Monday, June 23, 2008

word bank article

Digesting the Linguistic Cocktail of English Newspapers: A Magic Potion of 1740 Words



*Umesh Kumar Arya1



A limited vocabulary, but one with which you can make numerous combinations, is better than thirty thousand words that only hamper the action of the mind - Paul Valery



Words are... the most powerful drug used by mankind -Rudyard Kipling1



Introduction:

Newspaper is the road on which the locomotive of democracy moves. It is the most important contributor to the philosophy of democracy. A newspaper is like a mirror to the society in which the state of affairs gets reflected and demand attention of the public. It is only through newspapers that general public is informed and guided by. Newspaper has to fulfill its duty of manufacturing healthy opinion among their readers regarding the important issues before a nation and society. Press gets the honor in terms of fourth pillar of the constitution apart from legislature, judiciary and executive. Over the years, editions and the circulation of the newspapers have increased manifold. A Registrar of Newspapers for India’s 2006 report (RNI, 2006) states that India has 62,483 registered newspapers having a combined circulation of 18,07,38,6112. The print media circulation in the US has declined considerably whereas it has increased substantially incase of India.This has led to increased readership.

During independence, country had a literacy rate of 34% and awareness was very low. But with the passage of time, the editions and circulation of the newspapers began to increase along with the increased literacy rate (65%) at present. Highly developed individualistic societies like UK, USA etc trace their link of development to the high penetration of the newspapers. Newspapers are cosmopolitan in nature giving information on variety of subjects. This is the easiest and novel way of getting acquainted with knowledge.

Role of Newspapers

There are very good reasons why newspapers should be used in the diffusion of knowledge as it is carried in schools (Habert, 1959) Newspapers are the best agents of mass communication. They perform the job of communicating the information to the masses at large. Creatively used, newspapers and magazines can effectively promote learning, critical thinking, creativity and resourcefulness in learners of all ages (Noronha Frederick, 2000)3.

The newspapers -

    • link students to the real world.

    • are a common community link.

    • are a credible source of information which can be referred, quoted and mentioned.

    • make learning fun which is more easy to learn and remember for long time too.

    • are very easy to use.

    • are flexible and adaptable to all curriculum areas and grade levels.

    • motivate students to read.

    • help students understand freedom of the press and other rights of a citizen guaranteed by the Constitution.

    • have ideas for building many educational skills, from critical thinking to analyzing information.

    • can be cut, marked, clipped, pasted, filed.

    • are a cost-effective way to teach.

    • build good reading habits.

    • give everybody something interesting to read.

    • entertain as they teach. (Parent’s newspaper guide (n.d.)

The highly professional people sometimes called “Knowledge Processors”, run newspaper industry. At first stage, they perform the task of sifting and segregating the meaningful knowledge components and deliver it to their consumers i.e. readers. At the second stage, information is processed at the reader’s level. Distortions are introduced when information is processed by the human mind. Information processing has two components.

1. Communication of verbal or visual information

2. Evaluation and information processing.

Distortions can be introduced at one or both levels. These distortions may be semantic (related to meaning of words) or linguistic (language related) The other kinds of distortions can be on the reader’s part where he/she fails to understand the meaning of a complete sentence because of less exposure to difficult words. Words have many permutations and combinations which are always used in combinations with other words. For example: ample evidence, mayhem & murder, fraudulent practices etc but here, the primary concern of the reader is to understand the meaning correctly and use that word in a suitable way. It is often said that no two synonyms in English have the same meaning5. There has to be some differences in the degree of meaning conveyed e.g. “fool” and “stupid” can’t be used alike. Likewise “damage” and “devastation” have lot of semantic differences.

There are well-documented studies which show that newspaper reading can benefit a school going student to a great extent (ibid). Will Rogers used to say “All I know is what I see in papers” (Roger in Habert, 1959) Reading newspapers has its distinct advantages as not all the newspapers carry the same news. Some newspapers almost everyday, carry exclusive news items and very often, sticking to one newspaper doesn’t keep you abreast of all the news. Moreover, every newspaper has its policy and within that framework or policy, it tries to present before the readers its views on a particular problem in the society and policies of the government. The editorial page is the heart of the newspaper in which the newspaper presents its views and fulfills its duty of guiding the readers on a given situation. So it is always desirable to be in touch with the diverse stream of views on a particular issue. Reading only one newspaper more often could be like looking at the one side of the coin. Moreover, for the students pursuing careers in journalism, reading newspaper is more important than reading the course books for a media student.

This way, they can analyze the different styles of reporting and news analysis by the different newspapers. A general pattern can also be known by analyzing the types of news covered. The pattern may be regarding the types of bent of the news, coverage of the news type (crime, development, political, business, sports, cartoon etc). Every newspaper has a unique writing style peculiar to it.


