Vocabulary, Building Blocks for Writers

Vocabulary is a fancy term for the words you use. Since words are the writer’s building blocks it makes sense to build a large vocabulary. So how do you do it?

Building Vocabulary

Vocabulary can be specific to a profession, art form, or region. For instance, to a student, the word site will probably refer to a website, but to a biologist or archaeologist it will refer to a location. Medium to an artist is the material they use to make their art, but it can also be a psychic leading a seance, a size, or the way information is transmitted. And then of course, different regions have their own vocabulary. The Southwestern United States borrows much of its vocabulary from Spanish. Think adobe, hacienda, and corral. Louisiana has a strong French influence as found in the words bayou, bisque, laissez faire, and joie de vivre.

One way to build vocabulary is to study lists of words and their meanings, use them in sentences and add them to your daily conversations. While this works for many people, it can feel forced and without context. An easier way to build vocabulary is to read, read, read. This method introduces you to many perspectives from various regions. Whether reading fiction or nonfiction you can absorb words specific to a profession, art form or region in context, something you don’t get from studying a word list.

Root Words

American English borrows words from all over the world. You probably studied Latin and Greek root words in school. This is a very valuable exercise as it aids in giving meaning to unfamiliar words. Let’s take the word phonology as an example. If you know the root word phon means sound and you know the suffix ology means study of, you can deduce that phonology is the study of sounds. Phon also appears in telephone and phonics. A future post will talk about using prefixes and suffixes to change a word’s meaning.

Register

Register refers to the level of formality. If you’re hanging out with your friends you are likely to speak in contractions and pepper your language with slang. But if you are applying for a scholarship or you’re at a job interview, your speech will be more formal. Linguists call this formal speech Standard English. This is what your teacher wants you to use in all written work. An exception would be in a piece of fiction where you are attempting to capture the flavor of a character, place, or mood.

Vocabulary-Use it or Lose it

The start of a new year is a great time to commit yourself to improving vocabulary. This is one of those cases of use it or lose it. Pay attention to new words as you read. Incorporate them into your conversations until they feel natural. Use the dictionary function on your phone or computer to verify you are using the words correctly.

I am convinced vocabulary improves a person’s ability to express themselves in both writing and speech. Now go out there and express yourself!