Vocabulary is a set of words in a person’s native language that are understandable in meaning and used in communication. It consists of words that are constantly used in spoken and writing, as well as words that are clear in meaning during a conversation or reading literature.
There are two types of vocabulary:
- Active. This is a stock of words that a person uses every day in speech when communicating with people around him.
- Passive. These are words that are not used in communication, but are familiar by ear and content.
Active and passive lexicon contain unequal word volume indicators. The active vocabulary of an adult greatly exceeds the passive one. The volume of words in both dictionaries is prone to constant change. They can increase if a person learns new terms, reads, develops, or decrease.
Active and passive vocabulary can decrease due to age, when words are forgotten or when they stop being used in communication. In this case, words will disappear from a person’s vocabulary or be replaced by new ones.
Estimating the exact vocabulary size of the average person is a difficult task. No one knows specifically what it should be in terms of content and number of words. The guideline in this matter is the dictionary of the Russian language by V. I. Dahl, which contains about two hundred thousand words and Dictionary Ozhegov, volume of 70 thousand Russian words.
Of course, it is clear that such a volume of words is beyond the power of even smart person. Human memory is not capable of accommodating such an amount of information without harm to health.
An interesting study was recently conducted to determine the volume of words among native Russian speakers. It was carried out in the form of testing, where those interested marked in the provided list the words they understood and used. Words were marked only if the definition was fully understood.
To improve the quality of testing and sort out unreliable information, non-existent designations were present in the lists. The presence in the subject's questionnaire of at least one non-existent word marked as familiar to him was considered unreliable information and was not taken into account.
During the work carried out, the following data were obtained:
- A person's passive vocabulary increases every year until the age of 20. Further, the rate of development decreases, gradually disappearing after 40 years. At this age and until the end of life, a person’s vocabulary remains unchanged.
- Studying at school adds up to 10 words to children's passive vocabulary every day. The student’s active and passive vocabulary is constantly growing.
- By the end of their studies, teenagers speak an average of 50 thousand words.
- School time increases the growth of word volume by almost 3 times.
- After leaving school, a person’s passive vocabulary stops growing and averages 3–4 words daily.
- At the age of 55, the vocabulary continues to decline, due to irreversible deterioration of memory and the use of some words in practice.
The study assessed the educational level of the subjects, yielding interesting findings. It turns out that people acquire the greatest amount of words at different times in their lives. Secondary specialized education implies the end of word growth at the age of 40, and higher education a little later - after 50 years. This 10-year gap is explained by the discrepancy between the work performed and the position held by people with different education. Some people at 50 years old read scientific books and gain new knowledge due to the specifics of their work or at will for self-education.
It was also revealed interesting fact, which showed that subjects who completed their studies in educational institution and those who did not complete it for personal reasons have the same passive vocabulary.
Vocabulary vocabulary of adults with different levels education:
- Passive vocabulary has the same indicators among people with secondary education and secondary special education. It varies between 70-75 thousand words.
- People who received higher education, or who have not graduated from college, have a stock of 80 thousand words in their luggage.
- Educated people, candidates of science, have a rich vocabulary of 86 thousand words, which is 6 thousand more than those who have received a higher education.
The education received, of course, affects a person’s vocabulary, but not 100%. A person himself makes a huge contribution to the development of vocabulary, constantly improving himself and engaging in self-education. Therefore, it is easy to meet a person who only graduated from school with a vocabulary several times larger than that of someone who received a higher education. Main role Sociability, occupation and lifestyle of a person play a role in this matter.
The conducted research does not provide a complete picture of the vocabulary of the average Russian person, as it contains small errors. But despite this, it helps to determine the connection between vocabulary and age and level of education.
How to expand your vocabulary
There are no universal ways to increase words in the vocabulary of your native language. Each person chooses what suits only him. To replenish your vocabulary, several methods developed by polyglots for learning a foreign language will help.
To increase passive vocabulary:
- Reading literature.
The more and more often a person reads books, the richer and more interesting his speech sounds. It is pleasant to communicate and spend time with well-read people. This universal method enriching the stock of new words. The quality of the selected literature is not last value. It is better to give preference in choosing popular science books, classical literature, avoiding modern “soap” novels or detective stories in them, you definitely won’t find new words in correct use.
- Be interested in the meaning unclear words.
Always ask your interlocutor for the meaning of unclear words or new terms; do not ignore them. During communication, new information will be much easier to assimilate and can be quickly recalled if necessary. If a new interesting word was heard by radio announcers, then its meaning can be looked up in a special dictionary.
- Dictionaries.