Importance of words

Some writers have compared the word with Brahma (creator of the universe). Since a sentence is composed of different words. These words are like biological cells. A cell is a basic unit of life and human body is composed of billions of cells. Similarly, a language is composed of different words. Every word is a sacred and holy entity. If we want to learn a language then we have to learn the meaning of the word first. Most vocabulary is learnt from context (Sternberg in McKeown & Curtis, 1987)) child starts the language learning process by learning words first. During the course of learning new words, a student should lay stress on the two very important things


1 Meaning of the word

2 Exact usage of the word


Many students have a vast reserve of English words. They also know the meaning of the word but very often; they are not able to use the word in a proper way. Sometimes it happens that we are not able to tell the meaning of the word but we can use that word into an accurate sentence. This is the destination where we have to reach. It is always advisable to learn a word and use it in many different contexts. Every word carries along with it a sense of expression and degree of understanding. A Friend can be called as ‘fool’ rather than ‘stupid’ as it is likely to hurt him. Hence a philosophy and psychology is associated with each and every word. Everybody is supposed to respect this.


There has to be some difference in the degree of meaning and usage of synonyms. Diplomats undergo a rigorous training in the usage of “soft words” and avoid using harsh words while communicating internationally. Diplomats know that any improper word can harm the friendliness and good relations between the two countries. Hence, realizing the importance of every individual word, they are given a list of “do’s and don’t” words. MPs are also supplied with the list of unparliamentary words and any objectionable word spoken is expunged from the proceedings by the speaker of the house. Using a wrong word is like treating a patient by giving wrong medicine. Sometimes a set of two or three words is often used together for expression. There is no hard and fast rule but the in writing, and the people in conversation, normally use these words. For example, ample evidence (enough evidences) mayhem & murder (extreme violence), fraudulent practices, crass commercialization etc.


While English teachers and journalists have always been at the loggerheads. The language purists (English teachers) accuse the language experimenters (Journalists) of writing in an improper way and violating the rules of the grammar. Typical English literature snubs the idea of adding these creative words as these are regarded as “distortion” in the language. But the mass media needs to present its story in the form of catchy words which can entice the reader towards it.


Benefits of Vocabulary

Vocab is not at all related to hi-sounding words which only serve a bombastic purpose. There are many tangible benefits of a high vocab which can be summarized as under

  1. Vocab adds to the elegance and grace of the sentence.

  2. Vocab shortens the sentence thus leading to the pithy habit of communication, e.g. the word “hypochondriac” in the shortest possible meaning by the dictionary is “a patient with imaginary symptoms and ailments”. Hence this 7 word meaning of a single word (hypochondriac) means 7 times conciseness of the communication. Conciseness is one of the most important Cs in communication.

  3. Difficult words occupy prime position in the sentence, e.g. “The Prime Minister has a ‘suave’ personality. The word “suave” means “having a sophisticated charm”. As we can see, Suave occupies the central position or in other words “crux” of the sentence where whole meaning of the sentence depends upon the important word “suave”.

  4. The high vocab reflects the linguistic taste of the user. The linguistic manipulative skills get sharpened with high vocab. A good attire reflects a good outward appearance and a rich vocab manifest person’s inward personality.

  5. Socially well networked person is likely to get his work done easily in the today’s world. This principle applied to the high vocab also. Command over language seems impossible without good vocab as it enhances the horizons of human mind and broadens the thought process.

  6. High vocab can throw up numerous communication possibilities leading to divergent thinking

Pitfalls in Learning English for Newspapers

A student tries a lot to read English newspapers and magazines but unfortunately English words often prove to be a stumbling block and despite his best efforts, s/he faces a number of problems in understanding the language of the newspaper. Today also, being a teacher the researcher feels that students are unable to understand lecture delivered in English because of their small English vocabulary. As a result, many teachers have to teach in Hinglish or Hindlish (Hindi + English). There is no harm in being bilingual but a student of journalism is supposed to have a good command over more than one language and we know that words are the building blocks of the language.

Unfortunately, the students of small towns and rural areas have come to a stage where they have command neither over their mother tongue nor English. The researcher can feel this trauma as a teacher who understands a student’s language problem because he himself had undergone such experience during his student life. So a student must equip him/herself with a strong English vocabulary in order to express and understand the language. Since a language is composed of “words”, so the basic foundation will have to be strengthened to build a strong house.

Readers are least fascinated by the hi-fi words, which are sometimes used to impress people. We should understand that we are writing for others not for ourselves. If a person doesn’t understand what we are trying to communicate by using very difficult and uncommon words then what is good fun in communicating?. According to a famous quote “we should eat what we like” similarly we must write what others like. Hypothetically, it can assumed that the words used in newspapers can be called good words. Newspapers perform the job of spreading the message or information to the public so they have to use those words which are understood by the readers otherwise the basic purpose of communication would be defeated.


Some students have been seen cramming highly difficult words whose meaning is beyond comprehension of even an English teacher. So the point is, are we trying to show off our word power or are we trying to “communicate”? The latter seems to be true and only that should be aim of a student and a writer. In a nutshell, the common words or the words used generally while writing should be learnt no matter how difficult they might be. And where to find these words? The answer is simple – in newspapers. Although English newspapers might have written unlimited number of news stories since inception yet they use only a limited number of words and phrases. Frequency studies of English have shown that the return for learning the high frequency words is very great (Nation, 1993). 1we as readers should master these words then we would be able to write effectively as the journalists and editors do.


