English for Academic Studies
Vocabulary in academic English can be very different to everyday English.
- Everyday English is not always very specific and often uses words for informal daily communication.
- Academic English favours words with very precise meanings and uses specific words that are not often used elsewhere.
For example, in everyday English a person might say “Nobody watches television in my generation - we just watch YouTube!” but the same expression in academic English might be,
The number of young people watching terrestrial television channels is declining, whilst the number of views of YouTube channels has increased significantly.
You may need to learn some academic vocabulary to improve your academic writing. In this box are common instruction words that you need to know:
For specific words that are related to your area of study, academic journals and textbooks are the best places to look. Try adopting some of the strategies below:
Some academic words are used in almost every area of study, and these are easy to find by looking at the academic word list.