HOW TO USE THE DICTIONARY

To look up an entry in The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, use the search window above. For best results, after typing in the word, click on the “Search” button instead of using the “enter” key.

Some compound words (like bus rapid transit, dog whistle, or identity theft) don’t appear on the drop-down list when you type them in the search bar. For best results with compound words, place a quotation mark before the compound word in the search window.

guide to the dictionary

ar·che·type

(ärkĭ-tīp′)

1. An original model or type after which other similar things are patterned; a prototype: "'Frankenstein' ... 'Dracula' ... 'Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde' ... the archetypes that have influenced all subsequent horror stories" (New York Times).

2. An ideal example of a type; quintessence: an archetype of the successful entrepreneur.

3. In Jungian psychology, an inherited pattern of thought or symbolic imagery derived from past collective experience and present in the individual unconscious.

[Latin archetypum, from Greek arkhetupon, from neuter of arkhetupos, original : arkhe-, arkhi-, archi- + tupos, model, stamp.]

ar′che·typal (-tīpəl), ar′che·typic (-tĭpĭk), ar′che·typi·cal adj.

ar′che·typi·cal·ly adv.

Usage Note: The ch in archetype, and in many other English words of Greek origin such as architect and chorus, represents a transliteration of Greek X (chi), and its standard pronunciation is (k). The pronunciation of ch in these words as (ch) is generally considered incorrect. Notable exceptions in which the ch is in fact pronounced (ch) include words formed by adding the prefix arch- to an existing English word, as in archenemy or archrival, and also words such as archbishop and archdeacon that date back to Old English, having been borrowed directly from Late Latin and Late Greek.

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

American Heritage Dictionary Products

HOW TO USE THE DICTIONARY

THE USAGE PANEL

AMERICAN HERITAGE DICTIONARY APP

THE AMERICAN HERITAGE DICTIONARY BLOG

INTERESTED IN DICTIONARIES?

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

American Heritage Dictionary Products