lexicon

American  

[lek-si-kon, -kuhn] / ˈlɛk sɪˌkɒn, -kən /

noun

lexica, plural lexicons plural

1. a wordbook or dictionary, especially of Greek, Latin, or Hebrew.

   Synonyms:

   concordance, gloss, thesaurus, glossary

2. the vocabulary of a particular language, field, social class, person, etc.

3. inventory or record.

   unparalleled in the lexicon of human relations.

4. Linguistics.

   1. the total inventory of morphemes in a given language.

   2. the inventory of base morphemes plus their combinations with derivational morphemes.

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lexicon British  

/ ˈlɛksɪkən /

noun

1. a dictionary, esp one of an ancient language such as Greek or Hebrew

2. a list of terms relating to a particular subject

3. the vocabulary of a language or of an individual

4. linguistics the set of all the morphemes of a language

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Other Word Forms

Inflected Forms

noun

• lexicons
  plural
• lexica
  plural

Etymology

Origin of lexicon

First recorded in 1595–1605; from Modern Latin, from Medieval Greek, Greek lexikòn (biblíon) “word (book),” from lexikón neuter of adjective lexikós “of or pertaining to words” + biblíon “book”; see lexis -ic; see also Bible ( def. )

Explanation

A lexicon is the vocabulary of a language or subject. "No-hitter," "go-ahead run," and "Baltimore chop" are part of the baseball lexicon. Lexicons are really dictionaries, though a lexicon usually covers an ancient language or the special vocabulary of a particular author or field of study. In linguistics, the lexicon is the total stock of words and word elements that carry meaning. Lexicon is from Greek lexikon (biblion) meaning "word(book)," ultimately going back to legein, "to speak."

Example Sentences

If you’re chronically online like me, you’ve probably come across a slang-suffix that’s become part of the lexicon despite not being formally added to a dictionary — yet.

From Salon • May 7, 2026

May 8 Ms. Pat reminds me of one of my hilarious aunts, who would get a kick out of the fact that her nickname has entered the lexicon as a catch-all description: “Auntie.”

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 29, 2026

In the lexicon of English cricket, a review usually means a raft of sackings, a meaty document and blaming county cricket.

From BBC • Mar. 20, 2026

Dollar worries definitely dominated the headlines in 2025 with “de-dollarization” entering the mainstream lexicon.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 2, 2026

Rishi was fairly sure he lacked the lexicon to put into words what was happening in his brain—and his body—right then.

From "When Dimple Met Rishi" by Sandhya Menon