Review of Literature


The vocabulary aspects of newspapers has been studied from the panoramic perspective by many researchers. Since the present study touches hitherto relatively less explored area and it is one of its own kind in the linguistic aspect of media so the researcher came across a few more or less similar efforts by other researchers. The first and foremost pioneering work on vocabulary was done by West (1953). He developed a General Service List of roughly 2000 words. The words were selected to represent the most frequent words of English and were taken from a corpus of written English. Rodney (1967) in a frequency count of German vocabulary in German newspaper designed a sample list of 584,000 words and his study Included. Both numerical and alphabetical listings of 1,500 items considered useful in understanding contemporary German newspaper accounts of political, religious, sports, literary and scientific events. Neto, Martins, Meinedo, & Almeida (1997) on a project on European Portuguese language developed and collected a large database of continuous speech based on a large amount of text. In the development of this new Portuguese database their aim was to create a corpus equivalent in size to WSJ0 and they selected the database texts from the “Publico” newspaper, which is characterized by a broad coverage of matters and different writing styles. Coxhead (2000) concluded that one of the most challenging aspects of vocabulary learning and teaching of English for academic purposes is making principled decisions about which words are worth focusing on during valuable class and independent study time.
He mentioned that this general service list prepared by West (1953) covers 90% of the fiction text (Hirsh, 1993) and 75% of non fiction text (Hwang, 1989) . Using frequency, text coverage, and range as criteria, Nation & Kyongho (1995) looked at the dividing line between a general service vocabulary and a special purposes vocabulary. According to him a general service vocabulary gives a good return for learning up to the 2000 word level and after that a special purposes vocabulary gives a better return for learning effort for those learners going on with special interests. Pickard's (1996) found that in a study on out of class strategies used by a group of German learners of English in Germany, extensive reading of newspapers, magazines and novels ranked very high on the list of strategies used for learning English. Kyongho &  Nation (1989) reported that selecting "running" stories (a story and its follow-up articles) provided more repetition of low frequency words, better reduced vocabulary load, and provided better conditions for vocabulary acquisition than did selecting unrelated stories. The lists available of the most frequent words of English include frequency counts (Carroll et al, 1971; Francis & Kucera, 1982; Thorndike & Lorge, 1944), and combinations of various lists (Hindmarsh, 1980; Barnard & Brown, in Nation 1984). All the above studies don’t touch the issue of collection of frequently repeated words from English newspapers for post graduate students.


Objectives


The broad objective of the study was to identify and list down difficult English words which are used repeatedly daily to write various news stories.


Methodology

The target audience of the study were the students of department of advertising and public relations who were facing the difficulty of comprehending the English newspapers’ content due to the difficult words. First of all, vocabulary of students was checked by asking them to read the text of newspapers. The result was disappointing. Almost all students complained of at least one difficult word in each sentence they read. So it was assumed that if the words from different English newspapers are collected by the students themselves who have undergone the test; then such words and the students will definitely represent the core section of the industry based words and target audience respectively.

A very simple, sensible and enjoyable method in experimental research was employed to identify and collect the words. First of all, the selection of the newspapers was done using the census method. Almost all the available English newspapers were selected. These include the national as well as the regional ones e.g. The Tribune, The Hindustan Times, The Times of India, The Hindu, The Indian Express, The Pioneer, The Statesman etc. Out of these, the words commonly used were listed. A hypothesis was coined that the journalists have limited number of words at their disposal which they use frequently to write their stories. This proved to be correct after few days. It happened that the more new words were not appearing in the newspapers so that they could be listed. It was seen that almost all the words were noted down and newspapers were not using any new word. The word list so made was checked time and again and the duplicate words appearing more than once were deleted. A practical exercise was done. We checked whether the listed words really and regularly appear in the newspapers. Almost one week was spent on checking and tallying these words with the words in newspapers. The result was highly satisfactory.





Significance of the Study:

If a student understands the correct meaning of different words used in a particular sentence then s/he can easily comprehend the meaning of the complete sentence but if a single word is incomprehensible, then the message of the whole sentence gets blurred. Instead of identifying and learning new words daily over two years of his/her duration of the course, a journalism student can consult this collection of words as ready reckoner and increase his print media vocabulary. Simultaneously, as the official communication taking place between one office and the other, uses the same language and words similarly the students can know learn the writing styles and standardize the communication process.



Findings and Discussions:

The study revealed some interesting facts which are summarized as under:

  1. One thousand seven hundred and forty comprise the difficult ones for the P.G. students as far as the question of reading English newspaper was concerned.

  2. All the 2000 words collected, were repeated daily by newspapers.

  3. The words starting from the alphabet “S” appeared in highest numbers (188) followed by C (167), P (160), A (152) etc where as the Y had the lowest count of 2 words only .

  4. The words starting from “Y” appeared the least (2).

  5. After the completion of the listing of the words, the words were tested by asking the other group of students to read newspapers and note down the difficult words from their point of view. The words thus collected were compared with the words already listed in the word bank. The results were highly satisfactory. This proved the hypothesis that fix number of few words are regularly used interchangeably to write endless stories.

