Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Components of Language01:24

Components of Language

269
Language, whether spoken, signed, or written, consists of specific components: lexicon and grammar. The lexicon is the vocabulary of a language, comprising its words. Grammar is the set of rules used to convey meaning through the lexicon. For example, English grammar adds “-ed” to most verbs to indicate past tense. Words are formed by combining phonemes, which are the basic sound units of a language. Different languages have different sets of phonemes (e.g., “ah” vs.
269
Language and Cognition01:27

Language and Cognition

343
Language serves as a bridge between ideas and communication, influencing how individuals perceive and interact with the world. Psychologists have long debated whether language shapes thought or vice versa. This discussion gained grip with Edward Sapir and Benjamin Lee Whorf in the 1940s, who proposed that language determines thought, a concept known as linguistic determinism. They suggested that the vocabulary and structure of a language influence how its speakers think and perceive reality.
343
Language01:16

Language

213
Language is a unique communication system that uses words and systematic rules to organize and transmit information. Unlike other forms of communication, which may involve postures, movements, odors, or vocalizations, language relies on symbols and grammar. This makes human communication distinct from that of other species, who also communicate but do not use language in the same way humans do.
Corballis and Suddendorf (2007) and Tomasello and Rakoczy (2003) highlight the role of language in...
213
Language Development01:22

Language Development

359
Children master language quickly and with relative ease, supported by both biological predisposition and reinforcement. B. F. Skinner (1957) proposed that language is learned through reinforcement, while Noam Chomsky (1965) argued that language acquisition mechanisms are biologically determined.
The critical period for language acquisition suggests that the ability to acquire language is at its peak early in life. As people age, this proficiency decreases. Language development begins very...
359
Directional Terms01:14

Directional Terms

8.5K
Directional terms are essential for describing the relative locations of different body structures. For instance, an anatomist might describe one band of tissue as "inferior to" another, or a physician might describe a tumor as "superficial to" a deeper body structure. These terms often use comparative terms in pairs to trace out the relative locations of one body part to another or descriptions of body tissues like the deeper ones from superficially present with reference to...
8.5K
Concepts and Prototypes01:24

Concepts and Prototypes

139
The human nervous system handles vast amounts of information by translating sensory stimuli into neural impulses, which the brain processes, creating thoughts expressed through language or stored as memories. The brain also synthesizes information from emotions and memories, which significantly influence thoughts and behaviors. This intricate process creates a comprehensive mental picture.
The brain organizes this information using concepts, which are mental categories grouping linguistic data,...
139

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Semantic and Syntactic Language Differences Associated with the <i>FMR1</i> Premutation Genotype.

Journal of neurolinguistics·2026
Same author

Temporoparietal brain structures support sentence processing across the adult lifespan.

Imaging neuroscience (Cambridge, Mass.)·2025
Same author

Verbal working memory and syntactic comprehension segregate into the dorsal and ventral streams, respectively.

Brain communications·2024
Same author

A Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study of Phrase Structure and Subject Island Violations.

Journal of cognitive neuroscience·2024
Same author

An fMRI study of phrase structure and subject island violations.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2024
Same author

Verbal working memory and syntactic comprehension segregate into the dorsal and ventral streams.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2024
Same journal

Co-Registration of EEG and Eye-Tracking in Psycholinguistics and Bilingualism Research.

Frontiers in language sciences·2026
Same journal

The neuroanatomy of Broca's aphasia.

Frontiers in language sciences·2026
Same journal

Editorial: Revisiting a 150-year-old conundrum on the role of Broca's area in language processing: embracing expected and unexpected results.

Frontiers in language sciences·2026
Same journal

Spoken sentence comprehension in Mandarin-English bilinguals: a case against the universal processing advantage of subject-relatives.

Frontiers in language sciences·2026
Same journal

The effect of second language acquisition on central auditory processing abilities and its interaction with HIV.

Frontiers in language sciences·2025
Same journal

Planning sentence production in aphasia: evidence from structural priming and eye-tracking.

Frontiers in language sciences·2024
See all related articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 29, 2025

A Semantic Priming Event-related Potential ERP Task to Study Lexico-semantic and Visuo-semantic Processing in Autism Spectrum Disorder
08:17

A Semantic Priming Event-related Potential ERP Task to Study Lexico-semantic and Visuo-semantic Processing in Autism Spectrum Disorder

Published on: April 12, 2018

10.6K

Lexico-semantics obscures lexical syntax.

William Matchin1

  • 1University of South Carolina.

Frontiers in Language Sciences
|March 29, 2024
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Neuroimaging studies suggest syntax and word meaning processing overlap in the brain. This challenges the idea of separate brain regions for syntax, but the methods may not isolate semantic processing effectively.

More Related Videos

Interaction between Phonological and Semantic Processes in Visual Word Recognition using Electrophysiology
05:38

Interaction between Phonological and Semantic Processes in Visual Word Recognition using Electrophysiology

Published on: June 29, 2021

2.4K
Lexical Decision Task for Studying Written Word Recognition in Adults with and without Dementia or Mild Cognitive Impairment
06:48

Lexical Decision Task for Studying Written Word Recognition in Adults with and without Dementia or Mild Cognitive Impairment

Published on: June 25, 2019

9.2K

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jun 29, 2025

A Semantic Priming Event-related Potential ERP Task to Study Lexico-semantic and Visuo-semantic Processing in Autism Spectrum Disorder
08:17

A Semantic Priming Event-related Potential ERP Task to Study Lexico-semantic and Visuo-semantic Processing in Autism Spectrum Disorder

Published on: April 12, 2018

10.6K
Interaction between Phonological and Semantic Processes in Visual Word Recognition using Electrophysiology
05:38

Interaction between Phonological and Semantic Processes in Visual Word Recognition using Electrophysiology

Published on: June 29, 2021

2.4K
Lexical Decision Task for Studying Written Word Recognition in Adults with and without Dementia or Mild Cognitive Impairment
06:48

Lexical Decision Task for Studying Written Word Recognition in Adults with and without Dementia or Mild Cognitive Impairment

Published on: June 25, 2019

9.2K

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Psycholinguistics
  • Cognitive Science

Background:

  • A recent generalization posits that brain regions involved in language processing exhibit both syntax-related and word-related activations.
  • This suggests that syntactic/combinatorial processing may not be separable from lexico-semantic processing within the language network.
  • This challenges traditional syntax-centric views of language processing in the brain.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To critically evaluate the generalization that syntactic and lexico-semantic processing are inseparable in the brain.
  • To question the adequacy of lexicality manipulation in functional neuroimaging for isolating conceptual-semantic processing.
  • To explore alternative interpretations compatible with syntax-centric views and lesion data.

Main Methods:

  • Review and critique of existing functional neuroimaging studies, specifically those manipulating lexicality (real words vs. pseudowords).
  • Analysis of the implications of the 'lexico-semantic' processing generalization.
  • Consideration of lesion data and its relevance to functional-anatomical dissociations.

Main Results:

  • The notion of 'lexico-semantics' obscures the dual syntactic and semantic nature of words.
  • Experiments manipulating lexicality likely engage both syntactic and semantic resources, confounding the isolation of semantic processing.
  • Existing generalization does not adequately account for lesion data showing functional-anatomical dissociations.

Conclusions:

  • Functional neuroimaging studies manipulating lexicality are insufficient to isolate conceptual-semantic processing from syntax.
  • A syntax-centric view of language remains compatible with observed syntax-selectivity in the brain.
  • Alternative neurobiological mappings beyond specific brain regions can reconcile linguistic theories with neuroimaging findings.