The effect of contextual synonym instruction in Russian on the vocabulary learning and retention of Turkish RFL students

This article addresses teaching synonyms in Russian as a second foreign language and discusses two methods: simple synonym-matching at the semantic level and finding the appropriate word in context. These two methods were carried out in three stages: sharing the list of synonyms and making preliminary preparations, teaching the words with their stylistic features and usage areas, and practising the shared synonyms. The study was conducted with 35 English Translation and Interpreting undergraduate students at the A2 level who were learning Russian as a second foreign language in Türkiye. This article aims to reveal the effects of the method of finding the appropriate word on the learning process when teaching Russian synonyms. In the study, 40 synonyms frequently used in Russian were identified and applied in both methods. To evaluate learning, the students were given small quizzes prepared for each method’s purpose at the end of each method. In the first quiz, students were asked to find which word could be synonymous with which word through the simple-based matching method, while in the second quiz, they were asked to determine the synonym suitable for the context in the sentence. The quizzes administered to the participants are shared in the sample section, and the results obtained are shared in the findings section with their rates. While the sample was selected, the simple random sampling method was applied. The research data were analyzed via descriptive content analysis. In the conclusion section, the results obtained by comparing the correct, incorrect, and blank word rates of the quizzes applied in both methods are discussed. It is emphasized that in the process of teaching Russian synonyms, the method of finding the appropriate word for the context is quite effective compared with the simple synonym-matching method and has a very positive effect on the language learning process.