Why 3,000 words
In a study by Milton and Alexiou (2009), learners of English at B1 recognised about 2,750–3,250 of the 5,000 most frequent words. That makes 3,000 a good target for B1: you can hold a conversation on familiar topics, follow the gist of a simple text and get by when you travel.
Research on spoken language points the same way. Adolphs and Schmitt (2003) showed that 2,000 word families are not enough for everyday conversation, while about 3,000 families cover roughly 95% of the words in spoken English. A word family is a word with all its forms: work, works, worked, worker. Full comprehension takes more: Nation (2006) estimates 6,000–7,000 families for 98% of spoken text. So 3,000 words is not the finish line; it is the point where the language starts to work for you.
These figures come from English; for other languages treat them as a guide, not an exact number. More detail: how many words you need for each level and how many words you need for B1.
How many words a day: 3-, 6- and 12-month plans
Divide 3,000 by the number of days: 90, 180 or 365. The review numbers are an estimate: with spaced repetition, once the system is up and running, you usually have 5–10 times more reviews than new words. The Anki manual gives a similar example: 20 new cards a day eventually means about 200 reviews a day.
| Plan | New words a day | Reviews a day (estimate) | Time a day |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 months | 33 | 170–330 | 50–75 min |
| 6 months | 17 | 85–170 | 25–40 min |
| 12 months | 8 | 40–80 | 12–20 min |
The time assumes about a minute per new word (read the example, listen, say it aloud) and 6–8 seconds per review. Reviews are light in the first weeks and peak in the second half of the plan. For most people the 6-month plan is the best choice: half an hour a day is something you can keep up without breaks. The 3-month plan works if you have an hour a day and an urgent goal, such as a move abroad. For the time a whole level takes, not just the words, see how long it takes to reach B1 and B2.
The 6-month plan, week by week
Order matters more than speed: the most frequent words first, because they show up in every text and conversation, then your own topics. To fit everything into 24 weeks you need about 18 words a day. The last two weeks are a buffer for missed days and a check.
| Weeks | What to learn | Total words by the end |
|---|---|---|
| 1–4 | The most frequent words: pronouns, core verbs (be, have, want, go), numbers, time, family, food | 500 |
| 5–8 | Daily life: home, town, shopping, transport, weather, health | 1,000 |
| 9–12 | People and feelings, work and study, travel, linking words (because, although, so) | 1,500 |
| 13–16 | Your topics: your job, hobbies, a move, whatever you talk about every week | 2,000 |
| 17–20 | Opinions and news, society, common word combinations | 2,500 |
| 21–24 | Words for your goal: an exam, work, study; more abstract vocabulary | 3,000 |
| 25–26 | Few or no new words: reviews, a vocabulary test, reading | 3,000 |
Put each block to work: at the end of each four-week block, try to talk about its topic for a couple of minutes or write a short text.
How to review so words stick
- Space it out. Reviews spread over time are remembered better than the same number of reviews in a row (Cepeda and colleagues’ meta-analysis, 2006). A word comes back after a day, a few days, a week and longer. How it works: spaced repetition and the SM-2 algorithm.
- Recall, don’t reread. In Karpicke and Roediger’s experiment (2008), students remembered words a week later best when they practised by recalling them, not by simply studying them again.
- Learn words in context. Learn each word in a phrase, with its pronunciation: “make a decision”, not just “decision”. That way you also learn how to use it.
- Reviews first, new words second. Short on time? Do your reviews and skip the new words. The other way round doesn’t work.
How NewLexi helps you learn 3,000 words
- A daily plan. The app picks a batch of new words plus the reviews that are due, so you just open the plan and start.
- Word sets in the chat. Ask for words by topic, level or exam, like “B1 travel words” or “words for a job interview”, and get a ready set already split into categories.
- Words in context with examples, audio and spaced repetition.
- Stories and dialogues written for your level using your words, so you meet them in real text.
- Grammar from A1 to C2 with lessons and exercises, sentence building, and writing practice with instant AI feedback.
- AI chat for conversation practice.
- Import words from a photo, Anki or Quizlet, plus Lock Screen widgets for quick reviews during the day.
NewLexi is for iPhone only. It is free on the App Store, with an optional Pro subscription.
