Free Writer Course 4, Lesson 4
Improving Your Vocabulary
Contrary to what many people believe, improving and enlarging one’s vocabulary does not work against simplicity of language. The larger the vocabulary to which a writer has access, the better will be his comprehension and communication with his readers.
What Is The Value Of Having A Good Vocabulary
Having command over a large vocabulary helps the writer in more than one way. It results at least in the following.
1-Increased Comprehension: A writer might be an ordinary person, but his call to write is definitely an extraordinary challenge. He cannot hope to succeed if he continues at the intellect and comprehension of his readers. He has to rise above them, and must acquire a mastery over numerous subjects.
A larger vocabulary will help him to read at a level higher than that of his readers. It will also ensure that he comprehends these subjects — written probably at a greater depth — accurately and without unduly straining himself. The teacher or guide should definitely have a comprehension at least one step above that of his followers.
2-Increased Accuracy In Thinking: No man can think without using words, and none can think with a greater accuracy than his vocabulary would allow.
Consider a man who thinks of salvation. If he does not have vocabulary enough to distinguish between potential salvation, positional salvation, experiential salvation, and ultimate salvation, then he will never be able to understand salvation accurately. Consequently he will misread Biblical statements related to experiential or ultimate salvation as positional salvation. If he has only the word love to express ideas as varied as lust, longing, intimacy, commitment, passion, attraction, and infatuation, he will never be able to think sensibly on these subjects.
The greater the vocabulary that one has, the greater is the accuracy of one’s thinking. One does not have to stress the implications of this for potential writers !!
3-Increased Accuracy of Expression: Just as one needs a good vocabulary for accurate thinking, one needs it also for accurately expressing oneself.
If a writer has only the word "fix" in his vocabulary to denote dilemma, predicament, crisis, emergency, plight, trap, trouble, repair, secure, fasten, arrange, adjust, establish, attach, affix, bind, connect, etc, he will never be able to express himself accurately on these subjects.
Using words heavier than necessary shows pride, but using wrong or ambiguous worlds shows poverty of mind. This will only hinder clear communication. When the correct word in context is "connect", using "fix" will only produce ambiguity.
The richer one’s vocabulary, therefore, the greater is the choice for words available, and the greater is the possibility of discovering the apt word.
4-Greater Mental Growth: Mental growth and maturity depends upon how much a person is able to use his mind. Since words are the vehicle needed to set mind into motion, the greater the vocabulary, the greater will be the growth.
If a person’s vocabulary is no bigger than his infant’s, his mind is also going to be no more than infantile. The greater the vocabulary, the greater is a person’s perception — in depth as well as in breadth. Consequently, greater will be the mental growth.
How Much Vocabulary Does One Need ?
Even the supposedly most primitive languages have very large vocabularies. No single speaker of these languages is ever able to learn or master all the available words. Advanced languages have a far greater vocabulary than the primitive languages.
Since every language has such an endless stream of words, some strategy or other is needed so that one acquires a reasonable vocabulary but does not get bogged down with unnecessary words. The following comments will offer some guidelines:
1-The Actual Vocabulary: The actual vocabulary available even in supposedly primitive languages goes into tens of thousands. The major Indian languages have anywhere from fifty thousand to hundreds of thousands of words. When prefixes and suffixes are added, the number becomes astronomical.
English has several hundred thousand words. Its great capacity to assimilate and coin new words adds several thousand words to English every year ! No single individual can ever be expected learn or master all of it. However, you don’t have to despair.
Though the total number of words available in English and in Indian languages is astronomical, the actual number needed for day-to-day communication is small and manageable. A writer with the proper strategy can pick up a vocabulary several times larger than the common vocabulary.
2-The Common Vocabulary: The commonly used vocabulary numbers only few thousands. Most common people manage with different forms of a thousand words or less of their language ! Educated people tend to use a larger vocabulary, but even here the number is astonishingly small. Surveys have shown that most educated people use around 2000 words, while the more motivated ones go probably up to 3000 ! This is the case with English as well as with any other major language in the world. It is not at all difficult for a writer to master this number of words. Learning just five new words a day for eighteen months will do the job! The actual task is simpler than that considering that most educated adults already know a good number of words from the list !
