Lexicalize

Lexicalize is a verb that denotes the process of forming a lexeme or attaching a word to a concept within a language’s lexicon. It can mean giving a name to something that previously lacked one, or integrating a new sense or usage into established vocabulary. The corresponding noun is lexicalization.

In linguistics, lexicalization describes how words emerge and become established entries in a language. It can involve derivation, compounding, borrowing, or reanalysis, and it often entails shifting a concept from multiword expression to a single, fixed form. The term reflects both diachronic change (how languages add words over time) and synchronic usage (how speakers deploy new or adapted words).

Examples of lexicalization include turning a phrase into a verb, as with Google becoming “to Google,” or into a noun, such as selfie. Borrowings like kindergarten or tsunami become fully integrated terms. More generally, many technical terms are lexicalized as single entries with specialized senses, even when they originated as phrases or compounds.

In computational linguistics and lexicography, lexicalization refers to the process of mapping concepts to surface word forms, or to the generation of specific lexical items from an abstract representation. It is a key step in building dictionaries, lexical databases, and natural language generation systems, and it interacts with morphology, semantics, and word formation.

See also: lexicon, lexis, morphology, word formation, borrowing.