vocabulary
noun
Simple meaning
The collection of words a person knows and uses.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
vohkabyuhluhreeSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
voʊˈkæbjəlɛɹi
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
The collection of words a person knows and uses.
A language user's knowledge of words
The words of a language collectively; lexis.
A usually alphabetized and explained collection of words e.g. of a particular field, or prepared for a specific purpose, often for learning.
The stock of words used in a particular field.
by extension
A range of artistic or stylistic forms or techniques.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- B2 · Upper Intermediate
- Frequency
- Moderately Common
- Typical Use
- Neutral / general English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: The collection of words a person knows and uses.
Used this way, vocabulary is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use vocabulary
- “He introduced a wide vocabulary of techniques.”noun
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
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What Does It Mean Here?
Words can change meaning depending on context.
Related Learning
Guides that use this word in context.
Professional
Essential Professional Vocabulary for the Workplace
A curated set of workplace vocabulary, grouped by theme, with plain-English meanings and usage notes.
Vocabulary
Building a Richer Emotional Vocabulary
Move beyond “happy,” “sad,” and “angry” with a grouped set of precise emotional vocabulary and usage notes.
Guides
How to Improve Your Vocabulary: A Practical Method
A concrete, step-by-step method for building vocabulary through reading, targeted lookup, and spaced review.
Use it yourself
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.