Which term is used for words that may be irregular or high frequency and are learned through recognition?

The term used for words that may be irregular or high frequency and are learned through recognition is "sight words." Sight words are typically words that emerge frequently in reading materials and do not always follow standard phonetic patterns, making them difficult for beginner readers to sound out. Instead, these words must be recognized instantly by sight, which helps increase reading fluency and comprehension.

Teaching sight words is a crucial part of early literacy because it enables children to read more smoothly and confidently. When readers recognize sight words automatically, they can devote more cognitive resources to understanding the meaning of the text rather than decoding each word. This recognition often encompasses a range of words, including common, everyday terms that are foundational for reading proficiency.

While the other terms like compound words, affixed words, and contextual words refer to different linguistic concepts, they do not pertain to the specific practice of learning high-frequency words through visual recognition as sight words do.