Narrator Listen to a conversation between a foreign student and a profe

Student   Professor, could you spare a few minutes to answer some questions, please?
Professor  Of course! What’s on your mind?
Student   Professor, I have been in the United States for three months now, and I have found my vocabulary is so limited. Would you give me some advice on how to expand my vocabulary?
Professor  OK. The thinking is that if you read more, write more, and speak more, your vocabulary will increase naturally.
Student   How should I begin?
Professor  Learning vocabulary is more complex than it first appears and it is a lifelong process—you should never stop learning new vocabulary.
Student   Yeah. I know. And learning vocabulary is not exactly a piece of cake.
Professor  In addition, the kind of vocabulary you will select is directly related to your purpose of building an English word-base. I would suggest you construct a plan for your vocabulary learning.
Student   How can I construct a plan?
Professor  You can decide what kinds of words are most important for you to learn according to your purpose for learning.
Student   How should I put my purpose and plan to work?
Professor  For instance, if your purpose is to become more familiar with current English used in television news programs, you might begin with a list of single words you hear more than once on those programs’ headings or written segments of newscast. Also take note of pairs of words that seem to occur together.
Student   So, you mean I’d better make a proper word list for learning current English?
Professor  Right! Listen to the same news broadcast often, daily if possible, and begin charting the vocabulary you recognize. As you learn to anticipate the segments and the vocabulary, you will gain confidence by understanding the program.
Student   That’s really what I want! But how about learning vocabulary for certain majors?
Professor  If your purpose is to be able to read major field texts, it is necessary to assemble the most frequently used words in, for instance, mechanical engineering. Often these words are specialized terms and phrases used specifically by majors in the field.
Student   What other strategies are successful?
Professor  One key to remembering vocabulary is to use the new words in different settings.
Student   What do you mean by this?
Professor  You know, words learned in context are best remembered for long-term use. You can make your own individualized vocabulary word cards; use them on a daily basis.
Student   What is your overall advice for building a large, useful vocabulary?
Professor  First, be patient; expanding your vocabulary takes time, energy, and focus. Second, enjoy your acquisition of new words. Collection and building is a satisfying activity that can take place anytime, and learning the similarities and differences among words is much like solving a puzzle.
Student   OK. Thank you very much, professor. You’ve really helped me a lot. I will remember and follow all your advice in my vocabulary learning.
Professor  You’re welcome. I hope you can make great progress in building your vocabulary.