After you remember to close your mouth, which has been hanging open, you run next door to tell your friend what you saw. What do you say? If you know a couple of key words, you can quickly explain to this person what you saw. Instead of describing the number of windows and the length of the car, you could simply say that you saw a black limousine (a long, luxurious car). Then, instead of describing the man with the white gloves, you could say you saw the chauffeur (someone paid to drive a car or limousine) walk to the back of the car. Knowing these key words can help you quickly and effectively communicate your meaning.
Notice that each word has a slightly different meaning. Which meaning seems to work best when talking about an engine? Since an engine has many complexly interrelating (connected together like a puzzle) parts, the word “intricate” seems to be a great choice. Putting an engine together can definitely be intricate work. My choice is made. The thesaurus and dictionary have saved the day and have helped me develop my vocabulary!
Ways that having a strong vocabulary helps when writing include:
- POOR: People do a lot of things.
- BETTER: People perform a lot of tasks.
Why is a Strong Vocabulary Important?
We use spoken and written words every single day to communicate ideas, thoughts, and emotions to those around
If you don’t have a strong vocabulary yet, the first way you can develop one is with a couple of tools: a thesaurus and a dictionary. A thesaurus (a resource that lists synonyms and antonyms of words) is a helpful tool, but it is essential (very important and necessary) that you use a dictionary along with it. For example, imagine that I want to say that putting an engine together is difficult. However, I want a more descriptive word than “difficult.” What other word could I use? A thesaurus might give me choices like these: complex, intricate, tricky, and thorny. Do I know what those words mean, though? That’s where a dictionary comes in.
- being able to choose more descriptive words to help your reader envision what you are describing.
- being able to adapt your writing for your audience (e.g., simpler words for children and more complex words for college students).
- creating more variety in paragraphs and sentences with vocabulary words which keep your reader interested in what you have to say.
So aim to learn around 10 new words every week. It doesn't take a genius to work out that if you kept this up, you'd learn over 500 words by this time next year. That'll give you a LOT of variation in your writing!
First, you can buy or loan from your library a good etymological dictionary. Or use this free, well-researched online dictionary that’s specifically dedicated to etymology.
Read everything you can get your hands on. In addition to the targeted research of a topic, make a general decision to read more overall. Also, practice critical reading when you read academic sources.
If you want to improve your vocabulary, you have to change this habit. When you see a new word look it up in a dictionary.
Setting a goal will help you achieve more
But when you’re essay writing on a regular basis, you need to be able to express yourself clearly and accurately. And this skill will be easier for you if you have a great stock of learned vocabulary. Here are some top tips to help grow yours.
As you read in preparation for your essays, be alert to new words. It is so easy to ignore them – both the ones we read and the ones we hear. Whatever the context, don’t ignore these words. If you're not at your desk, use your phone to make a note of a new word, so that you can go back later to find out the definition.
As discussed above, understanding the roots of words - that is, the parts of words in their most simplest form – will often help you figure out a word you don't know the meaning of immediately. So, as you're learning new words, try to break them down and look for how they've been formed. For example:
- POOR: People do a lot of things.
- BETTER: People perform a lot of tasks.
When you’re faced with a writing assignment, a good vocabulary is an indispensable (very important or necessary) tool. If you have several synonyms (words with similar meanings) in your repertoire (“toolbox”), you’ll be able to choose the best word for the job. Avoid vague words like “stuff” or “things” when you write. These words do not give the reader a good sense of your meaning. Also, use strong verbs that give the reader good information.
Another good idea is to keep a word journal. Try to incorporate interesting words into your journal entry for the day (or week). If you’re not sure if you’re using the word correctly, ask a parent, a teacher, or a brainy friend.
us. Sometimes we communicate successfully, and sometimes we’re not quite so successful. “That’s not what I meant!” becomes our mantra (an often repeated word or phrase). However, a good vocabulary can help us say what we mean.
Why is a Strong Vocabulary Important?
Ways that having a strong vocabulary helps when writing include:
- being able to choose more descriptive words to help your reader envision what you are describing.
- being able to adapt your writing for your audience (e.g., simpler words for children and more complex words for college students).
- creating more variety in paragraphs and sentences with vocabulary words which keep your reader interested in what you have to say.
Notice that each word has a slightly different meaning. Which meaning seems to work best when talking about an engine? Since an engine has many complexly interrelating (connected together like a puzzle) parts, the word “intricate” seems to be a great choice. Putting an engine together can definitely be intricate work. My choice is made. The thesaurus and dictionary have saved the day and have helped me develop my vocabulary!
Read everything you can get your hands on. In addition to the targeted research of a topic, make a general decision to read more overall. Also, practice critical reading when you read academic sources.
So aim to learn around 10 new words every week. It doesn't take a genius to work out that if you kept this up, you'd learn over 500 words by this time next year. That'll give you a LOT of variation in your writing!
Biology – this is formed from 'bio', taken from the Greek word 'bios' meaning "life"
This may sound unnecessary, but remember the reason why knowing more words will benefit you. The more words you know, the more eloquently you'll be able to articulate your arguments in your essay writing. And the better you present your arguments, the higher grades you're likely to score.
Read, read, read, read.
If you want to improve your vocabulary, you have to change this habit. When you see a new word look it up in a dictionary.
As you read in preparation for your essays, be alert to new words. It is so easy to ignore them – both the ones we read and the ones we hear. Whatever the context, don’t ignore these words. If you're not at your desk, use your phone to make a note of a new word, so that you can go back later to find out the definition.
First, you can buy or loan from your library a good etymological dictionary. Or use this free, well-researched online dictionary that’s specifically dedicated to etymology.
If you want to write a top-notch assignment you need to focus on impressive words to use in an essay that will clearly express your thoughts without causing any confusion. Vocabulary words for essay writing are just the thing every student needs to stay at the top of his or her class. The following provides some advice and direction for good vocabulary words to use in an essay. If you start incorporating them into your written assignments, you should see a vast improvement to the grades you receive no matter what the discipline may be.
Other words we like to use to start the final paragraph of an assignment are “in a word,” “in the end” or “on the whole.” Again, your goal should be to drive home your main point and show the reader precisely why the points you made validate your position.
Even in academic writing, the words you use should be interesting to the reader. And some words simply don’t cut it. They are either too boring or too unoriginal. For instance, in an assignment where you are asked to write about yourself, starting every sentence with the pronoun “I” is repetitive and will quickly for the reader to lose interest. If you are writing a piece that requires the first person, you can’t avoid using “I” but you can consider placing it in other parts of the sentence and staring with something livelier. Here are some words to use instead of “I” in an essay:
Both of these are good examples of adding variety into your writing by changing the order of words in a simple and effective technique. Now, here are words to use in an essay instead of “you”:
Words to Start an Essay
Essay transition words are important for communicating information to a reader as concisely and clearly as possible. This means eliminating extraneous or “filler” words, using words that are easy to understand, and using words that efficiently take the reader from one idea to another.
Compare and contrast essays are closely related to argumentative essays but you are showing a relationship between 2 or more items or ideas. These words achieve the transition between them flawlessly:
Using transition words for persuasive essay writing is a great way to inform the reader that your argument is coming to a close and that you are about to move into a summary of the major discussion points made throughout the body of the assignment.