully understand and use a word flexibly, focus on its meaning, frequency, pronunciation, spelling, word form, word family, register, usage, and collocations.

"If we really want to know a word and not just understand it when we read it but also when we hear it and to be able to use it flexibly in our speaking and our writing then we should focus not just on the meaning but on the frequency, the word's pronunciation, its spelling, its word form, its word family, the register, usage, and collocations of the word."

• A comprehensive understanding of all vocabulary features is essential for effective communication.