Active and Passive Vocabulary

[Harry Smith]

Originally Posted by curmudgeon

Hi, glad it helped. I score more than 40 in each section which suggests graduate level. I have trouble with the last two columns, there are lots of words there I've never heard of.

For me it's much easier to guess the meanings of words in situations. That's why while reading books I hardly ever look up words in the dictionary, only when there are more than three in one passage.

[MikeNewYork]

Originally Posted by Harry Smith

For me it's much easier to guess the meanings of words in situations. That's why while reading books I hardly ever look up words in the dictionary, only when there are more than three in one passage.

I always look up words I don't know when I encounter them. That's how one's vocabulary grows.

[Harry Smith]

Originally Posted by MikeNewYork

I always look up words I don't know when I encounter them. That's how one's vocabulary grows.

There is a limit in vocabulary too. It's when you don't need any new words, because you don't use them often. In this case it's better to think of keeping the words in mind you already know.

[MikeNewYork]

Originally Posted by Harry Smith

There is a limit in vocabulary too. It's when you don't need any new words, because you don't use them often. In this case it's better to think of keeping the words in mind you already know.

That can become a self-fulfilling prophecy; one cannot use words one doesn't know.

[Avalon]

According to a book entitled English Vocabulary in Use(Michael McCarty and Felicity O´Dell) there are at least 500,000 words in English, Winston Churchill was famous for his particularly large vocabulary,he used 60,000 words in his writing(? what writing?) , the average native English speaker uses 5,000 words in his/her everyday speech and 50 words make up 45% of everything written in English!

[Avalon]

Originally Posted by Tdol

How often would they have to use the word for it to be included in the list? For instance, in Portugal, I once had to buy a hinge. I looked the word up and went and bought one. I can still remember the word years later, but I only ever used it once- would this be included in my vocabulary?

Do you really? What do they call it over there?I wonder if it´s the same over here..

[Tdol]

Dobradiça- is it the same?

[Avalon]

Originally Posted by curmudgeon

Here's a little vocabulary test. See how you get on
English Vocabulary Tester

nice test..thanks for the site..

[MikeNewYork]

Originally Posted by Avalon

According to a book entitled English Vocabulary in Use(Michael McCarty and Felicity O´Dell) there are at least 500,000 words in English, Winston Churchill was famous for his particularly large vocabulary,he used 60,000 words in his writing(? what writing?) , the average native English speaker uses 5,000 words in his/her everyday speech and 50 words make up 45% of everything written in English!

How does the source define "everyday speech"?

[Avalon]

It is !!!