Every literate person should have a set of dictionaries at home that need to be used periodically. This is the explanatory dictionary of V. I. Dahl, Ozhegov, as well as the “Dictionary of Stresses for Radio and Television Workers.” It will help restore gaps in accent placement and contains many interesting words.
The Dictionary of Stresses for Radio and Television Workers has been published since 1960. Its authors are M.V. Zarva and F.L. Ageenko. The history of creating a dictionary of accents for radio and television workers began with the release of an announcer's reference book in 1951, and 3 years later the “Dictionary of Stresses” was released. To help the announcer."
All dictionaries for radio and television workers are based on the reserves of “heavy” words accumulated in the card index during the formation of the first radio in the era of the USSR. The radio and television files were constantly being replenished. Many words were never included in dictionaries. "Dictionary of Radio and Television" contains the title geographical names, names of works of art, surnames and first names of people.
How to expand your active vocabulary
To increase your vocabulary, you will need the ability of a person to translate words from a passive vocabulary to an active one. The following methods will help with this:
- Notes.
Write down new words along with their meanings on pieces of paper and stick them around the house in places where they will be most likely to catch your eye. This method will help you remember information more efficiently and quickly without memorizing it.
- Associative series.
To remember a word, build a suitable association for it. It can be aimed at smell, taste, motor, tactile characteristics or tied to color scheme. The result depends on the person’s imagination and desire to consolidate the information received. The associative series helps to remember difficult words and it's easier to remember right time.
There are also exercises for developing your vocabulary. One of the most effective is the oral exercise of composing a story. To do this, you need to try to tell a small story, using only nouns, then only verbs or adjectives. This is not an easy exercise. It helps to use the existing stock of words, while refreshing them in a person’s memory.
Many people ask the question: “What is more important: to be able to express your thoughts in a foreign language or to fully understand what the interlocutor is saying?”
Of course, both are important. But let's look at everything in detail.
Active and passive stock
A person's vocabulary is divided into active and passive. Active - these are all the words that we regularly use, passive - all the words that we, in principle, understand, but may never use ourselves.
The passive vocabulary is always larger than the active one, even in native language. The fact is that we spend much more time listening to other people or simply reading than we do talking ourselves.
What's more important?
I am convinced that passive vocabulary is much more important than active vocabulary. The fact is that when we speak ourselves, we can almost always find the words. Of course, in the first stages, stuttering and making a lot of mistakes. But we decide for ourselves what to say.
But we cannot control what the interlocutor says! In addition, the vocabulary of the person for whom foreign language dear, there will always be much more than ours.
Therefore, when they say that you need to know very few words and you can speak, I do not agree with this.
Many are afraid of not being able to express their thoughts and consider this the main problem. For me, for example, when I was just learning English, it was scary not to understand my interlocutor.
When you speak a new language, you, of course, stumble at first, find your words for a long time and make a lot of mistakes. But it is a good understanding of what is being said that gives freedom of communication. And for this you need to know a lot of words.
Hence the importance of passive stock. Besides, passive stock is the basis of active stock, and when you don't have words, it's hard to have a meaningful conversation.
Where to begin?
Teachers often pay too much attention to active vocabulary. They literally force students to memorize phrases, believing that in order to remember a word, you have to use it yourself.
Scientific research and my experience say this is not true. Words acquired in this way remain only in short-term memory. What we learn by listening and reading a lot stays with us for a long time. Even if we don't use a language for a while, we can revive that knowledge pretty quickly.
Many people who try to speak from the first day and fail, experience disappointment and quit studying the language.
Therefore, it is much more effective to first learn a language passively, simply by reading and listening a lot. Over time, with training, your passive reserve is activated. When you're ready and start talking, active stock will definitely expand.
Comprehension and speaking
If you understand someone else's speech well (not approximately, but completely!), you will speak well. Believe me, you will achieve this pretty quickly. This only takes a couple of months.
Some people claim that they can understand perfectly but have difficulty speaking. Perhaps there are such people. But in my experience, speaking at natural speed, understanding such people actually leaves much to be desired! Who actually understands perfectly and speaks well himself.
Besides, not everyone has to say exactly that! For many, it is quite enough to simply read reference books and materials on work. And at a higher level - watch films and read books in the original.
So don't worry about your active vocabulary. Language is not an exam, it is communication. And perfection is not achievable even in our native language.
Good luck in learning the language!
