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Cited by 1,249Reading and Literacy DevelopmentSecond Language Acquisition and LearningLanguage Development and Disorders

Learning Words from Context

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Nagy, William E., Herman, Patricia A., Anderson, Richard C.·1985·Reading Research Quarterly
DOI 10.2307/747758
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Abstract

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11 of 11 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

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  • Learners need to meet an unknown word many times before it is learned.

    “Secondly, learners need to meet an unknown word many times before it is learned (Nagy, Herman and Anderson, 1985; Nagy, Anderson and Herman, 1987; Shu, Anderson and Zhang, 1995; Nation 2001: 237).”

    From At what rate do learners learn and retain new vocabulary from reading a graded reader? (2003) · cites this paper as Nagy, Herman and Anderson, 1985

    The ‘Learning Words from Context’ section says that full knowledge seldom follows one encounter and that word learning often proceeds in small increments. But the Conclusion reports unmistakable learning from one or very few encounters. The claim omits the distinction between beginning to learn a word and learning its full meaning, making repeated encounters sound necessary for any learning. (LLM, conf=0.87)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • Contextualized, incidental exposure to new words leads to vocabulary learning.

    “which supports claims that contextualized, incidental exposure to new words leads to vocabulary learning [62,63]”

    From The Effect of Multiplayer Video Games on Incidental and Intentional L2 Vocabulary Learning: The Case of Among Us (2021) · cites this paper as [62]

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Cites

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Research works printed but not linked: 17

  1. Anderson, R. C., & Freebody, P. (1981). Vocabulary knowledge. In J. Guthrie (Ed.), Comprehension and teaching: Research reviews (pp. 77-117). Newark, DE: International Reading Association.
  2. Beck, I., McKeown, M., & McCaslin, F. (1983). All contexts are not created equal. Elementary School Journal, 83, 177-181.
  3. Boettcher, J. (1980). Fluent readers' strategies for assigning meaning to unfamiliar words in context. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of Minnesota. (University Microfilms International: Catalog No. 80-19516).
  4. In E. Wanner & L. Gleitman (Eds.), Language acquisition: The state of the art (pp. 345-389). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  5. Carroll, B., & Drum, P. (1983). Definitional gains for explicit and implicit context clues. In J. Niles & L. Harris (Eds.), Searches for meaning in reading/language processing and instruction (pp. 158-162). Rochester, NY: The National Reading Conference.
  6. Clark, E. (1973). What's in a word: On the child's acquisition of semantics in his first language. In T. Moore (Ed.), Cognitive development and the acquisition of language (pp. 65-110). New York: Academic Press.
  7. Durkin, D. (1979). What classroom observations reveal about reading instruction. Reading Research Quarterly, 14, 481- 533.
  8. Eichholz, G., & Barbe, R. (1961). An experiment in vocabulary development. Educational Research Bulletin, 40, 1-7, 28.
  9. Freebody, P., & Anderson, R. (1983). Effects on text comprehension of differing proportions and locations of difficult vocabulary. Journal of Reading Behavior, 15, 19- 39.
  10. Gentner, D. (1975). Evidence for the psychological reality of semantic components: The verbs of possession. In D. A. Norman & D. E. Rumelhart (Eds.), Explorations in cognition (pp. 211-246). San Francisco: W. H. Freeman & Co. Gibbons, Ho (1940). The ability of college freshman to construct the meaning of a strange word from the context in which it appears. Journal of Experimental Education, 9, 29-33.
  11. Gipe, J. (1979). Investigating techniques for teaching word meanings. Reading Research Quarterly, 14, 624-644.
  12. Jenkins, Jo, Stein, M., & Wysocki, K. (in press). Learning vocabulary through reading. American Educational Research Journal.
  13. Johnson, D., Toms-Bronowski, S., & Pittelman, S. (in press). The investigation of the effectiveness of semantic mapping and semantic feature analysis on vocabulary acquisition and retention. Reading Research Quarterly.
  14. McKeown, M., Beck, I., Omanson, R., & Perfetti, Co (1983). The effects of long-term vocabulary instruction on reading comprehension: A replication. Journal of Reading Behavior, 15, 3-18.
  15. Nagy, W., & Anderson, R. (1984). The number of words in printed school English. Reading Research Quarterly, 19, 304-330.
  16. Nagy, W., & Herman, P. (in review). Limitations of vocabulary instruction. Urbana: University of Illinois.
  17. Rankin, E., & Overholzer, Bo (1969). Reaction of intermediate grade children to contextual clues. Journal of Reading Behavior, 2, 50-73.

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Authors
Nagy, W. E., Herman, P. A., & Anderson, R. C.
Affiliations
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (US)
Venue
Reading Research Quarterly
Publisher
JSTOR
Published
1985
Volume
20
Issue
2
Pages
233
ISSN
0034-0553 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.2307/747758
OpenAlex
W2027676989
Cited by
1,249
References
11
Citations by year
2026: 23 · 2025: 35 · 2024: 27 · 2023: 36 · 2022: 65 · 2021: 35 · 2020: 76 · 2019: 52 · 2018: 41 · 2017: 47 · 2016: 72 · 2015: 72 · 2014: 71 · 2013: 55 · 2012: 59
FWCI
23.85
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Reading Research Quarterly (publishedVersion)
  • Illinois Digital Environment for Access to Learning and Scholarship (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign) (submittedVersion)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Reading and Literacy Development
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Second Language Acquisition and Learning
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Language Development and Disorders
Keywords
vocabulary development, incidental learning, reading comprehension, elementary school students, eighth grade students, expository texts, narrative texts, vocabulary knowledge, vocabulary acquisition

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