Vocabulary

In the July edition of Spotlight, Julian Earwaker takes you on a magical boat ride down the canals and rivers of England's dreamy waterways. We go to Constable country in Suffolk to learn about John Constable, the painter, and the landscape he loved.

Even if you're not walking in Memphis (see the travel feature in Spotlight 7/2009), you can listen to the music and tune in to the sound. Study the expressions you will need to talk about your favourite recordings.

Test your spelling skills in the Spotlight Word of the Day Spelling Bee and learn about competitions that have been helping children master English spelling for 200 years. Today the best spellers can become stars.

Words form typical partnerships, called collocations. Only certain words together are a perfect fit. For practical purposes, it is enough to practise them until you recognize them. Study ten of the most useful glossed words from Spotlight in their typical collocations.

Read a summary of the film being released this week to boost your vocabulary with Spotlight's 50 most frequently translated words. Turn the passive vocabulary from reading into active vocabulary by exploring it in different contexts.

Boost your vocabulary by using memory aids. Stick to seven words, and build images and stories in your mind to help you remember words from the Spotlight vocabulary list. An exercise from the Spotlight Online archives.

Boost your vocabulary with the 50 most useful words presented in a special supplement to the May edition of Spotlight. But don't just memorize the words from the list. That's working too hard! Instead, use opposites from our love story to remember words.

Get ready to travel to the United States for a short holiday. We explain the most important things to remember and introduce the relevant words and phrases. Beat the stress as you cross the border into the US.

There are many ways to improve your vocabulary. One of the best ways is to learn alternative words and phrases that mean exactly the same thing, or that are very similar. An exercise from the Spotlight Online archives.

"Snail mail", good old-fashioned letters, complete with company logo and letterhead, are still sent out on a regular basis. Study some of the formal phrases used in business correspondence. An exercise from the Spotlight Online archives.