semantic
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semantic
- /sɪˈmæntɪk/
- /səˈmæntək/
Rhymes with -æntɪk
Where it comes from
As noted by the OED, first attested in 1665 as semantick (“relating to divination through the interpretation of signs”, adjective), a learned borrowing from Ancient Greek σημαντικός (sēmantikós, “giving signs; significant”), seemingly coined by English religious scholar and clergyman John Spencer.
The linguistic sense is not attested until 1890, where it is an independent academic borrowing from French sémantique, or possibly a back-formation from semantics, derived around the same time from the same French lemma, originally la Sémantique (“[the study of] semantics”, noun), coined transparently from the aforementioned Greek source by French philologist Michel Bréal in 1883 at his inception of the field. Popularized at the beginning of the 20th century, following the publication of the English translation of Bréal's 1897 book Essai de sémantique.
The colloquial and computer science senses are extended from that in linguistics.
adjective
- Of or relating to semantics or the meanings of words.
- Reflecting intended structure and meaning.
- Petty or trivial; (of a person or statement) quibbling, niggling.
Opposite: antisemantic
noun semantics
- In such writing systems as the Chinese writing system, the portion of a phono-semantic character that provides an indication of its meaning; contrasted with phonetic. Its semantic is polysyllabic, viz. it uses the word formations of spoken Chinese.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: meaning, meaningful, verbal, lexical, linguistic, connotative, denotative, referential, interpretive, notional, semasiological, semiological, semiotic, significative, phraseological, ideational
adjective
Opposite: antisemantic
Translations
Every language
adj of or relating to semantics or the meanings of words
| Español | semántico |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 시멘틱 simentik |
| 日本語 | 意味的な imiteki na |
| हिन्दी | अर्थसंबंधी arthasambandhī |
| Português | semântico |
| Français | sémantique |
| Deutsch | semantisch |
| Italiano | semantico |
| Ελληνικά | σημασιολογικός simasiologikós |
| Română | semantic |
| Русский | семанти́ческий semantíčeskij |
| العربية | دَلَالَات الأَلفَاظ |
Talk about this word "semantic." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/semantic. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. semantic. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/semantic "semantic." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/semantic.Cite this
@misc{semantic_2026,
title = {semantic},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/semantic},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
