The Importance of a Comprehensive Vocabulary

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The words we use are vital to communication amongst all people and in all situations. Vocabulary is the body of words used in a particular language. It describes a list of words and conveys information and ideas . All communication serves as a medium to explain and inform using a particular vocabulary. It is an important source in all areas of knowledge. Having a larger vocabulary makes enables one to be able to understand more people and increases one’s understanding of people and aspects of the world compared to someone with a limited vocabulary. Without the right vocabulary, we may be unable to express an event or situation in detail, or the way that we are thinking it , so there is no way of communicating this idea to others and to pass it on. In this way, vocabulary can be a hindrance to our knowledge as well. It is the means for understanding and without the appropriate vocabulary, our ignorance to certain things is displayed. The truth in our knowledge is shown through our use of language and decided by the ways of knowing. These ways of knowing include language, perception and emotion. I agree with this claim and will show how our vocabulary can both demonstrate our knowledge and shape what we know by using the ways of knowing to explore the areas of knowledge.

In communication, words are used to convey situations, events and information. Literature is an area of knowledge that teaches us different words and uses of vocabulary to enable us to communicate our knowledge on a subject. We would have no knowledge of certain concepts if we did not have knowledge of the word or its meaning. In this way, vocabulary can also shape what we know. For example, a child can only understand things that can be described in a very basic v...

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... with a limited vocabulary. The words we use, and the concepts they represent, function in a continuous dialectic. Using language, perception, and reason, I was able to show how vocabulary can shape what we know and are able to understand. In all, there is truth in this claim; however there are also many limitations to the claim as well. It is also true that one can acquire knowledge without using the words or symbols that already exist.

Works Cited

Gentner, Dedre, and Susan Meadow. Language in mind: advances in the study of language and thought. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 2003. Print. 141-146

Gove, Philip Babcock. Webster's third new international dictionary of the English language, unabridged. Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1993. Print.

Pinker, Steven. The stuff of thought: language as a window into human nature. New York: Viking, 2007. Print.

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