Beginner-to-low-intermediate word lists for adolescent learners of Spanish

The beginner-to-low-intermediate word lists for adolescent learners of French, German and Spanish were developed through collaboration between researchers, teachers, and awarding organisations in England. Created to align with the new GCSE subject content requirements – national policy defining the vocabulary and grammar for secondary school language examinations – the lists draw on large, multi-genre corpora and adolescent-relevant materials such as exams, web texts, and young adult literature. Each list contains 1,250 items at foundation level (targeting CEFR A1–A2) and 1,750 at higher level (targeting CEFR A2–B1), selected for frequency, coverage, and pedagogical relevance. Some words are listed only as headwords, while others appear in their inflected forms; this reflects the policy requirement that irregular forms not covered by the GCSE grammar content be treated as distinct lexical items. On average, the lists cover 74% (foundation) and 80% (higher) of corpora representing adolescent language use.

Expanded versions compatible with lexical profiling tools are available to download from IRIS and are embedded in MultilingProfiler. Expanded versions are also provided for lexical profiling. Separate versions were created for listening and reading, reflecting the grammatical scope permitted for each mode under the GCSE specifications. The listening lists include only the inflectional forms covered by the prescribed grammar, while the reading lists incorporate additional derivational forms to represent the wider range of vocabulary that can be recognised in print.

These are the lists for Spanish, which cover 76% (foundation) and 82% (higher) of corpora representing adolescent language use. See also the lists for French and for German.