Bee but not be: Oral reading of single words in aphasia and alexia

Abstract Three studies are reported of the oral reading ability of language-impaired patients. Part of speech and picturability are shown to contribute to a word's readability. In addition, words whose referents can be easily manipulated (operative nouns) prove easier to read than matched words whose referents are relatively figurative. Comparisons of reading and naming ability were drawn between aphasic patients and patients clinically diagnosed as alexic. These comparisons suggest that for most aphasics reading and naming are mediated by separated mechanisms, with the ability to read being relatively spared; that alexics without agraphia achieve most success with short words, irrespective of part of speech; that alexics with agraphia achieve most success with picturable nouns, even when these contain more letters. In alexia with agraphia, reading and naming occur at a comparable level and may be mediated by identical or similar cognitive mechanisms.