Language is a beautiful thing to have. The way we use our vocal cords to communicate with others is a phenomenon all on its own.
Sadly, however, vast amounts of people do not see it this way. Some would like to think that if you spoke a language you would want to speak it well, especially if it is your native language. Having been around more people than usual these past few months in classrooms and groups settings, I have found that many people do not even care how they speak or what they sound like.
Using incorrect statements such as “yeah, I seen him the other day” or “no he don’t” and commonly accepted grammatical errors such as “ don’t got no,” is where our society finds itself today.
These, however, are not the only problems with the “American” language today. The average American’s vocabulary, according to the Global Language Monitor, consists of 14,000 words. This sounds like quite a bit, but when you take in basic construction words such as ‘he, me, she, they, the, it, am, be, can, could, do,’ etc. It’s really not much at all.
In total, the English language contains 989,614 words. Shakespeare had a vocabulary of more than 24,000 words, though he did spend a good deal of his time writing and reading.
In fact we can accredit more than 1,700 words in our modern language to him.
What perturbs me the most is the lack of vocabulary amongst my peers at an institution of higher learning.
When using words like ‘vex, phantasmagoria, pittance, postulate, cognizance, surmount, suffice or surmise’ it would be nice to get some sort of feedback other than confused looks.
Granted, I know language and expansion of vocabulary could be the farthest things from the average student’s mind; it would at least be nice to hear the language spoken correctly.
It is a state requirement that people have a high school diploma (or equivalent certification) to enter a university. That being said, I know that we all know the basic rules of the English language — we just choose not to abide by them.
Abiding by such rules can not only help you now, but also further down your path in life. It can also help students have an easier time writing papers.
When you have a larger list of words in memory to choose from, the words on the paper can sometimes come with more fluidity. Web sites like http://www.thesaurus.com can also come in handy if you think you’ve used a word more than enough times in a paper and need something to switch things up a bit.
Language skills such as vocabulary and grammatical prowess can often help college graduates get the job they want.
Suffice it to say I am encouraging others to begin expanding their vocabulary and correcting their grammatical errors when speaking to others.
Web sites like Merriam-Webster online have a word of the day section, which you can sign up for free.
The best way to use such a tool is to try to use the word a few times that day, maybe by telling someone about it or finding a conversation in which it would be pertinent.
This is a great way to help yourself gain a more grandiose vocabulary and familiarize yourself with your language. If readers are unsure of how to spell something or what the grammatically correct form of a sentence is, all they need to do is use the Internet to help.
A plethora of Web sites are available to help readers with their spelling and grammar needs.
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“In total, the English language contains 989,614 words.” Does that include ‘credulous’?
Why yes, it does include the word “credulous” as well as the word “cynical”. Perhaps you might look that one up before you respond.
Another puissant article from the astucious CeeJay~~~
As a person who adores words and writing, I’ve always been proud of my own vocabulary, so naturally I agree about the shortcomings in how other people speak and enunciate, or how they say as little as possible, whereby truncating their oral communication and possibly atrophying other aspects of their psyche.
Now we all know I think everyone is pretty much a moron, so lack of vocabulary coincides with that. Educated people, people who are higher thinkers and people who are voracious readers usually have a good lexicon, they are able to express themselves and their feelings concisely. They take it upon themselves to seek out books and information to better themselves. Some people naturally crave knowledge and learning. For the rest of society that’s almost taught to think and do as little as possible…hey read a book, don’t be irresolute to use your head, knowledge is enriching & stimulating. Learning is very satisfying and it enhances every other aspect in life.
I have more on this, but I’m hungry and I need to install a medley of food products in my tummy…a growing boy needs his nourishment.
Big words, little substance.