Vocabulary Building

🟢 Lite — Quick Review (1h–1d)

Rapid summary for last-minute revision before your ECAT exam.

A strong vocabulary is essential for the ECAT English section, particularly for sentence completion, analogy questions, and reading comprehension. Rather than memorising word lists mechanically, learn words in context and through their relationships to other words.

Word Formation — Roots, Prefixes, and Suffixes:

Understanding word parts lets you decode unfamiliar words:

Prefix	Meaning	Example
a-/an-	not, without	asymptomatic, anhydrous
ab-	away from	abduct, abnormal
ad-	toward	adjoin, advance
ambi-	both	ambiguous, ambidextrous
ante-	before	antecedent, antedate
anti-	against	antiseptic, antipathy
auto-	self	automatic, autonomous
bi-	two	bilateral, bilingual
circum-	around	circumvent, circumference
co-/com-/con-	together	cooperate, combine, connect
de-	down, away	descend, decompose
dia-	through	diameter, diagnose
dis-	not, opposite	disorder, disagree
ex-	out of	expel, export
hyper-	above, excessive	hypertension, hyperactive
hypo-	below, deficient	hypothermia, hypothesis
in-/im-	in, not	inject, impassive
inter-	between	interact, international
micro-	small	microscope, microwave
mis-	wrongly	misuse, misunderstand
neo-	new	neoclassic, neonatal
non-	not	nonsense, nonviolent
poly-	many	polymer, polysyllabic
post-	after	postgraduate, postpone
pre-	before	predict, prehistoric
pro-	forward, for	project, proponent
re-	again, back	review, reflect
semi-	half	semicircle, semiconductor
sub-	under	submarine, subordinate
super-	above	superscript, supersonic
trans-	across	transport, transform
un-	not	unhappy, undo

Common Suffixes:

Suffix	Meaning	Example
-able/-ible	capable of	comfortable, possible
-al	relating to	natural, chemical
-ance/-ence	state of	importance, evidence
-ant/-ent	one who/thing that	student, agent
-ary	relating to	library, primary
-ation	process of	education, calculation
-cide	killing	pesticide, herbicide
-ectomy	surgical removal	appendectomy
-er/-or	one who does	teacher, conductor
-fest	festival	耿kongress, songfest
-ful	full of	careful, powerful
-genous	producing	indigenous, endogenous
-graph	writing/recording	photograph, telegraph
-ician	specialist	physician, electrician
-ious/-ous	full of	generous, curious
-ise/-ize	to make	modernise, synthesise
-itis	inflammation	appendicitis, arthritis
-logy	study of	biology, psychology
-ment	state of	government, development
-osis	condition (often abnormal)	necrosis, neurosis
-ous	full of	victorious, malicious
-phobia	fear of	claustrophobia, xenophobia
-scope	viewing instrument	telescope, microscope
-some	causing	cumbersome, irksome
-tude	state of	gratitude, magnitude
-ulent	characterized by	turbulent, lucid

⚡ ECAT exam tips:

• For analogy questions: identify the relationship first (synonym, antonym, part-to-whole, function, degree, etc.)
• In sentence completion: test each option in the blank to see which creates the most coherent meaning
• Words with multiple meanings: the context of the sentence determines which meaning applies
• Prefix patterns: “in-” can mean “in” (inject) or “not” (invisible); check the root word

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🟡 Standard — Regular Study (2d–2mo)

For ECAT students who want genuine understanding of vocabulary strategies.

Synonyms and Antonyms — Group Learning:

Learning words in groups of synonyms (same meaning) and antonyms (opposite meaning) is far more effective than isolated memorisation.

Frequently Confused Words:

• effect (noun: result) vs. affect (verb: to influence): “The effect of the heat was to expand the metal. Heat affected the metal’s dimensions.”
• principal (main, head) vs. principle (fundamental rule): “The principal engineer cited a key principle.”
• adapt (adjust) vs. adopt (take on) vs. adept (skilled): “She adapted quickly, adopted new methods, and became adept at coding.”
• stationary (still) vs. stationery (writing materials): “The stationary object was placed on the stationery shelf.”
• compliment (praise) vs. complement (complete/make up for): “Her excellent work was a compliment; her skills complemented the team’s needs.”
• council (deliberative body) vs. counsel (advice, or to advise) vs. consul (diplomatic official)
• farther (physical distance) vs. further (degree/quantity): “We can’t go any farther/further.”

Words Commonly Misspelled in ECAT:

• accommodation (two c’s, two m’s)
• accidentally (not accidently)
• accomplish (not accomodate)
• apparently
• committee (two m’s, two t’s)
• definitely
• disappoint
• separate (not seperate)
• necessary (one c, two s’s: ne-ce-ss-ar-y)
• occasion (two c’s)
• opportunity (two p’s)
• possession (two s’s, two s’s)
• privilege (not privelege)
• questionnaire
• recommended
• referred
• succeed (not suceed)

Academic and Scientific Vocabulary — High Frequency Words:

For ECAT’s technical passages (often physics, chemistry, biology):

• hypothesis (testable explanation), empirical (based on observation), correlate (to show relationship), causation (cause and effect — not the same as correlation)
• quantify (express as number), qualitative (descriptive), quantitative (numerical)
• synthesis (combining to form), analysis (breaking down), equilibrium (balanced state)
• spontaneous (occurring without apparent cause), kinetic (relating to motion), potential (stored, capable of becoming)
• catalyst (speeds reaction, unchanged), inhibitor (slows reaction), substrate (material acted upon)
• homogeneous (uniform throughout) vs. heterogeneous (non-uniform)

Context Clues — How to Use Them:

1. Definition clues: The word is explained immediately. “A catalyst, a substance that speeds up a chemical reaction without being consumed, is essential here.”

