Research report Comparison of single-word and adjective-noun phrase production using event-related brain potentials Violaine Michel Lange a,b,c,* , Cyril Perret d and Marina Laganaro a a Faculty of Psychology, University of Geneva, Switzerland b Danish Research Centre for Magnetic Resonance, Centre for Functional and Diagnostic Imaging and Research, Copenhagen University Hospital Hvidovre, Denmark c Department of Scandinavian Studies and Linguistics, University of Copenhagen, Denmark d CerCA (UMR 7295), University of Poitiers, France article info Article history: Received 3 January 2014 Reviewed 21 March 2014 Revised 9 May 2014 Accepted 25 February 2015 Action editor Jean-Francois Demon et Published online 17 March 2015 Keywords: Evoked potentials Language production Multi-word processing Speech production models abstract The present study builds upon findings from event-related potential (ERP) studies of single word production in order to shed light onto the mechanisms underlying the production of dual-word adjective-noun phrases (NPs). In a first experiment, we tested for potential differences elicited by visual stimuli varying in complexity -black and white line drawings, coloured line drawings, and arrays of drawings-in participants producing single nouns. Whilst naming latencies were similar for single noun production between visual stimuli conditions, ERPs differed between drawing arrays and single drawings in a time-window extending beyond early visual analysis. In a second experiment, different participants were asked to produce either single noun or adjective-noun dual-word phrases to black- and-white and coloured line drawings, respectively. Adjective-noun phrase production (2W) resulted in naming latencies 53 msec longer than single noun (1W) production. Waveform amplitude and topographic analyses carried out on stimulus- and response- aligned ERPs indicated that the two conditions differed in a late time-window, with a topographic pattern for 2W lasting from 300 to 480 msec after picture presentation whereas the corresponding pattern for 1W production lasted from 300 to 450 msec. Since this time window has been previously associated with phonological encoding in single word pro- duction, this result suggests that the cost of planning the second word in dual-word pro- duction may be incurred during phonological encoding of the first word. The results are discussed in light of current models of single and multi-word production. © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. * Corresponding author. Danish Research Centre for Magnetic Resonance (DRCMR), Copenhagen University Hospital Hvidovre, Denmark. E-mail address: violaineml@drcmr.dk (V.M. Lange). Available online at www.sciencedirect.com ScienceDirect Journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/cortex cortex 67 (2015) 15 e29 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cortex.2015.02.017 0010-9452/© 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.