Advanced Vocabulary for TOEFL - Language and Grammar

Here you will learn some English words about language and grammar, such as "etymology", "gender", "allusion", etc. that are needed for the TOEFL exam.

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etymology

[noun]

the study of the origins and historical developments of words and their meanings

Ex: The etymology of " amplify " reveals its roots in Latin " amplus , " meaning large or spacious .

phonetics

[noun]

the science and study of speech sounds and their production

Ex: Phonetics plays a crucial role in language learning and teaching , helping learners to accurately pronounce and recognize the sounds of a foreign language .

linguistics

[noun]

the study of the evolution and structure of language in general or of certain languages

declension

[noun]

(in the grammar of some languages) a group of nouns, pronouns, or adjectives changing in the same way to indicate case, number, and gender

Ex: The Old English language had a complex system of declension, with different forms for nouns depending on case , number , and gender .

to conjugate

[Verb]

(grammar) to show how a verb changes depending on number, person, tense, etc.

Ex: The linguistics professor explained how different languages conjugate verbs differently based on their grammatical structures.

gender

[noun]

(grammar) a class of words indicating whether they are feminine, masculine, or neuter

Ex: In linguistics , gender is a grammatical category that plays a role in agreement between nouns , pronouns , adjectives , and articles within a sentence .

subjunctive

[Adjective]

(grammar) related to verbs that express wishes, possibility, or doubt

Ex: In English, the subjunctive mood is less common than in other languages but can still be found in expressions like 'God save the Queen' or 'Long live the king.

prefix

[noun]

(grammar) a letter or a set of letters that are added to the beginning of a word to alter its meaning and make a new word

Ex: The dictionary provided a list of prefixes and their meanings to help with word formation and understanding .

suffix

[noun]

(grammar) a letter or a set of letters that are added to the end of a word to alter its meaning and make a new word

Ex: Students practiced adding different suffixes to root words to see how their meanings changed .

adjectival

[Adjective]

(grammar) connected with or functioning as an adjective

Ex: The word "bright" is an adjectival description of a color in the phrase "bright yellow."

adverbial

[Adjective]

connected with or functioning as an adverb

jargon

[noun]

words, phrases, and expressions used by a specific group or profession, which are incomprehensible to others

Ex: Military jargon includes phrases like 'AWOL,' 'RECON,' and 'FOB,' which are part of the everyday language for service members but might be puzzling to civilians.

sarcasm

[noun]

the use of words that convey the opposite meaning as a way to annoy someone or for creating a humorous effect

Ex: The comedian ’s sarcasm about everyday situations made his stand-up routine incredibly funny .

allusion

[noun]

a statement that implies or indirectly mentions something or someone else, especially as a literary device

Ex: The poet 's allusion to Icarus served as a cautionary tale about the dangers of overambition and hubris .

analogy

[noun]

a comparison between two different things, done to explain the similarities between them

Ex: The analogy between a bird ’s wings and an airplane ’s wings helped students understand flight .

alliteration

[noun]

the use of the same letter or sound at the beginning of the words in a verse or sentence, used as a literary device

Ex: The advertising slogan 's alliteration made it memorable and catchy .

to articulate

[Verb]

to pronounce or utter something in a clear and precise way

Ex: In the speech therapy session , he worked on how to articulate difficult sounds .

affirmative

[Adjective]

conveying or expressing a positive reply

euphemism

[noun]

a word or expression that is used instead of a harsh or insulting one in order to be more tactful and polite

Ex: In polite conversation , people might use the euphemism ' restroom ' or ' bathroom ' instead of ' toilet ' to refer to a place where one can relieve themselves .

irony

[noun]

a form of humor in which the words that someone says mean the opposite, producing an emphatic effect

Ex: Through irony, she pointed out the flaws in their logic without directly insulting them .

paradox

[noun]

a logically contradictory statement that might actually be true

Ex: The famous paradox of Schrödinger 's cat illustrates the complexity of quantum mechanics .

hyperbole

[noun]

a technique used in speech and writing to exaggerate the extent of something

Ex: The politician 's speech was rife with hyperbole, promising to " solve all of society 's problems overnight " if elected .

pun

[noun]

a clever or amusing use of words that takes advantage of the multiple meanings or interpretations that it has

Ex: The pun in the advertisement was so funny that it went viral on social media .

rhetorical

[Adjective]

connected with the art of writing or speaking in an effective or persuasive way

Ex: The teacher taught her students how to craft rhetorical appeals to strengthen their persuasive essays .

satire

[noun]

humor, irony, ridicule, or sarcasm used to expose or criticize the faults and shortcomings of a person, government, etc.

Ex: Satire can be a powerful tool for social commentary and change.

tautology

[noun]

the redundant repetition of an idea using different words in a sentence or phrase

Ex: Writers and speakers are often advised to avoid tautology to ensure their communication is clear and concise without unnecessary repetition .

idiolect

[noun]

(linguistics) the speech pattern that an individual uses at a particular period of life

asterisk

[noun]

the symbol * used in writing or printing to show that there is more information about something in the footnote or as an indication of importance or omission

to punctuate

[Verb]

to use punctuation marks in a text in order to make it more understandable

Ex: Learning how to punctuate complex sentences with colons and dashes can greatly improve your writing style and clarity .

phoneme

[noun]

the smallest unit of sound in a language that can distinguish meaning, often represented by a specific symbol in phonetic notation

Ex: The study of phonemes and their distribution helps linguists analyze speech sounds and patterns across languages .

semantics

[noun]

(linguistics) a branch of linguistics that deals with meaning, reference, or truth

Ex: Differences in semantics can lead to misunderstandings , especially when translating between languages with distinct cultural contexts .

syntax

[noun]

(linguistics) the way in which words and phrases are arranged to form grammatical sentences in a language

Ex: Syntax analysis helps in identifying how sentence elements like nouns , verbs , and adjectives interact within a given linguistic framework .

mood

[noun]

(grammar) a group of verb forms that indicate if the action or state is conceived as a statement, question, command or in another way

lexis

[noun]

(linguistics) all the words and phrases of a language, including the function words

lexicon

[noun]

the complete set of meaningful units in a language or a branch of knowledge, or words or phrases that a speaker uses

Ex: Building a diverse lexicon through reading and exposure to different contexts enriches one 's language skills and communication abilities .

homophone

[noun]

(grammar) one of two or more words with the same pronunciation that differ in meaning, spelling or origin

Ex: English learners often find homophones tricky because they sound the same but are spelled differently .

homonym

[noun]

each of two or more words with the same spelling or pronunciation that vary in meaning and origin

Ex: " Match " is a homonym— it can mean a competition or a stick used to start a fire .

Advanced Vocabulary for TOEFL

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Advanced Vocabulary for TOEFL - Language and Grammar