Abstract Language is a defining characteristic of our species, but the function, or functions,
that it serves has been debated for centuries. Here we bring recent evidence from …

Understanding language requires more than the use of fixed conventions and more than
decoding combinatorial structure. Instead, comprehenders make exquisitely sensitive …

Abstract Language exhibits striking systematic structure. Words are composed of
combinations of reusable sounds, and those words in turn are combined to form complex …

Our ability to comprehend and produce language is one of humans' most impressive skills,
but it is not flawless. We must convey and interpret messages via a noisy channel in ever …

Crosslinguistic research on domains including kinship, color, folk biology, number, and
spatial relations has documented the different ways in which languages carve up the world …

Abstract Language is systematically structured at all levels of description, arguably setting it
apart from all other instances of communication in nature. In this article, I survey work over …

Highlights•Key design features of language can be explained as the result of cultural
evolution.•Experiments have found that structure emerges through transmission and …

A defining property of human language is the creative use of words to express multiple
meanings through word meaning extension. Such lexical creativity is manifested at different …

Are the forms of words systematically related to their meaning? The arbitrariness of the sign
has long been a foundational part of our understanding of human language. Theories of …

Functionalist accounts of language suggest that forms are paired with meanings in ways that
support efficient communication. Previous work on grammatical marking suggests that word …