Presented in blocked or random form a categorized word list with high-, medium-, and low-frequency members to 160 undergraduates. Free recall tests were followed by category-cued recall or by recognition tests. Accessibility, the probability that the cue itself can be retrieved in the context of a particular recall situation, and availability, the probability that the cue will produce retrieval of the to-be-remembered item, were examined. It was found that (a) in free recall, accessibility and availability jointly determined the effectiveness of cues; and (b) in prompted recall, only availability of cues was necessary. The prompted-recall findings support a 2-phase model stipulating independent retrieval and recognition processes. It is concluded that the retrieval sequence in prompted recall is primarily determined by permanent organization of the verbal store, but priming effects produced by blocked presentation of a list increase a prior retrieval probability. (15 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved)