Word frequency and inferential processes: what learners of an L2 can tell about it

Abstract This article presents the main findings of a study whose objectives were to verify relationships between word frequency and lexical inferential processes of learners of English as an L2, as well as between word frequency and lexical inferential appropriateness levels. Verbal protocols of fifteen intermediate students of English as an L2 collected while they completed a 21-word inferential task were analyzed. The words were divided into three groups, according to their frequency status. Data showed that (i) the most often used lexical strategies remained the same along the three-word frequency levels, as well as that (ii) a larger proportion of appropriate inferences were seen in the low frequency word category, rather than in the medium and high frequency ones, as initially hypothesized. The findings are discussed in light of the specialized literature in the field.