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Definition 2024


listeme

listeme

English

Noun

listeme (plural listemes)

  1. (linguistics) An item that is memorized as part of a list, as opposed to being generated by a rule.
    Idioms such as "red herring" are listemes, as are irregular forms such as "geese".
    • 2000, Steven Pinker, Words and Rules, ISBN 0-465-07269-0, page 24:
      A memorized chunk is sometimes called a listeme, that is, an item that has to be memorized as part of a list; one can argue that this book ought to have been called Listemes and Rules.

See also