  6. It also proved the assumption that the Post Graduate students have a common perception of the difficult words and the easy words.

  7. A unique trend of the portmanteau (hybridization of the words was noted. E.g. smog (smoke+fog), fantabulous (fantastic+fabulous).

  8. A unique “ization” effect was noticed i.e. new creative words could be created by affixing “ization”or “isation” after popular words. E.g Talibanisation, Saffronisation, Bureaucratisation etc.

  9. It was also found that P.G. students have a poor understanding of words across the board.


The researcher would like to suggest a convenient, effective and encompassing model for learning English vocabulary. SP-MPUDUS model can be a potent word learning tool for students in order to approach the vocabulary in a methodical manner. SP-MPUDUS (spelling, pronunciation, meaning, use, derivatives, use of derivatives and Synonyms) model need to be followed in sequence but in totality. It is described in detail as –


  1. S (spelling) – this step is the starting point of the quest for words. Spelling must be learnt first and forever.

  2. P (pronunciation) – this has to be learnt first even before learning the meaning of the word.

  3. M (meaning) – meaning must be understood with impeccable clarity.

  4. P (preposition) – prepositions like ‘to’, ‘from’, ‘upon’, ‘on’, ‘for’ etc must be learnt along with word as preposition alone may change the meaning of the entire word, e.g. ‘call upon’ and ‘call on’ have totally different meanings.

  5. U (use) – the word must be used by the learner at least in 3 different situations or sentences.

  6. D (derivates) – these are the words derived from the main word e.g. necessity and necessarily are derived from the word necessary hence a word in its totality (along with derivate words) must be learnt and used in order to cover every aspect of the word.


  1. U – (Use of derivates) – The use of derivatives in sentence would be different from the main word and the it has to adjust inside the context of the sentence e.g. necessary’s derivates are - necessity , necessitate, necessarily.


  1. S (synonym) – synonyms should not be confused with a word having exactly same meaning with the word which we are learning. Every synonym has a different degree of meaning and this aspect must be strictly taken care of.


