Semitic

[ suh-mit-ik ]

noun
  1. a subfamily of Afroasiatic languages that includes Akkadian, Arabic, Aramaic, Ethiopic, Hebrew, and Phoenician. Abbreviations: Sem, Sem.

adjective
  1. of or relating to the Semites or their languages.

  2. of, relating to, or characteristic of the Jews; Jewish.

Origin of Semitic

1
First recorded in 1810–15; from New Latin Sēmīticus, equivalent to Sēmīt(a) “(a) Semite” + -icus adjective suffix; see origin at Semite, -ic

Other words from Semitic

  • half-Se·mit·ic, adjective
  • non-Se·mit·ic, adjective
  • pre-Se·mit·ic, adjective, noun
  • pseu·do-Se·mit·ic, adjective

Words Nearby Semitic

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How to use Semitic in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for Semitic

Semitic

less commonly Shemitic

/ (sɪˈmɪtɪk) /


noun
  1. a branch or subfamily of the Afro-Asiatic family of languages that includes Arabic, Hebrew, Aramaic, Amharic, and such ancient languages as Akkadian and Phoenician

adjective
  1. denoting, relating to, or belonging to this group of languages

  2. denoting, belonging to, or characteristic of any of the peoples speaking a Semitic language, esp the Jews or the Arabs

  1. another word for Jewish

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

Cultural definitions for Semitic

Semitic

[ (suh-mit-ik) ]


A descriptive term for several peoples of the Middle East and their descendants, including Jews (see also Jews) and Arabs (see Arab-Israeli conflict). Today the term is mainly applied to Jews. (See anti-Semitism.)

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.