3-The Vocabulary Comprehended: Most people tend to understand more words than what they commonly use. This can be called "the comprehended vocabulary" because these words are commonly understood, even if not used by most people.
The commonly comprehended vocabulary is twice (or more than that) of the actual vocabulary used by a person. For educated people and book-lovers, the vocabulary they understand tends to be vast compared to what they use. This is the range that is available to you for use !
4-The vocabulary that you need: The vocabulary that you need as a writer falls into two categories: vocabulary for comprehension, and vocabulary for expression. The vocabulary for comprehension includes all the words that you need to understand the subjects you choose to study. The vocabulary for expression is limited to those words that you can use safely and confidently for your intended readers.
The greater your vocabulary for comprehension is, the better it is. It will help you understand a larger range of subjects to greater depths. If you have a special interest in a particular subject like medicine, music, theology, sports, or gardening, you should try to widen your vocabulary net as much as possible in these subjects.
No upper limit can ever be placed on the vocabulary that you might acquire for your own benefit and comprehension. However, every writer has a saturation point after which the efforts put into learning new words does not result in corresponding benefit now or in future.
Some time after you get into a vocabulary development plan, you will be able to see up to what distance you must go. For example, if you are going to write mostly on music you will discover it useless to study names of specialized diseases — unless those diseases affect music, and vice versa !! Also, unless you specialize in lexicography, linguistics, or etymology, you will find it useless to master words that have not been used now for hundreds of years. Any dictionary will supply all this information.
The vocabulary that you use for communicating with others, however, should be limited to what they can follow easily. This requires that you restrict yourself to the common vocabulary. If this is not sufficient, you may even use the next higher category — vocabulary comprehended by them. You should not leave this boundary unless it is absolutely necessary. In such cases, when you have to use a word not understood readily by your readers, you should find a way to define it as you use it.
The common vocabulary and understandable vocabulary vary from group to group. The range will be the smallest in case of uneducated people, while it will be practically unlimited for philosophers and intellectuals. It is your duty to evaluate the verbal capacity of your readers and adjust your writings to that span. Use the right range for each category of readers for whom you write — lest it become too difficult and intimidating or too simple and boring.
5-Vocabulary Lists: Many language-related institutes have published lists of the most common, most frequent, and the simplest words in different language. Such lists are readily available in English, and you should obtain them if possible.
In the initial stages you should restrict your writings within the vocabulary given in these lists. Gradually you will recognize the limits so that these lists are no longer essential. If such lists are not readily available, you might consider purchasing simplified English-English dictionaries. (Most pocket dictionaries fall into this category). They use only the most frequently used or most easily understood words in defining dictionary words. Thus if a particular word looks too difficult for your target audience, consulting these dictionaries will tell you how you might express the same idea using simpler words. As you continue doing this, using the more readily understandable words will become a habit.
VOCABULARY IMPROVEMENT STRATEGIES
Since having a large vocabulary is quite important for success in comprehension and communication, it is wise to develop a strategy to improve your word-power. This is not as difficult as you might think, and since there is no exam to pass this can even become an exciting hobby.
Plenty of help is available for the interested person, and I explain some of them below. Choose one or more according to your need and strategy.
1-Vocabulary Development Columns: A lot of people are interested in learning new words, and this has caused many periodicals to establish a column devoted exclusively to vocabulary-building. The INCREASE YOUR WORD POWER column of the Reader’s Digest is the best example.
Reader’s Digest, however, is not the only publication that has a column like this. Many regional language periodicals and even children’s magazines carry similar columns. Try you hand at whatever you can locate and find useful.
A children’s magazine that my son loves to read carries a regular column on words. Each word is explained, applied, and illustrated with the help of a funny picture. The approach is so humorous that the word immediately gets imprinted in the mind. Try the magazines available to you.
