Getting set up for a vocabulary study program, budgeting your time to make sure you have study time daily, and acquiring the resources you need to support your study can seem like a lot of work. You might feel overwhelmed sometimes at the potential scope of the project (after all, there are well over 150,000 separate words in current use in the English language), so to encourage you we’ve compiled a list of all of the pros and cons of a targeted vocabulary study program:

Pros (from the Latin word pro, meaning “for”)

PROfessional advancement. A well-developed and sophisticated English vocabulary will help you in your career. You’ll have the ability to communicate easily and effectively with both clients and co-workers, and your written documents – whether they’re short e-mails or long reports – will impress your supervisors with their clarity.

PROper PROnunciation. Whether you like it or not, you’re judged not only by the words you use but on how you say them. The quickest way to make people doubt your knowledge is to mispronounce important words. Vocabulary study will give you the skills you need to speak correctly.

PROven results. Studies show that people who are able to read and write at higher levels earn more money overall and have the ability to pass on their skills to their families. Making an investment in vocabulary improvement brings a return in more than money.

Cons (from the Latin word contra, meaning “against”)

CONtinued learning. The more words you know, the easier it will be to read and quickly understand articles, journals, and other publications with information that you need to improve your work skills or expand your knowledge of the world. And the quicker you can read, the more you can read – meaning you’ll learn even more words.

CONversational skills. A large vocabulary brings with it the knowledge of the topics you’ve read about associated with each particular word, and having a broad knowledge base will give you the ability to hold a conversation with anyone, any time.

CONfidence. Most importantly, all of the benefits of a good vocabulary and the knowledge that you can use those words in professional and casual settings, in the proper context and with the correct pronunciation, will give you the confidence to succeed at work and in your daily life.

Well, there you have it – the arguments for and against spending time improving your English vocabulary. Wait a minute, though … on second glance, it looks like there really isn’t a down side to vocabulary study! We PROpose that you CONsider making vocabulary study a part of your daily routine.