A

B

C

D

E

F

G

H

I

J

K

L

M

N

O

P

Q

R

S

T

U

V

W

Y

Z

167

85

167

136

81

74

48

47

65

11

3

46

87

29

44

160

21

116

188

69

37

50

24

2

4

words versus numbers






A




B


C


aback

adversary

anonymous

avalanche

back

blatant

cadre


abandon

adverse

ante

avenge

backdrop

bleak

caliber


abdicate

advisable

antecedent

avenue

backlash

blemish

callous


abduct

advocate

anticipate

averse

baffle

blitz

camaraderie


abet

affect

anticlimax

avert

bag

blunt

camouflage


abeyance

affinity

antidote

avow

bail out

boisterous

canard


abhor

affirm

antithesis

awful

bait

bolster

candid


abide

affluent

anvil


banal

bombard

cap


abjure

afoot

anxiety


bane

bombastic

capitalize


ablaze

aftermath

apathy


banish

bonafides

capricious


abode

aggravate

apex


bank

bonhomie

captive


abolish

aggression

apparent


bar

boomerang

cardinal


abominate

aggrieved

appease


barely

boost

carnage


abort

agitate

applaud


barge

booty

cascade


abreast

agony

apprehend


barter

bother

cast


abridged

akin

apprise


bash

bottleneck

casualty


abrogate

alacrity

approbation


battered

bow

catastrophe


abscond

alibi

appropriate


beckon

brace

categorical


absolve

alienate

arbitrary


bedevil

brag

cease


abstain

allay

arbitrate


bedlam

breach

ceiling


absurd

allege

archaic


beef up

brew

cement


abundant

alleviate

archive


befit

bridge

censure


abysmal

alliance

ardent


behemoth

brigand

cessation


accelerate

allocate

arduous


behest

brink

chagrin


access

alter

arena


behoove

brisk



accomplice

altercation

array


beleaguer

broker

chalk


accomplish

amass

ascertain


belittle

brutal

chaos


accord

amaze

aspersion


belligerent

buckle

chart


accountable

ambience

asphyxiated


benchmark

bullish

chauvinist


accrue

ambiguous

aspire


beneath

bulwark

checkmate


accumulate

ambit

assail


benevolent

bumpy

chequered


accuse

ambush

assassinate


benign

bungle

cherish



ameliorate

assent


benumb

buoyant

chide


accustom

amend

assert


bereaved

burgeon

christen


acquaint

amicable

assiduous


bereft

burst

chronic


acquit

amid

assign



buttress

chronology


acrimony


assimilate


besiege

buzzword

chunk


actuate

amnesia

assuage


bespeak


churn


ad nauseam

amnesty

astonish


bestial


circumspect


adage

ample

atrocity


bestow


citadel


adamant

analogy

attenuate


bete noire


cite


adhere

anarchy

attribute


betray


clamp


ad-hoc

anathema

attrition


bicker


clandestine


adieu

anchor

audacious


bid


clash


adjourn

anguish

augment


bigotry


cleanse


admonish

animosity

augur


bilateral


clinch


adore

annals

auspicious


bizarre


clout


adroit

annex

austere


blare


club


advent

anomaly

authentic


blasphemy


clumsy







D



E

clutches

conjecture

crony

dampen

designate

dismal

eager

coalition

connive

crop


desist

dismantle

earnest

coerce

connotation

crow


desolate

disparity

echelon

cognizance

conquer

crucial

daunting

despair


echo

cohesion

conscience

crumble

dawn

desperate

dispel

ecstasy

cohort

consecutive

crunch

dealt

despondent

dispense

efficacy

coincide


crusade

dearth

destitute

displacement

egalitarian

collapse

consensus

crux

debacle

detain

disposal

elated

collude

consent

cue

debilitate

deteriorate

dispose

elegant

colossal

consequence

culminate

debunk

devastate

disproportionate

elicit

combat

consistency

culpable

decadence

deviate

dispute

eliminate

commemorate

consolidate

cultivate

decamp

devious

disrupt

elude

consortium

curb

deceive


disseminate

elusive

commendable

conspire

curious

decimate

devoid

dissent

emanate

commensurate

consternation

curtail

decipher

devolution

dissipate

emancipate

commission

constitute

cyber

decline

dialogue

dissuade

emasculate

commotion

constrict

cynosure

decrepit

diaspora


embargo

compassion

construe


decry

diatribe

distinct

embark

compatible

contagious


defer

dictum

distort

embed

competent

contemplate


deficit

diffident

distraction

embellish

complacent

contempt


deflect

dilemma

distraught

embezzle

comply

contention


defray

diligent

distress

embitter

comprehensive

contentment


defunct

dilly dally

dither

embody

compute

contingent


defuse


diversity

embrace

conceal

contradict


defy

dilute

divulge


concede

controversy


degrade

diminish

doctor

emerge

conceive

conundrum


deja vu

diminutive

dogmatic

eminent

concerted

convene


delegate

dint

doldrums

empathy

conclave

converge


deliberate

dire

doom

emphasis

concoct

conviction


deliberation

directive

draconian


concomitant

copious


delineate

disarmament

drag

emphatic

concrete

cordial


deluge

disarray

drastic

emulate

concurrence

core


demolish

disband

dreaded

en route

condemn

cornucopia


denigrate

disburse

drubbing

enact

conducive

corroborate


denounce

discern

dub

encompass

conduit

cosmopolitan




dubious

encounter

confer

coterie


dent

disclose

duo

endeavour

confidant

cough up


deplete

disconcerting

dupe

endorse

confide

counter


deplore

discord

duress

endure

confine

counterfeit


deploy

discourse

dwell

enforce

confiscate

coup


deport

discriminate

dwindle

engross

conflict

coveted


depose

disdain

dynamic

engulf

confluence

crack down


depreciate

disengage


enhance

conform

cradle


deprive

disgrace


enigma

confound

credential


depute

disgruntle


enjoin

confront

credible


dereliction

disguise


enlighten

confrontation

cripple


deride

disillusion


enlist

congenial

crisis


desecrate

disinformation


enormous

congregate

crisp


deserted

disinterested


ensconce


F


G

H

I



enshrine

exhilaration

fabricate

formidable

gag

hail

ideology

indemnity


ensue

exhort

facilitate

