The current study analyzes three locative English prepositions, above, on, and over from a cognitive semantic point of view. Since English is a foreign language for Iraqi students, these prepositions pose a problem for Iraqi university students. The complexity of these three prepositions inspires the researcher to use the Cognitive Linguistic (CL)…

Although retrieval of lexical forms is a prerequisite for language production, research of L2 vocabulary learning has focused much more on meanings and form-meaning mappings than on development of detailed, accessible mental representations of forms. This is particularly true with respect to multi-word items (MWIs). We report an experimental study…

This study combines explicit (pen-and-paper) and sensitive (time-pressured) measures to gauge the impact of three instructional interventions (contextualized input with meaning-focused activities, contextualized input with word-focused activities, and decontextualized input with word-focused exercises) on the learning of 20 L2 French target verbs.…

Recent research on the effects of processing instruction (PI) have incorporated online research methods in order to demonstrate that PI has effects on cognitive processing behaviors as well as on accuracy (e.g. Lee & Doherty, 2019a). The present study uses self-paced reading and a moving windows technique to examine the effects of PI on second…

Expanding the English vocabulary for Iraqi second language (L2) learners is a challenging task. In the present work, Langacker's cognitive linguistic theory of domains (1987) is adopted to provide a new sight into vocabulary learning, and to expand the vocabulary repertoire of Iraqi students. This paper aims at testing the validity of expanding…

The meaning of words can be influenced by their co-occurrences. Semantic prosody (SP) is attitudinal and evaluative meaning inferred from the habitual lexical environment of a word in a corpus. By introducing SP in an English teaching classroom, teachers can reveal more implicit knowledge about language usage and assist students in reaching…

There has been a plethora of studies investigating the effect of semantic relatedness on second language (L2) word learning.However, most prior studies failed to control for the lexical properties of target words, which may be responsible for the mixed results yielded. This study, therefore, sets out to revisit this issue by controlling for L1…

In this study, 92 Iranian intermediate EFL learners (17 to 22 years) took part in 14 sessions in which they were taught L2 vocabulary through three input enhancements, i.e., visual input enhancement, semantic input enhancement, and input flooding. In fact, the selected participants were divided into three experimental groups and one control group.…

To maintain understanding, usage, and interrelations of English vocabularies by Iraqi second language learners (L2) is a challenging mission. In the current study, the cognitive linguistic theory of domains by Langacker (1987) is adopted to provide new horizons in learning vocabulary and qualify Iraqi students with a deep knowledge analysis of the…

Although researchers argue that studying semantically related words simultaneously (semantic clustering) inhibits vocabulary acquisition, recent studies have yielded inconsistent results. This study examined the effects of semantic clustering while addressing the limitations of previous studies (e.g., confounding of semantic relatedness with other…

This study compared the effectiveness of deductive instruction and guided inductive instruction for developing semantic radical knowledge of Chinese characters. The evaluation was conducted through a quasi-experimental 3-week intervention involving 46 intermediate learners of Chinese as a foreign language (CFL). The results indicated that guided…

This study examines the role of explicit instruction in article semantics to L2 learners of English. Two types of generic sentences, expressed by different articles, were tested over time. An instruction group (n = 21), a control group (n = 16) and a native English speaker control group (n = 9) participated in the study. The instruction group…

This experimental study examined the design and effectiveness of embodied interactions for learning. The researchers designed a digital learning environment integrating body joint mapping sensors to teach novice learners Chinese characters, and examined whether the embodied interaction would lead to greater knowledge acquisition in language…

Studies examining decontextualized associative vocabulary learning have shown that long spacing between encounters with an item facilitates learning more than short or no spacing, a phenomenon known as distributed practice effect. However, the effect of spacing on learning words in context is less researched and the results, so far, are…

The present study aims at investigating the effect of noticing on English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students' speaking accuracy. For so doing, 32 Iranian EFL students were selected and randomly assigned to two conversation classes namely, control and experimental groups. Before the treatment both groups had a speaking pre-test. During 32…