Estimating native-speaker vocabulary size is important for guiding interventions to support native-speaker vocabulary growth and for setting goals for learners of English as a foreign language. Unfortunately, the measurement of native-speaker vocabulary size has been one of the most methodologically contentious areas of research in applied linguistics, with estimates of adults’ vocabulary size ranging from 12,000 words to well over 200,000 words. This book reviews over one hundred years of research, critically examining the methodological issues and findings at each age level from young children to adults, and suggesting solutions. It presents a model organising the factors involved in vocabulary growth and is rich in well-researched suggestions for supporting native-speaker vocabulary learning. It concludes with topics for further research. The research shows that we now have a more stable and coherent picture of what and how much vocabulary native-speakers know, and how this knowledge grows throughout their lives.

The present study, a quantitative lexical analysis, examines the extent to which vocabulary size and lexical diversity contribute to writing scores on advanced non-native speakers' and native speakers' academic compositions. The data consists of essays composed by 104 adult non-native English learners enrolled in advanced second language writing courses and 68 native speaking university students in a first-year composition course. The lexical diversity of the sample essays is quantified by both the Measure of Textual Lexical Diversity (MTLD) and the voc-D while vocabulary size is measured by CELEX word frequency means, three instruments that are available in the computational linguistics program Coh-Metrix 3.0. Writing scores are provided by three independent raters' evaluations according to the TOEFL iBT Independent Writing Rubric. Results from a binary logistic regression reveal that lexical diversity has a significantly greater impact on writing score than vocabulary size (p [less than] .01). Nevertheless, a series of MANOVAs indicate that vocabulary size initially facilitates writing scores at the lower proficiency levels, but it is an essay's lexical diversity that promotes it to the higher score levels. Additional findings from the MANOVAs demonstrate that native speakers' profiles of lexical diversity and size are significantly different from their non-native peers (p [less than] .001). The lexical profiles also differed significantly among the individual score levels of the TOEFL iBT rubric (p [less than] .05). A final outcome from a Pearson's product moment correlation analysis shows that vocabulary size has only a moderate relationship to lexical diversity, suggesting that variation of mid-range vocabulary may be more important to writing proficiency than the use of more sophisticated terms that occur less frequently in natural language. Implications for practice suggest that it is not enough to simply teach vocabulary words in the L2 composition classroom, but also to guide learners in how to employ these words in a varied manner within their writing. Furthermore, the results of this study indicate that teachers should spend more time on helping students use medium frequency words along with synonyms of a similar frequency rather than teaching students infrequent vocabulary, which may appear to sound more advanced.

This book provides pedagogical suggestions for both teachers and learners.

Vocabulary is now well recognized as an important focus in language teaching and learning. Now in its third edition, this book provides an engaging, authoritative guide to the teaching and learning of vocabulary in another language. It contains descriptions of numerous vocabulary learning strategies, which are supported by reference to experimental research, case studies, and teaching experience. It also describes what vocabulary learners need to know to be effective language users. This new edition has been updated to incorporate the wealth of research that has come out of the past decade. It also includes a new chapter on out of-classroom learning, which explores the effect of the Internet and electronic resources on learning. This vital resource for all vocabulary researchers shows that by taking a systematic approach to vocabulary learning, teachers can make the best use of class time and help learners get the best return for their learning effort.

Language researchers and practitioners often adopt tools and techniques without testing whether they really work as they should. This is understandable because most scholars do not have the time or expertise to properly evaluate the usefulness of all instruments, measures, and methods they need. It is therefore critical to have problem solvers in the field who gain the necessary expertise and take the time to scrutinize existing methods, identify problems, and offer new solutions. This volume represents the work of scholars who have done this; it is a collection of the latest advances, developments, and innovations regarding the modeling and measurement of learners’ vocabulary growth curves, current levels of vocabulary knowledge and lexical proficiency, and the patterns of lexical diversity found in their language production. Several of the contributors also address the complex but important relationship between automated indices and human judgments of learners’ lexical patterns and abilities.

With contributions from an international team of leading experts, this volume offers new ways to explore and measure language dominance.