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definitions

descriptivist

[ dih-skrip-tuh-vist ]
/ dɪˈskrɪp tə vɪst /
|

noun

a writer, teacher, or supporter of descriptive grammar or descriptive linguistics.

adjective

of, relating to, or based on descriptive grammar or descriptive linguistics.

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Nearby words

  1. descriptive linguistics,
  2. descriptive metaphysics,
  3. descriptive notation,
  4. descriptive statistics,
  5. descriptivism,
  6. descriptor,
  7. descry,
  8. desdemona,
  9. desecrate,
  10. desecration

Origin of descriptivist

First recorded in 1950–55; descriptive + -ist
Related formsde·scrip·tiv·ism, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for descriptivism

British Dictionary definitions for descriptivism

descriptivism

/ (dɪˈskrɪptɪˌvɪzəm) /

noun

ethics the theory that moral utterances have a truth valueCompare prescriptivism, emotivism
Derived Formsdescriptivist, adjective
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