Lexical Chains

How lexical repetition contributes to textual cohesion

Verbs, adjectives, and nouns are often chained throughout a text creating a rich texture of lexical cohesionConcerning the way in which certain grammatical items (such as pronouns) and words can connect a sentence to previous (and, sometimes, later) ones.. Often the chain consists of the same word (for example the adjective "complex" in the text below). In this case the cohesion is simple lexical repetition (reiterationA form of lexical cohesion involving the repetition of word or phrase, or the use of a synonym or shell noun to refer back to something earlier in the text.). There may be words from the same lexical setA grouping of words which have similar or related meanings arranged to show the similarities and differences between the various words in the set. (for example "pizza" and "slice"). In this case the cohesive strength comes from collocationThe tendency of a particular word or phrase to be found in the proximity of another.. Sometimes cohesion occurs through the use of a synonymSame meaning. A word which has the same meaning and use as another. ("reaction" and "process") or even an antonymOpposite meaning. A word which has the opposite meaning to another word. ("complex" and "simple"). Texts may also contain superordinateBeing at a higher or more general level than something else. terms (glutamate is a type of compound; "compound" is a superordinate term).

The text in the animation below is dense with various types of lexical cohesion, as many texts are. Texts written by students of English as a second language tend to be less cohesive in this sense, possibly because their vocabulary level is not rich enough, or because they tend to use odd collocationsThe tendency of a particular word or phrase to be found in the proximity of another.. Improvement can only come by reading a lot and reading widely.

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