Noted. I did English every year of high school, and actually we've never come across her. I'll try her out.
I'm all over the map with my reading tastes. I'll read sci-fi\fantasy, historical, modern, thrillers, or whatever sounds good. You can peruse the What Are You Reading threads for a detailed list. I also read quite a few bloggers and newsites when I want information, and I hardly watch any TV. I write in my free time (what little there is with two small kids) and am working on my second novel. Learning the definition of new words or discovering another way to express a thought or action is part of my craft. On that particular test, there were at least twenty words that I knew from Latin and understanding what the roots meant. While it's not as practical as knowing Spanish (or another language depending on where you live), I've found Latin to be pretty helpful for increasing my vocabulary even though I haven't taken a class in 18 years.
Oh I see, you are quite an avid reader. On the subject of Latin, I did Latin for 2 years in high school, and it sure did help me in many ways. There was a word on that test list, "nostrum". From whatever Latin knowledge that had remained in my brain , I was so sure that meant something like, "our" in English. ( Funny how it turned out nothing like that when I looked in the English dictionary.
Did it for the 3rd time, and got 15900 again. Turns out it lied to me the first time I did it I have absolutely no idea how some of you guys get 30000+ T.T ... but oh well, it looks like I've got a few years to catch up to all you Shakespeares!!!
It is inspired by the Latin route: NOSTRUM 1. a medicine sold with false or exaggerated claims and with no demonstrable value; quack medicine. 2.a scheme, theory, device, etc., especially one to remedy social or political ills; panacea. 3.a medicine made by the person who recommends it. Origin: 1595–1605; < Latin nostrum our, ours (neuter singular of noster ); referring to the seller's calling the drug “our” drug
Will this be a new way to make ad hominum attacks on fellow posters? "Battier is no better than Posey? Someone with only 15,900 words in his vocabulary would think something like that!"
29,700 for me. 25 with a verbal SAT of either 710 or 760. Can't remember which. On the plus side, I've learned a slew of new words today. Uxoricide, polymath, sobriquet... now I can sound even more like a pretentious douche than I usually do!
Well we all know the reason you started the thread was to try to show off and gain ammunition for your weak arguments. How do I know they are weak? Because I know about 1,000 more words than you...according to some internet testy thingie. PS - Ayn Rand in a thread about vocabulary and literature? Her philosophy is the only reason one could like her work as her writing is terrible in both form and style. I have never understood when people claim one of her books as "great literature".
41,300 Here are the ones I didn't know... But I just looked them all up . sparge (I like to sparge a little kindness wherever I go) bruit (I know this word, but only as bruited and I didn't make the connection, probably because I pronounced it wrong when reading) embonpoint (A good description of me) estivation (My Dad lives in Houston and has been doing this) fuliginous (I think I've come across this word, but could not remember it... sounds like it may be from Dickens) oneiromancy (Seems like I should have known this one) tatterdemalion (ditto) caitiff (I will now endeavor to use this in D&D) funambulist (Could have guessed on this one and been sort of right) pule (I did this when Yao retired) uxoricide (If I had known what an uxor is I could have figured this one out)
the biggest vocab enhancer in recent memory is the kindle/nook etc- the ability to hover over an unfamiliar word (especially in Dickens etc) and get a brief meaning is really easy and doesn't really disrupt the flow of reading very much.
Not entirely, objectivism and the value of selfishness is definitely worth reading about. My views on being selfish differ from Rand's though. If I help someone out I consider it a selfish act bc it is part of my core values. The people around me are an extension of myself and their well-being has a direct impact on me. Obviously there is limit to how much one would sacrifice their own life to help those around them. Imho that is wants separates the average person from the likes of MLK Jr., Ghandi, Cesar Chavez, etc. A good man could prosper through Rand's beliefs but the ability to bring prosperity to those around you is what defines greatness.
The first page tricked me into thinking it was easy. Got every word up until Uxorcide started. I hope 19,000~ is above average for a high school student. Maybe not. :grin:
25,900. I thought my working vocabulary would be closer to 5,000 to 10,000. from the score page ... Thanks for taking the test! Based on over 200,000 participations so far, we've got some initial statistics already. Most Native English adult speakers who have taken the test fall in the range 20,000–35,000 words. And for foreign learners of English, we've found that the most common vocabulary size is from 2,500–9,000 words.
