Basic processes in reading: Semantics affects speeded naming of high-frequency words in an alphabetic script

Previous work on single-word naming in university-level readers has shown t hat semantic factors affect the naming of lour frequency words both in an a lphabetic script like English, which is often irregular in terms of the spe lling-sound correspondences, and in the syllabic Japanese Kana script, in w hich the spelling-sound correspondences are consistent. The present experim ent shows that a semantic factor (imageability) affects naming time to both low- and high-frequency words in an alphabetic script (Persian) when the w ord is opaque (vowels not specified) but not when it is transparent (vowels specified). Other characteristics of opaque words that promote the use of semantics are discussed. At feast in some orthographies, semantics play a l arger role in single-word naming than previously thought.