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: by
Three senses of the preposition by, together with the phrase by the way, are known at A2. The HOW sense is learned early on through the topic of travel and transport (one of the Advanced Search topics in the pilot version of the EVP available in 2011), with use of the phrases by bus, by plane, by boat, by taxi, etc. The Cambridge Learner Corpus shows that a common learner error in this area is by foot, instead of on foot. Further phrases with by are known at B1 (by far), and at B2 (by heart).To view the full entry for by on the English Vocabulary Profile, please click here.
Word of the week: mind
The word mind is extremely frequent in English, both as a noun and a verb. Learners appear to meet the verb first at A2, in the useful phrases I don’t mind and Never mind. The same level has been assigned to the question phrase Do you mind? though as this is primarily spoken, there is relatively little evidence for its use by learners in the current Cambridge Learner Corpus, and only from B1. However, it features in a number of elementary coursebooks and vocabulary skills materials, which have been used as checking sources on during the compiling of the EVP project. The noun is known from B1 onwards and occurs in a number of phrases, some of which are at B1, for example change your mind, make up your mind/ make your mind up, whereas others come in at B2 level, for example the opinion marker to my mind, and the more idiomatic verb-noun phrases bear/keep sb/sth in mind, have/keep sth in mind, have/keep an open mind.To view the full entry for mind on the English Vocabulary Profile, please click here.
Word of the week: undoubtedly
The adverb undoubtedly is listed at B2 in the British English version of the EVP. However, it will appear at C1 level in the American English version as, interestingly, this word is less frequent in American English than in British English. In terms of word family members, it is one of the most difficult forms that has been included within B2 level, with its challenging combination of prefix, suffix and silent letter. However, there is plenty of evidence of its accurate use in the Cambridge First Certificate examination.To view the full entry for undoubtedly on the English Vocabulary Profile, please click here.
