Lexical Leveraging in Novel Word Learning: Different Semantic Properties Support Learners at Different Stages of Development.

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Title: Lexical Leveraging in Novel Word Learning: Different Semantic Properties Support Learners at Different Stages of Development.
Authors: Yuile, Amanda Rose (AUTHOR), Kueser, Justin B. (AUTHOR), Outzen, Claney (AUTHOR), Christ, Sharon (AUTHOR), Stiegler, Risa (AUTHOR), Adams, MaryCarson (AUTHOR), Brown, Barbara (AUTHOR), Borovsky, Arielle (AUTHOR)
Source: Developmental Science. Jan2026, Vol. 29 Issue 1, p1-18. 18p.
Subjects: Toddlers development, Language acquisition, Concept learning, Lexical access, Classification, Perceptual learning
Abstract: Toddlers better retain novel object‐label mappings from taxonomic categories they have more knowledge of. Separately, words for concepts with more perceptual features are learned earlier than words for concepts with fewer perceptual features. Because these factors have only been examined separately, it is unclear whether the effects of taxonomic density stem from differences in structured taxonomic knowledge or simply reflect lower‐level differences in perceptual similarity among concepts. We asked how taxonomic structure and perceptual information jointly contribute to word learning at 24 months old in an ostensive word learning task. We found that semantic category knowledge facilitated word learning. We also found that the availability of perceptual features served as additional supports for word learning by children with smaller expressive vocabularies. This indicates that structured taxonomic knowledge is a better predictor of word learning compared to lower‐level perceptual features at 24 months old. However, perceptual cues may provide additional support for vocabulary growth at the start of development. Summary: We explore how semantic category knowledge and perceptual features jointly influence novel word learning at 24 months old in an ostensive word learning context.Novel word learning was facilitated within semantic categories the toddlers knew more about, when controlling for the availability of perceptual information.Toddlers with smaller productive vocabularies used perceptual features as additional supports for word learning, but those with larger vocabularies did not.These findings show that structured taxonomic knowledge is a better predictor of word learning at 24 months old compared to lower‐level perceptual information. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Developmental Science is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
Database: Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection
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  Data: Lexical Leveraging in Novel Word Learning: Different Semantic Properties Support Learners at Different Stages of Development.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Yuile%2C+Amanda+Rose%22">Yuile, Amanda Rose</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Kueser%2C+Justin+B%2E%22">Kueser, Justin B.</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Outzen%2C+Claney%22">Outzen, Claney</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Christ%2C+Sharon%22">Christ, Sharon</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Stiegler%2C+Risa%22">Stiegler, Risa</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Adams%2C+MaryCarson%22">Adams, MaryCarson</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Brown%2C+Barbara%22">Brown, Barbara</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Borovsky%2C+Arielle%22">Borovsky, Arielle</searchLink> (AUTHOR)
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Developmental+Science%22">Developmental Science</searchLink>. Jan2026, Vol. 29 Issue 1, p1-18. 18p.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Toddlers+development%22">Toddlers development</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Language+acquisition%22">Language acquisition</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Concept+learning%22">Concept learning</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Lexical+access%22">Lexical access</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Classification%22">Classification</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Perceptual+learning%22">Perceptual learning</searchLink>
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  Data: Toddlers better retain novel object‐label mappings from taxonomic categories they have more knowledge of. Separately, words for concepts with more perceptual features are learned earlier than words for concepts with fewer perceptual features. Because these factors have only been examined separately, it is unclear whether the effects of taxonomic density stem from differences in structured taxonomic knowledge or simply reflect lower‐level differences in perceptual similarity among concepts. We asked how taxonomic structure and perceptual information jointly contribute to word learning at 24 months old in an ostensive word learning task. We found that semantic category knowledge facilitated word learning. We also found that the availability of perceptual features served as additional supports for word learning by children with smaller expressive vocabularies. This indicates that structured taxonomic knowledge is a better predictor of word learning compared to lower‐level perceptual features at 24 months old. However, perceptual cues may provide additional support for vocabulary growth at the start of development. Summary: We explore how semantic category knowledge and perceptual features jointly influence novel word learning at 24 months old in an ostensive word learning context.Novel word learning was facilitated within semantic categories the toddlers knew more about, when controlling for the availability of perceptual information.Toddlers with smaller productive vocabularies used perceptual features as additional supports for word learning, but those with larger vocabularies did not.These findings show that structured taxonomic knowledge is a better predictor of word learning at 24 months old compared to lower‐level perceptual information. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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  Data: <i>Copyright of Developmental Science is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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        Value: 10.1111/desc.70087
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        Text: English
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      – SubjectFull: Concept learning
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      – SubjectFull: Lexical access
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      – SubjectFull: Classification
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      – SubjectFull: Perceptual learning
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      – TitleFull: Lexical Leveraging in Novel Word Learning: Different Semantic Properties Support Learners at Different Stages of Development.
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              Text: Jan2026
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              Y: 2026
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