The majority of L2 vocabulary studies concentrate on learning word meaning and provide learners with opportunities for semantic elaboration (i.e., focus on word meaning). However, in initial vocabulary learning, engaging in structural elaboration (i.e., focus on word form) with a view to acquiring L2 word form is equally important. The present…

Explanations for the well-documented second language (L2) learning challenge of the English regular past include verb semantics (Bardovi-Harlig, 2000), phonetic properties (Goad, White, & Steele, 2003), and frequency factors (Collins, Trofimovich, White, Cardoso, & Horst, 2009). Difficulty perceiving past-tense morphology (i.e., hearing…

This study investigates modality in textbooks designed for learners of English by exploring the frequency and distribution of modal verbs in two corpora--one of authentic native-speaker language and a pedagogical one used by francophone learners of English in Quebec--with a view to identifying areas where added support for learning may be…

There is growing interest in language barriers in health care (LBHC)--interest, that is, in how the quality of health care service delivery might be compromised when patients and health care providers do not share the same first language. This article discusses LBHC as an emerging research area that provides valuable opportunities for researchers…

This study investigated how listener experience (extent of previous exposure to non-native speech) and semantic context (degree and type of semantic information available) influence measures of intelligibility, comprehensibility, and accentedness of non-native (L2) speech. Participants were 24 native English-speaking listeners, half experienced…

Focuses on linguistic interference patterns which impede the progress of Italians learning English as a second language in Canada. (RL)

Suggests that second language learners could benefit from being made aware of the semantic components that unify verbs that display a certain syntactic behavior and the semantic components that exclude other verbs from participating in this behavior. Findings of a study in which production and judgment data on the behavior of "change of state" and…

This study investigated sensitivity to morphological, semantic, and syntactic cues to grammatical gender among 64 students of college-level Italian. Results showed sensitivity to cues in word-final phonemes, but low awareness of gender associations of derivational suffixes. Students had more difficulty dealing with multiple cues, particularly when…

Students of French are now more fluent orally than their counterparts of a few years ago. They are using, however, a more anglicized French. The causes are three: (1) unawareness of the value of words; (2) infrequent use of reference material, specifically the dictionary; (3) lack of adequate knowledge of basic rules. (CFM)

Current colloquial use of the simple past and present perfect shows a tendency of the former to encroach on the semantic field of the latter so that the two may be used in free variation in many contexts. The contexts in which this is not possible are defined, and implications for teaching English as a second language are discussed. (MSE)

In a review of two decades of vocabulary research, it is noted that vocabulary has moved from "poor relation" to "guest of honor" status in language teaching. Research areas include specialized bibliographies, vocabulary acquisition, vocabulary teaching, course materials, and lexicography. Future research directions are suggested, including…

Identifying articles in French (LE, CE, MON, etc.) will be treated in a forthcoming issue of Canadian Modern Language Review." (DS)

Discusses basic models of the processes of translation, second language teaching and learning, and semantization. A judicious use of many procedures is urged, because translation is present in the semantization process regardless of method used. It is noted that considerable research is still needed. (AMH)

Number 12 in a series on problems of French grammar and usage. (DS)

Presents a method, based on a contrastive analysis, for teaching English-speaking students of French how to express concepts of motion in the target language. (AM)