How to Know A Word

【Abstract】Vocabulary builds the blocks of languages， so the importance of vocabulary can never be underestimated. As we all know， the enthusiasm of learning English and higher English level mainly depend on vocabulary. The ability of listening， speaking， reading and writing also rely on the quantity of vocabulary. The learners who speak English as second language always have difficulty in learning vocabulary. Hence， the author mainly analyzes different ways to know a word， to some extent， which will help learners take a good command of knowing words.

【Key words】vocabulary； different ways； knowing word

The British linguist D. A. Wilkins（1972）once said， “Without grammar very little can be conveyed； without vocabulary nothing can be conveyed.” Hence， we should take more notice of vocabulary learning. But， what it means “learning vocabulary” or “know a word”？ There are many standard to illustrate them. Here are some illustrations as follows：

1. Learners can use L1 translation

2. Learners know English definition

3. Learners are able to define in their own words

4. Learners get the knowledge of words parts of speech， affixes， and other grammar

5. Learners know the words synonyms & antonyms

6. Learners have the ability to recall in reading & listening

7. Learners have the ability to produce in writing & speaking

And according to these standards， the author lists around 10 different ways to know a word， and recommend an effective way to help learners know a word in an easily way.

（1） To know a word via its pronunciation

As we all know， there are 48 phonetic symbols in English， including 20 vowels and 28 consonants. Learners many use rules to memory words via phonetic symbols. Here are some examples as follows.

（2） To know a word via combination of letters

That is， based on a word and then change the word into another word by adding， subtracting or switching some letters. For example， “is-his”， “close-lose”， “dad-add” and so on.

（3） To know a word via comparison

“Polysemy” and “homonymy” is a significant language phenomenon， and often appears widely in English. “Polysemy” means ambiguity that one word or phrase has two or more meanings. For example， “head” not only means “part of body”， but also means “ones mental abilities； first person in the line； the teacher who is in charge”. “Homonymy” means words which have same linguistic form but are differently in meaning. For instance， “race（contest of speed）” and “race（ethnic group）”.

（4） To know a word via association

Association is the basis of memory. Knowing a word via association means that learners use their imagination to link a word to related formation， grammar， and forms， making the word more vivid and concrete. For example， “bake”， which can use association in the form of “By the lake， making a cake and bake”.

（5） To know a word via classification

There are a thousand Hamlets in a thousand peoples eyes. Admittedly， the way to classify word also is different from different learners. Words can be classified into time（month， week， and day）， season（spring， summer， autumn and winter）or vehicle（airplane， car， ship）etc.

（6） To know a word via repetition

Based on “Forgetting Curve Ebbinghaus”， learners should repeat the words.

（7） To know a word via related context

Some learners always know a word by its related context； it is a good way to understand the word or phrase. Here is an example “The population of the United States includes a number of different ethnic groups coming from many races， nationalities， and religions. The process by which these many groups have been made a part of a common cultural life with commonly shared values is called assimilation.” In the context， we know that “ethnic” means “different groups from many races， nationalities and religions”.

（8） To know a word via semantic map

Semantic mapping is a strategy for graphically representing concepts. Semantic maps portray the schematic relations that compose a concept. It assumes that there are multiple relations between a concept and the knowledge that is associated with the concept. The example is as follow：

Admittedly， people who study English as a second language often believe that sentences in language are more important than vocabulary. If learners can obtain the language grammar and get a good knowledge of the learning materials， they can learn language well. To sum up， with the help of these methods， learners will enlarge their vocabulary and get a good understanding of words more easily and effectively.

References：

[1]http：//turnitin.com/Weber State University on 2015-02-28.

[2]http：//turnitin.com/University of South Florida on 2016-07-21.

[3]http：//www.dis.ac.in.

[4]Pearson，P.D.& Johnson，D.D.（1978）.Teaching Reading Comprehsnsion.New York：Holt，Rinehart，& Winston.

[5]http：//www.visuwords.com.

作者簡介：武雁青（1992.3-），女，漢族，山西大同人，研究方向： 英語學科教學。