barbarism: Meaning and Definition of

bar•ba•rism

Pronunciation: (bär'bu-riz"um), [key]
— n.
  1. a barbarous or uncivilized state or condition.
  2. a barbarous act; something belonging to or befitting a barbarous condition.
  3. the use in a language of forms or constructions felt by some to be undesirably alien to the established standards of the language.
  4. such a form or construction: Some people consider “complected” as a barbarism.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.
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