Academic Word List: 12 core words every student meets
B2–C112 words
The Academic Word List collects the words that appear across every university subject, from economics to biology. Learning the highest-frequency items first gives you the fastest return: they show up in almost any textbook chapter you open.
Where you will use it: University reading, lectures, essays and research papers.
Academic Word List — The word list
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| analyse | To examine something in detail to understand it.“The paper analyses three data sets.” |
| approach | A way of dealing with a problem.“We took a quantitative approach.” |
| concept | An abstract idea.“The concept of fairness is hard to measure.” |
| context | The situation surrounding something.“Read the word in context.” |
| derive | To obtain something from a source.“The formula derives from earlier work.” |
| establish | To set up or prove firmly.“The study establishes a clear link.” |
| factor | One thing that influences a result.“Cost was the deciding factor.” |
| indicate | To show or suggest.“The results indicate a small effect.” |
| interpret | To explain the meaning of something.“We interpret these findings cautiously.” |
| method | A planned way of doing something.“The method is described in section two.” |
| principle | A basic rule or truth.“The design follows one simple principle.” |
| vary | To differ or change.“Results vary between age groups.” |
How to study this list
Add five or six of these words a day rather than all twelve at once, keep the example sentence on the card, and review them when they come due. WordNest schedules each word across seven growing intervals — same day, then 1, 3, 7, 14, 30 and 60 days — so the list is still with you months later. Read how spaced repetition works if you want the reasoning behind those numbers.
Studying academic word list pairs well with our academic English vocabulary, linking words for essays and TOEFL vocabulary list, or browse all free English word lists.
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