All You need is 3000 words
You've probably heard of the word "Oxford." We always associate Oxford with prestige, tradition, reputation, and, of course, dictionaries.
Drawing a parallel with the insurance sector, "Oxford" carries similar weight to "Lloyd's" (Lloyd's of London). The contributions of both institutions, each in their own field, are so relevant that it's impossible to dissociate them from their importance.
Founded in 1096 in the United Kingdom, Oxford is the oldest university in the world and the main institution for study and research in the English language. But despite being ancient, it hasn't stopped evolving.
One of its current contributions is recording the evolution of English. Twice a year, Oxford University Press publishes words that have been newly introduced into the official vocabulary of the English language.
For example, "Generation Z" became an official expression in 2020. "Zoom fatigue" entered the list during the pandemic. Last September, "Generative AI" was included in the list of new terms, along with a new definition for "Hallucination" — referring to errors or misinformation generated by AI.
Across the Universe
With globalization in the 1990s, English became the most widely spoken language globally by non-natives and the primary language of the business world.
As a result, English evolved and adapted to the new demands of an extremely interconnected world, without, however, losing its main function: that of bridging distances between people and villages from diverse cultures and interests.
In the early 2000s, as part of its commitment to supporting global English, Oxford decided to conduct a very interesting study.
The university gathered its best specialists and professors for an urgent and essential task. The goal? To define which words are most frequently used in the daily lives of British and American natives and compile them into a list accessible to anyone who wanted to learn to communicate in English more efficiently.
The result was the Oxford 3000, a list of the 3000 most essential words in the English language. The treasure map for those who want to understand where they are and where to start building vocabulary without wasting too much time.
The Efficiency of Modern English
When we look at a dictionary or consider starting a well-known English course, we get the impression that we'll need at least five years to learn to speak the language. And we know that five years is the duration of a college degree.
Meanwhile, emails keep arriving, that Zoom meeting has been scheduled, a foreign person will visit your company, and soon you'll be closing international contracts. In the evening, you want to get home and watch that Netflix series without subtitles.
English is part of our lives, and even more so in the insurance sector. Studying a language for five years becomes a time-consuming process, often without guaranteed results.
Although the process of acquiring English doesn't happen overnight, what we know today is that five years are no longer necessary.
The language has changed, adapting to global needs. It moved away from erudition and became less formal. At the same time, it became more sophisticated, with central words evolving to adapt to various contexts.
An example in insurance English that I particularly like is the word "claim." When translated into Brazilian Portuguese, "claim" can mean "sinistro," "ocorrência," "evento," "perda," "reclamação," and - for insurers - "processo."
Furthermore, "to claim" is also a verb. In Portuguese, specifically in insurance, it means "reclamar" or "fazer um pedido de indenização" (to the insurer).
See how a small word adapts perfectly to various contexts, depending on how it's applied.
This is just one example of how the game of "global English" operates. We learn to use less to say more. Like any game, modern English is a skill. We need to know the main pieces to play better.
Here Comes the Sun
The content of the Oxford 3000 is a reference for the main English proficiency tests. It also serves as the foundation for apps like Duolingo and Memrise.
The list is an excellent resource for optimizing practice time and gaining confidence, as besides showing new words, it helps map what we already know.
Familiar Spelling
For Latin students, the list is especially useful, as many words have a familiar spelling — communicate, discuss, crucial, reference, problem, procedure. This familiarity helps map what you already know intuitively and focus on what you need to understand.
Insurance Professional Advantage
For the insurance professional, the Oxford 3000 brings another positive point. As we live with the English language quite a bit, we tend to recognize between 30% and 40% of the words recommended by Oxford as essential, even as beginners.
Impressive, isn't it? This is great motivation to continue building your vocabulary!
Practical Application
We know that English is a skill. As I discussed previously, if we only read the list, we won't get results. Practice and consistency are non-negotiable factors for developing any skill, and this applies to English.
How to Use the Oxford 3000 to Your Advantage
The Importance of Planning
It's important to make a structured plan that includes practice, mistakes, successes, reading, and writing. The most important thing is to evolve a little bit every day. Allow yourself to practice and let English become part of your routine.
Repetition through Exposure
We need to return to the same set of words several times. Hence the importance of reading a lot, watching series, and optimizing exposure to the language whenever you can.
Context and Personalization
Another very important tip: prioritize vocabulary practice using words in context. And choose the context that is most interesting to you. Personalizing practice is very important. There's no point in learning vocabulary by reading about something that doesn't interest you. The retention of new words, terms, and expressions is more efficient if you practice with something you identify with and enjoy.
Conclusion
For those who already have a practice routine in English, or for those who want to learn to speak the language, the Oxford 3000 is an excellent guide. With a structured plan and content that you really identify with, you'll discover that you don't need to spend 5 years in an English course.
Believe it: your goal of becoming fluent, participating in calls, writing emails, and conversing without getting stuck on words may be closer than you imagine.
