ABSTRACT
Chapter 1 discusses the place of vocabulary in the overall linguistic system, and examines the importance assigned to lexis by a range of linguistic theories, including structuralism, generativism, functional-systemic linguistics, cognitive linguistics and construction grammar. Selected frameworks of the overall linguistic ability are briefly reviewed. The chapter also presents various definitions and models of lexical competence and lexical proficiency. It describes the components and degrees of word knowledge, including the familiarity with associated phraseology, but it also approaches the description of the lexicon from a holistic perspective in terms of its breadth, depth, internal structure and access.
