lex·i·cal·ize  (l ĕk ĭ-k ə-l īz ′)
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tr.v. lex·i·cal·ized, lex·i·cal·iz·ing, lex·i·cal·iz·es Linguistics 1. To express using a word or words: a language that lexicalizes the concept of time. 2. To incorporate into a language as a new word: a language that has lexicalized expressions from its dialects. 3. To treat (a phrase, expression, or other group of morphemes) as a single word: The word "pick-me-up<" lexicalizes the phrase "pick me up."
lexi·cal·ization (-kə-lĭ-zāshən) n. |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2020 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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.
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