definitions

diachronic

[ dahy-uh-kron-ik ]
/ ˌdaɪ əˈkrɒn ɪk /
|

adjective Linguistics.

of or relating to the changes in a linguistic system between successive points in time; historical: diachronic analysis.

Nearby words

diacetate, diacetic acid, diacetone alcohol, diacetyl, diacetylmorphine, diachronic, diachronic linguistics, diachronism, diachrony, diachylon, diacid
Compare synchronic.

Origin of diachronic

1925–30; < French diachronique (term introduced by F. de Saussure); see dia-, chronic

Related forms

di·a·chron·i·cal·ly, adverbdi·a·chron·ic·ness, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for diachronic

  • The two creations,—the extinct and the extant,—or rather the prochronic and the diachronic—here unite.

    Omphalos|Philip Henry Gosse

  • Now, again I repeat, there is no imaginable difference to sense between the prochronic and the diachronic development.

    Omphalos|Philip Henry Gosse

British Dictionary definitions for diachronic

diachronic

/ (ˌdaɪəˈkrɒnɪk) /

adjective

of, relating to, or studying the development of a phenomenon through time; historicaldiachronic linguistics Compare synchronic

Word Origin for diachronic

C19: from dia- + Greek khronos time
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

Medicine definitions for diachronic

diachronic

[ dī′ə-krŏn′ĭk ]

adj.

Of or concerned with phenomena as they change through time.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.