grammar
[ gram-er ]
/ ˈgræm ər /
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noun
VIDEO FOR GRAMMAR
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These lyrics may be catchy, but there’s one, big grammatical error within them. Can you spot it?
QUIZZES
QUIZ YOURSELF ON AFFECT VS. EFFECT!
In effect, this quiz will prove whether or not you have the skills to know the difference between “affect” and “effect.”
Question 1 of 7
The rainy weather could not ________ my elated spirits on my graduation day.
Origin of grammar
1325–75; Middle English gramery<Old French gramaire<Latin gramatica<Greek grammatikḕ (téchnē) grammatical (art); see -ar2
OTHER WORDS FROM grammar
gram·mar·less, adjectiveWORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH grammar
grammar , grandma, grandmotherWords nearby grammar
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
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British Dictionary definitions for grammar
grammar
/ (ˈɡræmə) /
noun
the branch of linguistics that deals with syntax and morphology, sometimes also phonology and semantics
the abstract system of rules in terms of which a person's mastery of his native language can be explained
a systematic description of the grammatical facts of a language
a book containing an account of the grammatical facts of a language or recommendations as to rules for the proper use of a language
- the use of language with regard to its correctness or social propriety, esp in syntaxthe teacher told him to watch his grammar
- (as modifier)a grammar book
the elementary principles of a science or artthe grammar of drawing
Derived forms of grammar
grammarless, adjectiveWord Origin for grammar
C14: from Old French gramaire, from Latin grammatica, from Greek grammatikē (tekhnē) the grammatical (art), from grammatikos concerning letters, from gramma letter
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
Cultural definitions for grammar
grammar
The rules for standard use of words. A grammar is also a system for classifying and analyzing the elements of language.
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.