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family-tree theory

[ fam-uh-lee tree, fam-lee- ]

noun

, Historical Linguistics.
  1. a theory that describes language change in terms of genetically related languages developing in successive splits from a common parent language, such as Indo-European, as depicted by a family tree diagram.


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Word History and Origins

Origin of family-tree theory1

First recorded in 1930–35

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family treefamily values