The development of an appreciation of specific linkages between linguistic and conceptual organization

Evidence from infants and toddlers, and from preschool children learning either English, French, or Spanish as their first language are summarized to reveal the emergence of specific linkages between linguistic and conceptual development. The data suggest that infants begin the process of word learning with a general expectation that words (independent of the linguistic form) refer to objects and object categories. This initial, rudimentary linkage gives way to more specific pairings between particular linguistic forms (e.g., nouns vs. adjectives) and particular types of meaning (e.g., object categories vs. properties of objects). These more specific linkages may depend upon language experience.