ERIC Number: EJ851475
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2004-May
Pages: 19
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0090-6905
EISSN: N/A
Nouns and Verbs: A Comparison of Definitional Style
Marinellie, Sally A.; Johnson, Cynthia J.
Journal of Psycholinguistic Research, v33 n3 p217-235 May 2004
The present investigation is a study of the definitional style of nouns and verbs in typically developing school-age children. A total of 30 children in upper-elementary grades provided verbal definitions for 10 common high-frequency nouns (e.g., apple, boat, baby) and 10 common high- frequency verbs (e.g., climb, sing, throw). All definitions were coded and scored for semantic content (meaning) and grammatical form (syntax). Results revealed no significant difference between noun and verb definitions for content scores. For form, however, noun definition scores were significantly higher than verb definition scores. A supplementary analysis was conducted to explore development of noun and verb definitions in upper-elementary grades. Input factors, word frequency, as well as theory of the organization of the mental lexicon are discussed in relation to definitional skill.
Descriptors: Semantics, Verbs, Nouns, Syntax, Definitions, Language Processing, Word Frequency, Elementary School Students, Scores, Linguistic Input, Psycholinguistics
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Elementary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A