Lina wrote:Thanks for the tips. I'm getting better about inferring meanings of words from context, but I still compulsively look everything up, because what if I'm wrong?
For a short, say 100 word passage from Nairn/Colson/Morice, I'm looking up 10-20 words. Whether this is normal, I don't know.
Hi Lina,
what is 'normal' should be no concern to you. What matters is that you are enjoying reading Greek. I think the best way to acquire vocabulary is to read, because context is so important. For example, you memorise the rather huge dictionary entries that exist for words like 'kata' or 'epi', or 'lambanw' but what does that really tell you? You will still need to figure out its meaning by reference to the context. In addition, idiom is at least as important as vocabulary, and you learn this by reading.
Looking up only 10%-20% of words sounds pretty good to me. And the more you read, the less this will become.
I am reading Acts of the Apostles at the moment, and my habit is to read one chapter without any dictionary help at all, and the next one with a dictionary handy to look up words where I have doubt as to the meaning of a part of the story. I don't look up every word to find out its exact meaning as long as I can comfortably follow the story.
Then again, I'm not a linguist, and am neither 'studying' the Greek language nor the new testament; i just like to read books as they were written.
Just my two cents worth.
“Cum ego verbo utar,” Humpty Dumpty dixit voce contempta, “indicat illud quod optem – nec plus nec minus.”
“Est tamen rogatio” dixit Alice, “an efficere verba tot res indicare possis.”
“Rogatio est, “Humpty Dumpty responsit, “quae fiat magister – id cunctum est.”
