Primary 6 English Vocabulary List: 32-Word Mastery Checklist
This page keeps the historical Raffles Girls SA2 2019 vocabulary bank but changes the learning question from “Have you seen the word?” to “How securely can you use it?”
It is an eduKate learning checklist, not an official prescribed MOE or SEAB vocabulary list.
The 32 Words
quiver, plains, antelope, crept, might, laced, potent, substance, bout, midday, startled, achievement, behaviour, modesty, heaved, indifferently, insult, subjected, treatment, forefathers, heritage, superiority, tolerated, tradition, equality, distributed, fairly, selfishness, intolerable, trait, frowned, machete.
Eight Mastery Checks
For each word, score yourself 0, 1 or 2 on each layer:
- Meaning — can I explain it accurately?
- Grammar — do I know its word class or useful forms?
- Collocation — can I produce a natural phrase?
- Contrast — can I distinguish a nearby word?
- Retrieval — can I recall it without seeing the list?
- Comprehension — can I explain what it contributes to a passage?
- Composition/oral use — can I use it naturally in a new context?
- Delayed review — can I still do this several days later?
0 = not yet; 1 = partly/with support; 2 = independently and accurately.
Worked Example: Heritage
| Layer | Evidence |
|---|---|
| Meaning | cultural, historical or other inheritance from earlier generations |
| Grammar | noun |
| Collocation | cultural heritage; preserve our heritage |
| Contrast | heritage is broader than a single tradition |
| Retrieval | can recall from “inheritance from earlier generations” |
| Comprehension | can explain why heritage matters to a character/community |
| Transfer | can use it in a new historical or cultural context |
| Delayed review | can retrieve again after several days |
High-Value Contrast Set
- heritage / tradition — broad inheritance versus a particular custom;
- startled / frightened — sudden reaction versus fear more generally;
- tolerated / accepted — endured despite dislike versus fuller agreement;
- fairly / equally — justly versus identically;
- modesty / indifference — restraint about oneself versus lack of concern.
Useful Word Families
- achieve → achievement
- behave → behaviour
- modest → modesty
- superior → superiority
- equal → equality
- selfish → selfishness
- tolerate → tolerated → intolerable
- distribute → distributed → distribution
Collocation Check
Complete the phrases:
- a bout ___ illness
- startled ___ the noise
- subjected ___ unfair treatment
- proud ___ one’s heritage
- distributed ___ the pupils
Answers: of; by; to; of; among.
Closed-Book Retrieval
- A distinguishing characteristic: ________.
- A powerful or strongly effective adjective: ________.
- The quality of not boasting excessively: ________.
- Without interest or concern: ________.
- So unacceptable or unpleasant that it cannot reasonably be endured: ________.
Answers: trait; potent; modesty; indifferently; intolerable.
Comprehension Check
Explain what changes in a reader’s mental picture when:
- a person crept instead of walked;
- a person was startled instead of merely surprised;
- someone replied indifferently instead of calmly;
- a situation became intolerable instead of unpleasant.
Composition and Oral Check
Choose four words and use them in a new situation unrelated to the original passage. Then explain why each word is precise. If a simpler word would be more accurate, use the simpler word.
Mastery Tracker
| Word | M | G | C | Contrast | R | Comp | Use | Delay |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| heritage | □ | □ | □ | □ | □ | □ | □ | □ |
| intolerable | □ | □ | □ | □ | □ | □ | □ | □ |
| indifferently | □ | □ | □ | □ | □ | □ | □ | □ |
| potent | □ | □ | □ | □ | □ | □ | □ | □ |
| trait | □ | □ | □ | □ | □ | □ | □ | □ |
Repeat the same eight checks for the remaining words. The useful output is not one total score but a profile showing which layer still fails.
When Can a Word Leave Active Review?
Retire it from active review only when it can be retrieved and used accurately after a delay and after the context changes. Recognition alone is not enough.
Historical Idiom Layer
The original lesson also included idioms and sayings. Keep them as a separate register-and-context study rather than mixing them with ordinary vocabulary. The full idiom explanations are preserved in the Raffles Girls SA2 2019 passage vocabulary guide.
RFE
Make vocabulary mastery visible: locate the weak layer, practise it, retrieve the word, transfer it and verify that it survives delayed review.
For the wider public collection, use the eduKate Vocabulary Lists hub.
Historical Raffles Girls Primary Source Media
