Weary of Others Lists

As I have previously mentioned I have found some sources which say you need to learn well over 50,000 words to become fluent in a language. I started thinking about my lists that I am creating. I thought i'd have a lot of Nouns, less Verbs and even less Adjectives. Just think in your mind for a moment. How many ways can you describe something you don't like.

Food: In General
Gross, disgusting, nasty, unedible, trash, garbage, terrible, not good

Food: Specific
Undercooked, overcooked, burnt, raw, chewy, greasy

I am coming up with a new theory. It is the "Layered Adjective" approach. You have two ways of describing something. In General and Specific. In General tells wheather you like it or don't like it and Specific tells exactly why you do or do not like it.

You really don't need to learn every single adjective out there. I'd say you could live with using 100 Adjectives. When you think about, most mean the same exact thing. Although some express different levels of emotion, such as: I Don't Like You compared to I Hate You.

After doing some research I have found that the English language has many more ways to express negativity than positivity, but that is neither here nor there. The bottom line is, if you read or hear that you need to learn 100's and 1,000's of words...adjectives to be precise...take it with a grain of salt.

Once you have a solid foundation of adjectives that allow you to express yourself without limitations, then you can proceed to add more complex "Synonyms".