| Sumario: | A challenging aspect of foreign language acquisition is learning new vocabulary. Research has demonstrated the benefits of motor action to vocabulary learning, though these findings are rarely translated into teaching and learning practices. In this work, we present a novel paradigm for vocabulary learning in a virtual reality environment, capitalizing on the prominent advantages of this technology as an 'embodied learning' tool. Hebrew‐speaking adults explored a virtual room and learned the Finnish names of 40 daily objects. Every participant learned the new object names under three conditions: (1) Watch‐only: watching the object without performing any movement (2) performing an irrelevant movement or (3) performing a manipulation movement that implied its habitual use. Participants completed a word–picture matching test after each training block, as well as additional word–picture matching and recall tests a week after the initial training session. The overall results demonstrate improved comprehension rates for items that were learned in the manipulation movement condition compared to the irrelevant movement condition, both in the initial learning session and 1 week following it. These initial findings suggest that VR technology may indeed hold the potential to offer a more authentic, multisensory and motor context to efficient foreign language learning. Lay Description: What is currently known about the subject matter: Learning new vocabulary in a foreign language is a challenge to many.Embodied learning, adding meaningful sensory or motor information to learning, has been found to significantly improve memory for new vocabulary.Motor enactment (e.g., hand gestures or object manipulation) is seldom practiced in foreign language courses, as it is very hard to implement in most classroom settings.Virtual reality technology offers a unique opportunity for 'embodied learning,' where the learner can interact and manipulate 3D objects and not just passively view them. What does this paper add to the existing body of research?: We tested the potential contribution of true‐to‐life motor interaction with objects in a VR setting to vocabulary learning.In a VR environment, participants learned the Finnish names for daily objects in one of three conditions: watching a 3D representation of the object, performing an irrelevant hand gesture while repeating the object's name or interacting with the virtual object and repeating its name.Results indicate that meaningful motor interaction with 3D objects contributed to better long‐term memory of the new object names, as revealed in both word–picture matching and recall tests performed a week after the learning session. Implications of study findings for practitioners: Our findings restate the importance of 'embodied learning': enriching vocabulary learning with sensory and motor information.Specifically, the results suggest that adding relevant motor interaction improves long‐term learning outcomes more than adding sensory input (like pictures, audio files or videos), even when embedded in an immersive virtual environment.We encourage teachers to incorporate motor enactment in their language learning classes, either in a natural context or using immersive technologies like VR.
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