DESCRIPTIVISM AND PRESCRIPTIVISM

Concise Oxford Companion to the English Language | 1998 | 580 words | Copyright

DESCRIPTIVISM AND PRESCRIPTIVISM. Contrasting terms in LINGUISTICS. Descriptivism is an approach that proposes the objective and systematic description of language, in which investigators confine themselves to facts as they can be observed; particularly, the approach favoured by mid–20c US linguists known as descriptivists. Prescriptivism is an approach, especially to grammar, that sets out RULES for what is regarded as correct in language. In debates on language and education, enthusiasts for one side often use the label for the other side dismissively. See CORRECT.

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

MLA
Chicago
APA

TOM McARTHUR. "DESCRIPTIVISM AND PRESCRIPTIVISM." Concise Oxford Companion to the English Language. 1998. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

TOM McARTHUR. "DESCRIPTIVISM AND PRESCRIPTIVISM." Concise Oxford Companion to the English Language. 1998. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O29-DESCRIPTIVISMNDPRSCRPTVSM.html

TOM McARTHUR. "DESCRIPTIVISM AND PRESCRIPTIVISM." Concise Oxford Companion to the English Language. 1998. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O29-DESCRIPTIVISMNDPRSCRPTVSM.html

Learn more about citation styles