Plan
Introduction
1. The concept of active and passive language reserve
2. Russian vocabulary from the point of view of active and passive stock
2.1 Active dictionary
2.2 Passive dictionary
Conclusion
Bibliography
Introduction
active passive vocabulary speech
1. The concept of active and passive language reserve
The statement that obsolete vocabulary belongs to the passive stock of the language is generally accepted. Many people have written about this. As far as we know, no one argued with this. However, as an analysis of lexicographic theory and practice shows, there are significant “distortions” in the understanding of the relationship between the concepts of “obsolete vocabulary” and “passive vocabulary of a language” (or, in other words, “the periphery of a language”). But before we talk about them, let us recall what content is traditionally put by linguists into the concept of “passive stock of language”, “periphery of language” and “outdated vocabulary”.
As is known, the concept of active and passive language stock was introduced into lexicographic theory and practice by L.V. Shcherba (in the work "Experience general theory lexicography"). Shcherba referred to the passive vocabulary of words that have become less common and the range of use of which has narrowed. In modern linguistics, there are several points of view on the passive vocabulary of a language. In one case, linguists include in the passive vocabulary of a language “part of the vocabulary of the language, consisting of lexical units, the use of which is limited by the characteristics of the phenomena they signify (names of rare realities, historicisms, terms, proper names) or lexical units known only to a part of native speakers (archaisms, neologisms), used only in certain functional varieties of language (book, colloquial and other stylistically colored vocabulary)." This understanding of passive vocabulary is reflected in "Linguistic encyclopedic dictionary"and is shared by B.P. Barannikova and A.A. Reformatsky, D.E. Rosenthal and M.A. Telenkova and other researchers. Proponents of a different point of view argue that a passive dictionary is “a part of the vocabulary of a language that is understandable to everyone fluent in this language, but rarely used in real life everyday communication; the passive vocabulary consists of obsolete or obsolete words, but not dropped out of the vocabulary of the language, many neologisms that have not yet entered into habitual word usage." This understanding of the passive vocabulary of the language is reflected in the encyclopedia "Russian Language" and is supported by N.M. Shansky, M .I. Fomina, F.P. Sorokoletov, etc. This point of view on the passive vocabulary is more “narrow”, because it includes only part of outdated (obsolete) vocabulary and part of neologisms. Both are marked by the presence of temporary ones. component in the characteristics, low frequency of use and, as a consequence, peripheral position in the dictionary. Another opinion on this matter is based on the distinction between the concepts of language and speech: “the concepts of “active” and “passive” dictionary refer primarily not to language, but to speech, i.e. to the linguistic activity of individuals, therefore active and passive dictionaries different people related to different community groups, professions, to different localities, may not coincide." N.M. Shansky warns that the passive vocabulary of a language should not be confused with the passive vocabulary of a particular native speaker, depending on his profession, education, daily work and etc." As Z.F. Belyanskaya notes, “the unclear delimitation of the phenomena of language and speech affected L.A. Bulakhovsky’s attribution to the passive vocabulary of the language of words of special use, archaisms, neologisms, dialectisms and many borrowings, and A.A. Reformatsky also of expressive expressions "Some scholars have abandoned the term "passive vocabulary." So, P.Ya. Chernykh believes that “it would be more correct to talk about to varying degrees activity of words" and "the periphery of the current vocabulary", i.e. about the words "which speakers use in conversations about strangers and those alien to them everyday life subjects of thought." P.N. Denisov, describing the lexical system in terms of field structure, includes obsolete vocabulary in the peripheral zone. Traditionally, the term obsolete vocabulary is used as a general concept in relation to the terms historicism and archaism. In this case, historicism is understood as outdated words, which fell out of use due to the disappearance of the realities that they named. Archaisms include lexemes that name existing realities, but have been forced out of use by synonymous units for linguistic or extralinguistic reasons. Thus, historicisms have no parallels in modern language, archaisms, on the contrary, have synonyms in modern language. Linguists do not have a common opinion on whether historicisms should be considered facts of the modern language located on its periphery, or facts that have gone beyond the boundaries of the language and, therefore, fallen out of its lexical system.
2. Vocabulary of the Russian language from the point of view of active and passive stock
The vocabulary is the most flexible language level. Changing and improving vocabulary is directly related to human production activities, economic, social, political life people. The vocabulary reflects all processes historical development society. With the advent of new objects and phenomena, new concepts arise, and with them, words for naming these concepts. With the death of certain phenomena, the words that name them go out of use or change their sound appearance and meaning. Taking all this into account, the vocabulary of the national language can be divided into two large groups: active dictionary and passive vocabulary. The active vocabulary includes those words that are used every day, the meaning of which is clear to people who speak English. given language. The words of this group are devoid of any shades of obsolescence.