2-Vocabulary Related Books: The types jobs where vocabulary skill is important has been increasing constantly. Since people aspiring for such jobs are past school or college age, many of them have started looking to books for help. What is more, the entrance exam for many jobs now include vocabulary tests. This has given a great impetus to book publishing on vocabulary related subjects. Pick up one or more according to your need.
It is difficult to cite a universally available book, but that is not needed seeing the large number of good titles available. However, my all time favourite is "Instant Vocabulary" by Ida Ehrlich. Nothing worthwhile in life can be gained instantly, yet here is a book that lives up to its promise. Using a unique approach, this book will increase your verbal power extremely fast. What’s more, in different editions, this book is easily available all over the world.
Do not despair if you are unable to locate the above-mentioned books. Almost any good book will be helpful. The only care to take is not to invest money in a very expensive books. The beginner should begin with a relatively inexpensive paperback and then graduate to a heavier book after gaining an insight into vocabulary-building.
3-Thesaurus And Reverse Dictionaries: In addition to the vocabulary-building books mentioned above, you must definitely acquire at least one Thesaurus. This should be your constant companion besides your dictionary.
A Thesaurus or Reverse Dictionary is a dictionary of synonyms, antonyms, homonyms, and much more. It will help you to find the word that best fits your purpose. It is often called a "Reverse" dictionary because it’s used somewhat opposite to the way a dictionary is used. Dictionaries are used to find the meaning of words. Thesauruses and Reverse Dictionaries, however, are used to find the best word to express the thought or meaning that you already have in your mind !!
The most comprehensive Thesauruses are the Miriam-Webster and Roget’s. These are available both in expensive hardbound as well as in cheaper paperback editions. Sometimes you might even see dictionaries and thesauruses combined in one volume. The only care to take here is not to go for abridged or condensed editions. Go for the normal ones, and they will not cost you a fortune. Reverse Dictionaries introduced recently will cost you much more because they do not face much competition yet. A higher price need not give you higher quality to usefulness. Miriam-Webster and Roget are still my favourites.
4-Good Quality Dictionaries: I mentioned dictionaries several lessons ago, and I want to emphasize it again that no writing is possible without a good dictionary or two. There is no end to the making of dictionaries, and there is no end to the preference different people have for different editions. Feel free to stick to your preference (Webster, Chambers, Oxford, Random House, COBUILD or anything else) as long as you purchase the correct types.
I strongly recommend that you buy two dictionaries — a pocket one, and a full-sized one. Most writers, by nature, are too lazy to open and consult a full-size, heavy, dictionary. The pocket dictionary makes the task simple. Also, this is all what you need when you start writing.
The most comprehensive pocket dictionary available anywhere is the Collins Gem Dictionary. Published by Collins, the present edition has more than 30,000 entries. The approach has been so successful that now the same company has introduced Gem (pocket) dictionaries on numerous subjects and languages. (In the most unlikely case where you don’t find Collins, you can try Webster or other pocket dictionaries).
Buy one, carry it wherever you write, and your life will no longer be the same again !!
Use the larger, comprehensive, dictionary in your collection for locating and studying words in greater detail, and also for finding words not found in the pocket dictionary.
5-Word Games: If you can get yourself interested in playing word-games, it will open up an entirely new world. Word-games include Cross-word Puzzles, Cryptic Puzzles, Scrabbles, and other vocabulary-based games.
Cross-Words are a common feature of many newspapers, periodicals, and even Christian magazines. Cryptic Words is more rare, but it challenges both your logic as well as vocabulary.
Scrabbles is a standard word-building game available all over the world. These games give you at least three things: entertainment/relaxation, verbal exercise, and new vocabulary. A few years spent with these can give you unusual capability at recalling words almost instantly.
Summary
Language and vocabulary is the primary vehicle of communication for a writer’s thoughts. Unless you master them, you will never rise beyond the kindergarten type of communication.
It is possible to improve both one’s language as well as vocabulary. It is not very difficult, nor does it call for exceptional intelligence. An average person with above average commitment can master any language in a few years.
Develop an appropriate strategy and be committed to it.
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