English Words│Building a Basic Vocabulary│100+ Frequently Used Words

Learning any new language starts with vocabulary building. Every language possesses a wide range of vocabulary. English is also one such language with many words, including many borrowed from other languages. When a new learner begins learning the English language, what kind of English words do they start with? Learning English words according to the frequency of usage would be a good starting point. In this article, you will be introduced to the different categories of English words and how and why to improve vocabulary.

Table of Contents

• Types of English Words with Examples
• Methods of Vocabulary Development
• Tips to Improve Your English Vocabulary
• List of 100+ Frequently Used English Words
• Frequently Asked Questions on English Words

Types of English Words with Examples

Let us classify English words into function words and content words based on their nature and behaviour. This division will help to ease the process of vocabulary learning to an extent.

Function Words

Function words are used to create a structural or grammatical relationship between different components of a sentence. Pronouns, auxiliary verbs, modal verbs, prepositions, conjunctions and determiners fall under this category. Given below are some examples of function words.

Content Words

Words that have specific meanings are called content words. Nouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs are content words. New language learners are most likely to learn the most frequently used content words in the beginning as it is easier to identify and understand them. Some examples of content words are given below. Take a look.

As you are learning function words and content words, you can also learn what loan words are. They are also an important part of every language, and the English language is one of the languages which has a good percentage of loan words.

Words that are borrowed from other languages and used without translation are called loan words. Loan words in English are of Latin, Greek, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Dutch, Japanese, Chinese, Russian and Indian origin. Let us go through some loan words, their origins and meanings.

Methods of Vocabulary Development

Vocabulary development mainly happens in two ways – intentionally or incidentally. Intentional vocabulary development is the method by which meanings of words associated with specific lessons or topics are taught in order to understand the context well. It also includes the usage of specific vocabulary teaching and learning methods to help students enrich their vocabulary. Incidental vocabulary development, on the other hand, refers to the process by which learners/students learn words through exposure to words/sentences spoken by others. This is the way in which children learn to speak their mother tongue. By unconsciously observing sounds, syllables, words and sentence structures, they learn to speak the language.

There are also various other ways to improve vocabulary. Let us look at a few tips to do so.

Tips to Improve Your English Vocabulary

Each and every learner can choose to work on their language learning process according to their time and comfort. However, here are a few tips to help you improve your vocabulary and language skills on the whole.

There are multiple ways to improve one’s vocabulary. It can be done based on the type, function or length of words.

• Monosyllabic, disyllabic, trisyllabic and polysyllabic can be the four main categories under which you can classify words if your vocabulary learning is based on the number of syllables in words.
• Another way is to classify them according to their functions – naming words, action words, linking words, transition words, describing words and so on. For example: learning the names of animals, birds, colours, flowers, fruits and vegetables; going through lists of regular verbs and irregular verbs; conjunctions and prepositions; etc.
• Learning root words is yet another effective way to build vocabulary as learners would get to familiarise themselves with the roots of many basic words. This would, in turn, aid the better understanding of any textual passage. It would also let the learner guess the meaning of words they might not have otherwise come across.
• You can also use the association technique (associating words with images/scenarios).
• Making reading a habit would be one effective way to improve your vocabulary as you would learn the spelling, meaning and usage of the word all at once.

You are free to choose which method suits you best. You only need to do it regularly and practise using them in your daily conversations so that you remember them.

List of 100+ Frequently Used English Words

Here is a list of the most frequently used English words for your reference. Use it to build your vocabulary.