摘要：This study examines the proposition that second language learners tend to map second language (L2) lexical forms onto the existing semantic content of their first language (L1) translations rather than creating a separate semantic network for the second language. To test this, the participants (n=9) responded to three semantic judgement tasks. In the first task, they were asked to state whether the English words can be used interchangeably or not (experiment 1). In the second task, they were provided the words and asked to place them into suitable sentences. Finally, they were given a forward translation task (task two and three are involved in experiment 2). Results showed that older foreign language learners bring their already developed conceptual and semantic systems which demonstrates that the participants are highly influenced by their native language. Additionally, an undeniable effect of context on the students’ performance was observed in the results.In line with these results, the implications were discussed within the psycholinguistic perspective and semantic transfer hypothesis.
关键词：psycholinguistics; semantic transfer; second language; vocabulary acquisition
