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lexica

 - 4 dictionary results

lex⋅i⋅con

  [lek-si-kon, -kuhn]
Use lexica in a Sentence
–noun, plural lex⋅i⋅ca  [lek-si-kuh] , lex⋅i⋅cons.
1. a wordbook or dictionary, esp. of Greek, Latin, or Hebrew.
2. the vocabulary of a particular language, field, social class, person, etc.
3. inventory or record: unparalleled in the lexicon of human relations.
4. Linguistics.
a. the total inventory of morphemes in a given language.
b. the inventory of base morphemes plus their combinations with derivational morphemes.
Origin:
1595–1605; < ML < MGk, Gk lexikón, n. use of neut. of lexikós of words, equiv. to léx(is) speech, word (see lexis ) + -ikos -ic

Synonyms:
1. glossary, thesaurus, gloss, concordance.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To lexica
lex·i·ca   (lěk'sĭ-kə)   
n.  A plural of lexicon.
lex·i·con   (lěk'sĭ-kŏn')   
n.   pl. lex·i·cons or lex·i·ca (-kə)

  1. A dictionary.

  2. A stock of terms used in a particular profession, subject, or style; a vocabulary: the lexicon of surrealist art.

  3. Linguistics The morphemes of a language considered as a group.


[Medieval Latin, from Greek lexikon (biblion), word(book), from neuter of lexikos, of words, from lexis, word, from legein, to speak; see leg- in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

lexicon 
1603, "a dictionary," from Mod.L., from Gk. lexikon (biblion) "word (book)," from neut. of lexikos "pertaining to words," from lexis "word," from legein "say" (see lecture). Used originally of dictionaries of Gk., Syriac, Hebrew and Arabic, since these usually were in Latin and in Mod.L. lexicon, not dictionarius, was the preferred word. The modern sense of "vocabulary proper to some sphere of activity" (1647) is a fig. extension.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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