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Transcript:

Did you know that there are more than 1 million words in English? I know it’s hard to believe, so keep counting, I mean keep listening. 🙂

Hi, everyone! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

Today I will share with you 9 of the most beautiful words in English. And with the point of view story, you will learn grammar only by listening.

Ok. Let’s start!

In 2010, during a project to search for words in digitized books, researchers estimated a total of 1,000,000 words.

Yeah, I was a bit surprized by this, too, but there’s an explanation for all this. 

First of all, you need to take into account that they have included different forms of the same word. Also, many words are archaic since they are not used in modern English.

 Speaking of archaic words, in the second edition of the Oxford English Dictionary, there are approximately 600,000 defined word forms. But that’s because it includes many old-fashioned words. And also, the dictionary expands every year to keep up with new words being invented.

 However, according to the BBC, the good news is that we only use about 170.000 words in English. 

Yeah. I know. It’s still a considerable number of words, but you don’t need to know all these words to be able to have a conversation in English.

I actually believe it’s a mistake to keep track of the number of words you know. If you want to learn English effectively, remember how you learned your mother tongue.  

And let’s face it, you don’t know all the words that are included in the dictionary of your mother tongue. But that doesn’t stop you from speaking fluently and eloquently.

Let’s not forget that words are a powerful form of communication. I have selected the ones that I consider to be the most beautiful out of all the words in English.

1. Cherish
The word cherish means having a deep appreciation for something or someone.

Example:
“We all cherish our family, our home, our possessions, and I’m sure someone in your life cherishes you and the relationship they have with you.”

2. Demure

We use the word demure when we refer to a person who is shy and polite. A demure outfit is a modest one.

Examples:
“The girl was dressed very demurely for the occasion.”
“Her clothes were too demure for the occasion.”
“The girl was demure.”

3. Ebullience
Have you ever seen some puppies playing? The word that comes to mind is ebullience. Ebullience means excitement and enthusiasm.
Just think of someone who is too noisy, almost euphoric.

Example:
“I remember that when you were a kid, you would always burst into the room with your usual ebullience, and talk to everyone.”4. Elegance
I’m sure you’re smiling right now because this is a word you knew. However, it is still one of the most beautiful words in the English language.

Examples:
“When she entered the room, everyone was amazed at her elegance.”
“We’ll deal with this matter with the utmost diplomacy and elegance.”

(END OF THE EXTRACT).

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