The passive vocabulary includes those that are either outdated or, conversely, due to their novelty, have not yet become widely known and are also not used every day. Thus, passive words are divided, in turn, into obsolete and new (neologisms). Those words that have fallen out of active use are considered obsolete. For example, words that have ceased to be used due to the disappearance of the concepts that they denoted are clearly obsolete: boyar, clerk, veche, streltsy, oprichnik, vowel (member of the city duma), mayor, etc. The words of this group are called historicisms; they are more or less known and understandable to native speakers, but are not actively used by them. In modern language they are addressed only when it is necessary to name objects or phenomena that have fallen out of use, for example in special scientific-historical literature, as well as in language works of art in order to recreate one or another historical era. If the concept of an object, phenomenon, action, quality, etc. is preserved, and the names assigned to it are replaced in the process of language development by new ones, more acceptable for one reason or another for the new generation of native speakers, then the old names also become category of passive vocabulary, into the group of so-called archaisms (Greek archaios - ancient). For example: ponezhe - because, vezhdy - eyelids, guest - merchant, merchant (mostly foreign), guest - trade, etc. Some of the words similar type practically stand outside even the passively existing lexical reserves of modern literary language. For example: thief - thief, robber; stry - paternal uncle, stryinya - paternal uncle's wife; uy - maternal uncle; stirrup - down; sling - 1) roof and 2) vault of heaven; vezha - 1) tent, tent, 2) tower; fat - fat, lard and many others. Some of the archaisms are preserved in modern language as part of phraseological units: to get into a mess, where a mess is a spinning rope machine; you can’t see where zga (stga) is a road, path; hit with the forehead, where the forehead is the forehead; go crazy with fat, where fat is wealth; protect it like the apple of your eye, where the apple is the pupil, etc.
An anecdote on the topic:
– What is the first dictionary a person acquires?
– English-Russian?
- Passive!
So what is a passive dictionary?
Passive dictionary (lexicon)- these are words whose meaning a person understands, but does not use in everyday speech. For example, most of us know or at least guess what “society” (“society”) is. However, only a few people use this term in conversation. A passive dictionary is always larger in volume than an active one. Especially for children!
The difference in the quantitative ratio of passive and active vocabulary is very noticeable at the age of 1-1.5 years. The child already understands the meaning of many words and phrases (from 50 to 100 words), but actively uses only a few. To understand what words the baby understands, just ask to show them. For example, to the question “where is the cat?”, the baby will point his finger at a pet or a picture in a book. This means that the word “cat” is already in the passive dictionary.
Why develop a child's passive vocabulary?
First, memorization and perception large quantity new words stimulates development mental abilities baby. In the process of replenishing the passive vocabulary, memory, attention, and observation improve, and interest in cognition, learning, and mastering new skills is awakened.
Secondly, increasing the passive vocabulary contributes to the development of speech. After all, it’s not enough for inquisitive children to just know and understand words; they want to try to say them. The more in passive stock words, the richer the child’s speech will be. You can read more about how to develop a child’s speech.
Thirdly, not understanding what others are talking about is quite an alarming feeling. Imagine yourself in a circle of people speaking to each other in a language you don’t understand. It's uncomfortable, isn't it? The clearer the world is for a child, the calmer and more confident he is.
The development of passive vocabulary begins from the first days of a baby’s life and continues throughout life. The easiest way to increase passive vocabulary is through play activities and everyday activities and activities with your baby.
Conventionally, all our speech can be divided into: words-subjects/objects (what? who?), words-actions (what does it do?), words-definitions (which?). Essentially, our task, as parents, is to teach the names of objects, objects and actions that are most often encountered in everyday life.
First, the meaning of words is learned according to the following scheme: the child sees an object - the adult names it, the child does something - the adult names the action. Gradually perception moves from the objective situation to oral speech. For example, a mother asks “where is the bird?”, after which she points and calls “here is the bird.”
Such training is harmoniously intertwined with regular games, reading books, walks, and just spending time together.
An example vocabulary that you need to master first might look like this:
– people (mom, dad, grandmother, grandfather, brother/sister, aunt, uncle, child’s name)
– household items (cup, spoon, dishes, broom, key)
– furniture (chair, table, sofa, etc.), telephone, TV
– names of animals, birds, plants (tree, flower...)
– objects or objects on the street (yard, street, road, car, swing, slide)
– clothes, shoes (boots, hat, jacket, blouse, tights)
– parts of the face, body (arms, legs, eyes, nose...)
– toys (ball, doll, cube, book...)
– designation of condition and danger (dangerous, painful, impossible)
- Speak clearly, distinctly and correctly. Your speech is the standard for a child, so watch your pronunciation and speed.
