Using accurate vocabulary Vocabulary accuracy refers to the correct use of words based on their context and form.

Ming Wei makes several mistakes, a couple of which affect the overall clarity of her ideas:

one child regulations. The correct phrase is one child “policy”.
in the residence. The correct word in this context would be “home”, or “apartment”.
old people. A more appropriate word to use is “elderly” people.
to take after them. The correct phrasal verb is to “look” after them.
feeling very boring. The correct adjective form is “bored”.
to learn hard at university. The correct verb in this case is “study”.
Accurate vocabulary based on context
Words can have a number of synonyms (e.g. car, vehicle, means of transport), but these synonyms convey a slightly different meaning depending on how they are used in a sentence.

Let’s look at this with an example. The words think, concentrate and consider have similar meanings. However, only one of them can accurately complete the sentence below:

I think that women are better drivers than men because they ____ more while they are driving.

In this context, the correct answer is concentrate, as it means to focus on a specific task (e.g. driving).

During the speaking test use words that are familiar to you, that you feel comfortable with and that you know are correct for the context in which you use them.

Accurate vocabulary based on form
Another way in which you can make sure to use accurate vocabulary when speaking is to consider the different forms that a word can have. The main forms of words are nouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs. Let’s look at the word challenge and its different forms:

Word Form Example
challenge noun The last job I had felt like a challenge for me.
challenge verb I was often challenged with the last job I had.
challenging adjective The last job I had was quite challenging.
challengingly adverb The last job I had was challengingly difficult.
In some cases, like the one above, the same word is used for different forms. In other cases, there is more than one option for a form. Sometimes one word does not have all four forms. For example:

Noun Verb Adjective Adverb
education educator educate educative educated educational educationally
Try the following two quizzes that we have created to help you improve your vocabulary accuracy.

© Macquarie University @LanguageStuff

Word and sentence stress In her first attempt, Ming Wei showed some problems with word and sentence stress, which affected her pronunciation.

She used the wrong stress in the following words:

provinces - She said /pro/VIN/ces/, but the correct way is /PRO/vin/ces/
financial - She said /FI/nan/cial/ , instead of /fi/NAN/cial/
graduate - She said /gra/DUATE/ , but it should have been /GRA/duate/
There were also instances in which she could have stressed or emphasised a particular word in a sentence to convey a clearer meaning, but instead her ideas came across with a flat tone:

I miss her a lot
I was feeling very boring
Let’s have a look at word and sentence stress in more detail.

Word stress
Consider the pronunciation of the words rate and crisis:

rate has one syllable (i.e. /rate/), that is, one sound
crisis has two syllables (i.e. /cri/sis/).
Can you notice the difference between the two words? In the word crisis, the first syllable is emphasised (i.e. /CRI/sis/). This is known as word stress.

Look at the following words and listen to how they are pronounced with the correct stress (Note: the stressed syllable is in bold):

glass paper digestion photographic
Audio

It is important to know which syllable you need to stress. This is because stressing the incorrect syllables or not using syllable stress at all, can lead to misunderstanding and confusion for the listener.

One of the best ways to learn about syllable stress is by listening to how native or proficient speakers of English stress different syllables. Look at the table below and say the words aloud. Do you know which syllable is stressed? Then, listen to the audio recording to check your answers.

biography silver apology
perfect community industry
electrical above solution
slowly present vacancy
clarify compare optional
Audio

Did you use the correct stress in these words? Do you know why they are stressed that way? Download the attachment Word Sentence Rules below to find out and to learn five rules which will help you use the correct word stress.

Sentence stress
Speakers of English stress key words in sentences. These are known as content words as they carry the meaning of the sentence. They are usually nouns, main verbs, adjectives and adverbs. Speakers do not stress function words. Function words are necessary for the grammar of the sentence but do not carry meaning. They are usually auxiliary verbs, prepositions, articles and pronouns.

Look at the following sentence. What are the content words?

I went to Japan with my sister.

In this sentence, the content words are: went, Japan and sister.

In English, speakers may decide to stress a certain content word or words within a sentence to express a clear message and this is known as sentence stress. Let’s see how sentence stress can change the meaning of what you say. Look at the following sentence and listen to three different versions with three different stressed words:

Australian television doesn’t report much on international events.

Australian television doesn’t report much on international events. Audio

In this case, the word ‘Australian’ has been stressed, and by this the speaker is emphasising that he/she is speaking about television specifically from Australia, not from a different country.

Australian television doesn’t report much on international events. Audio

In this sentence, the speaker is stressing the word ‘television’, to clarify that he/she is not referring to radio or any other type of media.

Australian television doesn’t report much on international events. Audio

Here, the word ‘international’ has been stressed. The speaker’s intention is to show that he/she is not referring to regional or local events, but international.

