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chereme

[ker-eem]
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noun Linguistics.
  1. any of a small set of elements, analogous to the phoneme in speech, proposed as the basic structural units by which the signs of a sign language are represented, and including the handshapes, hand movements, and locations of the hands in relation to the body employed in a particular sign language.
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Compare allocher.

Origin of chereme

irregular < Greek cheír hand (cf. chiro-) + -eme; coined by U.S. linguist William C. Stokoe (born 1919) in 1960
Related formsche·re·mic [kuh-ree-mik, ke-] /kəˈri mɪk, kɛ-/, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018