On a picture vocabulary test, 42 hearing students performed better than 42 hearing-impaired students (ages 10-18) in selecting primary and secondary meanings of multimeaning words. Both groups chose primary meanings more often than secondary ones, and both groups' ability to select two meanings of words did not improve with age. (Author/JDD)

Dimensions of word meaning are examined, and a framework for describing and teaching Chinese words in the context of Chinese second language instruction is offered. It is argued that every word has limitations of usage that must be understood before it can be used appropriately. The limitations, or dimensions, include these: connotative (emotional…