Word of the Week
With its 120th word, Word of the Week has now come to an end. We hope you enjoyed this free feature and that it has given you an insight into the thinking and research behind the English Vocabulary Profile.
All 120 are still available to read in our archive, below. Each Word of the Week in the archive is followed by a link to the full entry for that word on the English Vocabulary Profile. To view the entries, you will need to subscribe to the EVP: to subscribe for free click here.
Word of the week: place
The word place is a noun and a verb, and both parts of speech are included in the English Vocabulary Profile. The first meaning to be known at A1 is SOMEWHERE and there is good evidence for the informal meaning HOME at A2. The noun features in a number of phrases, including take place and in first/second/third, etc. place at B1 and in place of, take someone’s place, all over the place and in the first place at B2. The idioms put someone in their place and fall into place have been included at C2, even though there is no learner evidence as yet to support their inclusion. What do you think? Please give us your feedback on the use of these idioms from your own experience by following the link here.To view the full entry for place on the English Vocabulary Profile, please click here.
Word of the week: count
The word count is most commonly used as a verb, but the noun is also included at the C levels, as in the phrase lose count and the meaning NUMBER, along with more colloquial uses of the verb and phrasal verb count (someone) in. The first meanings of the verb to be known, at B1 level, are SEE HOW MANY and SAY NUMBERS. The latter might well be known by young children in a Primary classroom setting, but the English Vocabulary Profile is focused on learners of English from the age of 11 through to adulthood, where our evidence shows it is acquired and used at B1. For an interesting description of research on the vocabulary of young learners, see the article by Papp and Nicholson in Cambridge ESOL Research Notes 46.To view the full entry for count on the English Vocabulary Profile, please click here.
Word of the week: lead
The word lead (as opposed to the differently pronounced word for the metal lead) is included in the EVP as a verb, a noun and an adjective. It has been interesting to note how the meanings and uses of this word are gradually acquired by learners. The first meaning of the verb that appears to be known is SHOW WAY at B1 and the meaning BE WINNING has been put at B2 according to the learner evidence we have. If your students are into football or other sports, they may well know this use at an earlier stage. Remember that the English Vocabulary Profile is descriptive rather than prescriptive – the resource should obviously be used in conjunction with your own detailed knowledge of the vocabulary your learners know and tend to use. The verb meaning BE THE BEST, as in the dictionary example I still believe we lead the world in acting talent, has been included at C2 level, but there is no learner evidence as yet for this particular use. Sometimes it is felt important to retain a meaning or phrase in the data without a learner example, and in these instances, we can continue to check for future evidence in our other learner corpora.To view the full entry for lead on the English Vocabulary Profile, please click here.
