Where does “lexis” come from?
Lexis comes from Ancient Greek λέξις, derived from the verb λέγω, which traces to the Proto-Indo-European root leǵ-, meaning to speak or gather words.
lexis (English): The set of all words and phrases in a language;...
Definitions
- The set of all words and phrases in a language;...
Ancestry of “lexis”, step by step
lexis traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Latin lexis
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Latin | lexis | A word |
| 2 | Ancient Greek | λέξις | a saying, speech; word, phrase |
| 3 | Ancient Greek | λέγω | I put in order, arrange, gather; I choose, count,... |
| 4 | Proto-Indo-European | leǵ- | to gather, collect, with derivatives meaning to... |
via Ancient Greek λέξῐς
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ancient Greek | λέξῐς | word; speech, word |