demotic
Americanadjective
-
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.
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Also called Romaic. (initial capital letter) the Modern Greek vernacular (Katharevusa ).
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 priesthood Compare hieratic
noun
noun
adjective
Other Word Forms
- demotist noun
Etymology
Origin of demotic
1815–25; < Greek dēmotikós popular, plebeian, equivalent to dēmót ( ēs ) a plebeian (derivative of dêmos; demo- ) + -ikos -ic
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.
With a voice that is relatively light and raspy and a delivery both nimble and demotic, Mr. Dale matches his energy to the text in a way that makes for effortless listening.
A slab from the Roman era was also found with hieroglyphic and demotic inscriptions, which may give more clues once restored.
From Washington Post
A series of interconnected short narratives about a group of friends, “Trainspotting” is inventive, scurrilous, gloriously demotic and entirely itself.
From New York Times
He would waffle in demotic English and then answer a charge with a quotation from Seneca.
From Washington Post
Today’s readers, used to the twittering demotic of our age, may need to adjust to this titanic prose-poem’s leisurely, mandarin style.
From Washington Post
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.
