D. Expanding* your vocabulary

• When you learn a word, e.g. dirty, think of synonyms (syn) [words with a similar meaning] or opposites (opp) in your language. Look them up in a bilingual dictionary to find the English words, then look up the English words in an English dictionary to check the meaning. From this, you will find that the opposite of dirty is clean, and you may also find filthy [very dirty]. * making something bigger

1.4 Using this method, find opposites for the words in bold.

1. My room is very clean. opp dirty
2. It’s a permanent job. opp 
3. He was kind to all of his animals. opp 
4. Babies have very soft, smooth skin. opp 
5. Where’s the entrance? opp 
6. Was the bird dead? opp 
7. Did they accept the invitation? opp 

• Building word families (see Units 70–72) will also help to expand your vocabulary. From a noun, verb or adjective, you can often find related words in the dictionary with a similar meaning. So, you can often learn two or three words, and not just one, e.g. argue v = have an angry discussion; n = argument.

1.5 Use a dictionary to find the related parts of speech for the words in bold.

1. She gave me some advice. verb advise
2. We mustn’t argue. noun 
3. I will have to revise this unit. noun 
4. Is there a choice? verb 
5. I want to expand my vocabulary. noun 
6. The two boys are very different. noun  verb 
7. They need to communicate more. noun  adj 

• Try to read and listen to English as much as possible. The more you read and listen, the more you will learn. When you read, try to:
  • Highlight or underline interesting new words.
  • Highlight words if they are familiar but you can’t remember the meaning.
• There is a lot of spoken English on the Internet which you can play again and again. Try to make a note of interesting words and look up the meaning.

1.6 Over to you

Now choose a unit that interests you. Study the left-hand page, then do the exercises in pencil. Wait for at least 24 hours, revise the unit, then answer these questions.

1. How many answers did you get right the first time?
2. How many answers did you get right the second time?