© Macquarie University @LanguageStuff

Vocabulary range One of the main aspects assessed under Lexical Resource is the variety of words you use to describe various topics.

In Ming Wei’s answers about cooking, she used vocabulary quite accurately, but there were three aspects in her first responses that she could have improved in relation to vocabulary range:

Inexact words: She tried to describe something white to make a cake. She was referring to flour, which she used in her second attempt.
Range: She could have used a wider variety of words, phrases and expressions related to cooking. The vocabulary in the first answers was either taken from the questions (e.g. cook, recipe) or was too simple (e.g. food, prepare, cake). This improved significantly in her second set of answers (e.g. cuisine, dishes, flour, taste good, bake).
Simple vocabulary: In her first attempt, she tended to use simple vocabulary but she then replaced this with less common words, including some idiomatic expressions:
First attempt Improved attempt
I have very little time I’m always short of time
take something quick grab something quick
almost never hardly ever
a lot of things a lot of ingredients
I am not sure If my memory doesn’t fail me
happy thrilled
There are several ways to show a wider range of vocabulary, including using phrasal verbs and idiomatic expressions:

Phrasal verbs
Phrasal verbs consist of a base verb + a preposition or an adverb (sometimes both). This combination creates a new meaning for the verb. For example:

You look tired. (look = appear)
I look up to my father. (look up to = admire)
Using phrasal verbs can help you achieve a higher score for Lexical resource as it shows that you have a good command of the English language.

Here are a few considerations about phrasal verbs:

They take tenses: This means that you need to carefully consider the most appropriate tense. For example:

I got up late yesterday (past simple).
I usually get up at 7am on weekdays (present simple).
I’ve been getting up quite hungry lately (present perfect continuous)
I’m going to get up early tomorrow (future simple)
They can take objects: These can go at the end or in the middle of the phrasal verb. For example:

I’ll pick up my sister later.
I’ll pick my sister up later.
They can have several meanings: For example:

I was brought up by my grandparents (bring up = raise, educate a child)
He brought up the idea of having a party (bring up = introduce a topic or idea)
Below is a handout to some of the most common phrasal verbs. Download it and have it ready for an activity in the next step.

Idiomatic expressions
An idiomatic expression (or idiom) is a group of words following a particular order which convey a certain meaning different from the literal meaning of each individual word. For example:

It’s raining cats and dogs (meaning = it’s raining heavily)

The Public Band Descriptors consider the use of less common vocabulary and idiomatic expressions in Bands 7 and 8. However, idiomatic expressions need to be used at the right time and in the right context. Do not overuse them.

Below is a handout to some of the most common idiomatic expressions in English. Download it and use it to complete an activity in the following steps. @LanguageStuff

To bump into someone means to meet someone you know without having planned it. Catch up with and hang out with are planned meetings. @LanguageStuff

Connected speech In spoken English, words are not pronounced separately or in isolation. Instead, we connect sounds between words to sound more natural. This is known as connected speech.

This is one feature in which Ming Wei did not perform well in her first attempts. There are instances where she could have connected the sounds between words:

…they have a lot of things in it. She could have connected the words have_a_lot_of and things_in_it.
and also contracted sounds:

I do not cook much. Saying “I don’t cook much” would sound more natural.
I would like to cook. She could have said “I’d like to cook”.
However, her use of connected speech significantly improved in her second attempt when she used the following:

Connecting consonants with vowels: Connect the sound of the final consonant of a word to the sound of the vowel of the following word. The connected sound will seem like a new syllable in the second word. For example:

Let’s talk_about → Let’s takabout Audio

I had_an_assignment to finish → I hadanassignment to finish Audio

But_I think → BudI think Audio

They use_it for_entertainment → Theyusit forentertainment Audio

Connecting similar sounds: Connect two words when the first one ends in the same letter as the following word. For example:

• We need_data → We needata Audio

• Social_learning → Socialearning Audio

• Fish_shop → Fishop Audio

• First_stop → Firstop Audio

Making new sounds: When you connect the /t/ sound with the /j/ sound, it creates the new sound /tj/. When you connect the /d/ sound with the /j/ sound, it creates the new sound /dj/. For example:

• Last year → Lastjear Audio

• Nice to meet you → Nice to meetja Audio

• Did you call? → Didja call? Audio

• Would you mind? → Woudja mind? Audio

Dropping a sound: When the last consonant of a word has the sound of a /t/ or a /d/ and the following word starts with another consonant, drop the /t/ or /d/ sounds. For example:

• My next class → My nexclass Audio

• The most common mistake → The moscommon mistake Audio

• I used to work → I useto work Audio

Using contractions: When possible, contract auxiliary and modal verbs. For example:

• I would like → I’d like Audio

• It is not cold → It isn’t cold Audio

• We should have gone → We should’ve gone Audio

• It will not be easy → It won’t be easy Audio @LanguageStuff