fortify

galaxy

hallmark

idle

indict


entail

exigency

faction

fortuitous

gallant

hammer out

ignominious

indigenous


entice

exodus

fait accompli

foster

galore

hamper

illusion

indignation


entity

exonerate

fallacy

fragile

gambit

haphazard

imbibe

indiscriminate


entrench

exorbitant

fanatic

fragment

gamut

hapless

imbroglio

indolent


enumerate

expatriate

fantabulous

frail

garble

harbour

imbue

induce


enunciate

expedite

farce

frame

garner

hardcore

imitate

induct


envisage

explicable

fastidious

framework

garrulous

harness

immaculate

indulge


ephemeral

explicit

fathom

frantic

gauge

harp

immaterial

inept


epitome

exponential

faux pas

fraternity

gear up

harsh

immense

inertia


equation

exterminate

feign

fraudulent

generous

hassle

immunity

inevitable


equilibrium

extinct

fend

fraught

genesis

haste

impart

inexorable


era

extol

ferocious

fray

gesture

hatch

impeccable

infect


erode

extort

ferry

frenzy

ghastly

haughty

impediment

infest


err

extract

fetch

frequency

giant

haunt

impel

infiltrate


erratic

extraneous

feud

frivolous

gibberish

haywire

impending

inflate


erroneous

extravagant

feudal

frown

gigantic

hazard

imperative



erupt

extricate

fiasco

fructify

gimmick

hazy

imperial



escalate

exude

fickle

fruition

gist

hectic

impetus



eschew

eyewash

fictitious

fuel

glaring

heed

implicate



espionage


fierce

furious

glimpse

hefty

implication



espousal


fillip

furnish

glitter


implicity



essence


filth

furore

gloom

hegemony

imply



estrange


finale

futile

gory

heinous

impose



eternal


finesse


grace

heir

impound



ethnic


finicky


graft

helm

impoverish



ethos


fiscal


grandiose

henceforth

impromptu



euphemism


fizzle out


grapevine

herald

improvised



euphoria


flabbergast


grapple

heresy

impugn



evacuate


flair


gratitude

hiatus

impulse



evade


flank


grave

hibernate

impunity



evanescent


flaunt


gravitate

hideous

inadvertent



eventuality


flaw


grievance

hilarious

incarceration


evident


fledgling


grieve

hinder

incentive



evince


flee


grill

hitch

inception



evolve


fleece


grim

hitherto

inch





flimsy


grimace

holocaust

incipient



exacerbate


flock


grip

horrendous

incite



exaggerate


flounder


grope

hostile

incite



exasperate


flush


gross

hue

incognito



excavate


flux


grudge

huge

incongruous



exchequer


foil


gruelling

humiliate




execute


folly


gruesome

hurl

incorporate



exemplary


foray


grumble

hustings

incredible



exempt


foresee


guise

hype

incubation



exercise


forfeit


gullible

hypothetical

inculcate



exhaustive


forge


gusto


incumbent



exhibit


formative


guts


incur












J

K

L

M


N

O


jackpot

knack

labyrinth

machination

mirage

nab

obfuscate


jeopardy

know how

lackadaisical


miscellaneous

naïve

obligatory


jingoism

kudos

lackluster

magnitude

mischief

narrate

obliterate


jinx


lacuna

maiden

miscreant

nascent

oblivious


jolt


laden

maim

misgiving

nasty

obscure


jostle


lag

malaise

mishap

naught

obsess


jugglery


laggard

malfunction

mitigate

nebulous

obsolete


juncture


lambaste

malice

mobilize

nefarious

obstinate


junta


lament

malign

mockery

negate

obstruct


jurisdiction


languish

malpractice


negotiate

obviate


juxtapose


lapse

mammoth

modality

nemesis

obvious




largesse

mandarin

model

nexus

occult




lash

mandate

moderate

niche

oddity





mandatory

modest

niggle

offence




laud

maneuver

modify

nightmare

offend




laurels

mania

modus operandi

nitty-gritty

offing




laxity

manifest

mole

nod

ominous




legacy

manifold

molest

nonchalant

onerous




legendary

mantra

mollify

nonetheless

onset




legislate

mar

momentum

normalcy

onslaught




legitimate

marathon

monetary

nostalgia

onus




lenient

maraud

monitor

notch

opaque




lethal

masquerade

monotonous

notion

opponent




lethargy

massacre

morale

notorious

opportune




level

massive

moratorium

notwithstand

optimum




levy

mayhem

moribund

novice

opulent




lewd

meddle

motive

nuisance

ordeal




liability

mediate

mould

numerous

orient




liaison

melee

mount

nurture

ostensible




liquidate

menace

mourn


ostentation




loath

mend

mow


oust




lodge

mere

mull


outburst




loggerheads

merge

mundane


outfit




loner

merger

murky


outlandish




long

mesmerize

mutilate


outpace




loom

mess

mutiny


outrageous




loophole


mutual


outstrip




lucid

mete

myriad


outwardly




lucrative

meticulous

mystery


overdue




ludicrous

mid term

mystify


overhaul




lukewarm

midst

myth


overtone




luminaries

miff



overture




lurch

mileage



owe




lure

mindful



owing to




lurk

mingle







lynch

miniscule








minority








minute








miracle








P




Q

R



pace

persist

pose

promulgate

quagmire

radical

reluctant

retrieve

pact

persistence

posse

prone

quaint

raise

rely

retrogressive

panacea

persuade

possess

prong

qualitative

raison d etre

remedial

revamp

pandemonium

pertain

posthumous

propagate

qualm

rake

reminiscent


panorama

pertinent

potential

propel

quandary

ramification

remnant

reveal

paradigm

perverse

pragmatic

propensity

quantify

rampage

remote

reverberation

pervert

precarious

propitiate

quantitative

rampant

render

revitalize

paradox

peter out

precede

propitious

quantum

ramshackle

renounce


paralyze

petition

precipitate

proposition

quarter

rap

renowned

revive

paramount

phase

precise

prosaic

quash

rapacity

reparation

revoke

paranoid

phenomenon

preclude

prosecute


rapprochement

repeal

revolt

paraphernalia

phlegmatic

predicament

protagonist

quasi

ratify

repercussion

