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“Bread and butter” or “butter and bread”? Nonnatives’ processing of novel lexical patterns in context

Sonbul, Suhad; El-Dakhs, Dina Abdel Salam; Conklin, Kathy; Carrol, Gareth

“Bread and butter” or “butter and bread”? Nonnatives’ processing of novel lexical patterns in context Thumbnail


Authors

Suhad Sonbul

Dina Abdel Salam El-Dakhs

KATHY CONKLIN K.CONKLIN@NOTTINGHAM.AC.UK
Professor of Psycholinguistics

Gareth Carrol



Abstract

Little is known about how non-native speakers process novel language patterns in the input they encounter. The present study examines whether non-natives develop a sensitivity to novel binomials and their ordering preference from context. Thirty-nine non-native speakers of English (L1 Arabic) read three short stories seeded with existing binomials (black and white) and novel ones (bags and coats) while their eye movements were monitored. The existing binomials appeared once in their forward (conventional) form and once in their reversed form. The novel binomials appeared in their experimentally defined forward form in different frequency conditions (two vs. four encounters) and once in the reversed form. Results showed no advantage for existing binomials over their reversed forms. For the novel binomials, the non-native speakers read subsequent encounters significantly faster than initial ones for both frequency conditions. More importantly, the final reversed form also led to faster reading, suggesting that L2 speakers process the reversed form of a novel binomial as another encounter, ignoring the established order.

Citation

Sonbul, S., El-Dakhs, D. A. S., Conklin, K., & Carrol, G. (2023). “Bread and butter” or “butter and bread”? Nonnatives’ processing of novel lexical patterns in context. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 45(2), 370-392. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0272263122000237

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date May 27, 2022
Online Publication Date Jun 22, 2022
Publication Date 2023-05
Deposit Date Jun 27, 2022
Publicly Available Date Mar 28, 2024
Journal Studies in Second Language Acquisition
Print ISSN 0272-2631
Electronic ISSN 1470-1545
Publisher Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 45
Issue 2
Pages 370-392
DOI https://doi.org/10.1017/s0272263122000237
Keywords binomials, L2, processing, eye-tracking, formulaic language, multiword sequence
Public URL https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/8636680
Publisher URL https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/studies-in-second-language-acquisition/article/abs/bread-and-butter-or-butter-and-bread-nonnatives-processing-of-novel-lexical-patterns-in-context/63CAA8F7C570651B50A51E54183B9E97
Additional Information Copyright: © The Author(s), 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press

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