criticism
/ˈkɹɪtɪˌsɪzəm/KRIH-tih-sih-zuhm
UK form converted from the US by rule · unchecked/ˈkɹɪtɪˌsɪzəm/KRIH-tih-sih-zuhm
Meaningthe work of a critic
Common meaning: judging the good and bad points
Other meanings: disapproval
Tap a word part to explore
- critto separate, judgeLiddell & Scott, Intermediate Greek-English Lexicon (1889), p. 450 · scan
- icadjective ending: relating to
- ismnoun ending: belief or practice
Journey through time
- Greekκρίνω‘to separate, judge’
- Englishcritic‘someone who judges works of art’
- Englishformed in English from criticcriticism‘judging the good and bad points’ · today
Sources & notes
Meaning: “Meaning” is the sense that emerges from the word’s roots; “Common meaning” is today’s everyday sense. Both written by us.
Pronunciation
- UK IPA: converted from the US form by rule (unchecked). Respelling: generated.
- No UK recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-GB voice.
- US IPA: CMUdict (BSD-2), converted to IPA by rule. Respelling: generated.
- No US recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-US voice.
Origin: Formed in English from critic + -ism.
Dictionary: Skeat (1898), CRITIC, p.143 · scan
Roots
- κρίνω Greek “to separate, judge”
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