vocabulary

American  

[voh-kab-yuh-ler-ee] / voʊˈkæb yəˌlɛr i /

noun

plural

vocabularies

1. the stock of words used by or known to a particular people or group of persons.

   His French vocabulary is rather limited. The scientific vocabulary is constantly growing.

2. a list or collection of the words or phrases of a language, technical field, etc., usually arranged in alphabetical order and defined.

   Study the vocabulary in the fourth chapter.

3. the words of a language.

4. any collection of signs or symbols constituting a means or system of nonverbal communication.

   vocabulary of a computer.

5. any more or less specific group of forms characteristic of an artist, a style of art, architecture, or the like.

---

vocabulary British  

/ vəˈkæbjʊlərɪ /

noun

1. a listing, either selective or exhaustive, containing the words and phrases of a language, with meanings or translations into another language; glossary

2. the aggregate of words in the use or comprehension of a specified person, class, profession, etc

3. all the words contained in a language

4. a range or system of symbols, qualities, or techniques constituting a means of communication or expression, as any of the arts or crafts

   a wide vocabulary of textures and colours

---

Other Word Forms

• vocabularied adjective

Etymology

Origin of vocabulary

1525–35; < Medieval Latin vocābulārium, noun use of neuter of vocābulārius of words, equivalent to Latin vocābul ( um ) vocable + -ārius -ary

Example Sentences

Against that expansive vocabulary doomscroll, the concept of comfort acts as a blanket covering everything, concealing life’s unpleasantness from sight and offering us a place to hide.

From Salon

Lam endeavored to merge his life and work, to create a personal vocabulary with universal reach.

From The Wall Street Journal

The words Excuse me didn’t seem part of his vocabulary.

From Literature

Let’s hope his joints are stronger than his vocabulary.

From Literature

Moving through, we encounter unpredictable groupings of works made between the 1980s and the present, most deploying a traditional vocabulary of symbolic marks in sometimes inventive, sometimes unremarkable ways.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• dictionary
• glossary
• jargon
• terminology