rhetoric

parasite

phobia

predominant

protract

queer

rational

replenish

rid

parity

piecemeal

prejudice

provoke

quell

rationale

replicate

riddle

parley

piggy back


prudent


ravage

repose

ridicule

parochial

pile

premise

prune

quench

raze

repository

rift

pilferage

prerogative

pseudo

query


repress

rigging

part

pin down

press

pulsate

quest

realm

reprieve

rigid

passion

pinnacle

presume

pump

quid pro quo

rebuff

reprimand

rigmarole

pipeline

pretext

punitive

quintessence

recap

reprisal

rigors

pathetic

piquant

prevail

pursue

quip

recession

repudiate

riots

patronage

pittance

prevalent


quirk

reciprocate

repulse

ripple

paucity

pivotal

prevaricate


quote

reckless

repute

roam

pave


prickly



reckoning

requisite

robust

pecadillo

placate

prime facie



reconcile

requisition

rock

peculiar

placid

primitive



recourse

rescind

rope

pecuniary

plagiarize

prior



recrimination

resent

rout

peeve

plausible

privilege



rectify

reshuffle

row

peg

plea

proactive



recuperate

resilient

rudimentary

pelt

plead

probable



recur

resolute

ruffian

penchant

plebiscite

probe



redeem

resolve

ruin

pending

plenary




redress

resort

rumbling

penetration

plethora

probity



redundant


ruthless

per se

pliable

procession



refrain

respite


perceive

plight

proclaim



refuge

restive


perceptible

ploy

proclamation



refurbish



percolate

plummet

proclivity



refute

restore


perennial


procrastinate






perfunctory

plunder

procure



regime

restrain



pluralism

prodigy



rehabilitate

resume


peril


profess



reinforce

resurgence


perish

ply

proficient



reinstate

resurgent


permeate

poignant

profligate



reiterate

resurrect


permutation

poise

profound



rejuvenate

resuscitate


pernicious

polarization

proletariat



rekindle

retaliate


perpetrate

ponder

proliferate



relapse

retrace


perpetual

pooh pooh

prolong



relative

retract


perplex

portal

promiscuity



relinquish

retreat


persecute

portray

prompt



relish

retribution



S




T


U

V

sabotage

shambles

sphere

stride

tab

transpire

ubiquitous

vacillate

sack

sheer

spiral

strife

taboo

trauma

umbrage

vacuum

sacred

shelve

splendid

striking

tacit

travail

unanimous

vague

sacrilege

shield

spontaneous

stringent

tactful

treachery

uncouth

valour

saddle

shore up

sporadic

strip

tactic

tread

undaunting

vandalism

safeguard

shortcoming

spur

strive

taint

treason

underscore

vanish

sag

shrewd

spurious

stubborn

tamper

tremendous

unearth

vast

saga

shrink

spurt

stuck

tandem

tremor

unequivocal

veer

sagacious

shroud

squabble

stumbling block

tangible

trigger

unfazed

vehement

salient

shrug

squalid

stun

tangle


unison

veil

sanctity

shun

squander

stupendous

tantalize

trim

unnerve


sanity

siege

squat

stymie

tantamount

triumph

unpalatable

vendetta

sap

sigh

stab

subjugate

tap

trivial

unprecedented

venerable

sarcastic

significant

stable

subsequent

tardy

truant

unravel

vengeful

satiate

simmer

stagger

subservient

tarnish

truce

unrelenting

venom

saturate

simulate

stagnant

subside

tedious

truck

unremitting

vent

savage

sinister

stagnate

subsistence

temerity

trumpet

unruffled

venture

savvy

sink

stake

substantial

tempt

turbulent

unscrupulous

veracity

siphon

stale


tentacle

turmoil

unsolicited

verbose

scam

sizeable

stall

substantiate

tentative

tussle

untoward

verdict

scant

skeptic

stalwart

substantive

tenure

tyranny

unveil

versatile

scarcity

skirmish

standstill

subvert

terse


unwarranted

version

scare

slack

startle

succinct

testimony


upbeat

verve

scathing

slam

static

succumb

thaw


update

vest

scenario

slander

status quo

sue

thrash


upheaval

veteran

schism

slash

staunch

suffice

threshold


uphold

vexed

scintillate

slew

steady

sulk

thrive


uplift

viable

scoff

sluggish

stealthy

sullen

throng


uprising

vibrant

scot free

slump

steep

sum

thrust


uproar

vicarious

scramble

smear


summon

thwart


uproot

vicious

scrap

snag

stem

superfluous

ticklish


upswing

vie

scrupulous

snap

sterling

supersede

tip off


usher

vigil

scrutiny

snare

stern

surmise

tirade



vigorous

scuffle

sneak

stiff

surpass

toil


usurp

villify

scuttle

snub

stigma

surreptitious

tone up


utmost

vindicate

snuff

stimulate

surveillance

topple


utopian

violate

secession

sole

sting

susceptible

topsy turvy


utter

virtual

seclude

soothe

stipulate

suspicion

torchbearer


utterly

vitriolic

sectarian

sop

stir

sustain

torment



vivacious

sedition

sordid

storm

sway

tow



vivid

seduce

sour

strain

sweep

trail



vociferous

segment

spanner

strait

sycophancy

trait



vogue

segregate

spark

strangulate

symbolic

trammel



volatile

seize

spate

stratagem

symptom

tranquil



volition

spawn

strategy

synergy

transaction



volte face

seldom

spearhead

stray


transform



vortex

severe

spectre

streamline


transient



votary

shabby

speculate

stricken


transition



vouch

shamble

spell

stricture


transmutation


vouchsafe

W

Y

Z

vow

wage

yardstick

zeal

vulnerable

waive

yearn

zest

wane


zip

wannabe


zoom

ward off




wary




watershed




waylay




wean




weed out




whopping




wield




willy nilly




wind up




wither




withstand




witness




wizard




woes




woo




wrangle




wrap up




wrath




wrest






References:-


Carroll, J., Davies & Richman, B.(1971). Cited by Nation, P. (1993). 1Measuring readiness for simplified material: a test of the first 1,000 words of English. In Simplification: Theory and Application ed. M.L.Tickoo, RELC Anthology Series No 31, 1993, pp 193-203. Retrieved 13 March 2008 from http://www.er.uqam.ca/nobel/r21270/levels/1000test_nation.doc


