Pronunciation: ˌ lek-si-k ə -l ə - ' z ā -sh ə n
Function: noun
Date: 1949
1 : the realization of a meaning in a single word or morpheme rather than in a grammatical construction
2 : the treatment of a formerly freely composed, grammatically regular, and semantically transparent phrase or inflected form as a formally or semantically idiomatic expression
– lex · i · cal · ize \ ' lek-si-k ə - ˌ l ī z \ transitive verb