The one-sentence truth: Most vocabulary errors in GP do not come from not knowing a word at all; they come from knowing it approximately.
Approximate knowledge is dangerous because the sentence can still look sophisticated. The examiner sees the mismatch immediately. JC2 students should therefore learn advanced vocabulary through contrasts, collocations and boundaries.
Mitigate
Mitigate means reduce the severity or harmful effect of something. It does not mean prevent or eliminate. A policy can mitigate inequality without removing it.
Exacerbate
Exacerbate means make an existing problem worse. If a problem did not exist before, “cause” or “create” may be more accurate.
Refute
Refute means demonstrate that a claim is false or unsound. Simply disagreeing or presenting an alternative opinion does not refute.
Infer and imply
The writer or evidence implies; the reader infers. Implication travels outward from the source. Inference is the conclusion drawn by the receiver.
Systemic and systematic
Systemic means embedded across a system. Systematic means methodical or organised according to a plan. Systemic inequality is not the same phrase as systematic study.
Ironic
Ironic does not simply mean unfortunate or surprising. It usually involves a meaningful contrast between expectation and outcome, appearance and reality, or stated intention and actual effect.
Inevitable
Inevitable means unavoidable. In social and political writing, this is an extremely strong claim. Most students mean likely, difficult to avoid or highly probable.
Disinterested and uninterested
Disinterested traditionally means impartial or without personal stake. Uninterested means not interested. In GP, “a disinterested judge” should mean neutral, not bored.
Discreet and discrete
Discreet means tactful or unobtrusive. Discrete means separate and distinct. These are different words.
Complement and compliment
Complement means complete or work well with. Compliment means praise. Policies can complement one another; people compliment one another.
Economic and economical
Economic relates to the economy. Economical means avoiding waste or cost. An economic policy can be uneconomical.
Credible and credulous
Credible means believable. Credulous describes someone too ready to believe. Confusing them reverses the meaning.
The precision method
- Define the word in plain English.
- Write one near-neighbour.
- Write one contrast.
- Learn two normal collocations.
- Write one sentence where replacing it with the neighbour would change meaning.
Seven-day misuse audit
Audit old essays for words you use repeatedly but cannot define precisely. Build a personal “danger list”. Those words deserve more attention than new vocabulary because they are already entering your exam writing.
Continue the JC2 GP vocabulary system
Return to General Paper Vocabulary Year 2 (JC2) and Vocabulary for Junior College (JC1–JC2).
Final thought
Advanced vocabulary becomes reliable only when you know not merely what the word can mean, but where its meaning stops.