2. Example clues: Introduced by “such as,” “for example,” “including.” “Many elements, such as sodium and potassium, are highly reactive.”

3. Contrast clues: Opposites indicated by “but,” “however,” “unlike,” “although.” “Unlike endothermic reactions, which absorb heat, exothermic reactions release it.”

4. Inference clues: The overall meaning of the passage suggests the word. Read the surrounding sentences carefully.

Word Roots from Latin and Greek:

Root	Meaning	Example
alter	other	alternative, alter ego
anim	life, spirit	animate, unanimous
aqua	water	aquarium, aquatic
aud	hear	audience, audible
bio	life	biology, biography
cap/capt	take, hold	capture, capacity
chron	time	chronology, chronic
dict	say	dictate, predict
duc/duct	lead	conduct, induce
fac/fact	make, do	factory, factory
fer	carry	transfer, conifer
fid	trust	confidence, fiduciary
fin	end, limit	finish, infinite
frag/fract	break	fragile, fracture
gen	produce, kind	generate, generic
grad	step, degree	gradual, graduate
graph	write	graphic, biography
grav	heavy, serious	gravity, grave
ject	throw	reject, projectile
loc	place	location, locomotive
log	word, study	dialogue, psychology
luc	light	lucid, translucent
man	hand	manual, manufacture
mar	sea	marine, submarine
med	middle	median, mediocre
mit/miss	send	transmit, missile
mot	move	motor, motivate
mut	change	mutation, commute
noc/nox	harm	innocent (not harmful), noxious
nov	new	novel, innovation
numer	number	numerous, numerator
ology	study of	geology, pathology
oper	work	operation, cooperate
opt	eye, choice	optic, option
pend	hang	depend, pendant
port	carry	portable, export
pos	place	position, deposit
psych	mind	psychology, psyche
pub	people	public, publish
quer/quest	seek	query, request
radi	ray	radiation, radio
scrib/script	write	describe, manuscript
sens/sent	feel	sense, sensitive
spec/spic	look	spectator, specific
sta	stand	stable, stationary
struct	build	structure, construct
ten	hold	tenant, tenacious
therm	heat	thermometer, exothermic
tract	pull	attract, tractor
vac	empty	vacant, vacuum
ven	come	convene, adventure
vert	turn	revert, invert
vid/vis	see	video, visible
vinc	conquer	victorious, evince
vit/viv	life	vital, vivid

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🔴 Extended — Deep Study (3mo+)

Comprehensive coverage for ECAT vocabulary mastery with historical and etymological depth.

Etymology: The History Behind Words

English vocabulary is predominantly derived from three sources: Germanic (Old English — words like “water,” “strong,” “take”), Latin (through Norman French after 1066 — words like “government,” “justice,” “peace”), and Greek (particularly scientific and technical terms — “biology,” “philosophy,” “telephone”).

The Norman conquest (1066) created a split: everyday Anglo-Saxon words for common things (cow, sheep, swine) vs. refined French/Latin words for the same concepts (beef, mutton, pork). This duality characterises English vocabulary to this day.

Connotation vs. Denotation:

Denotation is the literal dictionary meaning; connotation is the emotional or associative colouring. “Stubborn” (negative connotation) vs. “persistent” (positive connotation) have similar denotations but different implications. In reading comprehension and sentence completion, recognising connotation is crucial.

• mischievous vs. troublesome: mischief carries playful, childlike connotations; trouble is more serious
• economical vs. cheap: economical suggests efficient use; cheap implies poor quality
• slim vs. thin: slim has a more positive connotation than thin

Idiomatic Expressions with Word Groups:

• Time: “behind the times,” “ahead of one’s time,” “for the time being,” “at times,” “from time to time,” “once upon a time,” “time and again”
• Mind: “make up one’s mind,” “bear in mind,” “change one’s mind,” “mind over matter,” “out of one’s mind,” “put one’s mind to something”
• Heart: “learn by heart,” “heart of the matter,” “lose heart,” “take heart,” “have a heart,” “at heart,” “by heart”
• Light: “shed light on,” “in the light of,” “light at the end of the tunnel,” “make light of,” “light-headed,” “light-year”

Difficult Word Pairs — Tricky Distinctions:

Word	Meaning		Word	Meaning
allusion	indirect reference		illusion	false perception
appraise	assess value		apprise	inform
bolder	more brave		boulder	large rock
censor	suppress content		censure	strong disapproval
clinch	secure/confirm		clench	close tightly (fist)
coral	marine organism		corral	pen for livestock
decrepit	worn out		decedent	deceased person
defect	flaw; also: desert		deficit	shortfall in amount
discrete	separate/individual		discreet	careful/prudent
elicit	draw out (response)		illicit	illegal
emigrate	leave one’s country		immigrate	enter a new country
eminent	respected/outstanding		imminent	about to happen
explicit	stated directly		implicit	implied, not stated
flaunt	display ostentatiously		flout	disregard (rules)
forego	go before		forgo	do without
human	of the species		humane	compassionate

ECAT Previous Year Patterns:

• Sentence completion: most common question type in ECAT English
• Analogy questions: test word relationships (synonym, antonym, function, etc.)
• Synonym/antonym: direct vocabulary test
• Context-based meaning: reading comprehension passages with vocabulary-in-context questions

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