Gallicism
Americannoun
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a French idiom or expression used in another language, as Je ne sais quoi when used in English.
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a feature that is characteristic of or peculiar to the French language.
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a custom or trait considered to be characteristically French.
noun
Etymology
Origin of Gallicism
First recorded in 1650–60; from French gallicisme; see Gallic, -ism
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.
A considerable number of French came over in that manner, so that life in California was then, as now, considerably leavened by Gallicism.
From The Forty-Niners A Chronicle of the California Trail and El Dorado by White, Stewart Edward
With respect to Americanism, Gallicism, and other similar words, there may be some room to doubt.
From The Grammar of English Grammars by Brown, Goold
And this opens a curious question as to how long this Gallicism maintained itself in England.
From The Complete Poetical Works of James Russell Lowell by Lowell, James Russell
After the death of Holberg, the affectation of Gallicism had reappeared in Denmark; and the tragedies of Voltaire, with their stilted rhetoric, were the most popular dramas of the day.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 8, Slice 2 "Demijohn" to "Destructor" by Various
His style is more deeply tainted with Gallicism than that of any other English writer with whom we are acquainted.
From Critical and Historical Essays — Volume 1 by Macaulay, Thomas Babington Macaulay, Baron
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.