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English Lexicon

Linguistic purism

/lɪŋˈɡwɪs.tɪk ˈpjʊə.rɪ.zəm/
nounCEFR C2 (Proficient)Top #45000 frequency
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Comprehensive Definitions & Senses

2 senses
As noun
  1. 1

    The advocacy or practice of prescriptively maintaining a language free from foreign elements, neologisms, or outside syntactic influences.

    "Linguistic purism often manifests as the creation of native-root equivalents for established loanwords."
  2. 2

    A strong adherence to what is considered correct or standard grammar and usage, while rejecting colloquial or modern innovations.

    "His rigid linguistic purism prevented him from accepting widely used modern slang in his writing."
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Antonyms & Contrasting Words (1)

Linguistic Origin & Historical Etymology

Derived from the combination of linguistic (from Latin lingua, meaning tongue or language) and purism (from Latin purus, meaning clean or pure, via French purisme). The term emerged in the 19th century to describe the prescribed practice of protecting a language from perceived foreign influences or corruption.

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10 Global Lexicons: How "Linguistic purism" is said worldwide

Click any language below to open its dedicated Language to English dictionary page with native script & transliteration

🇫🇷French → English

purisme linguistique

Transliteration: pyʁism lɡwistik

"Le purisme linguistique vise à préserver la langue des influences étrangères."

🇩🇪German → English

Sprachpurismus

Transliteration: ʃpʁaːxpuˌʁɪsmʊs

"Der Sprachpurismus lehnt oft unnötige Fremdwörter ab."

🇮🇹Italian → English

purismo linguistico

Transliteration: puˈrizmo linˈɡwistiko

"Il purismo linguistico difende la lingua nazionale dai prestiti stranieri."

🇪🇸Spanish → English

purismo lingüístico

Transliteration: puˈɾismo liŋˈɡwistiko

"El purismo lingüístico rechaza la adopción excesiva de extranjerismos."

🇵🇹Portuguese → English

purismo linguístico

Transliteration: puˈɾistɐ lũˈɡwistiku

"O purismo linguístico procura manter a língua livre de influências externas."

🇮🇳Hindi → English

भाषाशुद्धिकरण

Transliteration: bhasha shuddhikarana

"भाषाशुद्धिकरण विदेशी शब्दों को भाषा से बाहर करने का प्रयास करता है।"

🇨🇳Chinese → English

语言纯洁主义

Transliteration: yǔyán chúnjié zhǔyì

"语言纯洁主义反对过度使用外来词。"

🇰🇷Korean → English

언어 순수주의

Transliteration: eon-eo sunsujuui

"언어 순수주의는 외래어 사용을 배격하는 경향이 있다."

🇯🇵Japanese → English

言語純潔主義

Transliteration: gengo junketsu shugi

"言語純潔主義は外国からの借用語の排除を目指す。"

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