- Repeat. In order for a word to be firmly established in the passive dictionary, the child needs to hear it regularly. And for the association to be correct, the word must be supported by an additional external stimulus (object, picture). Therefore, proceed according to the scheme: they said - they paid attention, they showed.
- Ask your child, involve him in dialogue as often as possible. When you ask your child to show a bird, you additionally draw his attention to the word “bird,” and this enhances memorization. Even if the baby cannot answer you yet, ask, look into the eyes, and answer your question yourself. Very little time will pass, and the baby will become your most grateful listener and pleasant interlocutor.
- Expand your passive vocabulary in a fun and relaxed way. Talk to your baby, read, walk, spend as much time as possible communicating with each other. After all, it is emotional contact that, better than any activity, contributes to the understanding of speech.
Communicate with your baby with joy and pleasure!
Has this ever happened to you while studying English? next situation: are you trying to remember a word, you realize that you know it, but you still can’t say it? After a hint from the teacher or checking with the dictionary, you realize with annoyance that you have come across this word many times while reading, have learned it and generally know it very well. What's the catch? This word is in your passive English vocabulary. What is it and how to activate your dictionary, read below.
What is active and passive vocabulary in English
It's all in your hands: activate your passive vocabulary. The active English vocabulary is all the words that we actively use in written and spoken language.
Passive vocabulary in English includes words that you recognize and understand when reading or in someone else's speech, but do not use them yourself when speaking or writing.
Do you want to know the approximate amount of your “passive” vocabulary? You can check using the English word knowledge test. The result is very approximate and, as a rule, pleasantly surprising - quite high numbers are obtained.
The passive stock of any person is greater than the active stock in both Russian and English. This is quite normal, but you should strive to “activate” your vocabulary, because your goal is to learn to speak English fluently and competently. Some people believe that it is enough for a person to have up to 1000 words in his “asset” and actively use them. We cannot agree with this point of view. A thousand words correspond to the vocabulary of a 4-5 year old child. Therefore, let's “grow up” and learn to speak competently, according to our age. And to do this you need to turn a liability into an asset. Shall we try?
How to Activate Passive English Vocabulary
1. Learn words correctly
It’s a shame to find yourself in the situation described at the beginning of the article. You know perfectly well the right word, but you feel dumb: you understand everything, but you can’t say it. Perhaps the reason is that you approached the vocabulary learning process incorrectly. Think about how you learn and repeat words. Do you quickly skim through the list with your eyes, happily making sure that you remember everything? Let's use a more cunning and useful tactic. Now, when learning words, be sure to say them out loud, try to immediately find a use for them: make up several sentences or short story using new words. It is best to do this in writing and voice it out loud.
2. Read aloud
Reading, as a rule, forms a passive vocabulary, but good book or an educational article will help and activate it. How to do it? In the article “” we described in detail how to improve speaking while reading. We recommend using the proposed exercises: you will use new words from the text you read in practice and thus form an active vocabulary.
3. Learn from others
If you study with an English teacher, or have a friend with good level knowledge of the language, try it next appointment. Prepare a list of words or phrases that you would like to make “active” and constantly use in your speech. During a conversation, keep this piece of paper handy and try to use phrases. This technique is very effective: after a couple of lessons you will no longer need a leaf, you will independently remember everything you need and expand your active vocabulary.
4. We write posts
This technique is suitable for both those who study with a teacher and those who study independently. Try writing short story, using the words or phrases you want to “activate.” If your level of knowledge is quite high, you are bored of writing student exercises in a notebook, and you have long been craving your moment of glory, go to the Internet. Make posts on Twitter, on Facebook, on the VKontakte wall, start a blog. Write short notes and articles in English using new words.
5. Communicate with foreigners
Is publicity not for you? Then we advise you to find a pen pal on one of these sites: penpalworld.com, interpals.net, mylanguageexchange.com. Write long letters to him, and also read aloud before sending them - it’s useful both for pronunciation and for activating your vocabulary.
6. Learn poems and songs by heart
Cramming is a boring activity, but it’s a different matter if you learn poems and songs that interest you by heart. This is interesting and useful for general development and enrichment of vocabulary. Rhymed lines are remembered more easily than regular texts, so new vocabulary will quickly be stored in the active part of your vocabulary.
7. Play useful games
Fun games can also help activate passive English vocabulary. The most useful are entertainment related to searching for synonyms, as well as various crossword puzzles. You can find games with words on these sites: wordgames.com and merriam-webster.com. How to repeat so as not to forget anything.”
We hope we've shed some light on how to make passive vocabulary active. To summarize, we can say that the “passive” is most quickly activated with the help of productive skills: writing and speaking. Therefore, do exercises to develop these skills as often as possible, then your vocabulary will become active.
