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diachrony

American

[dahy-ak-ruh-nee] / daɪˈæk rə ni /

noun

historical change.
Linguistics.
1. the study of a linguistic system through comparison of different points in its history; a diachronic approach to language study.
  
  The analysis emphasizes diachrony as a means for understanding sound systems.
2. change or development in a linguistic system over a period of time.
  
  The diachrony of the language suggests that the bare form was the original.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

diachronies

plural

Etymology

Origin of diachrony

First recorded in 1955–60; diachron(ic) + -y ³

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.