Language Comprehenders Mentally Represent the Shapes of Objects

TLDR

The study tested whether language comprehension activates perceptual symbols. Participants read location‑dependent descriptions of animals or objects, then judged line drawings for congruence with the implied shape. Responses were faster when the drawing’s shape matched the implied shape, supporting routine activation of perceptual symbols.

Abstract

We examined the prediction that people activate perceptual symbols during language comprehension. Subjects read sentences describing an animal or object in a certain location. The shape of the object or animal changed as a function of its location (e.g., eagle in the sky, eagle in a nest). However, this change was only implied by the sentences. After reading a sentence, subjects were presented with a line drawing of the object in question. They judged whether the object had been mentioned in the sentence (Experiment 1) or simply named the object (Experiment 2). In both cases, responses were faster when the pictured object's shape matched the shape implied by the sentence than when there was a mismatch. These results support the hypothesis that perceptual symbols are routinely activated in language comprehension.