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EveryLingua

 ·  21 lists  ·  727 words

Society and politics

What is said when more than yourself is at stake.

What holds these lists together

The lists for the words a society uses to talk about itself: in the news, in the debate on migration, in a club, in the question of who can get into a building at all. They belong together because you learn them not in conversation but from what is broadcast and printed, where they arrive thick and fast. And almost every word carries a political meaning beside the literal one. Un député is a Member of Parliament, not anybody’s deputy. La laïcité is usually rendered «secularism», but it names a French legal principle — the strict neutrality of the state towards religion — and a report that translates it loosely misses the argument.

The 21 lists

B2Migration and societyPapers, recognition, belonging — and what hangs on each of them.45 wordsB2Reading the newsThe words that turn up in every headline and every news report.34 wordsB2Politics and societyElection, government, debate — the vocabulary of the news.43 wordsB2AccessibilityWhat makes a building, a text or a page usable.35 wordsB2Volunteering and clubsThe club, the shift and the grant application — work nobody is paid for.34 wordsC1Religion and riteCongregation, rite, scripture — described, not judged.42 wordsC1Social workCase, remit and limit — work done on situations rather than on people.38 wordsC1Politics and diplomacyVoting systems, parliament, the constitution, foreign policy.49 wordsC2The colonial pastThe words it is researched in, and argued over in.32 wordsC2Arms controlTreaties that can be checked, and treaties that cannot.30 wordsC2Spatial planningWho decides what may happen on a piece of ground.27 wordsC2Civil protectionWhat happens before, during and after an incident.28 wordsC2CriminologyHow crime is measured, and what the measuring leaves out.27 wordsC2DemographyBirths, migration, age structure — figures with a very long tail.40 wordsC2DiplomacyThe words with which states talk to one another without talking.36 wordsC2Development cooperationMoney, conditions, and the question of who decides.27 wordsC2Security policyDeterrence, escalation and mandates, described rather than judged.37 wordsC2EthnologyUnderstanding an unfamiliar order without passing judgement on it.29 wordsC2Religious studiesDescribing what is believed without believing it.29 wordsC2Parliament and procedureThe road a bill travels, and the places it stops.36 wordsC2Interest representationHow a position finds its way into a draft law.29 words

Spread across the levels

The category runs across the levels — it is an area, not a difficulty. If you practise it, you can also choose a level at the top of the practice page and then get only the part that sits there.

LevelWordsShare
B219126 %
C112918 %
C240756 %

Practise this category

Multiple choice and gaps, across all 21 lists and all 727 words. Whatever you get wrong comes back tomorrow.