Learn advanced words before reading a book

Byjuak · 12-13-2016, 08:51 AM

I plan to read the Gormenghast Trilogy soon but when I first began to read it I noticed there were a great deal of words I didn't understand, let alone ever heard of and they were annoyingly context-sensitive. This causes interruptions I thought I would get ahead of the issue.

If I had a list of the most common words in English particularly prepositions, pronoun, "ordinary" adjectives, nouns and verbs I could compare them to the books and reduce the amount of words I would start looking into manually and see if I need to learn them.

I take it this is a complicated issue but I wouldn't mind hearing other possible solutions.

ZodWallop · 12-13-2016, 10:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Byjuak

I plan to read the Gormenghast Trilogy soon but when I first began to read it I noticed there were a great deal of words I didn't understand, let alone ever heard of and they were annoyingly context-sensitive. This causes interruptions I thought I would get ahead of the issue.

If I had a list of the most common words in English particularly prepositions, pronoun, "ordinary" adjectives, nouns and verbs I could compare them to the books and reduce the amount of words I would start looking into manually and see if I need to learn them.

I take it this is a complicated issue but I wouldn't mind hearing other possible solutions.

I apologize if I am dense, or am missing something, but can't you look up those words in the device's dictionary as you read them?

Byjuak · 12-13-2016, 10:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ZodWallop

I apologize if I am dense, or am missing something, but can't you look up those words in the device's dictionary as you read them?

Oh, yes but my point was that there are so many (so far) and the language is already quite challenging, I find it somewhat distracting.

ZodWallop · 12-13-2016, 10:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Byjuak

Oh, yes but my point was that there are so many (so far) and the language is already quite challenging, I find it somewhat distracting.

Yes, after I posted I read your original more clearly. I missed the "This causes interruptions I thought I would get ahead of the issue" bit. Sorry!

SleepyBob · 12-13-2016, 10:30 AM

Here is a link to a list of the 10,000 most common words in English.

It's not automatic, but you can pull a book into Excel, and then do a match with the word list to see which words aren't on the common list. I did something similar to create vocab lists for foreign language books.

JKenP · 12-13-2016, 10:42 AM

I've always thought I had a good vocabulary. More and more I see words I need to lookup. Typically, it has a common synonym that we all can understand. It seems some books and some Internet spots have become elitist. Compare them to a Hemingway book that is a standard for clarity and the simple beauty of the language and they fall short.

ekbell · 12-13-2016, 10:50 AM

I remember sampling the first Gormenghast book in my university days and being impressed by the richness of the vocabulary and metaphors. Not easy to read even for native english speakers.

Byjuak · 12-13-2016, 11:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SleepyBob

Here is a link to a list of the 10,000 most common words in English.

It's not automatic, but you can pull a book into Excel, and then do a match with the word list to see which words aren't on the common list. I did something similar to create vocab lists for foreign language books.

Thanks! I'll try that. Well, it's not entirely automatic but I can use the Replace to cut down on a large amount of the text, that way I avoid unnecessary spoilers too, I won't understand any context getting random but advanced words in a list.

Quote:

Originally Posted by JKenP

I've always thought I had a good vocabulary. More and more I see words I need to lookup. Typically, it has a common synonym that we all can understand. It seems some books and some Internet spots have become elitist. Compare them to a Hemingway book that is a standard for clarity and the simple beauty of the language and they fall short.

I am of the opinion that it's up to the author. Mervyn Peake seems to have a very illustrative style, it makes sense to use more non-common words and metaphors to achieve the necessary language. I've yet to read Hemingway but very precise clarity is as hard as attaining a complicated, rich language without making it seem pretentious, a big mess or... generic.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ekbell

I remember sampling the first Gormenghast book in my university days and being impressed by the richness of the vocabulary and metaphors. Not easy to read even for native english speakers.

It's impressive but the review at Goodreads that had me hooked to look it up recommended reading slowly and that's what I did and intend to do. It will be a challenge but one I'm looking forward to.

Little.Egret · 12-13-2016, 06:19 PM

Of course. sometimes the rare word is a typo.

I came across 'impassible' and passed it on to the author.

Now I have noticed it in another author and also 'passible'.

(These words are only used by theologians, impassable and passable were intended).

Doitsu · 12-18-2016, 07:29 AM

@Byjuak: You might find the Routledge Frequency Dictionary of Contemporary American English helpful.

If you have above-average computer skills you also might find the following apps helpful:

Learning with texts (LWT)
Foreign Language Text Reader (FLTR)

There are also a couple of subscription based websites that focus on improving reading comprehension. E.g. Readlang, lingro and LingQ.

12-13-2016, 08:51 AM	#1
Byjuak Member Posts: 17 Karma: 350010 Join Date: Jun 2014 Device: Kindle Paperwhite 4	Learn advanced words before reading a book I plan to read the Gormenghast Trilogy soon but when I first began to read it I noticed there were a great deal of words I didn't understand, let alone ever heard of and they were annoyingly context-sensitive. This causes interruptions I thought I would get ahead of the issue. If I had a list of the most common words in English particularly prepositions, pronoun, "ordinary" adjectives, nouns and verbs I could compare them to the books and reduce the amount of words I would start looking into manually and see if I need to learn them. I take it this is a complicated issue but I wouldn't mind hearing other possible solutions.

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12-13-2016, 10:30 AM	#5
SleepyBob Evangelist Posts: 420 Karma: 8522810 Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Wisconsin, USA Device: Kindle PW3	Here is a link to a list of the 10,000 most common words in English. It's not automatic, but you can pull a book into Excel, and then do a match with the word list to see which words aren't on the common list. I did something similar to create vocab lists for foreign language books.

12-13-2016, 10:42 AM	#6
JKenP Connoisseur Posts: 91 Karma: 504384 Join Date: May 2011 Location: NW Indiana Device: Sony Kobo iPhone Kindle 8 HD	I've always thought I had a good vocabulary. More and more I see words I need to lookup. Typically, it has a common synonym that we all can understand. It seems some books and some Internet spots have become elitist. Compare them to a Hemingway book that is a standard for clarity and the simple beauty of the language and they fall short.

12-13-2016, 10:50 AM	#7
ekbell Guru Posts: 603 Karma: 12345678 Join Date: Jan 2015 Location: Canada Device: none	I remember sampling the first Gormenghast book in my university days and being impressed by the richness of the vocabulary and metaphors. Not easy to read even for native english speakers.

12-13-2016, 06:19 PM	#9
Little.Egret Wizard Posts: 3,168 Karma: 37800000 Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Walton-on-Thames, Surrey, England, UK Device: Kindle Keyboard 3G, Kindle Fire 2, NOOK ST, Kindle HDX, Fire 7"	Of course. sometimes the rare word is a typo. I came across 'impassible' and passed it on to the author. Now I have noticed it in another author and also 'passible'. (These words are only used by theologians, impassable and passable were intended).

12-18-2016, 07:29 AM	#10
Doitsu Grand Sorcerer Posts: 5,584 Karma: 22735033 Join Date: Dec 2010 Device: Kindle PW2	@Byjuak: You might find the Routledge Frequency Dictionary of Contemporary American English helpful. If you have above-average computer skills you also might find the following apps helpful: Learning with texts (LWT) Foreign Language Text Reader (FLTR) There are also a couple of subscription based websites that focus on improving reading comprehension. E.g. Readlang, lingro and LingQ.

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