demotic

[ dih-mot-ik ]

/ dɪˈmɒt ɪk /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR demotic ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

of or relating to the ordinary, everyday, current form of a language; vernacular: a poet with a keen ear for demotic rhythms.

of or relating to the common people; popular.

of, relating to, or noting the simplified form of hieratic writing used in ancient Egypt between 700 b.c. and a.d. 500.

noun

demotic script.

(initial capital letter) Also called Romaic. the Modern Greek vernacular (distinguished from Katharevusa).

Nearby words

demos, demoscene, demosthenes, demote, demothball, demotic, demount, dempsey, dempster, demucosation, demulcent

Origin of demotic

1815–25; < Greek dēmotikós popular, plebeian, equivalent to dēmót(ēs) a plebeian (derivative of dêmos; see demo-) + -ikos -ic

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for demotic

Anything but demotic is Amar Bhide's A Call For Judgment, subtitled "Sensible Finance For A Dynamic Economy."
The Daily Beast's Favorite Books of 2010|The Daily Beast|December 18, 2010|DAILY BEAST
The demotic self-deprecation barely masks a vast ambition, which is a kind of deception in itself, or an artifice.
Palin Paranoia Decoded|Tunku Varadarajan|November 23, 2010|DAILY BEAST
An impatient lower court forced her to change it to the demotic “Gregorio,” noting that Venerdi was “a ridiculous name.”
The Week in Rage|Adam Hanft|October 24, 2008|DAILY BEAST
(Physcon) demotic contracts are particularly abundant, but they cease entirely after the first century of Roman rule.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 9, Slice 1|Various

There was another language used by the ancient Egyptians, and expressed in what is called the demotic or enchorial character.
Notes and Queries, Vol. IV, Number 103, October 18, 1851|Various
On another very marvellous narrative on a papyrus in the demotic character, see Brugsch, loc.
The History of Antiquity, Vol. I (of VI)|Max Duncker
Two examples of this decree are known, inscribed in hieroglyphic, demotic and Greek.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 2|Various
There is but little difference between the Hieratic and the Demotic.
Prophetical, Educational and Playing Cards|Mrs. John King Van Rensselaer

British Dictionary definitions for demotic (1 of 2)

demotic

/ (dɪˈmɒtɪk) /

adjective

of or relating to the common people; popular

of or relating to a simplified form of hieroglyphics used in ancient Egypt by the ordinary literate class outside the priesthoodCompare hieratic

noun

the demotic script of ancient Egypt

Derived Forms

demotist, noun

Word Origin for demotic

C19: from Greek dēmotikos of the people, from dēmotēs a man of the people, commoner; see demos

British Dictionary definitions for demotic (2 of 2)

Demotic

/ (dɪˈmɒtɪk) /

noun

the spoken form of Modern Greek, now increasingly used in literatureCompare Katharevusa

adjective

denoting or relating to this

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

demotic

adjective

noun

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of demotic

Examples from the Web for demotic

British Dictionary definitions for demotic (1 of 2)

demotic

adjective

noun

Derived Forms

Word Origin for demotic

British Dictionary definitions for demotic (2 of 2)

Demotic

noun

adjective