Posts tagged english-vocabulary

Word lists teach English words fast, reading teaches them deeply. What the research on graded readers, novels, and 10+ encounters says, and how to combine both.

Nation's corpus study puts unaided reading at 8,000 to 9,000 word families and speech at 6,000 to 7,000. What that means per CEFR level, and how to get there.

Learners mix up affect and effect, make and do, or borrow and lend because of first-language transfer, one-to-many translations, and look-alike word forms.

A 2022 meta-analysis of 29 studies found game-based English vocabulary learning works short-term, but most of its edge over non-game study fades within weeks.

A National Reading Panel review found repeated reading raises fluency, and a 2025 study found narrow reading raised L2 vocabulary scores with a large effect.

A 332-learner study found high schoolers scored 91% higher with bilingual subtitles than with none, but subtitles did not help young beginners at all.

Spaced repetition beats cramming for English vocabulary. A 2022 meta-analysis of 48 experiments found a medium-to-large effect on retention over massed study.

A 26-week EFL study found reading while listening to audiobooks lifted English listening scores and produced 4x the vocabulary gain of a control group.

Learning English through stories works through extensive reading: meeting words again in real context. How to pick the right level, plus 5 apps to try.