Vocabulary

Sinonim ialah perkataan yang mempunyai maksud sama atau hampir sama, manakala antonim ialah perkataan yang mempunyai maksud berlawanan.

• Sinonim — maksud sama/hampir sama (contoh: happy = joyful).
• Antonim — maksud berlawanan (contoh: generous ≠ selfish).

Menguasai sinonim dan antonim membantu pelajar mengelakkan pengulangan perkataan yang sama dalam penulisan dan memahami soalan kefahaman dengan lebih tepat.

Makna sesuatu perkataan boleh berubah mengikut konteks ayat, jadi baca ayat penuh dahulu sebelum memilih jawapan.

• Konteks — makna perkataan ditentukan oleh ayat sekelilingnya.
• Collocation — kombinasi perkataan yang biasa digunakan bersama secara semula jadi oleh penutur asli (contoh: "heavy rain" bukan "strong rain"; "make a decision" bukan "do a decision").

Menghafal collocation biasa membantu penulisan berbunyi lebih semula jadi.

Word formation is the process of building new words from a root word, usually by adding a prefix that changes its meaning or a suffix that changes its word class.

• Prefixes change meaning — un-, dis-, im-, in- and ir- usually make a word negative (unfair, dishonest, impossible, incorrect, irregular); re- means again (rewrite); mis- means wrongly (misunderstand); over- means too much (overcrowded).
• Noun suffixes — -tion, -sion, -ment, -ness, -ity (information, decision, improvement, kindness, ability).
• Adjective suffixes — -ful, -less, -ous, -able, -ive, -al (helpful, careless, dangerous, reliable, creative, educational).
• Verb suffixes — -ise, -en, -ify (modernise, strengthen, simplify).
• Adverbs — most are formed by adding -ly to an adjective (careful → carefully).
• Word families — learn words in sets, for example decide, decision, decisive, decisively or create, creation, creative, creatively.
• Check the gap — the words around a blank tell you which word class is needed: after a/the you usually need a noun; before a noun you usually need an adjective; after a verb you often need an adverb.

Using a range of word forms in your writing also shows the examiner a wider vocabulary without making your sentences longer.

These errors appear often in Malaysian students' writing:

• Borrow and lend — you borrow from someone, but someone lends to you: Can you lend me your pen?
• Uncountable nouns — information, advice, equipment and furniture have no plural -s. Write some useful advice, not advices.
• Unnecessary prepositions — write discuss the problem, not discuss about the problem.
• Direct translations — say switch on the light, not open the light.

In context questions, replace the word with each option and reread the whole sentence; the option that keeps the meaning of the text is correct.