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SOURCES, FORMATION METHODS, AND FREQUENCY OF ENRICHMENT OF
ENGLISH VOCABULARY
Xalmirzayev Muxammadaziz Baxtiyorjon ugli
BENEFIT SCHOOL NTM teacher
Email: peaceful-soul@mail.ru Tel: +998 99 329 99 69
Toshboyeva Munisaxon Otaboy kizi
University of Business and Science teacher
Email: munisaxontoshboeva92@gmail.com Tel: +998 88 251 2772
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.13906884
Annotation.
This thesis explores the factors and methods contributing to the expansion of the English
lexicon. It delves into the role of modern technology in the creation of new words, examines
linguists' estimates of the number of active words in the English language, and provides
recommendations for learners of English as a foreign language.
Key words:
Frequency, Corpus, CEFR, borrowed words, archaic words, technical words.
The rapid advancements in technology and the interconnected world have led to constant
evolution in human thought and language, especially in the vocabulary of people from different
cultures. As obsolete words and definitions become outdated, they are replaced by new terms.
The English language, in particular, is enriched primarily through external sources. The internet
and social media have exponentially accelerated the spread of new words and phrases, often
outpacing the ability of lexicographers to provide alternatives. While the language also grows
through internal processes, such as word formation, it’s the external influences that have had
the most significant impact on the English lexicon. Based on this, we can create compound
words such as sunflower, waterfall, toothbrush, and notebook; add derivational affixes to the
root words, such as national, employee, development, and safety; blend two words by mixing
certain syllables, resulting in terms like brunch (breakfast + lunch), smog (smoke + fog), hangry
(hungry + angry), and motel (motor + hotel). We also have abbreviations like BBC, UNO, and
WHO, as well as the clipping of syllables from the front or back of words, such as phone (from
telephone), gym (from gymnastics), gas (from gasoline), ad (from advertisement), and lab
(from laboratory). The placement of stress at the beginning or end of a word can change its
meaning: if the first syllable carries the stress, the word tends to belong to the adjective
category (e.g., perfect meaning "flawless"); if the stress falls at the end of the word, it can change
the meaning to that of a verb (e.g., perfect meaning "to improve or refine"). In the computer age,
the introduction of new technical words and terms into English has accelerated. Interestingly,
about half a century ago, most people were not familiar with the technical terms related to
current information technologies, such as Wi-Fi, chat bot, GPT, and biohacking. The English
vocabulary is also enriched through loanwords from other languages. The majority of
loanwords come from Latin and French. Below, you can see a table with examples of some
loanwords.
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Table 1
Word
Etimology (Origin)
algebra
Arabic
pizza
Italian
kindergarten
German
et cetera
Latin
ballet
French
In English, a "word" is not limited to just a single word, as there are many combinations
of words that consist of more than one word. However, in general, to determine the quantity of
vocabulary in this language, we often refer to dictionaries, and the primary focus is placed on
counting the head words. The well-known Oxford Dictionary contains over 300,000 head
words. Interestingly, not all of these words are actively used today. The Webster Dictionary, on
the other hand, has information indicating that there are nearly five hundred thousand head
words. In fact, many lexicographers and linguists have provided their estimates based on their
analyses regarding the total number of words in the English language. According to Plag’s
calculations (1: 4p.), there are between 45,000 and 60,000 words in the English language.
Crystal (2: 426p.) states that educated speakers use over 50,000 active words and can
understand the meanings of more than 75,000 words without difficulty. In contrast, Nation and
Webb (3: 38p.) report a significantly lower number of active words (around 20,000). They focus
more on commonly used words in their count. Therefore, it is very challenging to state the exact
number of words in the vocabulary. From this perspective, linguists are currently compelled to
utilize corpus databases. The vocabulary of the English corpus has been enriched through
written texts found in the media, including newspapers, journals, novels, and various television
shows. According to Lich (4: 9p.), the British National Corpus (BNC) comprises a coverage of
one hundred million words, with more than five hundred thousand words used three times or
less within the corpus. One hundred twenty-four thousand words are used ten times or more.
Based on the above statistics, it can be said that language users and experts utilize
approximately 50,000 words or word combinations. O’Keeffe and others (5: 32p.) provide
information about the 2,000 most common words in the Cambridge International Corpus (CIC).
These words account for 83 percent of an entire corpus. In other words, the 2,000 high-
frequency words are used more frequently than the total number of words in the corpus. A
language learner who knows at least this number of words and terms can engage in basic
communication or comprehend the information they read within that domain. Gradually
learning additional common words is advisable. The Oxford 3,000-word list, organized
according to the CEFR (Common European Framework of Reference for Languages) levels,
along with the 7,500 words marked with a red star in the Macmillan Dictionary indicating their
frequency, serves as a very valuable resource for learners of English as a foreign language.
Averil Cockshead has also compiled a table of the 570 most active academic words. This, in turn,
helps develop students' academic writing skills through the correct use of vocabulary. In
conclusion, reliable information about the sources, forms, and stages of the richness of English
vocabulary, as well as the exact number and frequency of active words, undoubtedly provides
convenience for language learners.
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References:
1.
Plag, L. Word Formation in English. - Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 2018.
2.
Crystal, D. Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language. Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press. 2003.
3.
Nation, P. and Waring, R. 'Vocabulary Size, Text Coverage and Word Lists'. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press. 1997.
4.
Leech, G., Rayson, P. and Wilson, A. Word Frequencies in Written and Spoken English.
Harlow: Pearson Education. 2001.
5.
O'Keeffe, A., McCarthy, M.J. and Carter, R. From Corpus to Classroom. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press. 2006.
6.
Carter, R.A. Vocabulary in Language Teaching. London: Longman.1987.