Coxhead, A. (2000). A new academic word list.TESOL Quarterly, Vol. 34, No. 2 (Summer, 2000), pp. 213-238


Francis, W., Kucera, N. & Henry (1982). Cited by Nation, P. (1993). 1Measuring readiness for simplified material: a test of the first 1,000 words of English. In Simplification: Theory and Application ed. M.L.Tickoo, RELC Anthology Series No 31, 1993, pp 193-203. Retrieved 13 March 2008 from http://www.er.uqam.ca/nobel/r21270/levels/1000test_nation.doc



Habert. J. (1959). What foreign language newspapers can do for students
Journal of Educational Sociology, Vol. 32, No. 5, The Foreign Language Press and Foreign Language Teaching (Jan., 1959), pp. 194-199


Hirsh (1993) quoted by Coxhead (2000). A New Academic Word List
TESOL Quarterly, Vol. 34, No. 2 (Summer, 2000), pp. 213-238. Retrieved March 24, 2008 from http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0039-8322(200022)34%3A2%3C213%3AANAWL%3E2.0.CO%3B2-C



Hwang, K. (1989) cited by Coxhead, (2000). A New Academic Word List
TESOL Quarterly, Vol. 34, No. 2 (Summer, 2000), pp. 213-238. Retrieved March 24, 2008 from http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0039-8322(200022)34%3A2%3C213%3AANAWL%3E2.0.CO%3B2-C


Kyongho, H. &  Nation, P. (1989) Reducing the vocabulary load and encouraging vocabulary learning through reading newspapers. Reading in a Foreign Language, v6 n1 p323-35 Fall 1989. Retrieved March 12, 2008 from http://eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/custom/portlets/recordDetails/detailmini.jsp?_nfpb=true&_&ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_0=EJ413342&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_0=no&accno=EJ413342. Eric no. EJ413342



Nation, P. & Kyongho, H. (1995). Where general service vocabulary stop and special purposes vocabulary begin. System.Vol. 23, No. 1, February 1995, Pages 35-41 Retrieved March 22, 2008 from http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6VCH-3YCMKNF-X&_user=10&_rdoc=1&_fmt=&_orig=search&_sort=d&view=c&_acct=C000050221&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=10&md5=cbf6452bcb6078279fc190e26aeaf4bb


Nation, I.S.P. 1984. Vocabulary Lists. Cited by Nation, P. (1993). 1Measuring readiness for simplified material: a test of the first 1,000 words of English. In Simplification: Theory and Application ed. M.L.Tickoo, RELC Anthology Series No 31, 1993, pp 193-203. Retrieved 13 March 2008 from http://www.er.uqam.ca/nobel/r21270/levels/1000test_nation.doc


Neto,J. Martins, C. Meinedo, H. Almeida, L.(1997), The Design of a large vocabulary speech corpus for Portuguese. EUROSPEECH-1997, 1707-1710. Retrieved March 26, 2008 from http://www.isca-speech.org/archive/eurospeech_1997/e97_1707.html


Noronha, F. (2000). The morning lesson. Deccan Herald. 19 December 2000. p.14


Parent’s newspaper guide (n.d.), Retrieved 14 March 2008 from http://www.postnewseducation.com/article.asp?id=90&section=Parent&subsection=Parent%20Newspaper%20Guide)


Pickard, N. (1996). Out of class language learning strategies. ELT Journal, 50(2), 150-159.

RNI, (2006). Retrieved July 23, 2007, from https://rni.nic.in/pii.asp


Rodney, S. (1967). A frequency count of contemporary German vocabulary based on three current leading newspapers. Final report. ERIC - ED014257, Retrieved March 29, 2008 http://eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/custom/portlets/recordDetails/detailmini.jsp?_nfpb=true&_&ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_0=ED014257&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_0=no&accno=ED014257


Sternberg quoted by By Margaret G. McKeown
, Mary E. Curtis. (1987). The nature of vocabulary acquisition.
Lawrence Erlbaum
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Thorndike, E. and Lorge, I.(l944). Cited by Nation, P. (1993). 1Measuring readiness for simplified material: a test of the first 1,000 words of English. In Simplification: Theory and Application ed. M.L.Tickoo, RELC Anthology Series No 31, 1993, pp 193-203. Retrieved 13 March 2008 from http://www.er.uqam.ca/nobel/r21270/levels/1000test_nation.doc


West. (1953). A general service list of English words. Retrieved 15 March 2008 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_service_list accessed on 24 March 2008


1 Senior lecturer, advertising management & public relations, guru jambheshwar university of science & technology, Hisar- Hayrana.

5 Synonym available at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synonym accessed on 12th March 2008

15


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