This study examines the lexical representation and recall of abstract words by beginning L2 learners of Spanish in the light of the predictions of the dual coding theory (Paivio 1971; Paivio and Desrochers 1980). Ninety-seven learners (forty-four males and fifty-three females) were randomly placed in the picture or non-picture group and taught twelve concrete and twelve abstract words they did not previously know. Subjects performed a recall task on an immediate and a delayed posttest. The results showed that associating abstract words with pictures had a significant effect on their recall on the immediate posttest, but no such effect was found on the delayed posttest. The results suggest that associating abstract lexical items with pictures has a significant effect on memory representation and recall in the short term. The findings also support the predictions of the dual coding theory and show that a concreteness effect can be created for abstract words by associating them with visual images.