˜yÐÄvlog

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polysynthetic

[ pol-ee-sin-thet-ik ]

adjective

  1. (of a language) characterized by a prevalence of relatively long words containing a large number of affixes to express syntactic relationships and meanings. Many American Indian languages are polysynthetic. Compare analytic ( def 3 ), synthetic ( def 3 ).
  2. of or relating to polysynthesism.


polysynthetic

/ ˌpɒlɪsɪnˈθɛtɪk; ˌpɒlɪˈsɪnθɪsɪs /

adjective

  1. denoting languages, such as Inuktitut, in which single words may express the meaning of whole phrases or clauses by virtue of multiple affixes Compare synthetic analytic agglutinative
“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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Derived Forms

  • ËŒ±è´Ç±ô²â²õ²â²Ôˈ³Ù³ó±ð³Ù¾±³¦²¹±ô±ô²â, adverb
  • polysynthesis, noun
  • ËŒ±è´Ç±ô²âˈ²õ²â²Ô³Ù³ó±ð²õ¾±²õ³¾, noun
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˜yÐÄvlog History and Origins

Origin of polysynthetic1

1795–1805; < Late Greek ±è´Ç±ô²â²õý²Ô³Ù³ó±ð³Ù ( os ) much compounded + -ic. See poly-, synthetic
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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

This quality, which linguists describe as “polysynthetic,†means that many affixes may attach to a verb—and with each additional affix another layer of story accrues.

From

Kanyen’keha is a polysynthetic language, where a single word can function as an entire sentence.

From

Additionally, many Indigenous languages are polysynthetic; they do not have fixed vocabularies but rely instead on the recombinations of small building blocks of words.

From

Unrelated to any other language, its grammar is complex and its structure polysynthetic; a verb conveys not just action but a wealth of other information.

From

When often repeated on the same plane, the twinning is said to be “polysynthetic,†and gives rise to a laminated structure in the crystal.

From

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