Research into vocabulary knowledge often differentiates between breadth (how many words a person knows) and depth (how well the words are known). Both theoretical categories are essential for understanding language learners' lexical development, but how the different aspects of vocabulary knowledge interconnect has not received the same attention…

In this seventh-grade language unit, the study of semantics is introduced by an examination of the relationships between words and their referents, particularly in terms of changes of meaning and degrees of abstraction. Classroom activities are suggested to help students become aware of "language liveliness" and the processes of…