as in linguistic
of or relating to words or language
a dictionary provides lexical information—it tells you what the word "cat" means, not all there is to know about cats
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Recent Examples of lexical
Russian speakers in the experiment proved faster than English speakers at distinguishing shades that corresponded to that lexical distinction.
—
Manvir Singh, The New Yorker, 23 Dec. 2024
Practically, then, the translator reads with an eye to understanding the affordances offered by a text—to re-creating its potentialities, rather than merely offering a lexical equivalent.
—Max Norman, The New Yorker, 7 Dec. 2024
The lexical gap, where untranslatable words are found in one language but not others, can be easily filled by simply borrowing these words, OED executive editor Danica Salazar wrote in the update.
—Peter Guo, NBC news, 27 Mar. 2025
Russian speakers in the experiment proved faster than English speakers at distinguishing shades that corresponded to that lexical distinction.
—Manvir Singh, The New Yorker, 23 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for lexical
Manvir Singh, The New Yorker, 23 Dec. 2024
Practically, then, the translator reads with an eye to understanding the affordances offered by a text—to re-creating its potentialities, rather than merely offering a lexical equivalent.
—Max Norman, The New Yorker, 7 Dec. 2024
The lexical gap, where untranslatable words are found in one language but not others, can be easily filled by simply borrowing these words, OED executive editor Danica Salazar wrote in the update.
—Peter Guo, NBC news, 27 Mar. 2025
Russian speakers in the experiment proved faster than English speakers at distinguishing shades that corresponded to that lexical distinction.
—Manvir Singh, The New Yorker, 23 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for lexical
Recent Examples of Synonyms for lexical
Adjective
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This inconsistency suggests that these models fail to account for linguistic differences in the way humans reason and convey causality.—
Siobhan Hanna,
Forbes.com,
25 June 2025
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With this book, Willy’s style began venturing into aberrant linguistic territory.—
Benjamin Hale
June 23,
Literary Hub,
23 June 2025
Adjective
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Officials said the woman intentionally collided with a semi-truck and tractor and then refused officers’ verbal commands when she was pulled over.—
David Matthews,
New York Daily News,
27 June 2025
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Goalkeeper Joan Garcia has joined from city rivals Espanyol for his €25million ($28.6m; £21.1m) release clause, while Athletic Club’s Nico Williams has agreed verbal terms with Barca, who do not view his €60m clause as an obstacle.—
Pol Ballús,
New York Times,
27 June 2025
Adjective
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Which domains are operationally critical and which are purely communicative?—
Daniel Strauss,
Forbes.com,
20 June 2025
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Geminis are social, communicative, and witty, so give your child a name that can keep up!—
Kara Nesvig,
Parents,
17 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Lexical.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lexical. Accessed 3 Jul. 2025.
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