Word of the Week

wowWith 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: so

The entry for the word so includes meanings and phrases from A2 to C2 level in the English Vocabulary Profile. This small word can prove challenging to learners and we know from analysis of the Cambridge Learner Corpus that it causes frequent errors at most CEFR levels. However, both the adverb and the conjunction appear to be known at A2 level in the adverb meanings VERY and MENTIONED EARLIER, together with the useful phrase and so on. There are also two A2 meanings for so as a conjunction, REASON and SENTENCE BEGINNING. A number of phrases using the adverb are added from B1 to C2, including so far and the informal or so at B1, so as to at B2, so as not to do sth and to do so at C1, and only so much/many, so to speak and the informal phrases so far so good and I told you so at C2.
 
To view the full entry for so on the English Vocabulary Profile, please click here.

Word of the week: force

The word force is a noun and a verb. Two meanings of the noun – POWER and GROUP – and one meaning of the verb – GIVE NO CHOICE – are known at B2 level, with evidence of further meanings and three phrases using the noun being acquired at C2. These are a force to be reckoned with, join forces and in/into force. This last phrase, as in a law coming into force, is undoubtedly at a higher level here than it would be for learners of Business or Legal English. The English Vocabulary Profile describes general English competence at the levels A1-B2, with an added focus on academic English at C1 and C2. Our resource seeks to describe typical learner knowledge around the world and to offer useful guidance on CEFR level, but it is up to users to interact with this data and form their own expert judgments, based on local circumstances and specific needs.
 
To view the full entry for force on the English Vocabulary Profile, please click here.

Word of the week: back

The entry for the word back covers its use as an adverb, an adjective, a noun and a verb. The first part of speech to be known is the adverb, in its A1 meaning of RETURNING, while two meanings of the noun are placed at A2 level: BODY and NOT FRONT, as in the back of an envelope. The related adjective meaning AT BACK is also at A2. Back is also used as a verb, which features in several phrasal verbs, though learners don’t appear to encounter these until B2 level and beyond. The entry includes a number of C2 level phrases featuring the noun, such as behind sb’s back and turn your back on sb/sth.
 
To view the full entry for back on the English Vocabulary Profile, please click here.

Cambridge English Cambridge University Press British Council University of Cambridge University of Bedfordshire English UK

Cambridge logo