Vocabulary & Idioms

What this lesson covers

Vocabulary & Idioms is a 10-part Class 8 English lesson. Each part makes one point and then hands over to the next, so it can be read in a sitting or picked up again at the part you stopped on. It defines the idea in plain words before using it, works through an example step by step, breaks the topic into its parts and compares them, shows where it is used outside the textbook, names the mistakes that cost marks in an exam, ends with a recap of what to remember.

How it begins

A large vocabulary is not about knowing impressive words. It is about being able to say exactly what you mean. "He was upset", "furious", "irritated" and "devastated" describe the same broad state at very different intensities. Choosing correctly conveys information; choosing loosely does not. The rule that protects you: never use a word you could not define.

The 10 parts

1. Precision over quantity
2. Roots, prefixes and suffixes
3. Connotation
4. Working out an unfamiliar word
5. Idioms and proverbs
6. Why idioms do not translate
7. Building vocabulary that lasts
8. Where it usually goes wrong
9. What to remember
10. Watch one worked through