polysyllabism
English
Noun
polysyllabism (usually uncountable, plural polysyllabisms)
- (linguistics) The state or characteristic of having or using words containing multiple syllables, sometimes as a stage in the development of language.
- 1936, Martin Joos, "Book Review: The Psycho-Biology of Language by George K. Zipf," Language, vol. 12, no. 3 (July/Sep), p. 202,
- Chinese polysyllabism is a sort of synthesis, or aggregation, or 'addition' of morphemes and their meanings.
- 1936, Martin Joos, "Book Review: The Psycho-Biology of Language by George K. Zipf," Language, vol. 12, no. 3 (July/Sep), p. 202,
- Polysyllabicism.
- 1867, William Dwight Whitney, Language and the Study of Language, Scribner, New York, p. 348,
- Cumbrous compounds are formed as the names of objects and a character of tedious and time-wasting polysyllabism is given to the language.
- 1867, William Dwight Whitney, Language and the Study of Language, Scribner, New York, p. 348,
Related terms
References
- “polysyllabism”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present.
- Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., 1989.