Marginal glosses, dictionary use, and repeated occurrence of unknown words each positively affect incidental vocabulary learning¶
Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · reviewr2·q3
Currency · newest study 2015 · checked against its sources 2026-10-20 (automated, 1 of 1 entry) · not reviewed by a person
Subclaims¶
Reading the evidence codes
q is the design tier, i the impact, n the sample, and the kind with its r
the rigour judged within that kind: what each code means.
This claim: no standardized effect is recorded in observations/ for it yet, so no benchmark reading is possible.
q3 i? Hulstijn, Hollander, and Greidanus found that frequency of occurrence and provision of word meaning through marginal glosses or dictionary use positively affected incidental vocabulary learning. → Restrepo Ramos 2015
Evidence¶
Restrepo Ramos 2015¶
Restrepo Ramos, F. D. (2015). Incidental vocabulary learning in second language acquisition: A literature review. PROFILE Issues in Teachers' Professional Development, 17(1), 157-166. http://dx.doi.org/10.15446/profile.v17n1.43957
q3 · i? · review · r2
Hulstijn et al.'s (1996) empirical study randomly assigned 78 advanced university students of French at three Dutch universities to read a short narrative under marginal-gloss, dictionary-use, or control conditions, testing 16 target words; the review reports positive effects of glosses, dictionary use, and recurrence.
"Findings showed that frequency of occurrence and provision of word meaning through marginal glosses or dictionary use positively affected incidental vocabulary learning"
Discussion¶
Related Claims¶
- The more often learners meet a word while reading, the more likely they are to learn it incidentally; a meta-analysis of correlational studies finds a moderate correlation — possibly the same claim (merge candidate)
- Earlier meta-analyses, as reported second-hand, find that glosses improve L2 vocabulary learning and that text-and-picture glosses outperform single-mode glosses — related
- Tasks with higher involvement load, involving search and evaluation, are conducive to better word retention, with marginal glosses efficient for incidental learning — related
- Reading with marginal glosses is the most beneficial task condition for incidental vocabulary acquisition gains — related
- L2 learners pick up vocabulary incidentally from meaning-focused input, with reading the most-studied mode and listening yielding similar proportions of words learned — a broader claim this one bears on
- Task-essentialness and productive use of new words in goal-directed activity may positively affect vocabulary learning and retention — related
- Incidental vocabulary learning through viewing TV was affected by frequency of occurrence, prior vocabulary knowledge, and cognateness — related
- Viewing a single full-length L2 TV program results in incidental vocabulary learning at the level of meaning recall and meaning recognition — related
Page metadata
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
type |
claim |
id |
marginal-glosses-dictionary-recurrence-improve-incidental-learning |
title |
Marginal glosses, dictionary use, and repeated occurrence of unknown words each positively affect incidental vocabulary learning |
description |
Marginal glosses, dictionary use, and repeated occurrence of unknown words each positively affect incidental vocabulary learning |
status |
review |
evidence_strength |
moderate |
newest_evidence |
2015 |
source_checked |
2026-10-20 |
generated |
by process:wiki-ingest on 2026-09-27 |
trust |
unverified — no one has confirmed this page's content |
sources |
1 — restrepo-ramos-2015 |
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