Gallicism
Americannoun
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a French idiom or expression used in another language, as Je ne sais quoi when used in English.
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a feature that is characteristic of or peculiar to the French language.
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a custom or trait considered to be characteristically French.
noun
Etymology
Origin of Gallicism
First recorded in 1650–60; from French gallicisme; see Gallic, -ism
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"Another forfeit for a Gallicism," said a Russian writer who was present.
From War and Peace by Tolstoy, Leo, graf
English he seemed to write as readily as French, although a strong Gallicism would every now and then slip from his pen, as it slipped from his tongue.
From The Atlantic Monthly, Volume 08, No. 50, December, 1861 by Various
But this association proved so helpless that it could not even hinder the invasion of Gallicism in the eighteenth century.
From The Civilisation of the Renaissance in Italy by Burckhardt, Jacob
This last, however, may be a Gallicism, from étaler.
From The Atlantic Monthly, Volume 04, No. 25, November, 1859 by Various
A phrase introduced from France is called a Gallicism; from England, an Anglicism.
From Practical Exercises in English by Buehler, Huber Gray
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.