Latinism

[ lat-n-iz-uhm ]

noun

1. a mode of expression derived from or imitative of Latin.

Latinism

/ ˈlætɪˌnɪzəm /

noun

1. a word, idiom, or phrase borrowed from Latin

Other Words From

• an·ti-Lat·in·ism noun
• pro-Lat·in·ism noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of Latinism¹

From the Medieval Latin word latīnismus, dating back to 1560–70. See Latin, -ism

Example Sentences

Plants and animals already had names in indigenous languages, and Linnaeus, in a show of imperialism, renamed them with his Latinisms.

From New York Times

His style, modelled on that of Thucydides and unreservedly praised by Photius, is on the whole pure, though somewhat rhetorical and showing a fondness for Latinisms.

From Project Gutenberg

Only in Africa did “Latinism” fail to take root permanently.

From Project Gutenberg

The pedantic race, in their furious Latinisms, bristling with polysyllabic pomposity, deemed themselves fortunate when they could fall upon “dark words,” which our critic aptly describes “catching an ink-horn term by the tail.”

From Project Gutenberg

All these archaisms, neologisms, Latinisms, compound words, and dialectic and technical expressions, Malherbe set about to eradicate from the French language.

From Project Gutenberg