CHAPTER II THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
A. Vocabulary
1. General Concept of Vocabulary
Vocabulary is one of language aspects that have to learned when students are learning a language, besides grammar and pronunciation.
Vocabulary also plays an important role in improving language skills in English. Experienced teachers of English as a Second language know very
well how important vocabulary is. They hope their students would learn thousands of words that speakers and writers of English use.
Therefore, it is very necessity that the students be able to master the words in certain number. Mastering vocabulary is not easy, yet other aspects
of the language should be considered such as; sound, and structure. Vocabulary is one of the most important elements in a language. We cannot
speak the language well if we do not master it. No matter how well we learn grammar, how successfully the sound of a foreign language is mastered,
without words to express a wider range of meanings, communication in the foreign language just cannot happen in any meaningful way. 1997: 140
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Regardless of the specific target language and the condition of instruction, vocabulary is an important factor in all language teaching.
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A. M. Zainuri, Vocabulary I, Unpublished Paper, The State Islamic University, 2003, p. 1
Learners must continually be learning words as they learn structures and as they practice the sound system.
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2. Meaning of Vocabulary
Vocabulary can be defined, roughly, as the words we teach in the foreign language.
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To have a clear understanding, it is better to take a look at some definitions that have been described as vocabulary. Vocabulary is the
sum of words used by, understood by, or at the command of a particular person, social group, profession, trade or the like.
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If it is compared to another meaning of vocabulary, that vocabulary is “a Total number of words
which with rules for combining them make up a language, b Containing a list of word; list of words used in a book, usually with definitions or
translation.”
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Another definition of vocabulary also is found, in Webster’s New World Dictionary that “vocabulary is a list of words and often, phrases,
abbreviations, inflectional forms, usually arranged in alphabetical order and defined or otherwise identified, as in a dictionary or glossary.
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Edward David Alleen and Rebecca. M. Valette, Classroom Techniques: Foreign Language and English as a Second Language , USA: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich Inc, 1977, p. 149
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Penny Ur., A Course in Language Teaching: Practice and Theory, New York: Cambrigde University Press, 1996, p. 60
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William Morris, The Heritage Illustrated Dictionary of the English Language, Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1979, p. 1434
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A. S. Hornby, Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary of Current English, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987, p. 959
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Merriam-Webster, Webster’s New World College Dictionary: Fourth Edition, Cleveland: Wiley Publishing Inc, 2002, p. 1600
A large vocabulary helps the students to express them ideas precisely, vividly, and without repeating themselves in composition or conversation.
From some opinions above, it can be known that vocabulary is a total number of words used by a person to express ideas and experiences in
communication as a means of expression.
3. Kinds of Vocabulary
Kategori