Language Acquisition
• Scientists gain an understanding of how language is learned through an understanding of semantics. Because semantics is the study of the meaning of words, the study of this discipline is closely related to language acquisition. Language is learned at first by the replication of sounds for verbal speech and images for written. Eventually however, those sounds and images need to be assigned meaning, which is the area of semantics. People learn the meaning of words in a basic fashion at first, but then as facility with a language grows, more complex meanings emerge. Semantics explains the various types of meaning that exist within a language, granting insight into how a person builds ability and understanding with that language.