Vocabulary Size Test
Tick the words you know in two quick rounds and get an estimate of how many English words you know. The test adapts to your level, corrects for guessing with made-up words and compares your score with published norms for native speakers and learners.
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How many English words do you know?
You will see two short rounds of words, from very common to very rare. Tick every word you know – meaning you could explain it or use it in a sentence. Leave words you have only seen or are unsure about. Some words are made up, so guessing lowers your score.
About 3–5 minutes · 2 rounds · runs entirely in your browser
Tick the words you know. Words are mixed from all difficulty levels.
Known words by frequency band
Review the words you saw
How to use the Vocabulary Size Test
- Enter your age (optional) and choose whether English is your first or a foreign language.
- Press Start the test and tick every word you could explain or use in a sentence.
- Leave words you are unsure about; some are made up and ticking them lowers your score.
- Finish round 2, which focuses on your difficulty level, then press Calculate my vocabulary.
- Read your result: the estimate, how it compares with others and your score for each band.
The frequency bands in this test
English vocabulary follows a steep frequency curve: a small set of words appears constantly, while tens of thousands appear only now and then. Bands at the rare end are wider, because each word there is known by fewer people and contributes less to everyday reading. The example words below are from the test itself.
| Band (word rank) | Words in band | Example words | Who usually knows them |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1–1,000 | 1,000 | house, believe, already | Beginners and young children |
| 1,001–2,000 | 1,000 | journey, forgive, ancient | Elementary learners, early readers |
| 2,001–4,000 | 2,000 | hesitate, obstacle, vivid | Intermediate learners, older children |
| 4,001–8,000 | 4,000 | reluctant, inevitable, tedious | Advanced learners, teenagers |
| 8,001–16,000 | 8,000 | frugal, faucet, gullible | Most adult native speakers |
| 16,001–24,000 | 8,000 | laconic, trowel, umbrage | Keen readers |
| 24,001–32,000 | 8,000 | obsequious, kumquat, soporific | Very wide readers |
| 32,001–48,000 | 16,000 | lachrymose, desuetude, mellifluous | Word lovers, specialists |
| 48,001–64,000 | 16,000 | susurrus, widdershins, zugzwang | Few people |
Word ranks are approximate and based on how often words appear in modern English. A word you know from a hobby or job (such as zugzwang for chess players) can be easy for you even when it is rare overall.
How to grow your vocabulary
- Read widely and often. Most adult vocabulary growth comes from reading: novels, long-form journalism and non-fiction on unfamiliar topics.
- Learn words in context. Note the sentence a new word appeared in, not just its definition.
- Use spaced repetition. Reviewing a new word after a day, a few days and a couple of weeks helps it stick; a flashcard maker makes this easy.
- Study word parts. Common roots and prefixes (bene-, mal-, -phile, -cracy) unlock hundreds of related words.
- Learners: master the top 3,000 first. The most frequent words give the biggest gain in understanding everyday English.
Frequently asked questions
How does the vocabulary size test work?
Words are grouped into bands by how common they are in English (ranks 1–1,000, 1,001–2,000, 2,001–4,000 and so on up to 64,000). The share of words you know in each band is multiplied by the number of words in that band, and the bands are added up. Knowing 5 of 6 sampled words in the 4,001–8,000 band, for example, adds about 3,300 words.
Why are there made-up words?
Made-up words show how often you tick words you don't really know. The test applies the standard guessing correction: corrected share = (share of real words ticked − share of fake words ticked) ÷ (1 − share of fake words ticked). If you tick no fake words, nothing is subtracted.
How many words does the average person know?
A large online study by Brysbaert, Stevens, Mandera and Keuleers (2016) estimated that an average 20-year-old native speaker of American English knows about 42,000 base words (lemmas), with the middle 90% between roughly 27,000 and 52,000. The average rose to about 48,000 by age 60, because people keep learning words throughout life.
What counts as knowing a word?
Tick a word if you could explain what it means or use it correctly in a sentence. Words you have only seen before, or recognise without knowing the meaning, should be left unticked. Being strict gives a more realistic and repeatable estimate.
How accurate is the estimate?
It is a rough estimate. With roughly 80 to 160 real words in total, each band is sampled with only 9 to 18 words, so results can move by a few thousand between attempts. Retake the test a couple of times and average the results for a steadier number.
Does the test count word forms like run, runs and running separately?
No. The estimate is in base words (lemmas), so run, runs, ran and running count as one word. Counts based on every inflected form, or on word families, give different totals, which is why published vocabulary figures vary so much.
How many words do English learners need?
Research linking vocabulary size to CEFR levels (Milton, 2010) suggests roughly 1,500–2,500 words at A2, 2,500–3,250 at B1, 3,250–3,750 at B2, 3,750–4,500 at C1 and 4,500 or more at C2. Knowing the most frequent 3,000 words already covers most of the words in everyday conversation.
Are all the tools on FreeToolCabin tested for quality and accuracy?
Yes! Every tool on our site undergoes automated Q/A testing in real browser environments to ensure high precision, correct output, and zero errors. If you happen to spot a bug or have a suggestion, please contact us at [email protected] and our team will review it right away.