Updated Vocabulary Lists

Updated NCEA Level 1, Level 2, and Level 3 Vocabulary Lists for Asian and European languages were published on the NCEA website in December 2024. The new Level 2 and Level 3 Vocabulary Lists for Pacific languages are expected to be published in late January.

The Vocabulary Lists are valuable resources designed to help teachers and students understand the language expectations for each level, as outlined in the New Zealand Curriculum. They support teachers to understand the language that is appropriate at different curriculum levels for language learners, and what students are required to recognise for external assessments.

Please ensure the updated Vocabulary Lists are used in 2025.

FAQs:

1. Which sections should I use in preparation for external assessments?

The Introduction section provides outlines the purpose and scope of the Vocabulary Lists and includes Notes to Teachers.

The Vocabulary Lists contain language that candidates are expected to recognise for NCEA external assessments, including:

• Target Language to English
• English to Target Language
• Categories
• Grammar and Structures, and
• A Kanji List (for Japanese only).  

2. Which sections provide support materials for internal assessments?

The Introduction section outlines the purpose and scope of the Vocabulary Lists and includes Notes to Teachers.

The language used by students during internal assessment activities (and associated learning opportunities throughout the year) will reflect the teaching and learning of the target language that takes place within the context of each classroom. Teachers may extend the language they include in teaching and learning programmes to items and expressions beyond this Vocabulary List.

The Expressions and Sample Sentences section provides expressions useful for teaching, learning, or internal assessments. This section is NOT intended for external assessments.

3. Where can I find the Vocabulary Lists?  

• At the top of the Teaching section of each Subject page on NCEA.education.govt.nz  
• In the More Resources section at the bottom of each Subject page at NZQA.govt.nz

4. Which Vocabulary List(s) should I use? 

Here’s how the Vocabulary Lists should be used for each language group in 2025:  

Vocabulary Lists to be used

Level 1 - For all languages:

Use the updated Level 1 Vocabulary List for 2025. 

Level 2 - For all languages:

Use the new Level 2 Vocabulary List and the Level 1 list introduced in 2024. 

Level 3

For Chinese (Mandarin), Japanese, and European languages:

Use the new Level 3 Vocabulary List alongside the old Level 1 and Level 2 lists, which they have used in previous years. 

For Pacific Languages and Korean:

Use the new Level 3 Vocabulary List with reference to the content of new Level 1 and Level 2 lists.