ABSTRACT
This paper first explores the significance of vocabulary acquisition in English learning and the obstacles encountered by English learners that, although they have mastered a great number of vocabulary, it is still difficult for them to talk freely with foreigners. It then gathers and concludes the studies on context and vocabulary learning at home and abroad. Then it elaborates the learning methods based on different kinds of context. We can learn that: Lexical context can help us understand that the meaning of a word may vary in different collocations. With the help of grammatical context, we know the word meaning can be determined by different grammatical structures. With the help of situational context, we can get the word meaning according to the speech background, the place and the time of the speech event, personal experiences, participants and their relationship. For cultural context, good command of that can greatly improve the effectiveness of foreign language communication.
Keywords：Vocabulary; Context；learning strategy
Contents
1. Introduction 1
2. Overview of vocabulary learning 2
2.1 The importance of English vocabulary learning 2
2.2 The research on vocabulary learning abroad 2
2.3 The research on vocabulary learning at home 4
3. Overview of studies on context 6
3.1 The research on context abroad 6
3.2 The research on context at home 8
4. The application of linguistic context on vocabulary learning 10
4.1 The application of lexical context 10
4.2 The application of grammatical context 13
5. The application of non-linguistic context on vocabulary learning 15
5.1 The application of situational context 15
5.2 The application of cultural context 16
6. Comclusion 17
Acknowledgements 18
References 19
