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Organize your vocabulary in groups (word
families)
It’s easier to remember! It’s better to learn words in groups than
learning a long list of words that are not connected.
Your coursebook, if you are following a course, is probably
organised by themes:
sport
environment
fashion and clothes
work
entertainment
education
crime
etc.
So, if the coursebooks group words by topic, there
must be a good pedagogical reason – there is! Words are easier to
learn that way!
SPORT: tennis – racket, court, net, to serve, 15-love (0), the
umpire, to win a game/match/championship – to beat an opponent –
spectators for sport, not audience. Audiences are for the theatre,
the cinema, a concert etc.
Rugby – pitch, referee, to score a try, to kick a penalty,
Keep a notebook (paper and pen or digital)
It’s not enough to write down a word or phrase and a translation and
close the book!
You have learned a word when:
1. You know what it means
2. You know how to say it
3. You know how to spell it
4. You know when and when not to use it (put it in context)
5. You know the grammar of the word (e.g. which word must follow it?)
– collocation, dependent prepositions etc
Example: Difficulty
The state or condition of being difficult.
“Simon had no difficulty in making friends”
difficulty (noun)
difficult (adjective)
4 syllables – stress the first syllable
NOUN – make the plural by changing the ‘y’ to ‘i’ and adding ‘es’ –
difficulties
to HAVE difficulty IN doing something
When you read new words in your course book, write them down. When
you’re reading something online, from a song, film, book etc. Write
down these words too.
– collocation – to HAVE difficulty
– prepositions – difficulty IN
– Example sentence – “I have difficulty (in) remembering all the new
words.”
Online dictionaries will give you this information including
pronunciation and translation.
You should learn some vocabulary in 'chunks'. Chunks are
pieces of languague that go together and often have a particulary
funtion. A single unit of meaning.
Examples:
Do you mind if….. (asking for permission)
Would you like…. (offering)
I’m looking forward to…. (talking about the future with positive
anticipation) – “I’m looking forward to the weekend.” – It’s often
used in writing for finishing letters and emails.
Collocations:
Words which like to go together – Some words are good friends, they
are best mates.
Examples: make money, do business, have fun, have difficulty, make
mistakes, good luck, healthy appetite.
There are many different kinds of collocations and studying them
will help you pass the FCE exam.
Here are some examples:
verb + noun – have a relationship
noun + verb – (the) alarm went off / (I can hear the) dog barking
adverb + adjective – very kind / absolutely fantastic! / totally
awesome!
adjective + noun – regular exercise – I like taking regular exercise.
noun + noun – bar of chocolate, a bar of soap
verb + adverb – kissed me tenderly (She gave me a tender kiss) /
whisper softly
have a shower
catch a bus
do someone a favour
break a promise
take a chance
make progress
Phrasal Verbs
Don’t learn them in long, unconnected lists – learn them in context
Relationships : hit on someone, get together (with someone), go out
with, break up with / split up with, make up with, settle down
Don’t panic or get stressed, learn them gradually.
Mark the stress on new words. For example, /re-LA-tion-ship/ /DI-fi-cul-ty/ |
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