Three approaches to vocabulary presentation in the second language classroom are described. The examples used are drawn largely from German, Russian, French, Latin, and Greek, but they can be extended to all commonly taught languages, although certain approaches are particularly suited to specific languages. In addition, the goals of a particular course must be taken into consideration when deciding on a particular approach. The "root" approach takes advantage of the natural system found in Indo-European languages which consists of roots, prefixes, and suffixes. The "etymological/mnemonic" approach connects a new item with one already existing in memory on the basis of logical connection, similarity, contrast, or simultaneous occurence. Direct borrowings and loan translations have been found to be very effective within this approach. Finally, the "topical voabulary checklist" approach is an attempt to provide order in vocabulary by grouping semantically related words. Appendices contain a sample of prefix-root matrices and a sample vocabulary checklist. (AM)