2025/12/17 by Ellis, Dakota, Babikerali, Samy, Bakikerali, Samy +3
Computer Science · Psychology · #Comprehension #Computation and Language (cs.CL) #FOS: Computer and information sciences #Natural Language Processing Techniques #Natural language #Process (computing) #Second Language Acquisition and Learning #Service (business) #Text Readability and Simplification #Word (group theory)
paper · open access · doi:10.48550/arxiv.2512.15552
published in arXiv (Cornell University) (Cornell University)
openalex publication_date 2025/12/17 · openalex created_date 2025/12/19 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
A General Service List (GSL) is a commonly used resource for language learners to identify important English words. Traditional GSL creation is resource-intensive, relying on linguistic expertise and subjective input. We created our own GSL and evaluated its performance against the New General Service List (NGSL). We found that creating a Specialized Word List (SWL), tailored to a specific text, is a practical method for language learners. Because an SWL is derived from the target text itself, it reaches the 95% coverage required for language comprehension by construction, and it does so with substantially fewer words than a general list applied to the same text: across nine texts spanning fiction, academic papers, and scripts, the NGSL covered 64-85% of each text, whereas a text-specific list reached 95% with far smaller vocabularies. By restricting the SWL process to objective criteria only, it can be automated, scaled, and tailored to the needs of language-learners across the globe.