Lexical and Syntactic Complexity: Their Impact on Readability in Academic Papers and Implications for Writing Instruction

Abstract

The study of text readability is crucial for academic English writing teaching, as it not only concerns the dissemination and communication of academic knowledge and ideological theories but also serves as one of the important indicators for measuring the writing quality of academic papers. Given that text readability is significantly influenced by lexical and syntactic difficulty, this paper focuses on exploring the direct relationship between lexical complexity, syntactic complexity, and the readability of academic paper texts. Additionally, it proposes timely suggestions for academic English writing teaching. Through a comprehensive review of existing literature, this paper analyzes how lexical features (such as word frequency, diversity, and density) and syntactic features (such as sentence length, subordination, and nominalization) interact to shape readability in academic contexts. It also discusses the implications of these findings for teaching practices, emphasizing the need for discipline-specific strategies, balanced lexical and syntactic choices, and holistic attention to discourse-level coherence. By bridging theoretical insights with practical teaching methods, this paper aims to provide educators with actionable frameworks to enhance students’ ability to produce academically sound and readable papers.