lexicalize

[ lek-si-kuh-lahyz ]

verb (used with object),lex·i·cal·ized, lex·i·cal·iz·ing.Linguistics.

to convert (an affix, a phrase, etc.) into a lexical item, as in using the suffix -ism as the noun ism.
to represent (a set of semantic features) by a lexical item.

Origin of lexicalize

First recorded in 1935–40; lexical + -ize

Also especially British, lex·i·cal·ise .

Other words from lexicalize

lex·i·cal·i·za·tion, noun

Words Nearby lexicalize

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

British Dictionary definitions for lexicalize

lexicalize

lexicalise

/ (ˈlɛksɪkəˌlaɪz) /

verb

linguistics to form (a word or lexeme) or (of a word or lexeme) to be formed from constituent morphemes, words, or lexemes, as to form cannot from can and not

Derived forms of lexicalize

lexicalization or lexicalisation, noun

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

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