2017-10-12 Academic Writing 1, Academic vocabulary – Go the Distance

Academic Writing 1 – Academic vocabulary

Welcome to our Academic Writing course! On these pages we’ll bring you the essential knowledge and skills you need to be an effective writer in your study life. Over 10 units we’ll show you how to write: effective paragraphs, assignments and exam papers; posts to online discussion groups, projects and presentations – and much more!

In this first session we look at getting the basics right and help you activate your academic vocabulary!

Activate your academic vocabulary

Let’s start by looking at the vocabulary you need to use in your academic writing. In academic writing it’s very important to say exactly what you mean, in a suitable style – and choosing the right type of vocabulary is an important place to start. You need to be careful that the words you’re using aren’t too informal, vague or emotive. Scroll down and try these activities to upgrade your academic vocabulary knowledge!

Words NOT to use in academic writing

In British academic writing, we tend not to use:

• informal words like ‘big’ or ‘good’
• many phrasal verbs, like ‘give up’ or ‘put off’ – these are too informal
• some vague words with too many possible meanings, like ‘thing’ or ‘get’
• ’emotive’ words, which express personal feelings, like ‘fantastic’ or ‘terrible’