How many words do you think the average person knows? Everyone remembers the well-known excerpt from the immortal work of E. Petrov and I. Ilf "The Twelve Chairs" about the comparison of the vocabulary of Shakespeare and Ellochka the Cannibal. The same quote can be cited as a confirmation of the hypothesis that the lexicon of a person depends on what this person is like. For example, the vocabulary of an uneducated person or a small child will be several hundred; literate - several thousand.
And such geniuses as Pushkin or Shakespeare will have up to fifteen thousand. By the way, clarifications should be made on the account of the latter. The four-volume Dictionary of Pushkin's Language has 21,191 words. Scientists have calculated exactly this number of words used in all letters and works of the famous Russian poet. The vocabulary of the great English playwright has a little less - about fifteen thousand words. But according to some sources, there are about eighteen thousand of them. In relation to ordinary people, the picture looks somewhat different. But first, let's figure out what a lexicon is. We also define the concepts of passive and active vocabulary. So…
What is a lexicon?
From ancient Greek literal translation means "word", "turn of speech". The exact definition of what a lexicon is is as follows: a combination of words of a particular language, parts of words or a language that a particular person or a certain group of people speaks. Vocabulary is the central part of the language that names, forms and conveys knowledge about any phenomena or objects. In other words, this is a language section that studies words, pronunciation, speech composition, etc.
Passive and active vocabulary
When it comes to a certain set of words that a person uses daily in his speech, which he uses to express his feelings and thoughts, this implies an active vocabulary. The use and combinatorics of such words can be varied. But it is still a "tool" of thoughts, feelings, actions. In the case when a person does not use certain words, but knows their meaning (often very approximate), finds out in a readable text, then passive vocabulary is meant. The passive lexicon includes words of special use: neologisms, archaisms, borrowed words, many dialectisms, and the like.
Number of words in lexicon
It should be noted, returning to the question,what is a lexicon, that active and passive dictionaries are individual for each person. It depends on the age, profession, general cultural level, personal qualities, tastes and even the place of residence of a person. According to statistics, the active vocabulary of an adult with a higher education is seven to nine thousand words. Passive - twenty-twenty-four thousand. Although in everyday communication we manage with only one or two thousand words. It is said that the possibilities of human memory are almost limitless. Therefore, you can safely increase your vocabulary and learn foreign words, thereby enriching the Russian vocabulary.
